Author: Samuel Blankson
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 190578998X
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 91
Book Description
Buying a Web site is only the start of finding success on the Internet. Being found by Web users on Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AltaVista, AOL, Alltheweb, Fast, GigaBlast, Netscape, Snap, WISEnut, and thousands of other search engines is the next major hurdle. This edition describes how to optimize Web sites titles, headings, Meta Tags, and more to maximize the effectiveness of how search engines view and rank the Web sites relevance to keyword searches. (Computer Books - Internet)
Meta Tags
Author: Samuel Blankson
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 190578998X
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 91
Book Description
Buying a Web site is only the start of finding success on the Internet. Being found by Web users on Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AltaVista, AOL, Alltheweb, Fast, GigaBlast, Netscape, Snap, WISEnut, and thousands of other search engines is the next major hurdle. This edition describes how to optimize Web sites titles, headings, Meta Tags, and more to maximize the effectiveness of how search engines view and rank the Web sites relevance to keyword searches. (Computer Books - Internet)
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 190578998X
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 91
Book Description
Buying a Web site is only the start of finding success on the Internet. Being found by Web users on Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AltaVista, AOL, Alltheweb, Fast, GigaBlast, Netscape, Snap, WISEnut, and thousands of other search engines is the next major hurdle. This edition describes how to optimize Web sites titles, headings, Meta Tags, and more to maximize the effectiveness of how search engines view and rank the Web sites relevance to keyword searches. (Computer Books - Internet)
Metahuman
Author: Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Publisher: Harmony
ISBN: 0307338339
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
Is it possible to venture beyond daily living and experience heightened states of awareness? Deepak Chopra says that higher consciousness is available here and now. “Metahuman helps us harvest peak experiences so we can see our truth and mold the universe’s chaos into a form that brings light to the world.”—Dr. Mehmet Oz, attending physician, New York–Presbyterian, Columbia University New York Times bestselling author Deepak Chopra unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. How does one do this? By becoming metahuman. To be metahuman, however, isn’t science fiction and is certainly not about being a superhero. To be metahuman means to move past the limitation constructed by the mind and enter a new state of awareness where we have deliberate and concrete access to peak experiences that can transform people’s lives from the inside out. Humans do this naturally—to a point. For centuries the great artists, scientists, writers, and many so-called ordinary people have gone beyond the everyday physical world. But if we could channel these often bewildering experiences, what would happen? Chopra argues we would wake up to experiences that would blow open your body, mind, and soul. Metahuman invites the reader to walk the path here and now. Waking up, we learn, isn’t just about mindfulness or meditation. Waking up, to become metahuman, is to expand our consciousness in all that we think, say, and do. By going beyond, we liberate ourselves from old conditioning and all the mental constructs that underlie anxiety, tension, and ego-driven demands. Waking up allows life to make sense as never before. To make this as practical as possible, Chopra ends the book with a 31-day guide to becoming metahuman. Once you wake up, he writes, life becomes transformed, because pure consciousness—which is the field of all possibilities—dawns in your life. Only then does your infinite potential become your personal reality.
Publisher: Harmony
ISBN: 0307338339
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
Is it possible to venture beyond daily living and experience heightened states of awareness? Deepak Chopra says that higher consciousness is available here and now. “Metahuman helps us harvest peak experiences so we can see our truth and mold the universe’s chaos into a form that brings light to the world.”—Dr. Mehmet Oz, attending physician, New York–Presbyterian, Columbia University New York Times bestselling author Deepak Chopra unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. How does one do this? By becoming metahuman. To be metahuman, however, isn’t science fiction and is certainly not about being a superhero. To be metahuman means to move past the limitation constructed by the mind and enter a new state of awareness where we have deliberate and concrete access to peak experiences that can transform people’s lives from the inside out. Humans do this naturally—to a point. For centuries the great artists, scientists, writers, and many so-called ordinary people have gone beyond the everyday physical world. But if we could channel these often bewildering experiences, what would happen? Chopra argues we would wake up to experiences that would blow open your body, mind, and soul. Metahuman invites the reader to walk the path here and now. Waking up, we learn, isn’t just about mindfulness or meditation. Waking up, to become metahuman, is to expand our consciousness in all that we think, say, and do. By going beyond, we liberate ourselves from old conditioning and all the mental constructs that underlie anxiety, tension, and ego-driven demands. Waking up allows life to make sense as never before. To make this as practical as possible, Chopra ends the book with a 31-day guide to becoming metahuman. Once you wake up, he writes, life becomes transformed, because pure consciousness—which is the field of all possibilities—dawns in your life. Only then does your infinite potential become your personal reality.
The Modern Family Cookbook
Author: Modern Family
Publisher: Liberty Street
ISBN: 0848747178
Category : Cooking
Languages : en
Pages : 712
Book Description
Publisher: Liberty Street
ISBN: 0848747178
Category : Cooking
Languages : en
Pages : 712
Book Description
From the hit television phenomenon Modern Family comes an unconventional cookbook that invites you into the kitchen with the quirky characters you know and love.
Packed with more than 100 crowdpleasing recipes, The Modern Family Cookbook is a must-have for every fan's kitchen shelf.
From "Cam's Country-Comes-to-Town Farmhouse Breakfast" and the "Dunphy's Failsafe Roast Chicken" to "Manny's Spectacular Tiramisu," these delicious dishes celebrate the crazy chaos of the family table. Expertly tested recipes are appropriate for cooks of all ages, while colorful food photography and show stills make the book as fun to flip through as it is to cook from.
Of course, family meals aren't just about the food. The Modern Family Cookbook also highlights some of the show's best laugh-out-loud moments with guides, quizzes, lists, and special features. Find out whether you're a parent or a peer-ent, peruse Lily's diva tips, and swoon over Manny's love poems. Ever wondered what it looks like inside Phil's brain? Open this book to find out.
