text:
All the usual things you'd expect: h-flip values, palette settings and so forth.
Bits to denote the traffic's position in relation to other traffic. This is used to control its speed and lane changing behaviour.
Even after establishing the above, and also a lot of related code - one thing is pretty clear: the codebase to this game is advanced and complex.
I also understand the internal format used to store the scenery data for the entire set of levels. Writing a quick utility to spit this out in some kind of visual form would be an interesting exercise and a way of verifying this. Whilst all the code is documented and commented, looking at it actually hurts by brain. I'll follow up on this later.
One interesting aspect of disassembling games you're fond of, is that you might uncover hidden code that was unused in the final build. This can give an insight into some of the features that were planned that didn't make the final cut, either because of time, technical problems or maybe they simply didn't prove fun during playtesting.
Lately I've been disassembling the traffic handling code, and in doing so I stumbled upon an interesting memory address that controlled a block of code related to spawning traffic. I was unable to figure out exactly what it did from the code and couldn't find any references where the address was written to. So I fired up the MAME debugger and wrote to the memory address manually so that the block of code would always execute.
In Outrun, all traffic drives into the horizon before disappearing. To my surprise, setting this flag caused the traffic to drive away from the horizon in the opposite direction towards the player's Ferrari. I imagine that the original idea was to have two-way traffic. The fact that Outrun's hardware supports two separate road layers means that the final effect could have been quite impressive with independent flows of traffic on each road!
As it is, the code is clearly unfinished, and no graphics exist for traffic travelling in the opposite direction. But it demonstrates what the development team originally planned. It certainly would have been impressive back in 1986 if they'd pulled it off.
You can see for yourself in the MAME debugger by changing the address with: b@60b6b = 1 once the game has booted.
One of the aspects of OutRun that somewhat puzzled me as a player, was exactly how the "Extend Time!" feature at the end of each level worked.
Here's a table that shows the time, in seconds, that is added to your overall counter per stage. The rightmost route is show first. The DIP switches of the arcade cabinet can be set to four difficulty settings for timing, and each respective setting has its own column. If you are lucky enough to find a working cabinet in the wild, it's easy to determine the setting by looking at how much time you start the game with.
To be honest, some of the entries are a little strange. For example, why is Stage 3a (Cloudy Mountain) more difficult on Normal than Very Hard? Is this an error in the table?
I'm working from the Overseas version of Outrun. I'm not sure yet whether the table differs for the Japanese version where Gateway has been moved to Stage 4.
It should also be pointed out that all the tracks in Outrun are the same length from a technical point of view. Obviously some will be tougher in terms of sharp bends and thinner stretches of road. The road split at the end of each level is hard coded and not read from the level data.
Moving onto the traffic in the game. Once again, this can be set by the DIP switches to four independent settings. I haven't reverse engineered the traffic code in detail yet, but I can provide some rough guidance as to how the settings affect each level in the game. It's my understanding that the following table represents the maximum number of vehicles that can be spawned simultaneously on each level.
Looking at the code which spawns the traffic, hacking the game to support more traffic wouldn't be trivial because there are only 8 slots in the jump table reserved for traffic sprite routines.
I'm still beavering away, reverse engineering the OutRun source. I'm focusing on the sprite routines and level data at the moment. Both of which are quite complex. I've uncovered some pretty intriguing stuff, and understand why OutRun uses the convoluted jump table I mentioned in an earlier post. It's related to rendering the level data, and many of the repeated routines handle sprites.
But I'm not going to talk about that right now, as there's still further work to be done. Instead let's take a look at some curiosities I've found on ebay over the years.
First up is a rare Japanese video laser disc (i.e. not a game in anyway), manufactured by Pony Canyon in 1988. Pony Canyon are a Japanese publisher, who also published the MSX 2 version of Outrun.
The laserdisc is a small 20cm disc, so requires an adapter to work in certain players. The content of the laserdisc is a short 18 min video showing the optimal way of completing each of OutRun's 15 stages. The gameplay makes use of the Geargacha technique, popularised by Japanese games magazine Gamest in 1987. This technique allows the player to drive off-road without loss of speed by carefully timed rapid gear shifting. It also allows the player to achieve a rocket start, flying off the line to top speed in seconds.
The accompanying booklet contains information on the stages in the game. I would love to get this translated if anyone can speak Japanese?
Pony Cannon also released the "Game Simulation Video" shown below in the same year. The video contains footage from Galaxy Force and Thunder Blade in addition to the same video of Outrun.
The booklet that accompanies the video, shows a range of these videos was available. Other titles included After Burner, Hang-On, R-Type, Street Fighter and more. Incidentally, at the time I purchased the Outrun LD, the same seller also had a Turbo Outrun disc. But I'm not a huge fan of Turbo Outrun, so I passed on that option.
The OutRun movie makes a further reappearance on this rare DVD, included in early editions of the OutRun 20th anniversary soundtrack box set. I've partially scanned the inlay here.
In 1987, Sony released a separate gameplay laserdisc produced by the Tyrell Corporation. Unlike the Pony Canyon edition, this is a full-size 12 inch disc. It contains a wonderful colour inlay of the OutRun stages, lifted from the original Japanese arcade flyer.
The contents of this release are different and somewhat strange. For example, it contains a section which shows a series of crashes in succession, as well as the Ferrari being driven deliberately off-road. However, it doesn't demonstrate the gia-gacha (gear rattling) technique during gameplay sequences like the Pony Canyon release.
Wrote a quick tool, which takes an Outrun CPU 0 memory dump from the MAME debugger as input. As output it prints the jump table from that stage of the game that has been built and stored in RAM.
This is handy, because it formats the data and only shows the addresses which are currently enabled, and doesn't repeat addresses when they're called in succession. The table in RAM itself is 124 entries long, and updated at various points during runtime.
This has made it easier to figure out exactly where in code the program is updating this table.
2/ If a word is '0x0000' a long follows which details the compression.
The upper word of the long is the tilemap value to copy.
The lower word of the long is the number of times to copy that value.
And here's how OutRun manages to store your exact route history through the levels in just a byte.
1/ There are 5 stages, and a memory location increases by 0x10 for each stage you progress.
3/ Later this indexes into a lookup table, which then makes it easy to update things like the stage map at the bottom right hand corner of the screen during gameplay.
Anyway, this post might give you some idea of some of the things I'm doing at the moment. There's still a long way to go.
Quick progress report: Commented all the code relating to detecting when the car is off-road. Figured out the memory location that determined which wheel was off. Established the memory location that determined the width of the road, and handles splitting the road between number of lanes and individual roads. Commented some slightly less interesting code relating to lap times, output lamps and various other areas.
Amusing OutRun link: Unbelievable. I have found someone with a more insane project than my own. A real world OutRun cabinet containing a golf-cart... The mind boggles?
I reached a point where it was time to switch to a competent interactive debugger, instead of working out of a series of text files that were becoming increasingly difficult to manage.
It took me a good few days to transfer my comments and knowledge to the new system. But the payoff is massive - I've immediately spotted mistakes, and identifying blocks of code has become a lot less painful.
In the screenshot you can see the commented block of code that transfers the in-game timer to the on-screen HUD.
Yesterday I also documented how the main branch table works in memory. In fact, I'm not even sure if branch table is the correct terminology. Figuring this out was important because actually determining the program flow in Outrun is tricky. The list of functions that are finally called is generated at runtime, and differs at different points of the game.
Firstly, there's a portion of ROM that contains a series of long addresses. Each of these addresses is a pointer to another portion of ROM. This second portion of ROM contains a set of properties related to the function, and the final address of the function itself. The final step is to compile these to a table within RAM. This table contains bits so that the functions can be enabled or disabled.
I presume this is some kind of optimisation, but it seems to add a lot of indirection and makes following the flow of code rather tough from the onset. Maybe some level of obfuscation was the idea? Perhaps someone reading who is a 68000 wiz will know.
As predicted, progress is slow and steady.
The most satisfying way of working is attempting to solve as many unknowns in a particular area, and then moving on when the going gets tough. Going back to a set of routines with a fresh pair of eyes really helps.
I've successfully understood various memory locations, and slowly routines become understandable from the meaningless muddle they originally were.
I'm something of an OutRun obsessive. I've got the arcade machine in my parent's garage (they keep requesting that I remove it) and I coded the OutRun driver for Jemu2. The game has so many memories attached to it, and it will always hold a lofty place in my heart beyond what it probably deserves.
One coding project that I've dabbled with on rainy days, is a full decompilation and reverse engineering of the original arcade ROMs. This is a massive undertaking, and one that I suspect I will never truly complete. But it is intriguing to pull apart the game I loved so much as a kid, to find out exactly how it works.
1/ Reimplement OutRun in portable C, so that it can be compiled to pretty much any modern handheld/computer. And the code can be easily extended/modified.
2/ Create a level editor for the game. Potentially for the original arcade version and the version created in step 1.
Realistically, it will probably just be a bit of fun. If you can call pouring through thousands of lines of unlabelled, uncommented, decompiled 68000 assembler fun that is.
1/ Wrote a program to de-interleave the arcade ROMs and spit them back out. I've then decompiled them to text files.
2/ Made some notes on the OutRun hardware via reference to the Mame source code.
3/ Begun commenting the decompiled assembler, using the Mame debugger for assistance.
Progress is promising. I started by figuring out all the routines for the text layer of the hardware. As the name suggests, this is essentially a layer of 8x8 tiles that is used to print things like "INSERT COIN" to the screen, and some other static graphics like the HUD elements.
It's been quick to rattle through the code and comment exactly when and where the graphics are blitted. So I quickly have an understanding of the general code structure, from the service tests through to high score tables and even the OutRun easter egg, which prints Yu Suzuki's name.
I've also figured out a lot of other important information, including the memory address used to store the games internal state (e.g. attract mode / music selection / high score entry / in-game / clock countdown / map screen), which makes identifying roughly what individual areas of code are performing far simpler.
There's a lot more I've managed to achieve, although this is a project whereby progress is slow until you reach a tipping point. The most similar project I've worked on previously was converting Speedball 2 to J2ME phones. But as this was an official port, I had access to nicely commented and labelled 68000 assembler - much easier.
In other news, I haven't forgotten about FlashGear, just put it on hold for the time being, until I get the motivation to polish it up for a release.

