Japanese Garden in Portland, Oregon

Portland has a climate similar to Japan which makes Portland an ideal city for a Japanese garden. When you enter a Japanese garden the desired effect is to have a sense of peace, harmony, tranquility and feeling apart of nature.

Three of the essential elements are stone, the bones of the landscape; water, the life-giving force; and plants the tapestry of the four seasons. Secondary elements include pagodas, stone lanterns, water basins, arbors and bridges. Japanese gardens are asymmetrical and reflect nature in an idealized form.

Pond gardenStrolling pond gardens were intended as recreational sites for the wealthy. They were sometimes created to be reflections of a place once visited, the place of one’s birth, or a famous place in China. Earlier gardens were viewed from boats floating on ponds rather than strolling along paths.

The Japanese tea garden is a place for quiet reflection on the beauty of nature, and living in harmony with one another. The garden consists of a pathway that leads to a Tea House, connecting inner and outer gardens, separated by a simple bamboo gate. The path through the gardens represents a journey that is important to have the proper state of mind for the tea ceremony.

Natural garden

The Natural Garden was created to encourage visitors to rest, relax and reflect on the essence of life. The flow of energy through the garden refreshes and restores everyone who walks there. The deciduous trees lean slightly in the same direction the water is flowing.


What does LONE WOLF stand for?

What does LONE WOLF mean? This page is about the various possible meanings of the acronym, abbreviation, shorthand or slang term: LONE WOLF.

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Lone Wolf

An independent person; someone who has an 'independent' streak. Terry is a lone wolf in the organization.

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What does LONE WOLF mean?

loner, lone wolf, lone hand(noun)
a person who avoids the company or assistance of others

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"LONE WOLF." Abbreviations.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2016. Web. 24 Sep. 2016. <http://www.abbreviations.com/LONE%20WOLF>.


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©Württembergischer Kammerchor (David Graeter)

Württemberg Chamber Choir: contemporary excellence

The Württemberg Chamber Choir was founded in Stuttgart in 1970. Despite describing itself as a semi-professional mixed choir, it is among the best in its field. Its repertoire begins with Schütz, Schein and Bach but there's also a bold emphasis on 19th and 20th century music including premieres of works by Isang Yun and Dieter Schnebel, Shostakovich's 13th Symphony (with male chorus) and a crossover project with Poulenc's cycle Figure humaine. The choir's interpretations of Hugo Wolf's choral works and lieder are also very highly regarded.

Akadálymentes használat

Két hasznos billentyűkombináció a böngészőn belüli zoomoláshoz:

Nagyítás: +

Kicsinyítés: +

További segítséget az alábbi ikonra kattintva kaphat:


Certified Lay Ministry Training

General Conference 2004 approved the formation of the Certified Lay Ministry position -- a new lay position for pastoral leadership in the church. This position may involve all pastoral functions except for those duties that require ordination (e.g. baptism and communion).

The Certified Lay Minister shall preach the Word, provide a care ministry to the congregation, assist in program leadership and be a witness in the community for the growth, missional and connectional thrust of The United Methodist Church.

Whereas some are called to a certain ministry and then find a church, the Certified Lay Ministry program may be best for situations where a church or ministry has a need and someone in that membership is called to help out in a larger way.

The Certified Lay Minister is assigned by the District Superintendent to provide lay pastoral leadership in a ministry or local church.

Your CLM Co-coordinators are:

Cheryl Cain  cherylbecker52@yahoo.com   618-322-5246

Ava Williams  adwilliams2@juno.com  217-563-7439


Tamara Braun on Her New DAYS Role

Tamara Braun takes over for Natalia Livingston in Tuesday's (April 26) episode of DAYS OF OUR LIVES. Ironically, typical of Taylor, she has made yet another threat to leave Salem. "It's difficult for Taylor to leave," explains Braun. "There is some magnet pulling her back to stay in Salem." Could that magnet be EJ, the man everyone has warned her to stay away from? "Taylor helps people who are suffering," notes Braun. "She has a real need to save people. If everybody is telling you something about a person, maybe you should listen. But in Taylor's mind, she wants to save EJ and show his redeemable qualities." Meanwhile, Braun hopes that viewers will continue to stay interested in Taylor and EJ's story. "It's going to be really interesting," she teases.


Benchmarks: File Copy Performance

Folks planning to copy data locally on the Synology DS2411+ -- from one RAID array to another, for example -- should be pleased with its performance. The DS2411+ likely has an advantage over the DS1511+ here due to the larger number of drives in the array. When duplicating our 6GB ISO file on disk, the DS2411+ provided a bandwidth of 61MB/s whereas the DS1511+ was slightly slower averaging 55MB/s.

The DS2411+ average 36.7MB/s in our game copy test, making it a fraction faster than our C2D machine and the DS1511+.

The DS2411+ lost its momentum in our program copy test with a throughput of 13.7MB/s, putting it back behind the DS1511+.


Gastric Disorders - Causes and Treatments

What is Astigmatism

The second form of astigmatism occurs when the optical system is not symmetric about the optical axis. This may be by design (as in the case of a cylindrical lens), or due to manufacturing error in the surfaces of the components or misalignment of the components. In this case, astigmatism is observed even for rays from on-axis object points. This form of astigmatism is extremely important in ophthalmology, since the human eye often exhibits this aberration due to imperfections in the shape of the cornea or the lens.

In the analysis of this form of astigmatism, it is most common to consider rays from a given point on the object, which propagate in two special planes.

The first plane is the tangential plane. This is the plane which includes both the object point being considered and the axis of symmetry. Rays that propagate in this plane are called tangential rays. Planes that include the optical axis are meridional planes. It is common to simplify problems in radially-symmetric optical systems by choosing object points in the vertical (“y”) plane only. This plane is then sometimes referred to as the meridional plane.

The second special plane is the sagittal plane. This is defined as the plane, orthogonal to the tangential plane, which contains the object point being considered and intersects the optical axis at the entrance pupil of the optical system. This plane contains the chief ray, but does not contain the optic axis. It is therefore a skew plane, in other words not a meridional plane. Rays propagating in this plane are called sagittal rays.


The gardens are located in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe and have a variety f indigenous and exotic plants which include azaleas, fuchsias and hydrageas in abundance. Bunga Forest woodland reserve has footpaths, natural streams, majestic views and various bird life. There are three places in or near the forest to have tea/coffee. Huge Eucalyptus tree forests blend in with the indigenous flora of the Bunga.


YG test

Satya Jewelry, the original yoga inspired jewelry, is so excited to celebrate their 14th anniversary!

Designed for the journey, each Satya piece empowers adventurers to inspire and be inspired by the world. Meaningful, radiant, symbolic and powerful, Satya designs incorporate semi-precious stones and sacred symbols into pieces that honor the infinite potential of all who wear it.

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Disclaimer – Northern Exposure

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of Northern Exposure, but the comments are necessarily of a general nature, are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute legal advice in any matter whatsoever. Readers are urged to seek specific advice on matters of concern and not rely solely on the text of this publication.


Professor explains Gandhi, Nehru’s political ambitions at lecture

Author and Hunter College professor of history Manu Bhagavan speaks during his lecture at the Thomas J. Dodd Center's Konover Auditorium in Storrs, Connecticut on Thursday, March 10, 2016. (Allen Lang/The Daily Campus)

India, one of the world’s largest and most diverse democracies, has a long and complicated history. Author and Hunter College professor of history Manu Bhagavan sought to explore a part of that history in a presentation Thursday afternoon.

“Multilateralism is a broad ranging term that can describe all kinds of relationships between states,” Bhagavan said. “I’m trying to talk primarily about India’s relationship with the United Nations.”

Bhagavan warned that the topic was complex, and that he could only tell part of a story about India and its history.

“This part can easily fill a whole day, a whole course. I’m going to give you a very brief synopsis of what’s involved at the moment, and we might have a discussion about these ideas after,” Bhagavan said.

Beginning with British colonialism prior to the Second World War, Bhagavan explained how Indian and Western leaders came to be at odds during a time of international crisis.

“By 1942, the US and Great Britian were very concerned with what was going on in India. The leader of India at the time, you might know, was Mahatma Gandhi. He had a lieutenant, Jawaharlal Nehru,” Bhagavan said. “Winston and Churchill were afraid that Gandhi would launch an anti-war movement…The west continued to be quite concerned. Their plan B was to send Chiang Kai-Shek and his wife to India. They represented Roosevelt, and they tried to make an alliance with Gandhi and Nehru. They quickly rejected Chiang’s pleas, saying India had to do what India had to do.”

The political theories of Gandhi and Nehru were also a point of interest for Bhagavan. Although both were strong supporters of an independent India, he said, they also believed strongly in a united world.

“Nehru and Gandhi were not nationalists…they were internationalists. They were people that believed, sure enough, that there had to be independence from imperialism, and there had to be independent states, but independent states were not the goal,” Bhagavan said. “Ultimately, what they were after was something called world federalism, an alliance between all of these states.”

The “high water mark” of India’s foreign policy, Bhagavan said, was the period shortly after World War II and the early 1950s.

“India comes to be seen as an honest broker during the Cold War. Both the Soviet Union and United States take India quite seriously,” Bhagavan said. “The first major hot conflict of the Cold War was the Korean War, a proxy war between the US and USSR, and in 1952, India is approached to bring this conflict to an end…The armistice they made still holds today, and that’s because both the US and USSR had some faith in Nehru that India was genuine.”

During this point, the UN was so important to India and India’s foreign policy goals, Bhagavan said, that Nehru was unwilling to do anything that might alter or harm the United Nations, even when it would benefit India.

“Both the US and Soviet Union approached Nehru in 1953 about a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, and he declined. Why did he decline? Basically, he feared that the UN was a delicate compromise. Any changes…might lead to a collapse, and he would not allow that to happen,” Bhagavan said.