The Modern Family Cookbook is a reminder that you that no matter how crazy family can be, they are still the people you have to feed and sit with around a table. Come for the food, stay for the fun.
META-X®-Software for Metapopulation Viability Analysis
Author: Karin Frank
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3642557236
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
Meta-X is a user-friendly computer program that allows students, teachers, and researchers to perform a metapopulation viability analysis i.e. to assess the extinction risk of (meta)populations on discrete, partially isolated patches of habitat, in a comfortable way. The CD comes with an extensive handbook which explains the basic concept of the program and takes you on a guided tour through a model experiment. It further provides the necessary scientific background on both metapopulation dynamics and population viability analysis. A special feature of Meta-X is that it supports comparative analyses of alternative scenarios. This predestines Meta-X to serve as an aid for decision making in conservation management and landscape planning. Furthermore, handbook and software together provide an invaluable help in research and teaching.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3642557236
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
Meta-X is a user-friendly computer program that allows students, teachers, and researchers to perform a metapopulation viability analysis i.e. to assess the extinction risk of (meta)populations on discrete, partially isolated patches of habitat, in a comfortable way. The CD comes with an extensive handbook which explains the basic concept of the program and takes you on a guided tour through a model experiment. It further provides the necessary scientific background on both metapopulation dynamics and population viability analysis. A special feature of Meta-X is that it supports comparative analyses of alternative scenarios. This predestines Meta-X to serve as an aid for decision making in conservation management and landscape planning. Furthermore, handbook and software together provide an invaluable help in research and teaching.
The Meta-Rise
Author: J.V. Kade
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 110163541X
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 305
Book Description
The thrilling sequel to Bot Wars, perfect for fans of Skylanders! Trout St. Kroix can't believe that his half-human/half-robot father is the leader of the Meta-Rise, the robot civil rights movement. Trout can’t even enjoy being a Bot Territory celebrity, because it also puts his whole family in danger. Ratch, a robot and former friend, has found a way to take control of robot Thinkchips, and under Ratch's control, all bots—including Trout's dad—would become Ratch's drones. CanTrout—and his friends Vee and Tellie Rix, along with brother Po—find a way to stop Ratch before Trout loses his father all over again?
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 110163541X
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 305
Book Description
The thrilling sequel to Bot Wars, perfect for fans of Skylanders! Trout St. Kroix can't believe that his half-human/half-robot father is the leader of the Meta-Rise, the robot civil rights movement. Trout can’t even enjoy being a Bot Territory celebrity, because it also puts his whole family in danger. Ratch, a robot and former friend, has found a way to take control of robot Thinkchips, and under Ratch's control, all bots—including Trout's dad—would become Ratch's drones. CanTrout—and his friends Vee and Tellie Rix, along with brother Po—find a way to stop Ratch before Trout loses his father all over again?
The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything
Author: Matthew Ball
Publisher: Liveright Publishing
ISBN: 1324092041
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 293
Book Description
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER — United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and China (Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Nielsen Bookscan, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, BookNet Canada, Bookseller.com, Bookdao/Nielsen, JD, DangDang) Tim Sweeney (CEO of Fortnite-maker Epic Games): “Matthew Ball’s essays have defined, analyzed, and inspired the Metaverse for years. His book is an approachable and essential guide to the strategic, technical, and philosophical foundations of this new medium.” Derek Thompson (Atlantic staff writer and national best-selling author of Hit Makers): “This book feels like a rare achievement: a definitive statement about an emerging phenomenon that could shape the digital world, the global economy, and the very experience of human consciousness.” From the leading theorist of the Metaverse comes the definitive account of the next internet: what the Metaverse is, what it will take to build it, and what it means for all of us. The term “Metaverse” is suddenly everywhere, from the front pages of national newspapers and the latest fashion trends to the plans of the most powerful companies in history. It is already shaping the policy platforms of the US government, the European Union, and the Chinese Communist Party. But what, exactly, is the Metaverse? As pioneering theorist and venture capitalist Matthew Ball explains, it is a persistent and interconnected network of 3D virtual worlds that will eventually serve as the gateway to most online experiences, and also underpin much of the physical world. For decades, these ideas have been limited to science fiction and video games, but they are now poised to revolutionize every industry and function, from finance and healthcare to education, consumer products, city planning, dating, and well beyond. Taking us on an expansive tour of the “next internet,” Ball demonstrates that many proto-Metaverses are already here, such as Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox. Yet these offer only a glimpse of what is to come. Ball presents a comprehensive definition of the Metaverse before explaining the technologies that will power it—and the breakthroughs that will be necessary to fully realize it. He addresses the governance challenges the Metaverse entails; investigates the role of Web3, blockchains, and NFTs; and predicts Metaverse winners and losers. Most importantly, he examines many of the Metaverse’s almost unlimited applications. The internet will no longer be at arm’s length; instead, it will surround us, with much of our lives, labor, and leisure taking place inside the Metaverse. Bringing clarity and authority to a frequently misunderstood concept, Ball foresees trillions of dollars in new value—and the radical reshaping of society.