industry_corpus2: Gaming


text:
The summer of 2012 we sat down with Linda Branderhorst of The Nature Conservancy of Canada after meeting her while organizing our event for the 2012 Nature Conservancy of Canada's “Picnic for the Planet” which was an attempt to set a world record of Picnickers around the world on Earth Day. Due to poor weather conditions, unfortunately, the record was not obtained but instead, a wonderful relationship with Linda and The Nature Conservancy of Canada began. During our meeting with Linda that summer, we agreed to make a commitment to their efforts on the conservation of Pelee Island. Dispenser Amenities will begin by renovating the Ivey Research Center which is a key location that allows Nature Conservancy of Canada researchers to live and work on the island. We have also made a five year financial commitment to support The Nature Conservancy of Canada’s effort to monitor and protect the over 200 species of plants and animals that are considered of conservation significance.
We are making this commitment not only because we love the island but because we feel that Pelee Island is such an important place to preserve. Aside from being our favorite birding destination and key stopover for the so many species of bird’s migration, Pelee Island has what is considered a Carolinian Climate Zone, which is a rare habitat to find in Canada and supports a number of animals many of which are at the northern limit of their range. The Blue Racer snake and Small-mouthed Salamander for example cannot be found anywhere else in Canada. The Lake Erie Water Snake have populations on Pelee Island as well as other small southern extremities of Canada. The Grey Fox has been sighted in Canada close to U.S. access points like Windsor, but the population on Pelee Island is considered the only Canadian resident breeding population. (Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources) All of these species are listed as endangered and have suffered greatly because of habitat destruction. The Blanchard’s Cricket Frog, Fowler’s Toad and the Eastern Hog-Nosed Snake are all believed to be extirpated from the island (Nature Conservancy) and we want to prevent any other species from meeting that same fate.

industry_corpus2: Agriculture & Fisheries


text:
Finding Nemo is Pixar’s second most successful animated film – pulling in $339m in the United States back in 2003. That’s some serious coin.
The film is being re-released in 3D and is out in Australian cinemas from this week. I was thrilled to speak with the amazing Albert Brooks about the film, it’s re-release and a few other things.
Matt: Finding Nemo was released in Australian cinemas 9 years ago and the man I’m speaking with is obviously a fan because he’s still promoting it. I say good morning to Marlin the clownfish… also known as Mr Albert Brooks. How’s it going?
Albert: (laughs) I have been non-stop promoting this film for 9 years. Fortunately, it’s back in a theatre now and it’s starting to pay off.
Matt: Over the past few years we’ve seen so many classic animated films get upgraded to 3D and re-released like The Lion King and Beauty & The Beast. What’s going on here? Has Hollywood completely run out of ideas?
Albert: Well I can’t speak for Hollywood. I know I’ve run out of ideas. (laughs) This movie was so visually amazing that I was always assumed that they would do this. Pixar does this particular upgrade very well and with the ocean and surroundings of water, I would think this should have been out in 3D ten years ago if they had the technology.
Some movies, I do agree with you… but I don’t think Pixar takes this stuff lightly. It doesn’t take an hour to do so. This is a long, arduous process.
Matt: What are your own thoughts on 3D? Is it something that you think can enhance the film-going experience? I know some people see it as a bit of a novelty. Do you make an effort to see 3D movies over 2D?
Albert: I took my kids to see Avatar and I think that was a really good 3D experience. I won’t go to a movie just because of 3D. If something is appealing and it’s 3D, I’ll go to the 3D version. But you’re not going to trick me to see something in 3D just because of that fact.
Matt: When it comes to animation, few could argue with the success of Pixar. I’m talking about Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Ratatouille, WALL-E and Up. You had the chance to work with them so closely on Finding Nemo. What’s their secret? How do they keep churning out good movies again and again?
Albert: I don’t know. It’s really amazing. They have the best track record in the business in terms of animated movies. They’ve always said that the story is the most important thing and then everything else flatters the story. If you start with the tricks instead, it doesn’t seem to work.
Matt: Can you remember how you were approached about Finding Nemo?
Albert: Someone contacted my manager at the time. They asked if I’d like to do it and to show me what it might look like, they took a little bit of Marlin and they put a speech from a movie I wrote called Defending Your Life. So I went into a darkened theatre and I watched this fish give a speech from one of my movies. I thought this is so creepy that I have to do it! (laughs) It was very clever on their part.
Matt: I remember reading an interview with Woody Allen where he said that once he’d finished a film, that was it. He’d never go back and re-watch it. With Finding Nemo now getting a re-release, I have to ask – do you go back and watch some of your prior works, your prior films?
Albert: I don’t usually re-watch my own films. If I’m on the treadmill and something comes up, I’ll watch 10 minutes of it. The great thing about film as opposed to television is that you can leave it. You can work your head off on a project and then it’s done. You don’t have to revisit that character.
I’m going to go to the premiere here in September and will see it in 3D because it’ll have to look amazing.
Matt: While on the subject of animation, I can’t pass up this opportunity. My favourite TV show is The Simpsons and one of my favourite episodes is You Only Move Twice where you play the head of the Globex Corporation, Hank Scorpio. Did you ever realise that episode was going to be as popular when you were doing it back in 1996?
Albert: No. no. I don’t think you ever realise when something is going to take off. That’s become one of the most talked about Simpsons episodes in its 24 year history. It’s funny about that and how the episode has endured.
Matt: I want to go down to work right now and tell all my staff to head down to the Hammock District. How much credit can I give you for the dialogue or was it largely scripted?
Albert: It was largely ad-libbed. Even they will tell you that. They certainly had a story but the great thing about doing stuff for The Simpsons is that if you can “riff on it”, they love it. They’ll leave a tape machine on for 5 hours. By the end of that session, I don’t think I had another comedy thought in my head for a month. I said every funny thing I had as Hank Scorpio.
Matt: I travelled last year to the Toronto Film Festival and I remember my last film on the Saturday night was Drive. I know you picked up a swag of critics’ awards and were great in the film but I have to ask – where had you been hiding? We hadn’t seen you in a movie for years.
Albert: Well, I wrote a book. Amazon has funny rules that say you can only buy it in America. It’s called 2030: The Real Story Of What Happens To America and it took about 3 years to write. So I was a novelist for a while and then I got offered this part and it was too good not to take. I’m playing Paul Rudd’s father in a movie that’s coming out this Christmas – Judd Apatow’s movie This Is 40.
I’ve split my life between making my own films, and acting in other films, and now writing books. Once I get involved in something, I sort of close the world out.
Matt: And how did you miss out on an Oscar nomination this year? Was that Christopher Plummer running a smear campaign against you? It seems he won everything by the end of the season.
Albert: I’m shocked he did! He played a Nazi in The Sound Of Music! (laughs) Honestly, I don’t know how any of that happens. All of a sudden, you wake up one day and you’re a horse in the Kentucky Derby and people are betting on you and putting saddles on you. People are coming out my house and brushing my hair. Then you wake up, and it’s like “oh, too bad” and then no one talks to you again.
You know, that thing, my answer is that if you want an Oscar, you do a movie for Harvey Weinstein.
Matt: Yeah, that does seem to be the way to go. I guess I’ll finish up with one final question and I’m sure it’s one you’ve been asked before. With all you’ve done and achieved in the entertainment industry, what’s been the highlight for you? What’s been your favourite role?
Albert: Because I’ve had such varied roles, I don’t really think like that. If we had long enough time, I could tell you some that were really great experiences and some that were hell. The ones that were hell, I’d probably have a foul memory of just because of that.
I know roles that people like. I get more mail 20 years after making Defending Your Life that any movie I’ve ever done. I got 12 letters today from people trying to deal with fear and loss. They come across the movie and they write these great letters. Was it my favourite? I don’t know. I loved doing Drive last year.
Matt: Well hopefully I’m going to be seeing you in many, many, many more good movies.
Albert: I hope you will!
Matt: Mr Albert Brooks, it’s been an absolute honour. Thanks for talking with us this morning.

industry_corpus2: Film & Entertainment


text:
Baby's clothing should be practical, easy to care for and comfortable. Underclothes provide protection and warmth and are extremely important for your baby's comfort.
Tip: turn baby's vest inside-out to ensure the seams don't irritate his/her skin.

industry_corpus2: Others


text:
Just Pharma S.r.l. (English version) | Just Pharma S.r.l.
It is a food supplement capable of facilitating the physiological metabolism of iron without the side and toxic effects normally associated with iron. It might be used in the following situations: sideropenic anemia, iron deficiency caused by inadequate nutrition, altered absorption as well as increased need for iron. The ingredients of the product might raise the physiological organic defences.
It is a food supplement which might be used in the following situations: polycystic ovary syndrome altered menstrual cycle, irsutism, diabetes type II.
It is a food supplement which might be used in the following situations: peripheral neuropathies, lipodystrophy diabetes type I e II.
It is a medical device containing ialuronic acid useful for its protective action on the vaginal mucosa. Justgin has a filmogenic activity which can favour cellular regeneration. It might help with vaginal dryness and dystrophy.
Justgel is a new product containing hyaluronic acid in association with vitamin E to help maintain the integrity of the epidermis. Justgel favors relief from itching phenomena, burning and dryness as well as counteracting the aging of mucous membranes.
Turmgel is a supplement that contains the purest form of curcumin ( turmeric extract) in the form of orosoluble lozenges. The Ministry of Health recognizes to curcumin its antioxidant power and ability to support liver and digestive function digestive throughout the digestive system. Curcumin is useful in promoting the welfare and joint function, and is also able to counteract disturbances of the menstrual cycle.