Unfortunately for those hoping for a more unified world, Bhagavan said, India’s idealistic foreign policy fell away in the 1960s due to external pressure and a feeling that the UN did not matter as much.

“China invades India in the 1960s…This breaks the back of Nehru’s idealistic view, and he himself says that he was living in a ‘world of illusions…’” Bhagavan said. “The foreign policy goal of India during the 1980s was to get a seat on the UN Security Council, and in that they have been a miserable failure.”

Despite the issues that India has seen in past decades, Bhagavan reminded the audience that cooperation between countries is still possible.

“Halfway around the world right now in Delhi, there is a conference on global cooperation…One of the sessions that is going to be held in the next few hours, literally, is on the idea of a one world, and using it as the foundation for cooperation,” Bhagavan said.

Manjoor Vahora, a fourth semester material sciences major , said the presentation inspired him to do more research and look for a solution to India’s current dilemmas.

“It’s peaked my interest,” Vahora said. “The dangers of the world are something the world should come together to solve issues across borders.”


Buyer Beware: Do Research before Believing the Media

Believing the media is a risky endeavor, even if the source shares your values.

Many of the juiciest stories we hear—even from allegedly reputable media sources—fall apart when one undertakes a cursory amount of primary research. Earlier I had around ten Internet tabs open, preparing to write a substantive piece, but my digging uncovered that the original “news” broadcast I heard was incorrect—the “facts” spoken with total assurance turned out to be completely bogus.

I’ve been in and around journalism for more than 30 years, which is exactly why I view many reports with a healthy measure of skepticism. Precious few “journalists” are worthy of the title; many are nothing more than lazy hacks who print or broadcast whatever is fed to them, as long as it’s what their bosses want to hear.

Admittedly, even I get sucked in when I don’t have time to dig. What made today’s exercise so potent was that the false story ‘fit’ with my overall views; it was tempting to keep going, and pass along a slanted version that would present the general thrust, while avoiding those nasty contradictory details.

Thankfully I received grace not to go there. I closed the windows, and moved on.

[See also, “Lying Journalists Are the Result of a Lying Worldview.”]

The reality is that none of us has time to research every single issue of importance. This is yet another reason why centralization of power or information is so damning—the more authority we invest in a small group, or a single man (or woman), the more damage they can inflict through deception.

Today’s media is largely controlled by powerful individuals schooled in a specific and incomplete worldview. That leaves them–and everyone who relies upon them for news—blind to a host of real and significant dangers. One-size-fits-all may temporarily be good for profits and power, but in the long run it’s deadly for a large nation.

We need authentic diversity to be as strong as possible. We need freedom—freedom to pursue truth and, yes, freedom at times to be totally wrong, and to pay the price for our shortcomings.

So, when you hear assured claims (whether the subject is Climate Change, economics, or especially politics), do your research, and pray for strength to follow the truth, even if it’s painful and doesn’t fit with what you want to be true.


Next step in Colorado marijuana legalization may be smoking in bars

DENVER -- An initiative that would allow businesses to obtain city permits to create designated areas for marijuana consumption will now be on the November ballot, it was announced Thursday.

The Denver Election division said the Neighborhood-Supported Cannabis Consumption Initiative collected enough signature to send it to voters.

“Adults who can legally purchase and possess cannabis need places where they can consume it safely while socializing with other adults,” Kayvan S.T. Khalatbari, the lead proponent of the initiative, said in a statement.

"This is a thoughtfully drafted measure that will reduce the likelihood of adults consuming in public and gives communities the power to decide where consumption should be allowed.”

The bill could provide a legal place for tourists to consume cannabis because hotels often ban the use.

The  businesses would have to have "at least one additional approval from a registered neighborhood organization" before applying for a permit, and patrons would need to bring their own cannabis.

There are several additional restrictions included in the bill:

  • The of use cannabis will not be allowed in public places, such as sidewalks, alleys, or parks, or within 1,000 feet of anywhere children congregate.
  • Cannabis consumption will only be allowed in establishments or areas within establishments that are restricted to adults 21 years old or older, and not visible to individuals outside of the restricted areas where consumption is allowed.
  • Only nonsmokable forms of cannabis such as vaporizers will be allowed indoors. Smoking cannabis will only be allowed in areas where smoking is currently allowed and that are not visible to the public.

“We already have about 50 businesses in support of this,” Khalatbari said. “Many of them are noncannabis businesses so coffee shops, restaurants, entertainment venues, massage parlors, yoga studios.”

If Denver voters approved the initiative, it would create a four-year pilot program.

The bill would require Denver to create a task force to study the impacts of cannabis consumption permits on the city. The program ends earlier if city leaders pass comprehensive regulations governing cannabis consumption.


1. The act of separating or state of being separated.

2. (Science: chemistry) The separation of a molecule into two or more fragments (atoms, molecules, ions or free radicals) produced by the absorption of light or thermal energy or by solvation.

3. (Science: psychology) a defense mechanism in which a group of mental processes are segregated from the rest of a persons mental activity in order to avoid emotional distress, as in the dissociative disorders or in which an idea or object is segregated from its emotional significance, in the first sense it is roughly equivalent to splitting, in the second, to isolation.

4. A defect of mental integration in which one or more groups of mental processes become separated off from normal consciousness and, thus separated, function as a unitary whole.

5. (Science: biology) separation of a double-stranded DNA molecule into its single strands, occurring when the hydrogen bonds connecting the two strands are broken (eg by heating).

Origin: L. Sociatio = union

Retrieved from "http://www.biology-online.org/bodict/index.php?title=Dissociation&oldid=100115"
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Genetic background of autoimmune hepatitis in Japan.

Summary of "Genetic background of autoimmune hepatitis in Japan."

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is an organ-specific autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation of the liver. Several studies from ethnically different countries have clarified that the genetic predisposition to type 1 AIH is linked mainly to human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-class II genes. Recently, molecular analysis using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based DNA typing has revealed that susceptibility to type 1 AIH is primarily associated with the HLA class II DRB1 locus, which encodes a polymorphic β chain of the HLA-DR antigen. However, additional susceptibility genes (either HLA or non-HLA) and/or environmental factors may also contribute to the development of type 1 AIH; in Japanese type 1 AIH patients, although the most influential gene in disease susceptibility is HLA-DRB1*04:05, several other genes have been identified as being involved in AIH pathogenesis or resistance and are the currently the focus of single nucleotide polymorphism analysis.

Department of Medicine, Shinshu University School of Medicine, 3-1-1 Asahi, Matsumoto, 390-8621, Japan,

Journal Details

This article was published in the following journal.

Name: Journal of gastroenterology
ISSN: 1435-5922

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Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions

A family of hepatotropic DNA viruses which contains double-stranded DNA genomes and causes hepatitis in humans and animals. There are two genera: AVIHEPADNAVIRUS and ORTHOHEPADNAVIRUS. Hepadnaviruses include HEPATITIS B VIRUS, duck hepatitis B virus (HEPATITIS B VIRUS, DUCK), heron hepatitis B virus, ground squirrel hepatitis virus, and woodchuck hepatitis B virus (HEPATITIS B VIRUS, WOODCHUCK).

INFLAMMATION of the LIVER in humans caused by HEPATITIS DELTA VIRUS, a defective RNA virus that can only infect HEPATITIS B patients. For its viral coating, hepatitis delta virus requires the HEPATITIS B SURFACE ANTIGENS produced by these patients. Hepatitis D can occur either concomitantly with (coinfection) or subsequent to (superinfection) hepatitis B infection. Similar to hepatitis B, it is primarily transmitted by parenteral exposure, such as transfusion of contaminated blood or blood products, but can also be transmitted via sexual or intimate personal contact.

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At 6,400 yards, the Member Tees are managable, making the overall day of golf more enjoyable.


Garden Design

Planning a Fall Vegetable Garden

Crop Rotation in the Flower Bed

Rotating your crops can help produce a bountiful harvest full of yummy and nourishing vegetables, by reducing the chances of pests and diseases and increasing the soil’s health.  However, crop rotation is not just for the vegetable garden; it is …

Garden Ideas That Screen Out Sound

garden water feature

We live on a busy street and experience a lot of noise from cars, pedestrians, etc. What are some landscaping ideas for reducing noise coming into our yard and windows?


What Is Left the Daughter

What Is Left the Daughter Cover

What Is Left the Daughter

By Howard Norman

Mariner Books, Paperback, 9780547521824, 264pp.

Publication Date: May 3, 2011

Howard Norman, widely regarded as one of this country's finest novelists, returns to the mesmerizing fictional terrain of his major books "The Bird Artist," "The Museum Guard," and "The Haunting of L" in this erotically charged and morally complex story.

Seventeen-year-old Wyatt Hillyer is suddenly orphaned when his parents, within hours of each other, jump off two different bridges the result of their separate involvements with the same compelling neighbor, a Halifax switchboard operator and aspiring actress. The suicides cause Wyatt to move to small-town Middle Economy to live with his uncle, aunt, and ravishing cousin Tilda.

Setting in motion the novel's chain of life-altering passions and the wartime perfidy at its core is the arrival of the German student Hans Mohring, carrying only a satchel. Actual historical incidents including a German U-boat's sinking of the Nova Scotia Newfoundland ferry "Caribou," on which Aunt Constance Hillyer might or might not be traveling lend intense narrative power to Norman's uncannily layered story.

Wyatt's account of the astonishing not least to him events leading up to his fathering of a beloved daughter spills out twenty-one years later. It's a confession that speaks profoundly of the mysteries of human character in wartime and is directed, with both despair and hope, to an audience of one.

An utterly stirring novel. This is Howard Norman at his celebrated best.