Publisher: Liveright Publishing
ISBN: 1324092041
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 293
Book Description
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER — United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and China (Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Nielsen Bookscan, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, BookNet Canada, Bookseller.com, Bookdao/Nielsen, JD, DangDang) Tim Sweeney (CEO of Fortnite-maker Epic Games): “Matthew Ball’s essays have defined, analyzed, and inspired the Metaverse for years. His book is an approachable and essential guide to the strategic, technical, and philosophical foundations of this new medium.” Derek Thompson (Atlantic staff writer and national best-selling author of Hit Makers): “This book feels like a rare achievement: a definitive statement about an emerging phenomenon that could shape the digital world, the global economy, and the very experience of human consciousness.” From the leading theorist of the Metaverse comes the definitive account of the next internet: what the Metaverse is, what it will take to build it, and what it means for all of us. The term “Metaverse” is suddenly everywhere, from the front pages of national newspapers and the latest fashion trends to the plans of the most powerful companies in history. It is already shaping the policy platforms of the US government, the European Union, and the Chinese Communist Party. But what, exactly, is the Metaverse? As pioneering theorist and venture capitalist Matthew Ball explains, it is a persistent and interconnected network of 3D virtual worlds that will eventually serve as the gateway to most online experiences, and also underpin much of the physical world. For decades, these ideas have been limited to science fiction and video games, but they are now poised to revolutionize every industry and function, from finance and healthcare to education, consumer products, city planning, dating, and well beyond. Taking us on an expansive tour of the “next internet,” Ball demonstrates that many proto-Metaverses are already here, such as Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox. Yet these offer only a glimpse of what is to come. Ball presents a comprehensive definition of the Metaverse before explaining the technologies that will power it—and the breakthroughs that will be necessary to fully realize it. He addresses the governance challenges the Metaverse entails; investigates the role of Web3, blockchains, and NFTs; and predicts Metaverse winners and losers. Most importantly, he examines many of the Metaverse’s almost unlimited applications. The internet will no longer be at arm’s length; instead, it will surround us, with much of our lives, labor, and leisure taking place inside the Metaverse. Bringing clarity and authority to a frequently misunderstood concept, Ball foresees trillions of dollars in new value—and the radical reshaping of society.
Introduction to Meta-Analysis
Author: Michael Borenstein
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119964377
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 350
Book Description
This book provides a clear and thorough introduction to meta-analysis, the process of synthesizing data from a series of separate studies. Meta-analysis has become a critically important tool in fields as diverse as medicine, pharmacology, epidemiology, education, psychology, business, and ecology. Introduction to Meta-Analysis: Outlines the role of meta-analysis in the research process Shows how to compute effects sizes and treatment effects Explains the fixed-effect and random-effects models for synthesizing data Demonstrates how to assess and interpret variation in effect size across studies Clarifies concepts using text and figures, followed by formulas and examples Explains how to avoid common mistakes in meta-analysis Discusses controversies in meta-analysis Features a web site with additional material and exercises A superb combination of lucid prose and informative graphics, written by four of the world’s leading experts on all aspects of meta-analysis. Borenstein, Hedges, Higgins, and Rothstein provide a refreshing departure from cookbook approaches with their clear explanations of the what and why of meta-analysis. The book is ideal as a course textbook or for self-study. My students, who used pre-publication versions of some of the chapters, raved about the clarity of the explanations and examples. David Rindskopf, Distinguished Professor of Educational Psychology, City University of New York, Graduate School and University Center, & Editor of the Journal of Educational and Behavioral Statistics. The approach taken by Introduction to Meta-analysis is intended to be primarily conceptual, and it is amazingly successful at achieving that goal. The reader can comfortably skip the formulas and still understand their application and underlying motivation. For the more statistically sophisticated reader, the relevant formulas and worked examples provide a superb practical guide to performing a meta-analysis. The book provides an eclectic mix of examples from education, social science, biomedical studies, and even ecology. For anyone considering leading a course in meta-analysis, or pursuing self-directed study, Introduction to Meta-analysis would be a clear first choice. Jesse A. Berlin, ScD Introduction to Meta-Analysis is an excellent resource for novices and experts alike. The book provides a clear and comprehensive presentation of all basic and most advanced approaches to meta-analysis. This book will be referenced for decades. Michael A. McDaniel, Professor of Human Resources and Organizational Behavior, Virginia Commonwealth University
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119964377
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 350
Book Description
This book provides a clear and thorough introduction to meta-analysis, the process of synthesizing data from a series of separate studies. Meta-analysis has become a critically important tool in fields as diverse as medicine, pharmacology, epidemiology, education, psychology, business, and ecology. Introduction to Meta-Analysis: Outlines the role of meta-analysis in the research process Shows how to compute effects sizes and treatment effects Explains the fixed-effect and random-effects models for synthesizing data Demonstrates how to assess and interpret variation in effect size across studies Clarifies concepts using text and figures, followed by formulas and examples Explains how to avoid common mistakes in meta-analysis Discusses controversies in meta-analysis Features a web site with additional material and exercises A superb combination of lucid prose and informative graphics, written by four of the world’s leading experts on all aspects of meta-analysis. Borenstein, Hedges, Higgins, and Rothstein provide a refreshing departure from cookbook approaches with their clear explanations of the what and why of meta-analysis. The book is ideal as a course textbook or for self-study. My students, who used pre-publication versions of some of the chapters, raved about the clarity of the explanations and examples. David Rindskopf, Distinguished Professor of Educational Psychology, City University of New York, Graduate School and University Center, & Editor of the Journal of Educational and Behavioral Statistics. The approach taken by Introduction to Meta-analysis is intended to be primarily conceptual, and it is amazingly successful at achieving that goal. The reader can comfortably skip the formulas and still understand their application and underlying motivation. For the more statistically sophisticated reader, the relevant formulas and worked examples provide a superb practical guide to performing a meta-analysis. The book provides an eclectic mix of examples from education, social science, biomedical studies, and even ecology. For anyone considering leading a course in meta-analysis, or pursuing self-directed study, Introduction to Meta-analysis would be a clear first choice. Jesse A. Berlin, ScD Introduction to Meta-Analysis is an excellent resource for novices and experts alike. The book provides a clear and comprehensive presentation of all basic and most advanced approaches to meta-analysis. This book will be referenced for decades. Michael A. McDaniel, Professor of Human Resources and Organizational Behavior, Virginia Commonwealth University