industry_corpus2: Biopharmaceuticals


text:
Run hard enough to feel your legs bow.
Pour a tall cup of tea, simmer.
My great granddad passed away a few weeks ago in his nineties. A long and beautiful life. I wasn’t able to make it home for the funeral, but that is the hazard of living 3,000 miles away from your family. It’s strange, when people pass away it’s as though all your memories of them come flooding back at the same time. I don’t know how to not control the way growing up sometimes means growing apart. I don’t know how to write a love letter from all the former me’s that fell in love with my granddad.
I have one hundred vignettes in my head that aren’t time stamped. It’s as though the day I used to steal gum from his bureau is blended in with him taking me out to feed the goats, or planting posts or covering cherry trees with nets to stop the birds from eating all the fruit. It seems like just yesterday I was perched next to my grammy on the piano, listening to her sing hymns with the kind of perfection that only comes from growing up in the South.
My fingers didn’t take to the piano and I ended up in the city. There is so much of their land still in my blood. I keep trying to grow corn in my front yard or harvest herbs from my window. If I close my eyes tight enough, I can see a shed filled with canned food from the garden or my granddad in the field planting strawberries or gloating over his squash. There is that old saying that my grandparents used to quote, as well as my mom, Squash season is here, lock your doors.
After I got the news, I had my own ceremony. Lit incense in my apartment & wrote as many memories as I could down in my journal. There is no boundary to mourning. No timeframe. Just because you can’t make a funeral doesn’t mean you can’t remember – sweat tea in my grammy’s kitchen, bluegrass on the patio & feeding the horses with my brother and sister.
I guess this year is about embracing both the small and large deaths and all of their beauty. I have died a thousand times this year. If I look back over the past 12 months, I can barely recognize myself from last spring, let alone last fall. For my birthday, my mom sent me my grammy’s cast iron skillet. It’s sitting on the stovetop like it’s holding down a memory. This birthday, I am celebrating the gift of family – my mom’s late night phone calls, catching up with my dad as he drives home from work, my sister calling me as she plays with her kids & my brother as he plays video games & tells me about the latest from his little one, Jelly.
My birthday was about celebrating how alive it feels to be stripped down – to bake with all the creativity that has been passed down to me through the generations.
To face death in all of its mystery.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease two 9″ cake pans and then line with parchment paper. The grease beneath the parchment paper makes it easy to pull the cake out of the pan without altering the flavor.
In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk & apple cider vinegar. Let stand for 5 minutes. Add sugar, oil & coconut extract. Whisk together until the mixture becomes frothy. A key indicator that you have thoroughly whisked is when you start to see bubbles around the side of the batter.
In a small bowl, mix together flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, baking powder & salt. Add the dry ingredients in the small bowl to the wet ingredients and whisk together until the batter is completely smooth. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until you remove a toothpick and there is no residue.
Cool the cakes on wire racks for 15 minutes. Turn the cakes out of the pan and cool completely before frosting. I recommend cooking the cakes the night before and frosting it the next day, so you make sure the frosting will not melt.
If you have an electric mixer, then beat the butter until light and creaming. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Once the butter is light & creamy, add the powdered sugar and beat on low until the sugar is thoroughly mixed. Add the vanilla extract and non-dairy milk, mix until completely smooth. If you don’t have an electric mixer, then you can cut the butter with a knife and mix it together using a fork until its smooth enough to beat with a whisk. Then apply the same process. Put the frosting in the refrigerator until it matches the thick consistency of frosting.
Once the cake has completely cooled & your frosting is firm, put the first sheet on a cake stand or plate. Put a dollop of frosting and cover the top of the first layer. Add the second layer and cover the cake. Enjoy!


text:
The active nature of the San Francisco community was reported to be an important factor in the city's approach to coordination. San Francisco is characterized by a culture of cooperation which enables people to come together and accomplish things quickly. The city's style was summed up by one respondent: "Things in San Francisco have to be coalition based. It's really the nature of the city." The FUND reflects this orientation in its role as the leading domestic violence advocacy organization. In San Francisco, domestic violence advocates tend to work in conjunction with other agencies, rather than trying to influence the agencies by other means.
The sustained participation and leadership of a number of people also contributes to the successful cooperation between agencies. Many of the people interviewed for this study have been working on domestic violence in San Francisco for more than a decade. Thus, many of the people central to San Francisco's efforts have worked together on numerous committees and served on each other's boards. This continuity has formed well-established working relationships and built trust among the various parties. It has also created a network of people working on this issue that are readily known throughout the community. In addition, the long tenure of the leadership has enabled the community to institutionalize its approach to coordination.


text:
PJM’s market proposal may unfairly benefit expensive and inflexible power plants, ACORE President and CEO Gregory Wetstone says.
The following is a Viewpoint by Gregory Wetstone, president and CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE).
Next week, FERC will act on the much-ballyhooed Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) issued a few months ago by Energy Secretary Rick Perry. The NOPR would provide out-of-market compensation, effectively a bailout, for coal and nuclear generators, mostly in the PJM region.
This brazen effort to help economically uncompetitive participants in the energy market place has been criticized by a remarkably diverse group of stakeholders that include not just renewable energy groups like the one I lead, but also the oil and gas industry, environmental organizations, and numerous states.
Most observers expect that FERC will not issue the rule as proposed by the Department of Energy, but will shift to focus on a market-based approach. That would be welcome news, marking the beginning of a crucial next phase.
In looking ahead to that likely outcome, it’s imperative that FERC’s new approach not trade one uneconomical bailout for another. Right now, two significant market reform efforts are underway within PJM, the electrical region serving 65 million customers in the Mid-Atlantic to Great Lakes states that is the focus of the DOE proposal. These two reforms are intended to improve the economics for generation plant owners. Both would raise electricity prices for consumers and businesses – and do so without a clear basis in efficiency or reliability.
The first proposal is called “capacity re-pricing,” which aims to adjust prices in the capacity market upwards to try to undo the potential price-reducing effect of certain state policies.
Crucial questions surrounding which of the myriad state incentives and subsidies could be subject to this treatment are now being debated, with no apparent driving economic policy principle underlying the effort. A central concern, in a nutshell, is that PJM might file this proposal without any exemption for popular state policies such as Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) — and FERC could quickly approve it.
In such a scenario, consumers in affected RPS states would then be forced to pay twice for capacity — once for the resources the state chooses, and another time for the additional resources that PJM and FERC designate. Effectively, ratepayers would pay for subsidized uneconomical generators, despite the reality that they aren’t providing the types of power that consumers and states want.
The second proposed reform goes to the energy market itself, where PJM proposes to allow inflexible units to set the price. That would raise the price in many times and places, typically by 2% to 5% according to PJM. During these higher-price hours, the old inflexible units will operate and be paid.
To avoid over-production, other more economical units would need to be paid to not produce. The result would be double payments in the major Mid-Atlantic power markets. The benefiting units are the same ones that received stranded cost payments with restructuring, and very high market prices in the years when gas prices were high.
It should be added that this does not suggest opposition to mechanisms that raise prices where circumstances warrant. For example, higher prices during times of scarcity (i.e., “shortage pricing”) can efficiently and appropriately compensate flexible sources such as storage and demand response resources.
The key point here is that, if ratepayers are going to be paying more, they should be getting something valuable in return, such as energy when it is scarce. This is the area where pricing reform should be focused if we are to ensure that consumers are getting more when paying more.
Looking ahead, FERC should first focus on defining needed services for reliability and resilience. In doing so FERC can focus on technology-neutral markets to procure any needed services. In contrast, the alternative now under consideration appears to involve choosing a solution in the form of preferred technologies, and then looking for a problem it might solve.
If the PJM market were a residual spot market only, and market participants conducted most of their transactions bilaterally, as in most markets across the economy, then the market rules would be less vulnerable to stakeholder and policymaker political meddling. Capacity markets, which are a poor means of attracting the flexibility needed in today’s power systems, would become far less important.
FERC and RTOs should resist temptations to intervene in wholesale power markets. A better course is to allow states and customers to choose the power they want, and pursue only those changes needed to improve efficiency and reliability.

industry_corpus2: Power & Energy


text: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” Proverbs 18:21 The power of words should never be underestimated. People’s words have established lives, destroyed lives, brought healing and joy, brought sickness and misery. What we say can have massive effect upon ourselves and others.