Praise For What Is Left the Daughter

BookPage "The latest from master of precision Howard Norman is again set in the gray majesty of Nova Scotia, where 17-year-old orphan Wyatt Hillyer moves in with his devoted aunt and uncle and their adopted daughter, Tilda, the love of stoic Wyatt's life. The ravages of Hitler and his dastardly German U-boats lurking beneath Canadian waters hit their home hard. In What Is Left the Daughter, Norman writes with spare elegance and dry humor, and the extraordinary emotional power of his slim new novel is earned with authentic grace. Grade: A"
Entertainment Weekly

"Fans of Howard Norman's THE BIRD ARTIST will recognize the venue and the oddball characters in the author's beautiful new novel, WHAT IS LEFT THE DAUGHTER....Norman turns a tiny town into an entire world in which even the most heinous sins can—almost—be forgiven."
O, The Oprah Magazine "Howard Norman has captured the fear and suspicion that World War II brought to the East Coast perfectly, as news reports circulate and the silent and spooky threat of the U-boats is ever-present….Norman also captures the speech and texture of life in Nova Scotia with gentle humor and deft description…No improvement needed [for WHAT IS LEFT THE DAUGHTER]; it is perfect."
Shelf Awareness "[A]n expertly crafted tale of love during wartime…Norman’s writing is effortless, and his plot is grand in scope but studded with moments of tenderness and intimacy that help crystallize the anxiety and weariness of life on the home front. That Norman is able to achieve so much in 250 pages is a testament to his mastery of the craft."
—Publishers Weekly , STARRED "Norman (best known for The Bird Artist, 1994) scores again with this gripping account of a family ripped apart by obsession and murder...It is extraordinary that a story which carries such a weight of sorrow is never depressing, but Norman the master craftsman pulls it off." —Kirkus, STARRED "Norman’s piquant insights into life’s wildness, human eccentricity, and love’s maddening persistence are matched by rhapsodic and profound descriptions of everything from perfectly baked scones to pelting rain and the devouring sea, while anguish is tempered with humor, thanks to rapid-fire banter and marvelously spiky characters."
Booklist, STARRED "Howard Norman’s new novel, WHAT IS LEFT THE DAUGHTER, is the best story of love in the time of war I’ve ever read. And yes, that includes COLD MOUNTAIN AND A FAREWELL TO ARMS....WHAT IS LEFT THE DAUGHTER affirms what many of Howard Norman’s readers have known since he published his magical first novel, THE NORTHERN LIGHTS. Norman is most certainly one of America’s three or four best novelists, with a uniquely wise and tolerant vision of his characters and all human beings everywhere. So let’s not mince words. WHAT IS LEFT THE DAUGHTER is a literary masterpiece that will, I guarantee it, live on in your heart, and mine, forever." —Howard Mosher, Amazon.com "Howard Norman is a master storyteller, packing provocative details into virtually every sentence of this short, but hardly slight, novel....What is left the daughter--and the reader--here is the gift of one man's utterly human, heartbreaking life story."

"This saga of sorrow, love, and a father's desire to meet his grown daughter displays power...moving" —Boston Globe

"You lean in, trying to catch every word, lulled by [Norman's] voice as he describes the most ordinary lives that just happen to be punctuated by macabre accidents. . . . Norman offers a kind of rough-hewn poetry throughout [with an] ardor that shimmers just below the surface." —Washington Post

"Reminiscent of a classic Robert Frank black-and-white photograph, this candid, everyday portrait discloses intricate webs of wistfulness and resignation. Norman raises absorbing moral quandaries, particularly about the possibilities of forgiveness...The epistolary form of this novel is a cri de coeur from an author faithful to the printed word in a time of promiscuous texting, friending and tweeting. Students today who can't write in cursive are able to e-mail across the world. The reflective, personal storytelling in "What Is Left the Daughter" reminds us of the potential beauty, intimacy and wisdom offered by two endangered genres

—the letter and the novel." —Los Angeles Times


From Free net encyclopedia

The crossword is the most common variety of word puzzle in the world. Modern crosswords normally take the form of a square grid of black and white squares; the aim is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words (or word phrases) reading across and down, by solving clues which yield the words. The black squares are used to separate words. Squares in which answers begin are usually numbered; the clues are then referred to by these numbers and a direction – for example, "1-Across" or "17-Down"; at the end of the clue the total number of letters is sometimes given for the convenience of the solver, dependent on the style of puzzle and country of publication.

The creating of crosswords is called 'cruciverbalism' among its practitioners, who are likewise referred to as 'cruciverbalists'; the terms derive from the Latin for 'cross' and 'word'. Although the terms have existed for over a decade, non-cruciverbalists rarely use them, calling crossword creators simply 'constructors' or 'setters'.

The horizontal and vertical lines of white cells into which answers are written are commonly called 'entries' or simply 'answers'; the clues themselves are usually called just that, or sometimes 'definitions'. The black and white cells themselves have several terms, such as "darks and lights", "blanks" (which refers to the black cells, which are left unfilled by solvers and serve as spacers), and the like.

A white cell that is part of only one entry - Across or Down, but not both - is usually called 'unchecked'; 'unkeyed' or just 'uncrossed' are other names for this.

Types of grid

Image:American crossword.JPG

Image:British crossword.JPG

Image:Japanese crossword.gif

Crossword grids such as those appearing in most North American newspapers and magazines feature solid chunks of white squares. Every letter is checked (that is, it is part of an answer reading across and another reading down), and usually each answer is required to contain at least three letters. In such puzzles black squares, used to separate answers, are traditionally limited to about one-sixth of the design. Crossword grids elsewhere, such as in Britain and Australia, have a lattice-like structure, with a higher percentage of black squares, leaving up to half the letters in an answer unchecked. In these puzzles it is normally the case that no two across or down answers may run side-by-side. For example, if the top row has an answer running all the way across, there will be no across answers in the second row.

Another tradition in puzzle design (in North America and Britain particularly) is that the grid should have 180-degree rotational symmetry, so that its pattern appears the same if the paper is turned upside down. Puzzles are often one of several standard sizes. For example, many weekday puzzles (such as the New York Times crossword) are 15×15 squares, while weekend puzzles may be 21×21, 23×23 or 25×25.

The design of Japanese crossword grids often follows three additional rules: that black cells may not share a side, that all white cells must be orthogonally contiguous (that is, connected in one mass through shared sides, or form a single polyomino), and that the corner squares must be white.

Typically, clues appear outside the grid, divided into an Across list and a Down list; correspondingly, the first cell of each entry contains a number referenced by the clue lists - for example, the answer to a clue labeled "17-Down" would be entered with the first letter in the cell numbered '17' and proceed down from there. Numbers are almost always never repeated; instead, all cells that require clue numbers are labeled consecutively, usually from left to right across each row, starting with the top row and proceeding downward (some Japanese crosswords are numbered from top to bottom down each column, starting with the leftmost column and proceeding right).

German and Brazilian crosswords usually don't number the clues; instead, the clues themselves are found in small print inside the grid cells, each clue with a little arrow indicating in which direction from its cell the answer is to be written. These "clue boxes" are usually the only (or nearly so) "black squares" in such puzzles. This is not uncommon in other languages as well (English examples are regularly published in GAMES Magazine under the title Pencil Pointers).

Answers are printed in upper case letters. This ensures a proper name can have its initial capital letter checked with a non-capitalizable letter in the intersecting clue. Diacritical markings in foreign loanwords are ignored for similar reasons. This also applies in foreign-language puzzles; for example, in French, the initial Ê of answer ÊTRE can double as the final É of CONGÉ when written ETRE and CONGE. In German language crosswords, the umlauts 'ä', 'ö', and 'ü' are dissolved into 'ae', 'oe', and 'ue', and ß is dissolved into ss.

Types of clues

Straight or quick

The British-style cryptic crossword crossword is laden with wordplay, and features a very different type of clue from those listed above. For more details see the dedicated section, below.

Crossword themes

Quiz crosswords

The first entries

In the Daily Telegraph newspaper (Sunday and Daily, UK), it has become a convention also to make the first few words (usually 2 or 3 but can be up to 5) into a phrase. For example, "Dimmer, Allies" would make "Demoralise" or "You, ill, never, walk, alone" would become "You will never walk alone". This generally aids the solver in that if they have one of the words then they can attempt to guess the phrase. This has also become popular among other British newspapers.

Indirect clues

Cryptic crosswords

Translation crosswords

In Translation Crosswords, the clue is given in a foreign language. This makes them an entertaining vocabulary trainer. An example of Translation Crosswords created by David Andersen, uses headlines from newspapers as a part of the clue. This enables the user to see the word used in a context, while also being introduced to newspapers in the language he/she wants to learn. A more basic kind of Translation Crosswords can be seen on the pages of yourDictionary.

Other puzzles

Double clue lists

A variant of the double clue list is commonly called Siamese Twins: two matching grids are provided, and the two clue lists are merged together such that the two clues for each entry are displayed together in random order. Determining which clue is to be applied to which grid is part of the puzzle.

Here is a small example of a regular crossword, to illustrate the format:

1 2
3   4

1. Sheep sound (3)
3. Neither liquid nor gas (5)
5. Humour (3)

1. Road passenger transport (3)
2. Permit (5)
4. Shortened form of Dorothy (3)

The solution to this crossword is:

1B 9A 2A . .
9U . 9L . .
3S 9O 9L 9I 4D
. . 9O . 9O
. . 5W 9I 9T

A set of cryptic clues that provide the same answers as above might be:

1. Start of announcement by British Airways sounds woolly? (3)
3. Real dirty, mixed up and lacking drug (5)
5. Wilde's intelligence (3)

1. Ferry sees submarine rising (3)
2. Now without its initial after every warrant (5)
4. Do time? There's a point (3)

Major crossword variants

These are common crossword variants which vary more from a regular crossword than just an unusual grid shape or unusual clues; these crossword variants may be based on different solving principles and require a different solving skill set.

