Argentina’s default on its sovereign debt in 2001 set in motion a long and complicated process designed to convince those to whom it owed money to restructure the loan. By 2010, the troubled Latin American nation, now more or less back on its feet, proposed a new arrangement, offering its bondholders about 30 cents on the dollar. An overwhelming majority signed on, but a handful—mainly investors who bought the bonds from their original holders for a reduced price, expecting to turn a profit—did not. A deal, they said, was a deal.
Unmoved, the Supreme Court decided not to review the earlier ruling. What happened as a result was nothing: Sovereign debt markets registered little movement, and Argentina’s debt, after an initial dip, bounced back once the government in Buenos Aires grudgingly hinted that it was ready to negotiate with its bondholders. Clearly undeterred by the Supreme Court’s decision, Ecuador, having itself defaulted in 2008, waited just one day before taking to Wall Street to sell $2 billion worth of 10-year bonds.
The economic predictions of those who supported Argentina’s restructuring bid fell flat, but what about their moral argument? In an op-ed in the New York Times, one such supporter, Mark Weisbrot, the co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, a progressive think-tank, essentially served up Ezekiel’s old chestnut about fathers eating sour grapes and their children’s teeth growing numb.
Jewish law, in its infinite wisdom, offers a simple answer to this question: until the debt is paid.
It’s a moving story, but it solves very few problems. We humans are not divine, and our interactions are rarely guided solely by spiritual edicts. We’re a transactional species; what we need is not a parable but contract law. This realization haunted Christianity throughout much of its early years as an ascendant religion. Read Peter Brown’s majestic Through the Eye of a Needle: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350-550 A.D., and you’ll get a fine portrayal of how a Roman economy based on a model of civic obligation was gradually replaced by a “new emphasis on the supernatural efficacy of the Christian gift.” Charity, debt, wealth—all were governed by a set of theological entanglements that sanctified poverty even as the church grew richer and more powerful. All the while, it tried to negotiate the practical meaning of Jesus’ insistence that the affluent had little reason to expect any part of the kingdom of heaven.
Judaism, on the other hand, delivered a more earthly account. While advocating the forgiveness of debt every seven years as a measure against destitution, it nonetheless realized the need to approach economic questions in all their thorniness, stacking the Talmud with numerous in-depth discussions about loans, interest rates, and other practicalities. But the essence of the religion’s approach to these matters was best captured, as is so often the case, by Maimonides, who famously offered up a hierarchy of eight levels of charity. At its bottom was begrudged giving; at its top, supporting a fellow Jew by empowering him to grow resilient and self-sufficient.
This, then, is Judaism’s radical difference: Rather than advocate unequivocal forgiveness and channel all transactions through a central institution, i.e., the church, it opted to remain committed to the uneasy exchanges between people, which meant offering measures of mercy but ultimately insisting that words be kept and obligations met.


in quite a while for the New York Knicks.
they host the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.
Milwaukee 107-101 in double-overtime Wednesday.
last in the league with 39.0 rebounds per game.
tough home matchup with surging Oklahoma City on Christmas Day.
big man and defensive player of the year to injury.
Memphis was 7-5 heading into a game against San Antonio on Nov.
with a 105-91 defeat at Dallas on Wednesday.
dressed only 10 players for the game.
game, is expected to return against the Knicks.