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As parents, one of the most important jobs you can have is teaching your children about different ways of life. How to be kind. How to be generous. How to be helpful. The list goes on. Teaching children generosity and kindness is essential in their early stages of development, as it will help shape them into well-rounded adults. While children may not fully understand what it means to give back to others, teaching them best practices over time is a great way to start.
During early life stages, children are capable of developing a sense of empathy for others. As adults setting an example of what it means to serve and help others can be looked upon as a model for doing what is right. Providing children with an environment where they have the opportunity to see that volunteering and giving are encouraged can spark an interest for them in the area of philanthropy.
Even the most simple involvement such as making a donation to a charity or setting up a charity box to collect donations is an excellent way to get kids involved. In order for children to gain a clearer picture of philanthropy, it requires the adult to use a better means of understanding. In a child’s mind toys are one of the highlights of their entire day because they interact and play with them. Having a child gather up old toys that they no longer play with to donate to a foundation for boys and girls who are less fortunate is the perfect chance to get them involved hands-on, and can really get them excited about making another child happy. This will ultimately encourage them in the long run, and you may even find your child taking their own giving initiatives as they get older.
The more exposed children are to various different philanthropic activities the better they will understand. Adults setting an example and showing them how important it is to give back and contribute charitably will stick in their minds. In the classrooms at school, they are shown how different food drives and activities that can help in their local community are able to make a change. As children feel they are able to make a difference in this world and bring about change, they too will want to have a high interest in philanthropy. Setting the example for the future generation is the key to encouraging charitable actions.

industry_corpus2: Subject Education


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Overall: If you want a good run around with nothing to do other can kill people without being seen then this is the game for you. The developers had a very good idea of a game when they though up this one, but it is lacking in some areas. If you are like me and become easily bored then this game really isn't for you. The game itself has avery unique aproach to some things. It is very easy to just run around killing people for the fun of it for the not so serious gamers, but for the opposite it has a very deep and interesting storyline for you to follow, which is full of twists and turns at every milestone.
Gameplay: The game for me, personally, began great, it seemed all so new and cool. But then after completing the first three missions it began to become reppertetive and boring. Realising that you have to do practically the same thing each and every time is one of the downfalls of this game. The idea's they used are very unique and well placed within the game and they deserve a lot of credit for what they have done. But in my opinion the game becomes very repetetive.
Graphics: The graphics within @!%#*!asins creed are amazing, especially the view from ontop of jump areas. The developers have put a lot of time and effort to make the game look superb and I personally think they have moved past that point to something better. The characters and surroundings alike are very well done down to the smallest detail.
Audio: Again like the gameplay this became a bit boring a repetetive. This is simply because the voices all bang to sound the same after a while without any change. They began to annoy me for reaons unknown. The positive side to the audio is that when you first begin to play it all sounds so amazing. The voiceovers, the animals, the wind etc. they are all very well done, but as I said it becomes very boring and repetetive after a while.


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See video portraits from 100% Foreign? here.
100% FOREIGN? adds a new chapter to Denmark’s history by collecting and displaying personal stories from and about Danish citizens with refugee background – stories about being an individual in today’s Denmark.
100% FOREIGN? is a documentary art project, which by end of 2019 will comprise 300 portraits, 300 interviews and 300 voices belonging to 300 statistically selected citizens, who since 1956 have arrived in Denmark as refugees. Behind the project is Metropolis and curator/photographer Maja Nydal Eriksen.
The exhibition 100% FREMMED? with the first 100 portraits from the greater Copenhagen area was created for Metropolis in 2017. It was shown at Copenhagen Town Hall as well as at several outdoor venues in Copenhagen and was visited by more than 100,000 people.
Thanks to support from Nordea-fonden the exhibition is now set to travel to 20 towns across the country in 2018 and 2019. In each town, 10 portraits of local citizens with refugee background are added to the exhibition. Thus, the history of Denmark is updated with alternative and diverse stories.
On its tour around the country, the exhibition is accompanied by some of the people portrayed. They share their stories and lead debates and educational events, all of which add other perspectives and stories to the Danishness debate.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to create a story which is characteristic for Denmark, while at the same time promoting the community. Opinion-makers regularly try to capture Danishness through references to certain kinds of food, leisure activities, historical events and Danish landscapes, but we rarely ask those who are at the centre of the debate what they mean. 100% FREMMED? does exactly that.
Thus, the exhibition presents a number of very different stories about living in today’s Denmark. They show how one’s nationality is just one of many reasons to feel foreign, and they focus on what we have in common across social, cultural and national boundaries.
The people featured in the exhibition have been selected on basis of figures from Statistics Denmark in order to represent the 161,000 people from primarily 29 different countries who have been granted asylum in Denmark during the past 60 years. The oldest participant arrived from Hungary in 1956, and the most recent ones escaped from the civil war in Syria.
The 10 new participants from each town are selected on basis of local statistics. The portraits show the people behind the statistics and they serve to remind us that behind the figures there is an infinite number of fates. The original 100 photos were done with Tivoli as backdrop with Tivoli as a place that connects global and Danish culture.
The 200 new photos will portray the participants in settings characteristic for the 20 towns, often with a cultural/historic influence and connections between the national and the global. For example the Vikingship Museum in Roskilde, the King Christian X Bridge in Sønderborg, and fishermen’s houses in Skagen. In doing so, 100% FREMMED? contributes with a contemporary story about Denmark as a supplement to the traditional depiction of romantic nationalism.
Tour and activities 2018-19 are supported by Nordea-fonden and the individual municipalities and collaborators.
Follow the project on www.100pctfremmed.dk / #100%fremmed?


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Specifications: As Nursan Trailer industry, we are manufacturing every type semi trailer for all application under the certification of ISO 9001 -2000. All our products are quaranted by one year for any misconstruction.
Specifications: Couplers MIREAL with the pin diameter 40 mm; Couplers MIREAL with the pin diameter 50 mm; Couplers MIREAL S40; Couplers MIREAL T; Couplers MIREAL 1N32; The use: Tatra, Liaz, Daf, Iveco, Man, Mercedes, Renault, Scania, Volvo and others. We look for importers.
Specifications: Aftermarket flywheel housing for isx and signature cummins engines. Prices are FOB laredo, tx 78041. Delivery time up to 4 weeks, can use Fed-ex freight for urgent orders. We are manufacturers of many diesel engine truck parts, and also we can develope any gray iron and aluminum part for you.
We sell very good quality suspension parts for the heavy duty trucks and tractor trailors like mack, volvo, freightliner etc. Since we are manufacturers ourselves we are able to give you the lowest possible prices for a good quality. We carry bi-metal and copper/bronze bushings, spiring pins, side bars and various other suspension parts like trunions, beam center kits etc. If you need more information you may email us.
Etliner for cool trucks is an easy to install and cost effective way to achieve the desired temperature within your cool trucks. The etliner keeps the radiant heat out of the cool truck to keep the temperature in the truck cooler than before and reduce energy consumption.
We are manufacturer and exporter of automotive products. We specialize in manufacturing many types of automotive and rubber- related products. Our products offering include Bushings, Center Bearings Support, Bumpers, Engine Mounting, Drive Shaft Boot, Radiator Hose, Disc Brake Pad, etc. As well as metal automobile parts and other rubber related products. And any component to your exact specifications.
We'd like offer to you our trucks, equipment, machinery, special trucks & machines for mining companies.
We are selling a device that is used to roll up the winch straps, that are used to tie down cargo on flat bed trailers, and other equipment. Our strap winder will roll up 2" to 6" straps. This strap winder easily and quickly clamps to the bed of big rig trailers, or smaller trailers, and is small enough to be easily stored. A winch strap can be rolled up nice and tight, within seconds, then easily removed for storage. Not only will this product save people (truckers) the headache and trouble of rolling up straps by hand, but it will save companies thousands of dollars a year. By using our strap winder, a person can have the straps rolled up almost three times quicker, than by hand. People will be spending less time rolling up straps, thus making the company more money. Contact Beebe Sports for more information.
Specifications: RS-46MC is especially designed to operate on railroads providing the communication between the drivers and railway dispatch stations.

industry_corpus2: Manufacturing


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This past weekend, we checked out the Christmas Market at the Distillery District… twice!
I’ve been craving a German Weihnachtsmarkt since we were in Germany in 2006. For a brief time, I was incredibly jealous of Vancouver for getting one this year. A couple of days later, I found out about the one here in Toronto, in the Distillery District.
Initially, I was hung up on the things I remembered of the German markets – things that were missing from ours (like real Glühwein, served in keepsake mugs). Once I got over that, I was able to relax and enjoy the environment and the spirit. The thing about this kind of Christmas market is that it seems to be missing much of the tackiness of the season that we normally can’t seem to escape. Something about the little wooden huts, the smell of the food and the sound of caroling is kind of relaxing and enjoyable – even when you’re standing out in the cold.
We went on Friday night, and then again on Saturday afternoon.
A very large gingerbread house, and some Xmas cupcakes.
There was fun to be had by all ages. Friday night, we definitely saw more adults milling about the beer garden, sampling some yummy Glenfiddich, Amarula and Weihenstephaner beer. Saturday afternoon was definitely for the kids, with some live reindeer, pretty ladies dressed as angels, and other family fun (in addition to the beer garden).
There was a variety of food available – mostly decadent treats, of course! The Sweet Escape even made a child-sized (real) gingerbread house. There was a sign to not touch, but I’m pretty sure there was a bite out of the side! I swear it wasn’t from me! The lineup for Soma was out the door and down the street (ridiculous!) on Saturday.
Yup, I went in search of sausages. Initially, I was hoping to find some Thuringer sausages like we had in Frankfurt. Instead, we found some tasty Oktoberfest sausages. They hit the spot. Too bad they ran out of Sauerkraut on the Saturday!
One of the stalls was serving freshly melted Raclette cheese on top of French fries. You could smell it before you could see it – the cheese had a wee bit of stink to it, in a good way. It was gooey and tasty, just as expected.
The guy making them had a pretty neat rig, too. There was a heating contraption that fit two blocks of cheese. They would melt the top layer of cheese, and he would scrape the melty goodness onto the fries. Pretty sweet! He was also serving up some choucroute (French for Sauerkraut, but no doubt prepared in its own way). I kinda wanted some cheese and coucroute on my fries, but I think that would have been an expensive box of fries!
In all, I think this was a valiant attempt at having a not-so-tacky Christmas event. If this can happen every year, I’m sure it can only get better.
Until then, take a look at some other cities’ markets!