Cipher crosswords

Published under various trade names, and not to be confused with cryptic crosswords (which happens due to ciphertext puzzles being commonly known as cryptograms), a cipher crossword replaces the clues for each entry with clues for each white cell of the grid - an integer from 1 to 26 inclusive is printed in the corner of each. The objective, as any other crossword, is to determine the proper letter for each cell; in a cipher crossword, the twenty-six numbers serve as a cipher for those letters: cells that share matching numbers are to be filled with matching letters, and no two numbers stand for the same letter. All resultant entries must be valid words. Usually, at least one number's letter is already given at the outset. Cipher crosswords are always pangrammatic (all letters of the alphabet appear in the solution). As these puzzles are closer to codes than quizzes, they require a different skillset; many basic cryptographic techniques, such as determining likely vowels, are key to solving these. Given their pangrammaticity, a frequent start point is locating where 'Q' and 'U' must appear.

Diagramless crosswords

In a diagramless crossword, often called a diagramless for short or, in the UK, a skeleton crossword or carte blanche, the grid offers overall dimensions, but the locations of most of the clue numbers and black squares are unspecified. A successful solver must deduce not only the answers to individual clues, but how to fit together partially built-up clumps of answers into larger clumps with properly set black squares. Some of these puzzles follow the traditional symmetry rule, others have left-right mirror symmetry, and still others have greater levels of symmetry or outlines suggesting other shapes. If the symmetry of the grid has been given, then the solver can use it to his/her advantage.

A variation is the Blankout puzzle in the Daily Mail Weekend magazine. In this version, the clues are not individually numbered, but given in terms of the rows and columns of the grid, which has rectangular symmetry. The list of clues gives hints of the locations of some of the black squares even before one starts solving them, e.g. there must be a black square where a row having no clues intersects a column having no clues.

Fill-in crosswords

A fill-in crossword features a grid and the full list of words to be entered in that grid, but does not give explicit clues for where each word goes. The challenge is figuring out how to integrate the list of words together within the grid so that all intersections of words are valid. Fill-in crosswords may often have somewhat longer word length than regular crosswords to make the crossword easier for the solver, as fitting together several long words is easier than fitting together several short words because there are fewer possibilities for how the long words intersect together.

Crosswords in non-English languages

Although the crossword is an English-language invention and most common in English-speaking countries, other countries have crosswords in their respective languages.

French-language crosswords are smaller than English-language ones, and not necessarily square: usually 8–13 rows and columns, totalling 81–130 squares. They need not be symmetric and two-letter words are allowed, unlike in most English-language puzzles. Compilers strive to minimize use of black squares. 10% is typical; Georges Perec compiled many 9×9 grids for Le Point with 4 or even 3 [1]. Rather than numbering the individual clues, the rows and columns are numbered as on a chessboard. All clues for a given row or column are listed, against its number, as separate sentences. This is similar to the notation used in the aforementioned Daily Mail Blankout puzzles.

Particularly curious is the Japanese language crossword; due to the writing system of that nation's language, one syllable (typically katakana) is entered into each white cell of the grid rather than one letter, resulting in the typical solving grid seeming rather small in comparison to those of other languages. Even cipher crosswords have a Japanese equivalent, although pangrammaticity does not apply.

In Poland, crosswords can only contain nouns, singular or plural. Other parts of speech are very rare. The crosswords typically use British-style grids, but some don't have black cells at all.

On December 21, 1913, Arthur Wynne published a "word-cross" puzzle in the New York World which embodied most of the features of the genre as we know it. This puzzle, which can be seen at this website, is frequently cited as the first crossword puzzle, and Wynne as the inventor. Later, the name of the puzzle was changed to "crossword." A more complete history of the crossword puzzle, as well as a reprint of that very first crossword, can be found at a page maintained by New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz here.

Crossword puzzles became a regular weekly feature in the World. The first book of crossword puzzles, however, did not appear until 1924, published by Simon and Schuster. The book was an instant hit and crossword puzzles became the craze of 1924. The term crossword first appeared in a dictionary in 1930.

The British cryptic crossword was imported to the US in 1968 by composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim in New York magazine. The Atlantic Monthly regularly features a cryptic crossword "puzzler" by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon, which combines cryptic clues with diabolically ingenious variations on the construction of the puzzle itself. In both cases, no two puzzles are alike in construction, and the intent of the puzzle authors is to entertain with novelty, not to establish new variations of the crossword genre.

History in the United Kingdom

Crossword puzzles in World War II

Roger Squires of Ironbridge, Shropshire is the holder of the record for the World's Most Prolific Crossword Compiler, currently, April 2006, having had over 65,000 published crosswords appearing in over 470 outlets including over 70 abroad. He also holds the record for the Longest Word to have appeared in a published crossword, the place in Wales Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch (58 letters) clued as an anagram. His millionth clue appeared in the Daily Telegraph in September 1989. He is one of only four compilers to have appeared regularly in all the UK quality newspapers.

Crossword puzzles in Philosophy

American philosopher of science Susan Haack has offered the crossword as a possible model for the workings of science:

The best model of [science] is not, as much recent epistemology has assumed, a mathematical proof, but a crossword puzzle. The clues are the analogue of experiential evidence, already-completed entries the analogue of background information. How reasonable an entry in a crossword is depends upon how well it is supported by the clue and any other already-completed intersecting entries[.] (Manifesto of a Passionate Moderate, p. 95)

Haack goes on to extend the analogy to show how it quite naturally fits some of the features of science that otherwise seem troubling (for example, Thomas Kuhn's paradigm shifts.

It consists of giving the locations of the black squares in each row as letters (A=1,B=2, etc.), e.g. for the example crossword above:

  1. D E
  2. B D E
  4. A B D
  5. A B

See also

A puzzle commonly called the numerical equivalent of a crossword:

Board games based on the crossword concept:

Aids to solve crosswords include:

External links

da:Krydsordsopgave de:Kreuzworträtsel eo:Krucvortenigmo es:Crucigrama fr:Mots croisés he:תשבץ hr:Enigmatika id:Teka-teki Silang ja:クロスワードパズル ka:კროსვორდი la:Crucigramma lt:Kryžiažodis nl:Kruiswoordpuzzel pl:Krzyżówka (zagadka) sq:Fjalëkryqi sr:Енигматика sv:Korsord zh-min-nan:Si̍p-jī gú


Colours and their Sound and frequencies.

Following is a brief description of the different colours
and their Sound and frequencies.

Scriabin's theory was that each note in the octave could be associated with a specific colour, and in Prometheus, the Poem of Fire, he wrote the colours and music to match. His arrangement was:

Red Violet Yellow Steel Pale

Orange Purple Green Steel Pale

Berlioz, Debussy and Wagner were also interested in music and colour and Rimsky-Korsakov considered C as white.

The Rosicrucian Order based their theories on Just intonation and suggest that note names, frequencies, and colours should be:

Colour Yellow-

Green Green-

Blue Blue-

Violet Violet-

Red Red-

Orange Yellow
Hertz 256 288 320 341 192 213 240

Charles Fourier in Theorie de l'Unite Universelle 1846 states the connection between colours, note names and metals to be:

Iron Silver Tin Platinum Lead Gold Copper
Violet Indigo Azure Green Yellow Orange Red

The spectrum from a rainbow is described as: Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet Frequencies in the visible spectrum are between 1014 & 1015 Hertz.

The best part of the rainbow isn't the pot of gold...
...It's the rainbow itself

Note Hertz Equivalent
Approximate Colour
A 440 619.69 Orange-Yellow
A# 457.75 595.66 Yellow-Orange
Bb 472.27 577.34 Yellow
B 491.32 554.95 Yellow-Green
Cb 506.91 537.89 Green-Yellow
B# 511.13 533.44 Green
C 527.35 517.03 Green
C# 548.62 496.99 Green-Blue
Db 566.03 481.70 Blue-Green
D 588.86 463.03 Blue
D# 612.61 445.08 Blue-Violet
Eb 632.05 431.39 Violet-Blue
E 657.54 414.67 Violet
Fb 678.41 401.91 Ultra Violet
E# 684.06 398.59 Invisible Violet
F 705.77 772.66 Invisible Red
F# 734.23 742.71 Infra Red
Gb 757.53 719.86 Red
G 788.08 691.96 Red-Orange
G# 819.87 665.13 Orange-Red
Ab 845.89 644.67 Orange

RED -Activates, vitalizes, intensifies, releases blocked energy, produces collagen-
It is the longest wavelength and penetrates the deepest. It is used for rheumatics; arthritic pain; liver stimulant; LBP; pigmentation; stretch marks and circulation. 650-780nm - root chakra

ORANGE - It restores, animates, warms, stimulates, works more gently than red, building up energy step by step, unlocks deadlocked processes, cheers up. Those who love orange are said to be extroverts who often love cooking and are often creative. It helps puffy skin; spleen; hernia; muscle prolapse; sinus;
It represents the spleen, gut energy centre and eating. 570-650nm - sacral chakra

YELLOW - It fortifies, tones, opens, brightens, stimulates without exciting, extends energy, reinforces weak processes, loosens overly rigid structures, strengthens the nerves; stimulates connective tissue; eczema; flatulence; lymph drainage; skin troubles; nervous exhaustion. It represents the central nervous system 510-700nm - solar plexus chakra.

GREEN - It Equalizes, relaxes, calms down, keeps physical and mental energy dynamically balanced, releases tensed-up, painful processes, brings profound serenity. Recent studies have shown it to be good for acne lesions. It helps heart problems; HBP; burns; cuts; bruises; pigmentation 475-510nm - heart chakra.

BLUE - . It reduces inflammation (as in acne). Recent studies into the use of blue light suggests that it may be useful in preventing or controlling suggests that it may be useful in preventing or controlling periodontal conditions, which can result in the loss of bone and teeth It has also been discovered that blue produces restful sleep. insomnis; sunburn; toothache; rashes; laryngitis; It also soothes, focuses, cools down, collects and structures energy, re-regulates hyperactive, inflammatory and derailing processes, brings serenity and clarity. 445-475nm - throat chakra

INDIGO - Raises concentration; Detoxing and cooling; It strengthens lymphatics; muscle toning; reduces bleeding; astringent; has high level of vibration; is known for its effect on eyes, ear ,nose, throat and sinuses; lungs; migraine; sinuses. 400-445nm - brow chakra.