Correct Hardware Design and Verification Methods
Author: Tiziana Margaria
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3540447989
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 491
Book Description
This volume contains the proceedings of CHARME 2001, the Eleventh Advanced Research Working Conference on Correct Hardware Design and Veri?cation Methods. CHARME 2001 is the 11th in a series of working conferences devoted to the development and use of leading-edge formal techniques and tools for the design and veri?cation of hardware and hardware-like systems. Previous events in the ‘CHARME’ series were held in Bad Herrenalb (1999), Montreal (1997), Frankfurt (1995), Arles (1993), and Torino (1991). This series of meetings has been organized in cooperation with IFIP WG 10.5 and WG 10.2. Prior meetings, stretching backto the earliest days of formal hardware veri?cation, were held under various names in Miami (1990), Leuven (1989), Glasgow (1988), Grenoble (1986), Edinburgh (1985), and Darmstadt (1984). The convention is now well-established whereby the European CHARME conference alternates with its biennial counterpart, the International Conference on Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design (FMCAD), which is held on even-numbered years in the USA. The conference tookplace during 4–7 September 2001 at the Institute for System Level Integration in Livingston, Scotland. It was co-hosted by the - stitute and the Department of Computing Science of Glasgow University and co-sponsored by the IFIP TC10/WG10.5 Working Group on Design and En- neering of Electronic Systems. CHARME 2001 also included a scienti?c session and social program held jointly with the 14th International Conference on Th- rem Proving in Higher Order Logics (TPHOLs), which was co-located in nearby Edinburgh.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3540447989
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 491
Book Description
This volume contains the proceedings of CHARME 2001, the Eleventh Advanced Research Working Conference on Correct Hardware Design and Veri?cation Methods. CHARME 2001 is the 11th in a series of working conferences devoted to the development and use of leading-edge formal techniques and tools for the design and veri?cation of hardware and hardware-like systems. Previous events in the ‘CHARME’ series were held in Bad Herrenalb (1999), Montreal (1997), Frankfurt (1995), Arles (1993), and Torino (1991). This series of meetings has been organized in cooperation with IFIP WG 10.5 and WG 10.2. Prior meetings, stretching backto the earliest days of formal hardware veri?cation, were held under various names in Miami (1990), Leuven (1989), Glasgow (1988), Grenoble (1986), Edinburgh (1985), and Darmstadt (1984). The convention is now well-established whereby the European CHARME conference alternates with its biennial counterpart, the International Conference on Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design (FMCAD), which is held on even-numbered years in the USA. The conference tookplace during 4–7 September 2001 at the Institute for System Level Integration in Livingston, Scotland. It was co-hosted by the - stitute and the Department of Computing Science of Glasgow University and co-sponsored by the IFIP TC10/WG10.5 Working Group on Design and En- neering of Electronic Systems. CHARME 2001 also included a scienti?c session and social program held jointly with the 14th International Conference on Th- rem Proving in Higher Order Logics (TPHOLs), which was co-located in nearby Edinburgh.
Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy
Author: Evan Ringquist
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118240499
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 590
Book Description
Praise for Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy "In his usual rigorous but readable style, Evan Ringquist and co-author Mary Anderson have produced a tour-de-force on the topic of meta-analysis in public policy and management research. Meta-analysis is badly needed in the all-too-common situation when researchers have low confidence in summarizing the overall results of dozens of studies on the effectiveness of some policy. This book has a nice combination of conceptual overview, methodological details, and applications that will make it possible for researchers to conduct their own meta-analysis. It is tempting to require all graduate students to write a meta-analysis as a chapter in their dissertation, or include meta-analysis as a standard offering in the research methods curriculum of social science graduate programs. The more people that adopt Ringquist and Anderson's approach, the less resources will be wasted on conducting studies that do not contribute to cumulative scientific knowledge. " —Mark Lubell Department of Environmental Science and Policy Director, Center for Environmental Policy and Behavior University of California-Davis “Ringquist and his colleagues deliver value and add to canon of public management methods by delivering an analytical framework that makes the case for systematic research using the tools of meta-analysis. This book will be a must read for all committed to strengthening evidence-based research that improves public policy and management decision making.” —David M. Van Slyke The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University “In Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy Evan Ringquist and his colleagues provide a lucid and practical roadmap for policy and public management scholars who use meta-analysis in their research. But this is more than a “how to” volume; it provides background on why meta-analysis is a potent means for accumulating and synthesizing empirical research findings, and shows how its use has evolved in recent decades. Specific applications of meta-analysis to long-standing policy and management debates are given, essentially providing an array of developed “templates” through which scholars and practitioners can assess how to approach different kinds of analytical problems using meta-analysis. Particularly valuable to me is the careful development and presentation of the necessary stages of meta-analysis, from conceptualization through data coding and bias assessment to advanced modeling. All of the statistical analyses can be conducted in Stata, utilizing readily available “.ado” modules. I will use this book, both in research and in the classroom. Overall it is one of the most useful methodological contributions I’ve seen in some time.” —Hank Jenkins-Smith Department of Political Science Director, Center for Applied Social Research University of Oklahoma “Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy conveys the considerable untapped potential of meta-analysis to strengthen and advance bodies of knowledge and evidence in public management and policy. This book takes students and researchers deep into the methods of meta-analysis and details of their empirical application, without losing sight of the important policy questions and the implications of choices that researchers make in their empirical work for the production of evidence for public managers and policymakers. This book will serve as an excellent practical guide for those conducting their first meta-analysis, while at the same time supporting critically-focused consumption of existing meta-analyses and discussion of where the field can gainfully take this approach to enhance our research and knowledge bases. It draws in a range of valuable and important examples of applications of meta-analysis techniques throughout the book and rounds off with four full-fledged applications of the method. Although the book reaches out to an audience of public management and policy researchers and consumers of this research, it should be of interest to a broad range of applied social science researchers and students as well.” —Carolyn Heinrich Sid Richardson Professor of Public Affairs Director, Center for Health and Social Policy LBJ School of Public Affairs University of Texas – Austin “Even for incredibly specialized techniques, public management and policy scholars have a multiplicity of methods texts from which to choose. Yet it is truly surprising that a strong guide to applied