industry_corpus2: Hospitality & Catering


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For American hunters and anglers, healthy populations of fish and game are considered a birthright. But woods and waters teeming with bass, trout, ducks, and deer, didn’t happen by accident. For more than 150 years, countless individuals have spoken up on behalf of the conservation of our fish and wildlife. Hunters and anglers have contributed more than $10 billion to fish and wildlife conservation, and in a typical year pump $75 billion into the economy. And in a future increasingly characterized by urban sprawl and the demands of modern life, retreating to wild places with a rod or gun in hand is a cherished means of reconnecting with those sportsmen conservationists who came before us and re-invigorating ourselves to step up to the conservation challenges of our time.
There are four specific threats that are endangering the air and habitats of these wildlife species. Each affects wildlife in places as diverse as urban parks and remote wilderness regions, but they come from the same sources: the smokestacks of power plants and refineries as well as America’s fleet of automobiles.
Mercury pollution has long been identified as a major issue for many fish species. As predator fish eat smaller prey, mercury accumulates in their tissue. Top-level predator fish such as brown trout, pickerel and bass are also favorite fish for the frying pan, but more and more regions are issuing strict warnings about the human consumption of mercury-laced fish. Emerging research is showing how mercury harms terrestrial mammals and even migrating songbirds, prompting scientists to reconsider how mercury negatively impacts larger ecosystems.
Even in remote, wild regions, acid rain has long been identified as a killer of lakes and streams. Scientists are now learning that acidification of aquatic habitats may even alter the ability for some fish species to recognize threats such as predators—ushering in new questions about how chemical pollutants might affect not only the health of wildlife, but the intricacies of wildlife behavior. In New Hampshire the spring melting of acid snow has curtailed the natural reproduction of trout in several remote ponds.
A warming climate will lead to direct habitat loss as well as more insidious changes, such as decreases in snowpack that result in a massive loss of fish spawning sites and increased summertime temperatures that are lethal to trout. Many fishery scientists predict more than half of all trout habitat will be eliminated from the lower 48 states by the year 2100 due to warming temperatures. Rising temperatures will shift the ranges and displace game species as varied as ruffed grouse and mountain goats.
This report puts a spotlight on 13 species of American wildlife that hold a special place in the hearts of sportsmen and women, and that are battling some of most difficult challenges in the natural world. These fish, birds, and mammals are not alone, however. Behind each of these icons are many more that face a troubling future due to toxic air pollution and rising temperatures. Those modern threats will change the game for American hunters and anglers—unless the sporting public stands up to fight for clean air and an end to the pollutants that lead to a warming climate.
Climate change is also an issue for largemouth bass. Some anglers are heartened with news that a warming climate might bring faster growth rates for bass. But scientists warn that warming waters threatens to alter entire aquatic food webs, and could destabilize entire ecosystems. A warming climate could lead to a greater number and greater intensity of hurricanes, and as rising seas inundate freshwater marshes along the coast, more largemouth habitat could be lost.
Massive and majestic, moose are a symbol of the North Woods and a cherished icon of North American hunting for both Native Americans and modern hunters alike. These big mammals are tied to wetlands and require cool climates, and those aspects of moose biology place the animals in difficult straits. When it comes to rising temperatures, heat affects moose directly, leading to a fall in pregnancy rates. A warming climate will also devastate moose habitat as the preferred habitat of aspen and birch retreats northward. In northwestern Minnesota, moose numbers fell from more than 4,000 animals to fewer than 100 over the last two decades. In northeastern Minnesota, habitat loss due to warming temperatures threatens a climatic refuge for moose exists , , And there are more insidious effects of climate change on moose. Moose also may have evolved to bear young when climate conditions are most favorable, and some scientists are concerned that they could have a difficult time adapting to climatic variability. Higher temperatures also may promote higher winter tick infestations, which have impacted the moose herds in Isle Royale National Park. and in New Hampshire. A single moose can host as many as 120,000 ticks.
Ground-level ozone might add to these ills. Birch, beech, and aspen have been shown to be sensitive to high levels of ozone, and these trees are an important part of much moose habitat. And there is the possibility that acid rain might be helping whittle moose populations to a fraction of their historic numbers. The potential for acid rain to leach cadmium from watersheds could be a problem for moose. In Norway, moose with high cadmium levels in their kidneys and livers were shown to have lower body weights and diminished reproductive success. In Maine and New Hampshire, high cadmium levels have led to advisories for human consumption of moose liver and kidneys. White tailed deer liver and kidneys are also contaminated with cadmium and are unfit for human consumption.
Threats: Climate change. Acid rain. Ground-level ozone.
The comeback of the striped bass has been heralded as one of the great conservation success stories of the last 100 years. Stripers, also known as “rockfish,” live as adults in the open ocean, and migrate up coastal rivers to spawn in the spring. Few gamefish require such vastly different habitats. But there could be rocky times ahead for rockfish populations. A warming climate could lead to sea-level rise that would decimate the coastal marshes that serve as nurseries for juvenile striped bass. In the Chesapeake Bay, warming waters could lead to increased incidence of toxic algal blooms, which could have profound impacts on fish resources, and an increased incidence of hypoxia, which could reduce the amount of deep, cool waters favored by striped bass. And warmer waters can have a cascade of ill effects on fish. Fish can bioaccumulate toxins more quickly at higher temperatures, and research has shown that striped bass with higher loads of organochlorines produced fewer viable offspring than control fish.
As top predators, striped bass are known for high levels of mercury. Mercury bioaccumulation has been found in striped bass populations in a wide range of waters, from the open marine environments of Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay to Georgia’s Savannah River .
Dappled with color and quick to take a fly, brook trout are a cherished part of our national fishing heritage. The only trout native to eastern America, they are sought in tiny headwater brooks, remote wilderness ponds, and fast-flowing rivers. The very fact that they require clear, cold, healthy waters is proof that the brook trout lives up to its scientific name, which means “dweller near springs.” Unfortunately, that requirement also puts brookies in peril from a host of air pollution problems. In the Northeast, many high-elevation brook trout streams and ponds have suffered from high rates of acidification, which studies have shown causes decreased growth rates in brook trout, plus lower survival rates of smaller trout and a drop in egg-to-larva survival rates. Farther south, in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park along the Tennessee-North Carolina state line, a study of caged brook trout in three mountain streams showed measurable signs of physiological stress during periods of artificially induced acidification.
And it’s not just acid rain stressing out native brook trout. In a recent survey of data from the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada, 75 percent of brook trout samples showed mercury concentrations higher than accepted levels of concern. A warming climate is expected to decimate populations. Across the Appalachian mountain range, some scientists estimate that up to 90 percent of brook trout habitat could be lost due to climate change, and what suitable habitat remains could be fragmented and scattered, making natural recolonization improbable.
Threats: Acid rain. Mercury. Climate change.
From their boreal forest and prairie pothole breeding grounds, lesser scaup wing southward across all four North American flyways. Migrating in large flocks, these swift fliers are a favorite quarry for big-water duck hunters. Fewer of these ducks are making it to hunters’ decoys, however. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the continental population for lesser scaup has fallen to a record low, and the future presents enormous challenges. In the prairie pothole region, a warming climate could impact 90 percent of the small wetlands vital for breeding ducks. Breeding range for lesser scaup on National Wildlife Refuges alone has been predicted to contract by nearly 37 percent due to climate change. And it’s not just a warming climate that’s turning up the heat on lesser scaup. The primary breeding range for scaup is the boreal forest of Canada, where declining snowpack could lead to an erosion in breeding habitat quality. Acid rain in Midwest wetlands used by scaup on their spring migrations southward could reduce the quality of invertebrate foods in the critical weeks prior to breeding. In the boreal forests of northern Alberta, acid rain caused by emissions from the massive tar sands development projects in northern Alberta could affect birds in a highly productive portion of their breeding grounds. And lesser scaup from areas as geographically diverse as the Great Lakes, Florida, and San Francisco Bay have shown relatively high levels of mercury, prompting further scientific study.
Threats: Climate change. Acid rain. Mercury.
American black ducks hold a special place in the hearts of duck hunters. Big, brawny, and revered as one of the craftiest of all ducks, black ducks are considered a true trophy on the wing.
But even its legendary wariness won’t protect the black duck from a double whammy threat of climate change and acid rain. One-third of the 165 species of wetlands breeding birds show medium or high vulnerability to climate change, and black ducks have been identified as particularly susceptible to sea-level rise associated with a warming climate. And acid rain affects black ducks in insidious ways. Young broods of black ducks have shown a tendency to avoid wetlands with high acidity, and no wonder: Acidification of wetlands used by black ducks decreases the quality of forage foods, and has been shown to stunt the growth and development of black duck chicks , even potentially reducing bone mass and strength.
Threats: Climate change. Acid rain.