VIOLET - It inspires, attenuates, transforms energy on a higher level, supports mental processes, relaxes the nerves, soothes nervous irritations and relieves pain. It aids HBP; acne blemishes; lymph drainage; neuralgia; muscle relaxer; rheumatics; rosacea; sciatica; anti inflammatory.

Color Characteristic Gland Qualities Imbalance Resonance Frequency
Red Physical Gonads courage, action, grounding, stabilty, survival violence, greed, self, centeredness 194.18Hz
Orange Social Spleen passion, trust, emoltions, health, pleasure, let go Jealousy, envy, aimlessness, obsessiveness 210.42Hz
Yellow Intellectual Adrenals personal power, self esteem fear, anger, hate, power 126.22Hz
Green Self assertive Lymph Acceptance, forgiveness, love, radiance Instability, repressed, love 136.10HZ
Dark Blue Conceptual Thyroid Communication, truth, creative/arts Depression, ignorance 141.27Hz
Indigo Intuitive Hypothalmus, Pituatry Perception, realisation, intuition, clairvoyance.. Fear, tension, headaches 221.23Hz
Violet Imaginative Pineal Fulfilment, inspiration Confusion 172.06Hz

Ratio Color Note Frequency
1.000 - RED 555,392,958,464 (C) 55.5 hz
1.122 - Orange 623,307,159,552 (D) 62.3 hz
1.189 - Yellow 699,811,233,792 (E) 66.0 hz
1.334 - Green 741,418,725,376 (F) 74.1 hz
1.498 - Blue 832,149,913,600 (G) 83.2 hz
1.681 - Purple - 935,155,386,680 (A) 93.4 hz
1.781 - Violet - 1,048,508,891,136 (B) 98.9 hz
2.000 - White - 1,110,785,916,928 (C) 110.0 hz

Velocity=Wavelength x Frequency
This formula describes the relationship between wavelength and
numbers can be generated for the frequencies of the colors. For

Starting from the wavelengths arrived at above, as well as intervening
numbers for the tertiary colors, and calculating their frequencies in
this manner provides these results:

Color Wavelength (nm) Frequency (GHz)
Red-Violet 340 881,742.6471
Violet 395 758,968.3544
Blue-Violet 420 713,791.6667
Blue 450 666,205.5556
Blue-Green 490 611,821.4286
Green 535 560,359.8131
Yellow-Green 555 540,166.6667
Yellow 580 516,883.6207
Yellow-Orange 610 491,463.1148
Orange 645 464,794.5736
Red-Orange 670 447,451.4925
Red 710 422,242.9577


The simulation has the fan model in a 0.9-m diameter duct and calculates flow on only one of four blades to trim computing time. A surface mesh was used to generate a volume mesh of about 269,000 cells. The inlet mesh extends two fan diameters upstream, except for low flow rates studies. There, large fan-to-inlet pressure gradients required that inlet mesh extended upstream about two additional fan diameters.
Head-versus-flow-rate simulations show excellent agreement with experiments over the entire flow-rate range. Computed power coefficients also show good agreement at higher flow regime, but under-predict experimental data at low flow rates (though the trend of higher torque as flow decreases is correctly predicted). The discrepancy may be due to blade-torque sensitivity to the points of separation on the blade surface. Flow is expected to be highly separated in the low-flow regime, so a finer mesh could improve the results. A more sophisticated model, such as the Reynolds Stress Model, may also improve results at low flow rates.
Pressure and velocity field for low flow, φ = 0.1
Pressure and velocity field for high flow, φ = 0.5.

Designing a fan blade usually involves mounting a prototype in a plenum and measuring pressure and flow rates at different rotational speeds. Such point measurements provide little information as to why designs work well or poorly. Consequently, engineers often settle for less than ideal performance because they don't have tools to optimize designs.

But new computational-fluid-dynamics (CFD) models let fan designers rely less on guess work. Franklyn Kelecy, an application engineer with CFD software developer Fluent Inc., Lebanon, N.H., compared results from a CFD simulation of a four-bladed fan, with published experimental wind-tunnel data, over a wide range of flow rates. "Results correlate closely," he says.

CFD simulations estimate fluid velocity, pressure, and temperature throughout the solution domain with complex geometries and boundary conditions. Designers immediately see the effects of changes to CFD geometry or boundary conditions such as inlet velocity, flow rate, and rotational speed. In addition, simulations give more complete information than physical testing, such as color-coded graphics of flow direction, and velocity. These provide more insight as to why a design is performing as it is, which allows rapid design improvements.

Wind-tunnel tests in this case were done over a range of flow rates at a fan speed of 2,000 rpm and standard atmospheric conditions. The Reynolds number, based on a 110-mm fan diameter and blade tip speed, is 1.2 X 105. Blades are thin, cambered plates (with circular arc sections) attached to a 25-mm diameter shaft.

Kelecy developed a grid for the fan and wind-tunnel domain using the Gambit CFD preprocessor. He says recent developments in meshing simplify and speed what was once a tedious task. A tetrahedral mesh around the blade with a wedge mesh at the inlet solves slightly faster than an all-tetrahedral mesh. And postprocessors integrated with solvers also speed the operations.

Blade rotation was modeled in Fluent using a reference frame that rotates with the fan blades. Here, the blade and shaft have zero velocity while tunnel walls have an angular velocity opposite that of the fan when viewed from the lab (stationary) frame. The simulation included Coriolis forces and turbulence using the Realizable k-e turbulence model.

"The nondimensional parameters used to characterize fan performance include:

flow coefficient: Φ = Q/ND3
head coefficient: ψ = Δ P/ρN2D2
power coefficient: θ = Tω/ N3D5,

where Q = volume flow rate, (m3/sec); N = rotational speed (rps); D = fan diameter (m), ρ = density (kg/m3); T = torque (N-m); and ω = rotational speed (rad/sec).

The fan curve takes on multiple values at 0.25 D upstream of the fan face and plenum-outlet boundary.

"Solutions can be sensitive to initial conditions for operating points near the multivalued regime of the fan curve," he says. For example, when Φ = 0.35. "We found that if the calculation was started from an arbitrary initial guess, the pressure rise at convergence was significantly higher than the data. But when the calculation started from a previous solution, say Φ = 0.4, the predicted pressure rise agreed better with published data. We think separated flow on the blade surface is the culprit, which is triggered by initial conditions and cannot be fully eliminated from the numerical solution."

Contour plots show static pressure distribution on the pressure side of the blade surface along with velocity vectors on a cutting plane (y = 0) for the cases with flow coefficients of 0.1 and 0.5. "At Φ = 0.1, severe adverse pressure gradients on the pressure surface indicate separated flow," says Kelecy. "These are less pronounced when Φ = 0.35. The separated flow disappears when Φ = 0.5 and the pressure distribution becomes more uniform. Low pressure at the blade tip is from tip-clearance effects. Also, velocity-vector patterns show that flow downstream of the fan face becomes highly radial with decreasing fan flow rates. A large volume of fluid is drawn towards the fan at the hub and propelled radially, much like a centrifugal fan," he adds.


Foreign Exchange Market - The Currency Market

The foreign exchange market is unique because of the following characteristics:

its geographical dispersion;

the variety of factors that affect exchange rates;

The $3.98 trillion break-down is as follows:

$1.490 trillion in spot transactions

$475 billion in outright forwards

$1.765 trillion in foreign exchange swaps

$43 billion currency swaps

$207 billion in options and other products

Forex first occurred in ancient times. Money-changing people, people helping others to change money and also taking a commission or charging a fee were living in the times of the Talmudic writings (Biblical times). These people (sometimes called "kollybist s") used city-stalls, at feast times the temples Court of the Gentiles instead. The money-changer was also in more recent ancient times silver-smiths and, or, gold-smiths.

During the fourth century the Byzantium government kept a monopoly on forexes.

Medieval and later

During the fifteenth century the Medici family were required to open banks at foreign locations in order to exchange currencies to act for textile merchants. To facilitate trade the bank created the nostro (from Italian translated - "ours") account book which contained two columned entries showing amounts of foreign and local currencies, information pertaining to the keeping of an account with a foreign bank. During the 17 (or 18 ) century Amsterdam maintained an active forex market. During 1704 foreign exchange took place between agents acting in the interests of the nations of England and Holland.

Early modern

The firm Alexander Brown & Sons traded foreign currencies exchange sometime about 1850 and were a leading participant in this within the U.S. A. During 1880 J.M. do Esp rito Santo de Silva (Banco Esp rito e Comercial de Lisboa) applied for and was given permission to begin to engage in a foreign exchange trading business.

1880 is considered by one source to be the beginning of modern foreign exchange, significant for the fact of the beginning of the gold standard during the year.

Prior to the first world war there was a much more limited control of international trade. Motivated by the outset of war countries abandoned the gold standard monetary system.

Modern to post-modern

Before WWII

From 1899 to 1913 holdings of countries foreign exchange increased by 10.8%, while holdings of gold increased by 6.3%.

At the time of the closing of the year 1913, nearly half of the world's forexes were being performed using sterling. The number of foreign banks operating within the boundaries of London increased in the years from 1860 to 1913 from 3 to 71. In 1902 there were altogether two London foreign exchange brokers. In the earliest years of the twentieth century trade was most active in Paris, New York and Berlin, while Britain remained largely uninvolved in trade until 1914. Between 1919 and 1922 the employment of a foreign exchange brokers within London increased to 17, in 1924 there were 40 firms operating for the purposes of exchange. During the 1920s the occurrence of trade in London resembled more the modern manifestation, by 1928 forex trade was integral to the financial functioning of the city. Continental exchange controls, plus other factors, in Europe and Latin America, hampered any attempt at wholesale prosperity from trade for those of 1930's London.