meta-analysis — a rigorous framework for the organization of empirical findings — has not been available. Ringquist and Anderson provided just that with an accessible guide to sophisticated techniques. Marrying an instructive text to a set of exemplary standalone studies, Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy offers unparalleled guidance for instructors and students and more than a little wisdom for seasoned scholars. It is destined to become the standard reference for our field.” —Anthony Michael Bertelli CC Crawford Chair in Management and Performance USC Price School of Public Policy USC Gould School of Law University of Southern California “This comprehensive treatment of meta-analysis is an excellent guide for scholars and students in public management and public policy. The carefully done exposition demonstrates why meta-analysis should have greater use in the profession.” —Kenneth J. Meier Charles H. Gregory Chair in Liberal Arts Department of Political Science Texas A&M University “This remarkable book reviews the history of the use of meta-analysis in the social sciences, argues forcefully for its importance, value, and relevance for public managers, and provides one-stop-shopping for those who want to learn how to do it or understand how others have done it. The detailed coverage of each step in the process allows a student to learn the technique completely while fully understanding the logic and intellectual goals of the enterprise. Most importantly, the authors review techniques from a range of disciplines, drawing most of their positive suggestions from the field of medical statistics rather than the social sciences. The examples and applications, on the other hand, stem from the world of government and public policy. Four chapters provide new syntheses of research on individual policies using the techniques and practices introduced in the earlier chapters. The result is original research, a strong argument for the value of meta-analysis in a field (political science and public administration) that uses it little, and a complete tool-kit for those who would want to apply these powerful ideas on their own. A very impressive and useful text.” —Frank R. Baumgartner Richard J. Richardson Distinguished Professor Department of Political Science University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill “Meta-analysis is a valuable tool for accumulating knowledge about how management matters from across a range of policy areas and disciplines. It is also an underused tool, in large part because of the lack of a comprehensive and useable guide on the topic. Ringquist remedies this problem by offering clear instruction on how to apply the technique wisely, as well as highly useful empirical demonstrations. The field of public management needs this excellent book.” —Donald Moynihan Professor of Public Affairs University of Wisconsin-Madison “Professors and students frequently face decisions about how deeply to invest in a statistical procedure, a new technology, a new theory, or some other development in their discipline. The authors of Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy support such a decision about meta-analysis by making a convincing case for its value and increasing utilization, including such steps as a careful consideration of criticisms of the method. Evan Ringquist then provides clearly, engagingly written chapters on the major concepts, procedures, and issues in the techniques of meta-analysis. His coauthors then provide effectively-presented examples of meta-analytic studies about such topics as school voucher effectiveness, public service motivation and performance, and public sector performance management. The accessible and reader-friendly explanations, coupled with the illustrative examples that walk the reader through how to do it, make this a distinctively effective methodological text. In so doing, it offers a distinctively valuable resource for those of us who want to learn more about this important statistical method.” —Hal Rainey Alumni Foundation Distinguished Professor Department of Public Administration and Policy University of Georgia “James Heckman’s Nobel lecture described the combined influence of micro surveys, advances in computers and software, and the development and dissemination of multivariate statistical methods on applied economic research. His comments apply equally well to empirical research throughout the social sciences. These forces have created a “flood of numbers” and advances in technology since he wrote about them have assured that the process is accelerating. We need to transform the ways we learn from empirical analyses and create a science for the analysis of the secondary data from applied statistical and econometric models. This science would include methods for summarizing what has been learned from estimates and tests. It would provide methods for diagnostic screening of results to gauge the importance of modeling assumptions and the types of primary data for the findings being reported. Finally, it may well lead to the development of meta-models—integrating findings intended to describe a single system but viewed thru distinctive empirical lenses. Meta-analysis is a method that takes an important step in developing this science. It is a collection of methods that is a product of the transformation in applied research in the past half century. Initially much of this research was the domain of social scientists working on the evaluation of educational interventions. In these applications the primary data from different studies were routinely available, but the outcome and control variables differed across studies. As a result, the focus for these meta-analyses was on data combination with multiple, distinctive measures for asset of latent variables associated with the hypothesized underlying process. The texts describing meta-analysis focused on these situations. As applications of meta-analysis expanded to economics, political science, and sociology, the data structures changed. The new data came from empirical models –as estimated parameters or summaries of test results. The challenges posed in developing these types of data and understanding what they reveal were distinctly different. A text developed by scholars who appreciate how these types of summaries are different was missing until Ringquist and Anderson’s Meta Analysis for Public Management and Policy. Explaining a process that blends the best of qualitative and quantitative research is a challenge. This book has met this challenge and delivered researchers a great platform for teaching these methods to their students and for updating their own skills. At least four features distinguish this book: 1. The authors display a clear understanding of the strengths and the weaknesses of meta- analysis. Their treatment describes how care in data construction, variable coding, relevant statistical methods and, especially, careful attention to interpreting the findings from a meta-analysis can reinforce the strengths and mitigate the weaknesses. 2. There are real examples presented throughout the book along with a genuine understanding of the importance of the details in developing meta-analyses. 