From their storied migrations to their wild, remote habitats, few other fish can compare to the salmon for a majestic expression of the marvels of natural history. And few other fish are as imperiled by a world quickly changing. In addition to the well-known challenges salmon face from human-caused factors such as dams, the fish must confront a warming climate. Healthy stocks of salmon in the Pacific Northwest are dependent on sufficient water supplies in their headwater spawning streams. But the region has warmed over the last century, with snowpack volumes dropping more than 10 percent. The timing of peak stream flows from melted snow water are coming earlier and earlier, and with warming waters and lower flows, available spawning habitat will plummet. Some scientists predict that Oregon and Idaho could lose more than 40 percent of salmon habitat by 2090. It’s also possible that a warming climate could fast-forward the timetable when juvenile salmon enter the ocean. If they arrive before the flush of oceanic plankton fully matures, feeding could be difficult.
Across the continent, acid rain threatens Atlantic salmon populations from southeastern Canada and into Maine. Acidic waters impair the ability of a salmon’s gills to absorb oxygen, leading to circulatory failure. Research on Atlantic salmon has shown that acidification in the fish’s small nursery streams may disrupt the efficiency of its biophysical alarm system based on chemical cues in the water. If salmon can’t process threats that might translate into increased predation. According to the Atlantic Salmon Foundation, acid rain has decimated salmon in Nova Scotia’s southern upland region, with populations in 50 rivers threatened.
•	River otters and mink are the frequent companions of anglers on streams and creeks. Feeding heavily on fish, otters and mink accumulate mercury from their prey. The New Hampshire Trappers Association assisted the Fish and Game Department in the collection of mink carcasses to be tested for mercury. All twenty mink tested had high levels of mercury. At high levels mercury is suspected to negatively impact the reproductive health in otters; mercury levels in the tissue of one Ontario river otter suspected of dying of mercury poison were among the highest ever recorded for a free-living terrestrial mammal.
•	The upward flute-like trill of the wood thrush signals the end of the day for hunters and anglers in Eastern forests. But wood thrush numbers are falling, in part because of acid rain that depletes the soil of much-needed calcium. Without the needed nutrient, the birds lay thin, brittle eggs. Mercury also has been found in the wood thrush, and studies have shown that a related species, Bicknell’s thrush, bioaccumulates mercury not from aquatic sources but in high-elevation forests.
•	Few bird songs are as recognizable as the tremulous call of the common loon. Northern lakes are getting quieter, however. High levels of mercury in loons has been shown to cut loon egg production by more than 40 percents.
Throughout American history, hunters and anglers have fought to protect and preserve wildlife and wild places. Once upon a time, those threats were as visible as a cleared forest—unchecked logging, unregulated water pollution, unrelenting development. Now, some of the most challenging threats to the future of our iconic game species are invisible, silent, and progress over long periods of time. But they are no less real. And they require no less action on the part of America’s hunters and anglers.
It is becoming increasingly clear that the wildlife and wild places that Americans have held dear for generations are undoubtedly being affected by the 21st century pollution challenges that we now face. Thankfully, there are solutions to these toxic, invisible villains. Strong environmental laws like the Clean Air Act can clean up the air which affects our waters and woodlands, and keep America’s wild places safe and sound for wildlife. But since moose, brook trout, black ducks, salmon and other species have no voices of their own then each of us have a responsibility to help fight off the pollution that is affecting them.
•	Clean Air Act programs protect our streams and rivers from acid rain, our lakes from toxic mercury pollution, and our forests from tree killing smog.
•	The economic benefits of the Clean Air Act updates of 1990 will exceed $2 trillion by 2020 compared to only $65 billion for implementation costs: a cost-to-benefit ratio of 30:1.
The first forty years of the Clean Air Act have just been a starting point for continued work. Now, more than ever, the Clean Air Act is an important tool for significantly reducing the pollution that is wreaking havoc on wildlife.
We must all speak up in support of the Clean Air Act and encourage the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to update its pollution standards for pollutants like mercury, ozone, acid rain, and climate changing carbon dioxide – all of which directly threaten our wildlife heritage. The EPA is poised to take action on our country’s biggest polluters, which include coal plants, refineries, and vehicles, but we must demand that Congress not interfere but instead let EPA do its job. We cannot afford to let the special interests of big polluters to come before healthy wildlife, clean air, and clean water if we want to pass along our wildlife heritage to future generations.
U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S.
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in northeastern North America. BioDiversity Research Institute. Gorham, Maine. 28 pages.
Davis, J., Greenfield, B., Ichikawa, G., and Stephenson, M. February 25, 2008. Mercury in sport fish from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region, California, USA. Science of The Total Environment, 391:66-75.
Simonin, H., Loukmas, J., and Skinner, L. 2005. Strategic monitoring of mercury in New York state fish. Environmental Monitoring, Evaluation, and Protection Conference poster, NY State Department of Environmental Conservation.
Evers, D. C., Han, Y-J, Driscoll, C.T., Kamman, N.C., Goodale, W.M., Lambert, K.F., Holsen, T.M., Chen, C.Y., Clair, T.A. and Butler, T.J. 2007. Biological mercury hotspots in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada. BioScience 57:1-15.
Rypel, A.L. 2009. Climate–growth relationships for largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) across three southeastern USA states. Ecology of Freshwater Fish, 18: 620–628.
Perret, A., Kaller, M., Kelso, W., and Rutherford, D. A. 2010. Effects of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on sport fish community abundance in the eastern Atchafalaya River Basin, Louisiana. North American Journal of Fisheries Management; 30: 511-517.
Wildlife Management Institute technical report. Op. Cit.
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Peterson, Rolf. August 2009. Report to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) by the Moose Advisory Committee. Accessed at http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/fish_wildlife/wildlife/moose/mac/macreport.pdf.
Lenarz, M. et al. 2009. Temperature Mediated Moose Survival in Northeastern Minnesota, The Journal of Wildlife Management, 73(4):503-510.
Bowyer, R.T., van Ballenberghe, V., and Kie, J. 1998. Timing and synchrony of parturition in Alaskan moose: long-term versus proximal effects of climate. Journal of Mammology 79(4): 1332-1344.
Musante, A.R., Pekins, P.J., and Scarpitti, D.L. 2010. Characteristics and dynamics of a regional moose Alces alces population in the northeastern United States. Wildlife Biology 16:185-204.
Gunthardt-Goerg, M., Matyssek, R., Scheidegger, C., and Keller, T. 1992. Differentiation and structural decline in the leaves and bark of birch (Betula pendula) under low ozone concentration. Trees—Structure and Function, 7(2): 104-114; Pearson, M. and Mansfield, T.A. Interacting effects of ozone and water stress on the stomatal resistance of beech (Fagus sylvatica L.). 1993. New Phytologist 123(2): 351-358; Coleman, M.D., Isebrands, J.G., Dickson, R.E., and Karnosky, D.F. 1995. Photosynthetic productivity of aspen clones varying in sensitivity to tropospheric ozone. Tree Physiology 15(9): 585-592.
Middleton, P., and Rhodes, S. 1984 Acid rain and drinking water degradation. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 4(1): 99-103.
and recommendations. A Report from the Chesapeake Bay Program Science and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC), Annapolis, MD. 59 pp.
Ficke, A.D., Myrick, C.A., and Hanse, L.J. 2007. Potential impacts of global climate change on freshwater ﬁsheries. Reviews of Fish Biology and Fisheries, 17:581–613.
Piraino, M. and Taylor, D. 2009. Bioaccumulation and trophic transfer of mercury in striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and tautog (Tautoga onitis) from the Narragansett Bay (Rhode Island, USA). Marine Environmental Research, 67(3): 117-128.
Marschall, E. and Crowder, L. 1996. Assessing population responses to multiple anthropogenic effects: A case study with brook trout. Ecological Applications, 6(1): 152-167.
Neff, K.., Schwartz, J., Henry, T., Robinson, R.B., Moore, S., and Kulp, M. 2009. Physiological stress in native southern brook trout during episodic stream acidification in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 57(2): 366-376.
Evers, D. C., et al. Op. Cit.
Austin, Jane E., Afton, A., Anderson M., Clark, R., Custer, C., Lawrence, J., Pollard, J.B., and Ringelman, J. 2000. Declining scaup populations: issues, hypotheses, and research needs. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 28(1): 254-263.
Pidgornna, A. 2007. Representation, redundancy, and resilience: waterfowl and the National Wildlife Refuge System. PhD. Dissertation, University of Idaho.
Clark, R., Derksen, C., Drever, M., Nudds, T., and Slattery, S. 2009. Declining scaup populations in the boreal forest: testing the climate change hypothesis with snow cover data. Presented at the North American Duck Symposium, Toronto, Ontario.
Anteau, Michael. 2002. Nutrient reserves of lesser scaup during spring migration in the Mississippi Flyway: a test of the spring condition hypothesis. Masters of Science thesis. Louisiana State University.
Wells, J., Casey-Lefkowitz, S., Chavarria, G., Dyer, S. December 2008. Danger in the nursery: impact on birds of tar sands oil development in Canada’s boreal forest. NRDC technical report, p. 15.
Austin, Jane E., Op. Cit.
Erwin, M., Sanders, G., Prosser, D., and Cahoon, D. 2006. High tides and rising seas: Potential effects on estuarine waterbirds. Studies in Avian Biology, 32:214–228.
Sparling, D.W. 1990. Acid precipitation and food quality: Inhibition of growth and survival in black ducks and mallards by dietary aluminum, calcium, and phosphorus. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 19(3): 457-463.
Sparling, D.W. 1991. Acid precipitation and food quality: Effects of dietary Al, Ca, and P on bone and liver characteristics in American black ducks and mallards. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 21(2): 281-288.
salmon and their habitat. Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat Proceedings.
Leduc, A., Roh, R., and Brown, G. 2009. Effects of acid rainfall on juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) antipredator behaviour: loss of chemical alarm function and potential survival consequences during predation. Marine and Freshwater Research. 60(12): 1223–1230.