During the 1920s foreign exchange the Kleinwort family were known to be the leaders of the market, Japhets, S,Montagu & Co. and Seligmans as significant participants still warrant recognition. In the year 1945 the nation of Ethiopias' government possessed a foreign exchange surplus.

After WWII

After WWII the Bretton Woods Accord was signed allowing currencies to fluctuate within a range of 1% to the currencies par. In Japan the law was changed during 1954 by the Foreign Exchange Bank Law, so, the Bank of Tokyo was to become because of this the centre of foreign exchange by September of that year. Between 1954 and 1959 Japanese law was made to allow the inclusion of many more Occidental currencies in Japanese forex.

President Nixon is credited with ending the Bretton Woods Accord, and fixed rates of exchange, bringing about eventually a free-floating currency system. After the ceasing of the enactment of the Bretton Woods Accord (during 1971 ) the Smithsonian agreement allowed trading to range to 2%. During 1961-62 the amount of foreign operations by the U.S. of America's Federal Reserve was relatively low. Those involved in controlling exchange rates found the boundaries of the Agreement were not realistic and so ceased this in March 1973, when sometime afterward none of the major currencies were maintained with a capacity for conversion to gold, organisations relied instead on reserves of currency. During 1970 to 1973 the amount of trades occurring in the market increased three-fold. At some time (according to Gandolfo during February March 1973) some of the markets' were "split", so a two tier currency market was subsequently introduced, with dual currency rates. This was abolished during March 1974.

Reuters introduced during June 1973 computer monitors, replacing the telephones and telex used previously for trading quotes.

-markets close

After 1973

In fact 1973 marks the point to which nation-state, banking trade and controlled foreign exchange ended and complete floating, relatively free conditions of a market characteristic of the situation in contemporary times began (according to one source), although another states the first time a currency pair were given as an option for U.S.A. traders to purchase was during 1982, with additional currencies available by the next year.

On 1 January 1981 (as part of changes beginning during 1978 ) the Bank of China allowed certain domestic "enterprises" to participate in foreign exchange trading. Sometime during the months of 1981 the South Korean government ended forex controls and allowed free trade to occur for the first time. During 1988 the countries government accepted the IMF quota for international trade.

Intervention by European banks especially the Bundesbank influenced the forex market, on February the 27th 1985 particularly. The greatest proportion of all trades world-wide during 1987 were within the United Kingdom, slightly over one quarter, with the U.S. of America the nation with the second most places involved in trading.

During 1991 the republic of Iran changed international agreements with some countries from oil-barter to foreign exchange.

Main foreign exchange market turnover, 1988 2007, measured in billions of USD.

Trading in the United Kingdom accounted for 36.7% of the total, making it by far the most important centre for foreign exchange trading. Trading in the United States accounted for 17.9%, and Japan accounted for 6.2%.

Most developed countries permit the trading of derivative products (like futures and options on futures) on their exchanges. All these developed countries already have fully convertible capital accounts. Some governments of emerging economies do not allow foreign exchange derivative products on their exchanges because they have capital controls. The use of derivatives is growing in many emerging economies. Countries such as Korea, South Africa, and India have established currency futures exchanges, despite having some capital controls.

Top 10 currency traders Rank Name Market share 1 Deutsche Bank 14.57% 2 Citi 12.26% 3 Barclays Investment Bank 10.95% 4 UBS AG 10.48% 5 HSBC 6.72% 6 JPMorgan 6.6% 7 Royal Bank of Scotland 5.86% 8 Credit Suisse 4.68% 9 Morgan Stanley 3.52% 10 Goldman Sachs 3.12%

Foreign exchange trading increased by 20% between April 2007 and April 2010 and has more than doubled since 2004. The increase in turnover is due to a number of factors: the growing importance of foreign exchange as an asset class, the increased trading activity of high-frequency traders, and the emergence of retail investors as an important market segment. The growth of electronic execution and the diverse selection of execution venues has lowered transaction costs, increased market liquidity, and attracted greater participation from many customer types. In particular, electronic trading via online portals has made it easier for retail traders to trade in the foreign exchange market. By 2010, retail trading is estimated to account for up to 10% of spot turnover, or $150 billion per day (see retail foreign exchange platform).

Market participants

Financial markets

Public market

Bond market

Bond valuation

Corporate bond

Fixed income

Government bond

High-yield debt

Municipal bond

Stock market

Common stock

Preferred stock

Registered share

Stock certificate

Stock exchange

Voting share

Derivatives market

Credit derivative

Futures exchange

Hybrid security

Spot market

Foreign exchange

Exchange rate

Other markets

Commodity market

Money market

Reinsurance market

Real estate market

Practical trading

Clearing house

Financial market participants

Financial regulation

Finance series

Banks and banking

Corporate finance

Personal finance

Public finance

Unlike a stock market, the foreign exchange market is divided into levels of access. At the top is the interbank market, which is made up of the largest commercial banks and securities dealers. Within the interbank market, spreads, which are the difference between the bid and ask prices, are razor sharp and not known to players outside the inner circle. The difference between the bid and ask prices widens (for example from 0-1 pip to 1-2 pips for a currencies such as the EUR) as you go down the levels of access. This is due to volume. If a trader can guarantee large numbers of transactions for large amounts, they can demand a smaller difference between the bid and ask price, which is referred to as a better spread. The levels of access that make up the foreign exchange market are determined by the size of the "line" (the amount of money with which they are trading). The top-tier interbank market accounts for 39% of all transactions. From there, smaller banks, followed by large multi-national corporations (which need to hedge risk and pay employees in different countries), large hedge funds, and even some of the retail market makers. According to Galati and Melvin, Pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, and other institutional investors have played an increasingly important role in financial markets in general, and in FX markets in particular, since the early 2000s. (2004) In addition, he notes, Hedge funds have grown markedly over the 2001 2004 period in terms of both number and overall size .Central banks also participate in the foreign exchange market to align currencies to their economic needs.

Commercial companies

An important part of this market comes from the financial activities of companies seeking foreign exchange to pay for goods or services. Commercial companies often trade fairly small amounts compared to those of banks or speculators, and their trades often have little short term impact on market rates. Nevertheless, trade flows are an important factor in the long-term direction of a currency's exchange rate. Some multinational companies can have an unpredictable impact when very large positions are covered due to exposures that are not widely known by other market participants.

Central banks

Foreign exchange fixing

Hedge funds as speculators

About 70% to 90% of the foreign exchange transactions are speculative. In other words, the person or institution that bought or sold the currency has no plan to actually take delivery of the currency in the end; rather, they were solely speculating on the movement of that particular currency. Hedge funds have gained a reputation for aggressive currency speculation since 1996. They control billions of dollars of equity and may borrow billions more, and thus may overwhelm intervention by central banks to support almost any currency, if the economic fundamentals are in the hedge funds' favor.

Investment management firms

Retail foreign exchange traders

Individual Retail speculative traders constitute a growing segment of this market with the advent of retail foreign exchange platforms, both in size and importance. Currently, they participate indirectly through brokers or banks. Retail brokers, while largely controlled and regulated in the USA by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and National Futures Association have in the past been subjected to periodic Foreign exchange fraud. To deal with the issue, in 2010 the NFA required its members that deal in the Forex markets to register as such (I.e., Forex CTA instead of a CTA). Those NFA members that would traditionally be subject to minimum net capital requirements, FCMs and IBs, are subject to greater minimum net capital requirements if they deal in Forex. A number of the foreign exchange brokers operate from the UK under Financial Services Authority regulations where foreign exchange trading using margin is part of the wider over-the-counter derivatives trading industry that includes Contract for differences and financial spread betting.

Non-bank foreign exchange companies

Money transfer/remittance companies and bureaux de change

Trading characteristics

Most traded currencies by value Rank Currency ISO 4217 code (Symbol) % daily share (April 2010) 1 United States dollar USD ($) 84.9% 2 Euro EUR ( ) 39.1% 3 Japanese yen JPY ( ) 19.0% 4 Pound sterling GBP ( ) 12.9% 5 Australian dollar AUD ($) 7.6% 6 Swiss franc CHF (Fr) 6.4% 7 Canadian dollar CAD ($) 5.3% 8 Hong Kong dollar HKD ($) 2.4% 9 Swedish krona SEK (kr) 2.2% 10 New Zealand dollar NZD ($) 1.6% 11 South Korean won KRW ( ) 1.5% 12 Singapore dollar SGD ($) 1.4% 13 Norwegian krone NOK (kr) 1.3% 14 Mexican peso MXN ($) 1.3% 15 Indian rupee INR ( ) 0.9% Other 12.2% Total 200%

On the spot market, according to the 2010 Triennial Survey, the most heavily traded bilateral currency pairs were:

GBPUSD (also called cable): 9%

and the US currency was involved in 84.9% of transactions, followed by the euro (39.1%), the yen (19.0%), and sterling (12.9%) (see table). Volume percentages for all individual currencies should add up to 200%, as each transaction involves two currencies.

Trading in the euro has grown considerably since the currency's creation in January 1999, and how long the foreign exchange market will remain dollar-centered is open to debate. Until recently, trading the euro versus a non-European currency ZZZ would have usually involved two trades: EURUSD and USDZZZ. The exception to this is EURJPY, which is an established traded currency pair in the interbank spot market. As the dollar's value has eroded during 2008, interest in using the euro as reference currency for prices in commodities (such as oil), as well as a larger component of foreign reserves by banks, has increased dramatically. Transactions in the currencies of commodity-producing countries, such as AUD, NZD, CAD, have also increased

Determinants of exchange rates

Political conditions

Market psychology

Flights to quality: Unsettling international events can lead to a "flight to quality", a type of capital flight whereby investors move their assets to a perceived "safe haven". There will be a greater demand, thus a higher price, for currencies perceived as stronger over their relatively weaker counterparts. The U.S. dollar, Swiss franc and gold have been traditional safe havens during times of political or economic uncertainty.