3. The coverage of relevant statistical methods is comprehensive and clear. And 4. The Appendices offer the detail researchers need to see in order to genuinely learn how to use meta analytic methods. It should be in the library of every serious teacher or practitioner”—V. Kerry Smith Regents Professor and W.P. Carey Professor Department of Economics Arizona State University “There are several texts for meta-analysis available, most notably “The Handbook of Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis” by Cooper, Hedges and Valentine, but none specifically directed to public administration and policy scholars. In fact the points of emphasis and examples make the existing texts both difficult and poorly suited for the applied social sciences. Ringquist’s book is a spectacular success in filling this lacuna. Ringquist provides a clearer encapsulation of “the basics” in its opening section, and the “basics” are tailored to “problem-oriented” policy sciences (noting for instance, that meta-analyses in public management and policy will almost always use random-effects over fixed-effects). The empirical examples woven throughout as well as the actual analyses on PSM and school vouchers are exceptionally useful in identifying the stages of the process. At the same time, the book doesn’t spare the gritty details of confronting commonly required procedures, like bootstrapping and dealing with clustered robust SE, hierarchical modeling, etc. For readers with no exposure to meta-analysis, the text eases the transition by offering a refresher on how statistical techniques are used in original research, then how they differ when used in meta-analysis. Ringquist offers guidelines for syntheses, formulating problems, data evaluation, turning studies into data, techniques in meta-analysis, “the language of meta-analysis”, coding strategies and publication bias. The author also notes that the context and even techniques of meta-analysis are different for public management and public policy compared with medicine and psychology, and education. Public administration and policy analysis provide great opportunities for meta-analysis, but these fields also present considerable challenge. Great care is needed in synthesizing differently designed studies, which are observational and quasi-experimental or correlational designs, because the statistics of meta-analysis were originally developed to synthesize results from experiment design. Measurement issues are tricky because authentic scales are used less frequently than in psychology or medical research. In addition PA and policy as fields of scholarship are diverse and eclectic in research design which makes comparison of parameter estimates exceedingly difficult. Ringquist adroitly compiles an approach to meta-analysis adapted to reflect this context. While Section 1 consists of seven chapters, which discusses techniques of meta-analysis, Section 2 including Chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11 illustrates actual studies using meta-analysis conducted in public management and policy research: evaluating the effectiveness of educational vouchers, performance management in public sector, the effects of federal poverty deconcentration efforts on economic self-sufficiency and problematic behaviors, and the relationship between public service motivation and performance. The book is an easier read than other texts in it guides from project inception through lit review and analysis in a manner tailored to policy and management, and it actually provides a much more accessible and thorough coverage of many of the basic building blocks, random effects, r-based effect sizes, and bootstrapping, making it far more indispensable for any PA meta-analysis. The check-lists for coding articles are especially useful. Provision of Stata commands and practical data management suggestions (creating a command file for data set transformations, for instance) is a great advantage for this text. Adding an addendum with R programming options, in the next edition might be helpful too. The conclusion both compelling and concise but I would like to have seen some of the arguments presented here at the beginning of the book, reserving the conclusion for a fuller encapsulation of what the overall strategy of the book accomplishes in stages – rebutting criticisms that meta-analysis in social science is a waste of time because study estimates are non-comparable and effect sizes non-independent with careful examination of research design and models. This book is essential reading for any scholar in public administration and policy considering undertaking meta-analysis. I expect it will gain many readers in other social science disciplines as well. For serious users of meta-analysis Ringquist’s book will not be the only one on the shelf, but it is a valuable addition.” —Richard Feiock Augustus B. Turnbull Professor Askew School of Public Administration and Policy Florida State University
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118240499
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 590
Book Description
Praise for Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy "In his usual rigorous but readable style, Evan Ringquist and co-author Mary Anderson have produced a tour-de-force on the topic of meta-analysis in public policy and management research. Meta-analysis is badly needed in the all-too-common situation when researchers have low confidence in summarizing the overall results of dozens of studies on the effectiveness of some policy. This book has a nice combination of conceptual overview, methodological details, and applications that will make it possible for researchers to conduct their own meta-analysis. It is tempting to require all graduate students to write a meta-analysis as a chapter in their dissertation, or include meta-analysis as a standard offering in the research methods curriculum of social science graduate programs. The more people that adopt Ringquist and Anderson's approach, the less resources will be wasted on conducting studies that do not contribute to cumulative scientific knowledge. " —Mark Lubell Department of Environmental Science and Policy Director, Center for Environmental Policy and Behavior University of California-Davis “Ringquist and his colleagues deliver value and add to canon of public management methods by delivering an analytical framework that makes the case for systematic research using the tools of meta-analysis. This book will be a must read for all committed to strengthening evidence-based research that improves public policy and management decision making.” —David M. Van Slyke The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University “In Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy Evan Ringquist and his colleagues provide a lucid and practical roadmap for policy and public management scholars who use meta-analysis in their research. But this is more than a “how to” volume; it provides background on why meta-analysis is a potent means for accumulating and synthesizing empirical research findings, and shows how its use has evolved in recent decades. Specific applications of meta-analysis to long-standing policy and management debates are given, essentially providing an array of developed “templates” through which scholars and practitioners can assess how to approach different kinds of analytical problems using meta-analysis. Particularly valuable to me is the careful development and presentation of the necessary stages of meta-analysis, from conceptualization through data coding and bias assessment to advanced modeling. All of the statistical analyses can be conducted in Stata, utilizing readily available “.ado” modules. I will use this book, both in research and in the classroom. Overall it is one of the most useful methodological contributions I’ve seen in some time.” —Hank Jenkins-Smith Department of Political Science Director, Center for Applied Social Research University of Oklahoma “Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy conveys the considerable untapped potential of meta-analysis to strengthen and advance bodies of knowledge and evidence in public management and policy. This book takes students and researchers deep into the methods of meta-analysis and details of their empirical application, without losing sight of the important policy questions and the implications of choices that researchers make in their empirical work for the production of evidence for public managers and policymakers. This book will serve as an excellent practical guide for those conducting their first meta-analysis, while at the same time supporting critically-focused consumption of existing meta-analyses and discussion of where the field can gainfully take this approach to enhance our research and knowledge bases. It draws in a range of valuable and important examples of applications of meta-analysis techniques throughout the book and rounds off with four full-fledged applications of the method. Although the book reaches out to an audience of public management and policy researchers and consumers of this research, it should be of interest to a broad range of applied social science researchers and students as well.” —Carolyn Heinrich Sid Richardson Professor of Public Affairs Director, Center for Health and Social Policy LBJ School of Public Affairs University of Texas – Austin “Even for incredibly specialized techniques, public