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Mini-Case Gig Abite Is a Bright, Hard-Working Engineer Who Once Owned

question 169

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Mini-Case
Gig Abite is a bright, hard-working engineer who once owned a successful engineering consulting firm in his native country of Frinezia. Gig became discouraged by the high tax rates in Frinezia, so he immigrated to the United States eleven years ago. Soon after moving to the U.S., Gig again started his own business, which he named Giganeers Consulting. The company struggled at first, and almost went under midway through its second year. However, Gig never lost faith, the company survived, and it soon developed a growing reputation for quality work and dependable service. Giganeers began experiencing sustained growth early in its fourth year. In fact, Gig hired additional employees over the next few years to keep up with the increasing workload. His company, which started with only Gig and 2 other full time workers, now provides jobs for 43 full-time employees as well as many part time workers.
Despite these past successes, some clouds are on the horizon. The company recently suffered its first drop in business since its very early years. Gig is convinced that the problem is not with his company, but rather due to a downturn in the U.S. economy. He heard a national broadcast last week reporting that the value of the total output of final goods and services in the U.S. declined over the last quarter. The news anchor went on to state that many economists believe that this downward trend is likely to continue for several more months. Gig is concerned that he will have to lay off some of his employees if the economy doesn't improve. He hopes that the government does something soon to put the economy back on track.
-The broadcast cited forecasts that national output might continue to fall in the future. If total output shows decline for two consecutive quarters, economists would classify this as a _____________.

Definitions:

Punished

The act of imposing a penalty or negative consequence on a behavior to decrease its occurrence.

Dependent Variable

In a scientific experiment, the variable that is tested and measured to see if it is influenced by the independent variable.

Independent Variable

In scientific research, the variable that is manipulated or changed to observe its effect on the dependent variable.

Manipulates

To control or influence something or someone cleverly, often in an unfair or deceitful manner.