Financial instruments

Controversy about currency speculators and their effect on currency devaluations and national economies recurs regularly. Nevertheless, economists including Milton Friedman have argued that speculators ultimately are a stabilizing influence on the market and perform the important function of providing a market for hedgers and transferring risk from those people who don't wish to bear it, to those who do. Other economists such as Joseph Stiglitz consider this argument to be based more on politics and a free market philosophy than on economics.

Risk aversion

Forex Signals

Forex trade alerts, often referred to as Forex Signals are trade strategies provided by either experienced traders or market analysts. These signals which are often charged a premium fee for can then be copied or replicated by a trader to his own live account. Forex Signal products are packaged as either alerts delivered to a users inbox or sms, or can be installed to a trader's trading platform.

Investment banking

An investment bank is a financial institution that assists individuals, corporations, & governments in raising capital by underwriting and/or acting as the client's agent in the issuance of securities.

Mergers and acquisitions

Mergers & acquisitions (abbreviated M & A) is an aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance & management dealing with the buying, selling, dividing & combining of different companies

Hedge fund

Hedge funds are private, actively managed investment funds. They invest in a diverse range of markets, investment instruments, & strategies & are subject to the regulatory restrictions of their country.

Tag Cloud

Income Tax     Cash Flow     Money     Industries     Equity     Shares     Commodity     Share Market     Real Estate Rate     Audit     Hedge Fund     Mutual Funds     Debt Funds     Balance Fund     systematic Investment Plans     Children Plans     Saving Account     Home Loans     Market Rates     Corporate Taxes


Local fishermen joined five coastguard vessels, a helicopter and divers in rescue operations early on Monday.

Officials said 90 people had been rescued and that 31 of them were injured and being treated in hospitals.

"Our rescue operations are continuing [for the missing people] around the area where the boat sank, but because of the darkness of night it's been difficult to work," Selahattin Hatipoglu, governor of Balikesir province, said.

The cause of the sinking was not immediately known.

Passengers said the ship sank in about 15 minutes and that many of those on board were asleep in their vehicles when it began to go down.

"The ship was rocking back and forth, to the left then to the right, then finally sunk, completely sunk," according to one survivor.


Physics, Chapters 17-32

Physics, Chapters 17-32 (9th Edition) View more editions

Solutions for Chapter 30 Problem 29P

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Chapter: Problem:
Chapter: Problem:
  • Step 1 of 5

    The energy levels of a hydrogen atom are expressed as follows:

    …… (1)

    Here, n is the principal quantum number.

    To determine the three smallest possible values for the total energy, we need to calculate the principal quantum number n. The orbital quantum number, have the integer values. Since the maximum value of orbital quantum number l is, the minimum value of n will be l+1

    The value of orbital quantum number l can be calculated from the equation for the z component of angular momentum,

    Here, h is the Planck’s constant, is the magnetic quantum number.

    Rearrange the equation for .

    Substitute, for and for h.

  • Chapter , Problem is solved.
Corresponding Textbook

Physics, Chapters 17-32 9th edition 9780470879542 0470879548
Physics, Chapters 17-32 | 9th Edition
9780470879542ISBN-13: 0470879548ISBN: John D. Cutnell, Kenneth W JohnsonAuthors:


French anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss dies

The French intellectual was regarded as having reshaped the field of anthropology, introducing the concept of structuralism — concepts about common patterns of behavior and thought, especially myths, in a wide range of human societies. Defined as the search for the underlying patterns of thought in all forms of human activity, structuralism compared the formal relationships among elements in any given system.

Born on 28 November, 1908, in Brussels, Belgium, Levi-Strauss was the son of French parents of Jewish origin. He studied in Paris and went on to teach in Sao Paulo, Brazil and conduct much of the research that led to his breakthrough books in the South American giant.

Levi-Strauss also won worldwide acclaim and was awarded honorary doctorates universities including Harvard, Yale and Oxford, as well as universities in Sweden, Mexico and Canada.

He is survived by his sons Roman and Laurent.


Couple Wanted for Space Trip!

mars trip

In what could be once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for humans, a non-profit organisation is looking out for a couple to go to Mars!

The mission to Mars is expected to commence as early as 2018 and will last an entire of 510 days! In a mission to put the toughest of marriages under question, Dennis Tito, the first space tourist wants to invite a couple to go to the Red planet.

However, the mission is not a mere sight-seeing space mission. The trip to Mars will test the faith of the marriage as the couple will have to survive each other in a closed space for nearly 2 years. There will be absolutely no concept of personal space. Additionally, there will be limited rations available on the shuttle. There will be a fixed ration of food and clothing provided. If you think that is bad, the worst is yet to come! As there will be a limited supply of fresh water, urine will be re-cycled into drinking water!

Ready to put up with all the terms and conditions and really want to make it for the trip? There is one more ‘Beware’ sign looming. The mission is like any other mission and God forbid, if anything goes wrong or there are any technical issues, there will be no turning back for the couple. This might be their very last pilgrimage.

Since this will be a private mission, NASA guidelines will not be followed. Also, there would be no landing on Mars but just a round trip around the planet. The project is estimated to cost over 1 billion dollars and Dennis Tito will do the funding for the project.

Though the project idea sure sounds lofty and surreal, there are various ethical questions that arise. Will the couple be provided enough training? What about risk factors involved? Whose responsibility will it be if the mission fails? And lastly, will any couple be willing to put everything including their marriage and life at stake for just one glimpse?


Chelyabinsk meteor's plume of debris circles the globe

It is unclear what the impact will be on the climate, but three and half hours after the initial explosion, NASA's ozone-mapping satellite detected the plume at 25 miles altitude above the earth's surface moving at about 190 mph eastward.   According to NASA:


Bamyan Province

BamyanBamyan Province is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the central highlands of the country. Its terrain is mountainous or semi-mountainous. The province is divided into six districts, with the town of Bamyan serving as its capital. The province has a population of about 425,500. It is the largest province in the Hazarajat region of Afghanistan, and is the cultural capital of the Hazara ethnic group that predominates in the area.Its name can be translated as “The Place of Shining Light”. In antiquity, central Afghanistan was strategically placed to thrive from the Silk Road caravans which criss-crossed the region trading between the Roman Empire, China, Central and South Asia. Bamyan was a stopping off point for many travellers. It was here where elements of Greek and Buddhist art were combined into a unique classical style, known as Greco-Buddhist art.

The province has several famous historical sites, including the famous Buddha statues with more than 3,000 caves around it, the Band-e Amir National Park, Dara-i-Ajhdar, Gholghola and Zakhak ancient towns, the Feroz Bahar, Astopa, Klegan, Gaohargin, Kaferan and Cheldukhtaran.

Bamyan province under Mauryan Empire rule

Maurya Empire under Ashoka the Great

— Strabo, 64 BCE–24 CE

— Junianus Justinus

Having consolidated power in the northwest, Chandragupta pushed east towards the Nanda Empire. Afghanistan’s significant ancient tangible and intangible Buddhist heritage is recorded through wide-ranging archeological finds, including religious and artistic remnants. Buddhist doctrines are reported to have reached as far as Balkh even during the life of the Buddha (563 BCE to 483 BCE), as recorded by Husang Tsang.

The region was ruled by the Achaemenids. In 330 BC, Alexander the Great seized the area but left it to Seleucids to rule. The area south of the Hindu Kush was given to the Mauryas who introduced Buddhism. It became the site of an early Buddhist monastery from which Bamyan takes its name from the Sanskrit varmayana (“coloured”). Many statues of Buddha were carved into the sides of cliffs facing Bamyan city. The two most prominent of these statues were standing Buddhas, now known as the Buddhas of Bamyan, measuring 55 and 37 meters high respectively, that were the largest examples of standing Buddha carvings in the world. They were probably erected in the 4th or 5th century A.D. They were cultural landmarks for many years and are listed among UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. In March 2001 the Taliban government decreed that the statues were idolatrous and ordered them to be demolished with anti-aircraft artillery and explosives.

By the 7th century, when the Arabs first arrived, it was under the control of the Kabul Shahi before being conquered in the name of Islam by the Saffarids in the 9th century. It fell to the Ghaznavids followed by the Ghurids before the Mongol invasion in the 13th century. The area was ruled by Arghun Khan of Ilkhanate, later by the Timurids and Mughals.

In 1709, when the Hotaki dynasty rose to power in Kandahar and defeated the Persian Safavids, Bamyan was under the Mughal Empire influence until Ahmad Shah Durrani made it become part of the Afghan Durrani Empire, which became to what is now the modern state of Afghanistan.

During the 1980s Soviet war in Afghanistan, the Hazara rebel leader Abdul Ali Mazari began spreading influence. He was supported by Iranian politicians. He founded the Hezbe Wahdat political party in 1989 and was killed by Taliban forces. By 1995, Bamyan province was under the control of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (Taliban government). They were toppled by US-led forces in late 2001.

Recent History

After the formation of the Karzai administration, Bamyan became the focus of rebuilding.

The Buddhist remains at Bamyan were included on the 2008 World Monuments Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World Monuments Fund. It is hoped that the listing will put continued national and international attention on the site as a whole (including, but not limited to, the statues) in order to ensure its long-term preservation, and to make certain that future restoration efforts maintain the authenticity of the site and that proper preservation practices are followed. Bamyan is also known as the capital of Daizangi and for its natural beauty.

It is recognised as one of the safest provinces in the country, which has allowed for civil rebuilding. Bamyan served as the base of operations for the New Zealand peacekeeping force, a Provincial Reconstruction Team codenamed Task Group Crib, which was part of the network of Provincial Reconstruction Teams throughout Afghanistan.