management and policy scholars have a multiplicity of methods texts from which to choose. Yet it is truly surprising that a strong guide to applied meta-analysis — a rigorous framework for the organization of empirical findings — has not been available. Ringquist and Anderson provided just that with an accessible guide to sophisticated techniques. Marrying an instructive text to a set of exemplary standalone studies, Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy offers unparalleled guidance for instructors and students and more than a little wisdom for seasoned scholars. It is destined to become the standard reference for our field.” —Anthony Michael Bertelli CC Crawford Chair in Management and Performance USC Price School of Public Policy USC Gould School of Law University of Southern California “This comprehensive treatment of meta-analysis is an excellent guide for scholars and students in public management and public policy. The carefully done exposition demonstrates why meta-analysis should have greater use in the profession.” —Kenneth J. Meier Charles H. Gregory Chair in Liberal Arts Department of Political Science Texas A&M University “This remarkable book reviews the history of the use of meta-analysis in the social sciences, argues forcefully for its importance, value, and relevance for public managers, and provides one-stop-shopping for those who want to learn how to do it or understand how others have done it. The detailed coverage of each step in the process allows a student to learn the technique completely while fully understanding the logic and intellectual goals of the enterprise. Most importantly, the authors review techniques from a range of disciplines, drawing most of their positive suggestions from the field of medical statistics rather than the social sciences. The examples and applications, on the other hand, stem from the world of government and public policy. Four chapters provide new syntheses of research on individual policies using the techniques and practices introduced in the earlier chapters. The result is original research, a strong argument for the value of meta-analysis in a field (political science and public administration) that uses it little, and a complete tool-kit for those who would want to apply these powerful ideas on their own. A very impressive and useful text.” —Frank R. Baumgartner Richard J. Richardson Distinguished Professor Department of Political Science University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill “Meta-analysis is a valuable tool for accumulating knowledge about how management matters from across a range of policy areas and disciplines. It is also an underused tool, in large part because of the lack of a comprehensive and useable guide on the topic. Ringquist remedies this problem by offering clear instruction on how to apply the technique wisely, as well as highly useful empirical demonstrations. The field of public management needs this excellent book.” —Donald Moynihan Professor of Public Affairs University of Wisconsin-Madison “Professors and students frequently face decisions about how deeply to invest in a statistical procedure, a new technology, a new theory, or some other development in their discipline. The authors of Meta-Analysis for Public Management and Policy support such a decision about meta-analysis by making a convincing case for its value and increasing utilization, including such steps as a careful consideration of criticisms of the method. Evan Ringquist then provides clearly, engagingly written chapters on the major concepts, procedures, and issues in the techniques of meta-analysis. His coauthors then provide effectively-presented examples of meta-analytic studies about such topics as school voucher effectiveness, public service motivation and performance, and public sector performance management. The accessible and reader-friendly explanations, coupled with the illustrative examples that walk the reader through how to do it, make this a distinctively effective methodological text. In so doing, it offers a distinctively valuable resource for those of us who want to learn more about this important statistical method.” —Hal Rainey Alumni Foundation Distinguished Professor Department of Public Administration and Policy University of Georgia “James Heckman’s Nobel lecture described the combined influence of micro surveys, advances in computers and software, and the development and dissemination of multivariate statistical methods on applied economic research. His comments apply equally well to empirical research throughout the social sciences. These forces have created a “flood of numbers” and advances in technology since he wrote about them have assured that the process is accelerating. We need to transform the ways we learn from empirical analyses and create a science for the analysis of the secondary data from applied statistical and econometric models. This science would include methods for summarizing what has been learned from estimates and tests. It would provide methods for diagnostic screening of results to gauge the importance of modeling assumptions and the types of primary data for the findings being reported. Finally, it may well lead to the development of meta-models—integrating findings intended to describe a single system but viewed thru distinctive empirical lenses. Meta-analysis is a method that takes an important step in developing this science. It is a collection of methods that is a product of the transformation in applied research in the past half century. Initially much of this research was the domain of social scientists working on the evaluation of educational interventions. In these applications the primary data from different studies were routinely available, but the outcome and control variables differed across studies. As a result, the focus for these meta-analyses was on data combination with multiple, distinctive measures for asset of latent variables associated with the hypothesized underlying process. The texts describing meta-analysis focused on these situations. As applications of meta-analysis expanded to economics, political science, and sociology, the data structures changed. The new data came from empirical models –as estimated parameters or summaries of test results. The challenges posed in developing these types of data and understanding what they reveal were distinctly different. A text developed by scholars who appreciate how these types of summaries are different was missing until Ringquist and Anderson’s Meta Analysis for Public Management and Policy. Explaining a process that blends the best of qualitative and quantitative research is a challenge. This book has met this challenge and delivered researchers a great platform for teaching these methods to their students and for updating their own skills. At least four features distinguish this book: 1. The authors display a clear understanding of the strengths and the weaknesses of meta- analysis. Their treatment describes how care in data construction, variable coding, relevant statistical methods and, especially, careful attention to interpreting the findings from a meta-analysis can reinforce the strengths and mitigate the weaknesses. 2. There are real examples presented throughout the book along with a genuine understanding of the importance of the details in developing meta-analyses. 