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Delaware Building Systems started in 1988 and incorporated in 1996.
Delaware Building Systems is a Better Business Bureau accredited business with a rating of A+! The family-run business takes pride in serving valued clients throughout central Ohio and the mid-Atlantic states with personal attention, skill and detail. We manage construction projects and provide design-build services working with our network of nationally recognized designers, architects and engineers. Whether you are developing ground-up on a vacant land parcel, require demolition, expanding or renovating an existing building, creating or remodeling an interior, or executing a tenant improvement project Delaware Building Systems has the expertise and team to accomplish your goals.
We specialize in building for the hospitality industry, education, nursing homes, manufacturing, agriculture, churches and much more!

industry_corpus2: Real Estate & Construction


text: This piece is sited in a gully at Portland Clifftop Sculpture Park, Tout Quarry, Isle of Portland, Dorset UK. I was very interested in the Lerret a local and now almost extinct boat that was evolved locally. Its lack of a square transom enables it to cope better with the very tricky tides in the area. For most of the year the piece provides water for birds and animals.


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Our ultimate aim is for Wales to become a smokefree nation, eventually achieving a smoking prevalence rate of 5% or less. It currently stands at 19%.
Smoking rates among adults aged 16+ has fallen consistently over the past decade but remained at the same level for the past 3 years. Latest statistics show 19% of adults in Wales currently smoke with the prevalence for men standing at 21%, compared to 17% for women (National Survey for Wales, 2017/18).
The 2013/14 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) report shows that smoking is at an all-time low among 15 and 16 year olds in Wales with 8% of boys and 9% of girls smoking regularly. For the past 20 years the proportion of regular smokers has been higher among girls aged 11-16 than boys of the same age. These 2014 stats are the first to show a minimal difference.
In 2017/2018 the percentage of adults from the least deprived areas of Wales reported as being a smoker was 13% compared to a figure of 28% recorded among the most deprived adults within the Welsh population. (National Survey for Wales, 2017/18).
ASH England estimates that in 2018 there are approximately 3.2 million adults adult e-cigarette users in Great Britain, an increase from 700,000 in 2012. 7% of Welsh residents currently use an e-cigarette (National Survey for Wales, 2017/18).
In 2016/2017, 34% of non-smoking adults aged 16+ were regularly exposed to passive smoke in Wales. Since 2008 a higher proportion of non-smoking women have been regularly exposed to passive smoke than men, with there being a 1% difference in 2016/2017 (men: 34%; women: 35%).
In 2013/14 one in eight children aged 11 to 16 reported being exposed to second-hand smoke in cars, rising to almost a quarter of those in the low family affluence group. In addition, in 2014, 3.6% of all children aged 10 and 11, equating to 7.0% of children of smokers, reported having been in a car where someone was smoking the previous day. From October 2015, it has been illegal in England and Wales to smoke in a car carrying anyone under the age of 18.
Between 2007 and 2014 the percentage of 10/11 year olds with no parents who smoke in the home went up from 63% to 78%.
Considering all NHS smoking cessation services (including ‘Level 3’ pharmacies and ‘in-house’ services available via hospitals and GP surgeries) 3.11% of smokers in Wales accessed services in 2017/18, falling well below the Wales Tobacco Control Action Plan target of 5%.
Over the period 2013-15, an average of 5,388 smoking attributable deaths and 26,489 smoking attributable hospital admissions a year occurred in Wales.
In 2015 the smoking prevalence of adults being treated for a mental illness was 33% in comparison to a smoking prevalence of 19% reported among the whole of the adult population in Wales in 2015.
In 2010, 16% of all mothers in Wales smoked throughout their pregnancy, a drop of 6% relative to the equivalent figure of 22% observed in 2005. Women aged 24 or under are most likely to smoke throughout their pregnancy.
In 2017 the Public Health Wales Observatory published new pregnancy surveillance indicators presenting data for births in the period April 1st 2015 – March 31st 2016.
The illegal tobacco market in Wales in 2014 accounted for 15% of tobacco consumption. Of all current smokers aged 16+ in Wales 25% have purchased illegal tobacco, with its purchase being more prevalent among males (31%) than females (19%).
Data from research we carried out in 2013 shows that the economic cost of smoking to Wales, based upon the factors listed in the full report below, is an estimated £790.66 million per year. However, it could be as high as £1.04 billion per year. The cost of smoking to the Welsh NHS specifically is likely to be around £302 million per year but could be as high as £436.6 million per year.