The total population of Bamyan province is around 425,500. It is a multi-ethnic tribal society. According to the Naval Postgraduate School, the ethnic groups of the province are as follows: 67.4% Hazara; 16% Sadat; 15.7% Tajik; 0.5% Tatar; 0.2% Qizilbash; and 0.1% Pashtun.

Bamyan province is divided in to 7 districts.

Province Population Area
Bamyan 9,001,028
Kahmard 31,042
Panjab 48,397
Saraik 23,215
Shibar 22,933
Waras 82,119
Nayak 100,158
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The Mexican Muddle

MEXICO CITY – This month, Mexico’s Felipe Calderón celebrates his second anniversary as president. Calderón took office in December 2006 under adverse circumstances. Elected with 35% of the vote, he lacked a majority in Congress, and the opposition refused to acknowledge his victory. He has also had to govern in a persistently difficult environment: a lame-duck president next door in the United States, a severe economic downturn, and the legacy of corruption, negligence, and complicity handed down by his predecessors since 1968, when Mexico’s old one-party political system began to crumble.

Most immediately, Calderón had to address his immediate predecessor’s failure to implement any of the major reforms that Mexico needed. Vicente Fox took office in 2000 with a broad mandate, but, like Calderón, without a majority in Congress. He proved unable to forge lasting legislative coalitions, leading Calderón to decide that his first break with the past should consist in building alliances to enact reform. Soon, however, this became an end in itself, and Calderón proved adept at constructing short-lived coalitions for largely inconsequential reforms. This watered-down gradualism has become his trademark.

Given this, it is no surprise that the list of question marks attached to Calderón’s administration is longer than that of his achievements. His poll numbers reflect this ambivalence. He remains personally popular and well regarded, but the public is increasingly dissatisfied and disappointed with his government’s actual performance.

Among his few successes are state-employee pension fund reforms, which will save the system from bankruptcy. Another lies in having weakened and neutralized the left-wing opposition, and being able to govern without major confrontations in the streets or Congress. Other changes – a counter-productive electoral reform, a minor revenue-enhancing tax reform, and hypothetical oil-sector reform – all suffer from Calderón’s penchant for minimalism: enacting legislation seems more important to him than the content.


Teaching basic lab skills
for research computing

How to Prepare for the Data Incubator

At The Data Incubator, we receive thousands of applications to join our data science fellowship. Our admissions bar is very high and we are often asked, "What can I do to prepare for the fellowship application process?"

Here are five important skills to develop and some resources on how to help you develop them. While we don't expect our applicants to possess all of these skills, most applicants already have a strong background in many of them.

  1. Scraping: There's a lot of data out there so you'll need to learn how to get access to it. Whether it's JSON, HTML or some homebrew format, you should be able to handle them with ease. Modern scripting languages like Python are ideal for this. In Python, look at packages like urllib2, requests, simplejson, re, and beautiful soup to make handling web requests and data formats easier. More advanced topics include error handling (retrying) and parallelization (multiprocessing).

    Normally, you would have to go through a painful install process to play with SQL. Fortunately, there's a nice online interactive tutorial available where you can submit your queries and learn interactively. Additionally, Mode Analytics has a great tutorial geared towards data scientists, although it is not interactive. When you're ready to use SQL locally, SQLite offers a simple-to-install version of SQL.

  3. Data frames: SQL is great for handling large amounts of data but unfortunately it lacks machine learning and visualization. So the workflow is often to use SQL or mapreduce to get data to a manageable size and then process it using a libraries like R's data frames or Python's pandas. For Pandas, Wes McKinney, who created pandas, has a great video tutorial on youtube. Watch it here and follow along by checking out the github code.

  5. Visualization: Data science is about communicating your findings, and data visualization is an incredibly valuable part of that. Python offers Matlab-like plotting via matplotlib, which is functional, even if its ascetically lacking. R offers ggplot, which is prettier. Of course, if you're really serious about dynamic visualizations, try d3.

These are some of the foundational skills that will be invaluable to your career as a data scientist. While they only cover a subset of what we talk about at The Data Incubator (there's a lot more to cover in stats, machine-learning, and mapreduce), this is a great start.

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Vtech Communications

Melissa Adamson
9590 SW Gemini Dr., Suite 120
Beaverton, OR 97008  US

Company Overview

VTech is the world’s largest manufacturer of cordless telephones, and the largest supplier of electronic learning products from infancy to preschool in the US and Western Europe. It also provides highly sought-after contract manufacturing services.


Pixies play it a little too safe on 'Indie Cindy' (album review)

Pixies, led by Black Francis (middle), offer fans "Indie Cindy," the band's first album in more than 20 years. (Michael Halsband)

CLEVELAND, Ohio – "Indie Cindy," the Pixies first album since 1991, is a decent rock record that, at times, is pretty good. Yet, your final opinion of it may have less to do with how adequate the music is and more to do with how the album measures up to the rest of the iconic indie-act's catalog.

Musically, "Indie Cindy" feels like a cohesive effort. However, fans may feel slighted by the fact that the album's tracks were already released on series of EPs over the past eight months.

Pixies - Indie Cindy.jpgPixies - "Indie Cindy"

Either way, there are some things to like here. "Andro Queen" is a gorgeous love song that would fit in during the Pixie's golden era. And "Greens and Blues," to some extent, accomplishes Black Francis' goal of writing a new, grandiose closer for the band's live sets.

Where "Indie Cindy" falls short is in its lack of inventiveness. Part of the Pixies' appeal was the sense that the bandmembers didn't care about what was expected of them. The band's best songs often felt off-kilter, with unique structures that shouldn't have amounted to something beautiful, but almost always did. In a way, the Pixies were perfectly imperfect.

"Indie Cindy" showcases a band that seems to care a little too much. Francis' vocals are more processed than they have been in the past, while some of the songs ("Bagboy," "Blue Eyed Hexe") feature a recycled formula (sarcastic spoken word, three-note guitar lines and subtle highlights of electronic bass) the band perfected 25 years ago and has been copied by other indie acts ever since. How much the absence of bassist Kim Deal has to do with that is anyone's guess.

At this point, no one's expecting another "Surfer Rosa" or "Doolittle" from the Pixies. Even comparing "Indie Cindy" to "Bossanova" or "Trompe le Monde" seems unfair.

Still, by contemporary standards, "Indie Cindy" isn't groundbreaking at all. It's what you might expect from a band that hasn't released a proper album in more than 20 years. The problem is, the Pixies were always at their best when they were doing the unexpected. Grade: C+


Government interference stifling investment

They all had something else in common too; every one of them politely explained to me how difficult government had made doing business.

Right from start-up, the myriad state and federal rules and regulations stifled business growth. Tax and compliance burdens left potential job vacancies unfilled, while a lack of legislative certainty impeded business planning and investment decisions. I could go on but I don’t want to give the impression that they were complaining – because they weren't.

All of them were concerned about the future of our country. They had succeeded in spite of the barriers government had put in their way, but they worried that thousands more wouldn’t be able to. Every year there seems to be a new incentive for the ambitious to opt out of the risk of entrepreneurial self-employment and stick with the safety of working within established organisations.

This is a cultural phenomenon we have to redress because small business is the key driver of economic growth in our economy. Successful small businesses generate jobs and wealth as they become successful bigger businesses. The capital they accumulate is released into other areas of our economy, generating even more jobs and economic growth. In some cases, the entrepreneurial small business becomes a massive business success.

We desperately need more people to commit to this path; the path of calculated risk, investment, hard work and potential reward. Yet seemingly at every turn we make it harder for people to take even the first step.

In this respect, government has become a barrier rather than a facilitator to self-reliance and success.

It is a similar circumstance when it comes to individuals planning for their retirement through superannuation. The level of uncertainty as successive governments continually change the rules leaves few people with the confidence to make long-term plans when it comes to superannuation. Unless one is already close to retirement, it makes little sense to tie up money in long-term savings which you may or may not have access to at some time in the future.

Constantly changing rules in respect to lump sum payments, age of accessibility, contribution limits, surcharges, taxes and compliance creates a sense of unease at voluntarily committing money to a vehicle that is subject to government ‘improvement’ over the next 40 years or more.

We have seen more of this ‘improvement’ today with the Labor Party announcing their changes to superannuation should they be elected again. It’s worth noting it had minimal impact on those receiving or eligible to receive a defined benefit parliamentary pension!

Little wonder people are growing increasingly cynical of the merits of government interventions which seem to have such a negative effect at both the top and bottom end of town.

I get the sense that it is fostering the belief that when it comes to government the ‘less is more’ approach is growing in popularity. At least I hope so.


Roland Emmerich Will Try TV with a Supernatural Pilot For ABC

Roland EmmerichEverything about Roland Emmerich screams big screen. The last eight movies he directed were about the takedown of the greatest writer in human history, the apocalypse, mammoth-hunting, the apocalypse (snow version), the Civil War, Godzilla, the apocalypse (alien version), and interplanetary teleportation. So, you might be surprised to learn that the writer/director’s next project is a television script.

Emmerich is developing an untiltled TV project for ABC that will combine the elements of politics, physics and the afterlife. Emmerich co-wrote the pilot with writer/composer Harald Kloser (who collaborated with Emmerich on the scripts for 2012 and 10,000 B.C.), and will also direct the episode.

The story is centered on an astrophysicist whose entire scientific ideology is compromised when he learns, through some (presumably) supernatural means, that his “destiny lies…somewhere between heaven and hell.” The story is also set in the near future, during the upcoming 2012 presidential race.

Emmerich has thus far reserved his writing (primarily) and directing (exclusively) for the big screen, but has acted as producer on programs such as The Visitor and Godzilla: The Series, but I doubt anyone expected himto immerse himself in the world of television. However, the project does sound interesting, as it touches on some of the most innately fascinating aspects of humanity and society: politics, science and spirituality. The question is: will the quality of this new, untitled series mimic that of some Emmerich greats (like Stargate and The Patriot), or some of his more forgettable features (like the aforementioned 2012)?

Source: Variety