3. The coverage of relevant statistical methods is comprehensive and clear. And 4. The Appendices offer the detail researchers need to see in order to genuinely learn how to use meta analytic methods. It should be in the library of every serious teacher or practitioner”—V. Kerry Smith Regents Professor and W.P. Carey Professor Department of Economics Arizona State University “There are several texts for meta-analysis available, most notably “The Handbook of Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis” by Cooper, Hedges and Valentine, but none specifically directed to public administration and policy scholars. In fact the points of emphasis and examples make the existing texts both difficult and poorly suited for the applied social sciences. Ringquist’s book is a spectacular success in filling this lacuna. Ringquist provides a clearer encapsulation of “the basics” in its opening section, and the “basics” are tailored to “problem-oriented” policy sciences (noting for instance, that meta-analyses in public management and policy will almost always use random-effects over fixed-effects). The empirical examples woven throughout as well as the actual analyses on PSM and school vouchers are exceptionally useful in identifying the stages of the process. At the same time, the book doesn’t spare the gritty details of confronting commonly required procedures, like bootstrapping and dealing with clustered robust SE, hierarchical modeling, etc. For readers with no exposure to meta-analysis, the text eases the transition by offering a refresher on how statistical techniques are used in original research, then how they differ when used in meta-analysis. Ringquist offers guidelines for syntheses, formulating problems, data evaluation, turning studies into data, techniques in meta-analysis, “the language of meta-analysis”, coding strategies and publication bias. The author also notes that the context and even techniques of meta-analysis are different for public management and public policy compared with medicine and psychology, and education. Public administration and policy analysis provide great opportunities for meta-analysis, but these fields also present considerable challenge. Great care is needed in synthesizing differently designed studies, which are observational and quasi-experimental or correlational designs, because the statistics of meta-analysis were originally developed to synthesize results from experiment design. Measurement issues are tricky because authentic scales are used less frequently than in psychology or medical research. In addition PA and policy as fields of scholarship are diverse and eclectic in research design which makes comparison of parameter estimates exceedingly difficult. Ringquist adroitly compiles an approach to meta-analysis adapted to reflect this context. While Section 1 consists of seven chapters, which discusses techniques of meta-analysis, Section 2 including Chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11 illustrates actual studies using meta-analysis conducted in public management and policy research: evaluating the effectiveness of educational vouchers, performance management in public sector, the effects of federal poverty deconcentration efforts on economic self-sufficiency and problematic behaviors, and the relationship between public service motivation and performance. The book is an easier read than other texts in it guides from project inception through lit review and analysis in a manner tailored to policy and management, and it actually provides a much more accessible and thorough coverage of many of the basic building blocks, random effects, r-based effect sizes, and bootstrapping, making it far more indispensable for any PA meta-analysis. The check-lists for coding articles are especially useful. Provision of Stata commands and practical data management suggestions (creating a command file for data set transformations, for instance) is a great advantage for this text. Adding an addendum with R programming options, in the next edition might be helpful too. The conclusion both compelling and concise but I would like to have seen some of the arguments presented here at the beginning of the book, reserving the conclusion for a fuller encapsulation of what the overall strategy of the book accomplishes in stages – rebutting criticisms that meta-analysis in social science is a waste of time because study estimates are non-comparable and effect sizes non-independent with careful examination of research design and models. This book is essential reading for any scholar in public administration and policy considering undertaking meta-analysis. I expect it will gain many readers in other social science disciplines as well. For serious users of meta-analysis Ringquist’s book will not be the only one on the shelf, but it is a valuable addition.” —Richard Feiock Augustus B. Turnbull Professor Askew School of Public Administration and Policy Florida State University
Network Meta-Analysis for Decision-Making
Author: Sofia Dias
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118647505
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 484
Book Description
A practical guide to network meta-analysis with examples and code In the evaluation of healthcare, rigorous methods of quantitative assessment are necessary to establish which interventions are effective and cost-effective. Often a single study will not provide the answers and it is desirable to synthesise evidence from multiple sources, usually randomised controlled trials. This book takes an approach to evidence synthesis that is specifically intended for decision making when there are two or more treatment alternatives being evaluated, and assumes that the purpose of every synthesis is to answer the question "for this pre-identified population of patients, which treatment is 'best'?" A comprehensive, coherent framework for network meta-analysis (mixed treatment comparisons) is adopted and estimated using Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods implemented in the freely available software WinBUGS. Each chapter contains worked examples, exercises, solutions and code that may be adapted by readers to apply to their own analyses. This book can be used as an introduction to evidence synthesis and network meta-analysis, its key properties and policy implications. Examples and advanced methods are also presented for the more experienced reader. Methods used throughout this book can be applied consistently: model critique and checking for evidence consistency are emphasised. Methods are based on technical support documents produced for NICE Decision Support Unit, which support the NICE Methods of Technology Appraisal. Code presented is also the basis for the code used by the ISPOR Task Force on Indirect Comparisons. Includes extensive carefully worked examples, with thorough explanations of how to set out data for use in WinBUGS and how to interpret the output. Network Meta-Analysis for Decision Making will be of interest to decision makers, medical statisticians, health economists, and anyone involved in Health Technology Assessment including the pharmaceutical industry.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118647505
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 484
Book Description
A practical guide to network meta-analysis with examples and code In the evaluation of healthcare, rigorous methods of quantitative assessment are necessary to establish which interventions are effective and cost-effective. Often a single study will not provide the answers and it is desirable to synthesise evidence from multiple sources, usually randomised controlled trials. This book takes an approach to evidence synthesis that is specifically intended for decision making when there are two or more treatment alternatives being evaluated, and assumes that the purpose of every synthesis is to answer the question "for this pre-identified population of patients, which treatment is 'best'?" A comprehensive, coherent framework for network meta-analysis (mixed treatment comparisons) is adopted and estimated using Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods implemented in the freely available software WinBUGS. Each chapter contains worked examples, exercises, solutions and code that may be adapted by readers to apply to their own analyses. This book can be used as an introduction to evidence synthesis and network meta-analysis, its key properties and policy implications. Examples and advanced methods are also presented for the more experienced reader. Methods used throughout this book can be applied consistently: model critique and checking for evidence consistency are emphasised. Methods are based on technical support documents produced for NICE Decision Support Unit, which support the NICE Methods of Technology Appraisal. Code presented is also the basis for the code used by the ISPOR Task Force on Indirect Comparisons. Includes extensive carefully worked examples, with thorough explanations of how to set out data for use in WinBUGS and how to interpret the output. Network Meta-Analysis for Decision Making will be of interest to decision makers, medical statisticians, health economists, and anyone involved in Health Technology Assessment including the pharmaceutical industry.