industry_corpus2: Health & Medicine


text:
Crisis is an advanced business game. Tycoons rob and restructure combines in a social market economy. The major topics are dubious stock market machinations, companies controlling others, and major business crises. Railroading is simulated for subways in a downtown megalopolis.
Levels of required skills: Tactics, Strategy: very high. Luck: none. Diplomacy: optional. Psychology: intermediate.
Crisis simulates some of the most complex aspects of business in the real world: crises resulting from overextended stock markets and tycoons depleting companies and restructuring combines. So the game is extremely tough even for advanced players that appreciate deep strategy. A tiny mistake can cause chaos. Concerning the topics, you should not only like business but particularly enjoy devious manipulations. On the other hand, it is immaterial that the surface is chosen to be railroading, although good construction of flexible networks cannot be neglected in practice. 18xx-lovers will see Crisis to prefer business to railroading, variability to restriction, and invention to tradition.
On the surface the game consists of business and railways. The business part is represented by a stock market, companies, shares, and money. The stock market regulates prices of shares in the twelve companies. The railway part is simulated by tiles, trains, company tokens, and signals. Tiles form subway tracks, stations, and parks in a city. Trains run on routes along tracks. Signals influence directions of routes. A company's tokens are used to control stations, to go beyond other companies' stations, or to stop opposing routes at signals. The network of tracks in the city becomes more and more complex and flexible signals or company tokens frequently alter routes.
Crisis has evolved from 18xx railroad business games and therefore uses some of their traditional concepts but it can be played independently of its origin. Everyone familiar with 18xx games knows that the share business is their crucial part while railways are an enjoyable means of simulating causes for the stock market prices. Each entity, whether player or company, has its own property. In the end only a player's personal cash and share values count. He is confronted with the conflict of financing his controlled companies well or profiting from paying dividends mercilessly. The shareholder holding a majority in a company is its director and solely acts on its behalf. The ruthless manager depletes companies just before disposing of his shares in them. Like in every 18xx, shareholders become optimistic if dividends are paid and the stock price increases; they become pessimistic if it decreases because income is paid to a company's treasury. If demand for shares is high, then a market price is raised, if shares are sold, then it drops quickly. Trains become more and more expensive but can visit an increasing number of stations. Early trains are scrapped while permanent electric trains double their revenue. A first train of a new generation triggers a phase change that eliminates old trains and makes available also a new generation of tiles showing more track or higher station values. Throughout the game prices and incomes inflate considerably increasing moving capital and thus unpredictability.
Compared to 18xx games Crisis uses innovative and flexible concepts for the flow of turns, the construction of networks, and the movement of shares.
A traditional separation of operating rounds for company turns from stock rounds for player turns is replaced by the deceiptively unspectacular concept of rounds for both companies and players. However, since players take turns after their immediately controlled companies, the order of all turns dynamically depends on the companies' variable stock market prices, the players can always try to influence the order, and thus trade with shares timely. Besides the stock market with its own interdependencies intensifies dynamics of turns. Predicting and controlling their order requires careful strategic and tactical planning.
Construction of subway networks does not take place on a board or map but square tiles are laid within an imagined 6x6 chess board, called the city. The tiles' shape and their colourful appearance represent a downtown area of an American megalopolis. At first a 6x6 city seems small but with six generations of tile upgrades the dense, highly interactive competiton for space is very demanding. The virtual board allows variants of the game easily: A smaller city leads to a quicker game, a bigger one to a more peaceful construction. Why is there no historical map? It would only provide terrain restrictions. Without them construction starts fairly balanced and at the same time built networks vary greatly from game to game. Neither is a single player expelled early nor is a group of players bored upon seeing the same strategies every game. Needless to say, certain company tokens can be removed and signals change, adding a lot of excitement in the fight for the best routes.
In every stock market game players may buy and sell shares. Letting companies trade shares in foreign companies is already rather uncommon in games. Here Crisis starts: Principally players and companies may buy as many shares as they like, companies are even forced to purchase foreign shares, thereby complex company hierarchies are frequently built, restructured, or destroyed, and shares may be traded within each hierarchy controlled by a player. Trading conditions depend on seller and buyer, company types, prices, volume, and distribution of shares, directorship, possibly receivership, and time and order of actions so that strategies must fit a great variety of circumstances. The real fun begins when an under-endowed company goes into receivership: Not only the director (like in any other 18xx game) but all shareholders are responsible and have to support the company. Cute shareholders are not affected while others might suffer from harsh supports repetitively! The experienced player can try to predict this tough and complex way of financing and intentionally let pay the other shareholders. There are two additional types of share movements: donations can also include foreign shares and if a company remains in receivership because supports may not be exceeded voluntarily, then this changes some directors and moves further shares.
The mechanisms for financing a company are tough and unforgiving: Normal trades of trains or foreign shares between it and another company (or a player) require one to be the director of the other. Supports to it, however, are a nightmare. The most valuable cash or assets must be spent first. Even worse, support amounts are prescribed so that expenses remain insufficient or can be much higher than expected.
The various ways of trading shares and restructuring combines make the game so complex that easily a company is not financed efficiently but unexpectedly remains under-endowed. Then it goes into receivership and all shareholders are responsible and have to support it. Since also other companies own foreign shares, the interdependence between all players and companies is great.
A company getting insufficient support remains in receivership and its director loses his shares in it to the bank while all remaining shareholders may not sell their shares but remain responsible. A company in receivership does not operate but lives mainly from their repetitive supports until a healthy shareholder dares to end receivership by buying the director certificate from the bank and then financing the company.
Supports per se, supports higher or tougher than expected, repetitive supports, the prohibition to sell shares in companies in receivership, or shares lost as a director all increase the likelihood that more and more companies become under-endowed, go into, and remain in receivership, too. This iterative process is sometimes so powerful that a major business crisis emerges naturally. Then an investor is faced with a decision of winning by controlling the last dying company, by selling all shares first, or by stopping the crisis by temporarily sacrificing personal wealth.
Unlike all other 18xx that always simulate a boom and rarely have any significant chaos, Crisis simulates stock markets of the world very convincingly without even mentioning the following in the rules. Needless to say, prices depend on market psychology. Like in a real market economy there are times with either some prices raising and others dropping, a boom, or a recession. The market is chaotical and hence hardly predictable; tiny changes can result in either a boom, a recession, or even a major business crisis.
The game starts peacefully balanced for all players and companies. The market economy has social elements that severely restrict the effect of negotiations. Only superior competitive skill gives an advantage, which may easily be lost during the dark and eventful middle game. In it players and companies must constantly struggle to survive as well as the market economy permits it. Succeeding allows reaching the endgame with a good position. The then highly inflated incomes lead to an exciting game end.
Finished design: Due to years of careful testing the players need not find and fix any flaws. Every number of players from 2 to 9 works well. The game does not require any add-ons.
Functional playing material: It is colourful, clear, abstract, and flexible. With it the players can easily concentrate on strategy.
Lasting value: After hundreds of games strategic exploration keeps its excitement. It is even possible to change the size of the imagined map, if desired.
Strategic variation: Deep, skillful thinking is rewarded. All strategic development is very flexible, whether created by construction of networks, trading shares, or game within a game procedures.
Creating thematic strategy: Although not described in the rules, pure strategy leads to themes like, e.g., washing money.
Creating strategic topics: On a high strategic level, the players will behave like tycoons and the game's own economy can create business crises.
Balance: At the game start all players get equal winning chances regardless of the initial order of turns. Excitement is provided until the game end. Even after heavily one-sided negotiations all players still take part in a fair mutual competition! Every game's strategic economy is seemingly balanced for some time so that already tiny financial changes can behave chaotically and either create or not create the strategic topic crisis.
1830 appeared as the first tough stock market game and is still a classic. Already 1830 included wheeling and dealing, presenting opponents with depleted complanies, and sudden game ends due to a player's bankruptcy. Crisis offers the same, however, sudden early game ends are very typical of 1830 and much less so in Crisis. Why? Now the responsibility for a bad company not only affects a single player but several players or even other companies. Furthermore, undesired expenses need not occur just once but can occur repetitively.
Only Crisis allows players and companies to own arbitrarily many shares. Frankly, companies are forced to purchase foreign shares! This results in small or complex company hierarchies, parts of which could easily change owners. Does buying arbitrarily many shares easily lead to unbalanced games? No, owning shares in foreign companies always includes the risk of having to support them! In Crisis the greater number of persons, whether players or companies, dealing in foreign shares results in more realistic market prices.
Unlike 1830, Crisis does not favour easy escapes of financial desasters. In 1830 the president pays off an under-endowed company once and that's it - in Crisis you pay, lose your shares in the company, and might still be forced to pay more to further companies in the future. Also other investors hardly do much better; they suffer from your doubtful politics as well. In 1830 you might buy a train from another player's company - in Crisis you may not even shift trains among just your own companies freely. In 1830 it is not too hard to become bankrupt because the director has to pay the full train - in Crisis a sudden game end cannot be forced so easily because the director may spend only partial supports.
1830 gets its balanced game start due to a combination of a tested historical map, where companies start at fixed places, and of an auction for privates. Since Crisis is too flexible and non-historical for a fixed underlying map and companies may start everywhere, balance is created by forcing the very early companies to connect to each other and by anti-syndicate laws for the stock market during the opening.
Crisis is also innovative about the player order - it is variable instead of fixed. Players take their turns in between all the operating companies. Hence you can forget about the rather unpredictable "priority deal" of 1830. It is unfair because a player is not guaranteed it even if he spends by far the most energy on receiving it. Besides a fixed player order in a stock round reduces the risk of share investments because it is less likely that a director is in a good selling position in the order of dealers. In Crisis he can influence the order of player turns.
Although the virtual Crisis map consists of 36 facets only, the 6 tile colour phases make route construction similarly demanding as in 1830 with its only 3 phases. Needless to say, Crisis offers a lot of more new features like square tiles, signals, and other company or train types. However, the game is not overloaded at all because some traditional concepts like off-board connections or terrain difficulties have been abandoned.
1830, 1841, 1898, and Crisis all lay particular emphasis on the stock market. While 1841 and 1898 still rely on a historical map and 1841 partially relies on historical companies, in Crisis the virtual map and all companies are non-historical. Historical playing material provides a certain flair while more abstract components allow the players to concentrate on complex strategies more easily.
Most of what can be said for 1830 applies to 1841 as well. The following concentrates on the 1841 specific aspects.
1841 is the variant with the quickest appearance of newer trains. The speed of technological development is frightening. Crisis is not that fast here to make sudden bankruptcies of players much less likely. Thereby the mechanism of companies repetitively suffering from lacking capital becomes the toughest because affected players stay in the game and continue to be responsible for their erroneous decisions. The speed in 1841 can eliminate some players - a frustrating experience.
In 1841 every turn of a company one is faced with a decision of merging, printing money, or doing neither. Either ruins the own stock market value, however, avoiding both risks under-endowment. These concepts and their inherent decision complexity make 1841 an attractive simulation of fusions and inflation. On the other hand, they both greatly ease the necessiety of acquiring capital. When merging only one instead of two trains must be bought; by printing money one can escape financial difficulties rather easily. Crisis does not know any such easy purchase of required capital. Instead strategic complexity lies in the great problem of financing it. Neither merging, printing money immediately, buying a train from most other companies, nor full payment at once is allowed. Furthermore, a company must also buy shares and an unworthy director might even lose the shares in his company if it remains under-endowed. To summarize, when trying to let your companies survive you are confronted with the following: a speedy boom in 1841 or tightened financial sources in Crisis. Either is very tough.
1841 allows a company to own up to 5 shares. Crisis is limitless and does not just allow such but mercilessly forces all companies to purchase shares! In consequence, company hierarchies grow much bigger, interdependencies are woven more complexly, and the risk of accidentally becoming director is greatly increased. Good shares are scarce and half the companies consist of 20% certificates only. Thus a single share can lead to directorship easily.
It follows some information in the style of the [Blackwater Station] of 18xx games. Also see the [18xx Difference List].
Crisis is not yet in print. The rules, testing and most of the graphical design are finished, except the banknotes. The game will be published by the author.
The game is played in rounds. Most players take turns after their immediately controlled companies. Companies must also own shares.
Anti-syndicate Laws apply. They restrict cross-control to 40%.
The bank has an unlimited supply of E6-trains.
Crisis is a modern game with many innovations like a virtual, generic map, no general certificate or money limits, rounds instead of operating rounds and stock rounds, structure purchases, and signals but without some traditional elements like off-board connections, terrain difficulties, small cities, empty big cities, or privates. This gives the game a new feeling already on the surface. Square tiles are used to simulate subways in a downtown megalopolis.
While once 1830 could be called the premier game of stock manipulation and 1841 is the game with the greatest speed of technological development, now Crisis is the toughest, most complex, and most unpredictable game of business strategy. Measuring complexity is hard but years of testing have produced counter-strategies for every strategy and not enabled me to foresee just one round, what is possible in 1830 or 1841.
So what makes Crisis so tough? First of all, companies can purchase unlimited numbers of foreign shares. This creates complex combines. Second, companies are forced to own more and more foreign shares, what makes good shares scarce. This is an extra duty besides buying a train. Third, foreign assets may only be bought from the or as a director. Fourth, all shareholders can be responsible for under-endowed companies while some might avoid supports and let the director lose his shares even though having supported. Fifth, other shares in such companies may not be given away and can cause more supports. Sixth, half the companies have only certificates that already allow a director change. Seventh, trading many old or new certificates quickly restructures combines, depletes companies, or inflates money. Eighth, the stock market and the round order, which involves players and companies, are particularly flexible. To conclude, dividends are paid only to owned foreign shares.
While the game has a balanced start and good route construction remains important, it becomes more and more essential to excel at wheeling and dealing. Clearly, Crisis is the game of devious business manipulations.
In the 19th century most early European and American stock companies were railroads because this financial system could efficiently provide the great amounts of risk capital that were required for these enterprises. Particularly in the USA the big investors were hardly interested in a healthy long-term development. Rather they let build railway tracks of poor quality along detours. Their influence on politics presented them with state supports per mile of laid tracks, permitted undue transportation fees, and allowed highly dubious stock market machinations. The great German tycoon Henry Strousberg was a victim of the 1873 stock market crisis because he could not raise cash quickly enough.
The general business crisis in 1929 hurt especially many small shareholders who could not react and sell quickly enough. Then the stock companies were in the hands of few conservative industrialists and bankers. Slowly after World War II some of them sold shares in their companies, which were led like inhereted property. Suddenly in Great Britain tycoons recognized their chance and started to take over companies and combines, split them, restructured them, forged balances, and sold their method to politicians and private shareholders as healthy reorganizations. As a consequence, many acquired shares in them and let stock market prices raise quickly. The tycoons sold their shares with incredible profit, took over further and bigger companies, depleted assets, and sold again while the general public continued to believe in a healthy boom. In reality employees lost their jobs and inflation grew. The oil crisis in 1973 burst the financial soap-bubble totally unexpectedly. Even most tycoons were caught in nets of liabilities, could not get sufficient cash, and soon were bankrupt.
In the 1980s losers among the British tycoons found scope for revenge when in the USA junk bonds financed a new era of company reorganizations. Pension funds became the crucial investors. The system was applied in Great Britain, too. Everything worked out well until the tycoons were sacrificed to calm down the excitements of massive illegal insider trades by the banks. Pension funds and banks have taken over their role, attract another generation of small shareholders, and dispel the next unforeseen crisis, which actually already occurred in 2000 when the severely overextended new market lost some two thirds during several months of an unusually slow crash.

industry_corpus2: Finance & Economics


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We live in a world that is so huge many of us will not be able to experience its beauty and diverse nature. Geography at Birchensale aims to open their eyes to the beauty and wonder around them and act as a source of inspiration and creativity to prepare each of the students for the role of global citizen in the 21st century.
© 2019 Birchensale Middle School.