There’s good news and bad news in China today for Qualcomm, the US giant that creates chipsets for smartphones, tablets, PCs and other gadgets.
First off, the good: Qualcomm has announced a new $150 million fund dedicated to startups in China. The company’s Chinese portfolio includes Xiaomi, which just unveiled its new Mi 4 smartphone this week, and Dolphin Browser, which just sold a majority 51 percent share to a Chinese games company.
Qualcomm started investing in 2000, though its VC arm didn’t enter China until 10 years ago. With its newest fund, it is looking specifically for mobile-focused startups involved with the internet, e-commerce, semi-conductors, education and health. Alongside today’s announcement, Qualcomm revealed two new investments for the first time: education platform Cambridge Wow, and health startup Boohee.
“Chinese companies receiving investments from Qualcomm can benefit from Qualcomm’s insights on mobile technologies and leverage [our] relationships throughout the industry,” said the US company in a statement.
Now for that bad news. State media in China is reporting that the country’s antitrust regulator has deemed Qualcomm to hold a monopoly, as Reuters explains.
The National Development and Reform Commission opened an investigation in February following reports that Qualcomm was raising its prices in China, and thus abusing its position in the market. In addition, a report from Securities Times suggests that the commission is also investigating whether Qualcomm undercut Chinese rivals by charging less for its patents to win new customers.
The findings of the investigation have not been announced by the commission, but a guilty verdict would be likely to bring with it significant financial penalities. China’s anti-monopoly laws can be used to fine a company as much as 10 percent of its most recent annual revenues — that could see Qualcomm hit with a fine as large as $1.2 billion.
Even without a fine, the company revealed that the ongoing investigation has hampered its business in China. Reuters reports that China accounted for nearly half of the company’s global sales last year, and issues in the country led the company to cut its outlook for the next quarter of business.
Qualcomm has not released a media statement in response to the reports. We’ve reached out to the company for comment.


A woman who was hurt in a serious car crash in Fleetwood has died from her injuries.
Lynne McDermott, 56, from Preston, suffered serious leg injuries and multiple fractures in a collision involving a white BMW 330i, a parked Ford Ecosport and two female pedestrians on Station Road, close to the junction of Amounderness Way, at around 9.10pm on Saturday.
Ms McDermott, who was one of the pedestrians, was taken to Royal Preston Hospital for treatment but died yesterday.
The second woman, aged 57, also from Preston, suffered multiple fractures to her left shoulder, arm, hip, ankle and pelvis. She is currently being treated at Royal Preston Hospital.
Station Road was closed for around six hours while collision investigators attended.
Leon Kay, 33, of Bayside, Fleetwood, has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving and drink-driving. He has been remanded to appear at Blackpool Magistrates’ Court today.
Mrs McDermott's family said: “The world needs to know that she was an incredible person and amazing fighter.
“She fought so hard over the last seven years battling bravely against cancer. Even this horrific incident didn’t stop her from fighting.
“She deserves the credit for what she has gone through. She died with her family by her side and there is now a hole in all our lives and she will be greatly missed by her family and friends but remembered forever.
Sgt Michael Higginson, of Lancashire Police’s Tactical Operations Team, said: “These are tragic circumstances and my thoughts are with Mrs McDermott, her family and her friends at this difficult time.
Anybody with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting log number 1423 of February 2.


Starbucks is the gift that keeps on giving … year after year! The coffee giant has released its first advertisement for its annual holiday drinks! — “Tomorrow only, November 2 get a free reusable red cup with the purchase of any holiday beverage,” Starbucks posted on its Instagram and Twitter accounts. The offer is available in Starbucks stores in the United States and Canada. If customers use the cup between Saturday and January 7 to buy a 16-ounce holiday beverage after 2 PM, they save 50 cents on their order.
The signature red cup got a makeover since this is the first time ever, Starbucks decided to make the red cup reusable. Now, while their signature red cup is only free on November 2, that day also marks the official start of Starbucks’ holiday beverages! Starting Friday, November 2, the company will begin offering six holiday beverages — Peppermint Mocha, Toasted White Chocolate Mocha, Caramel Brulee Latte, Chesnut Praline Latte, Gingerbread Latte and Egg Nog Latte. The drinks will be available hot, iced or as a blended Frappuccino.
If you’re Starbucks crazed, like us, then you’ll know that their holiday drinks are returning a bit earlier this year. In fact, Chief Operating Officer Rosalind Brewer said it’s a week to 10 days earlier than previous years! Store merchandise will feature an assortment of gifts under $20, with many items exclusive to the Starbucks brand, Brewer added.
As for what’s new? — Starbucks will debut a seventh beverage later in the season. In addition, the company will offer special holiday pastries, such as a sugar plum cheese danish and chocolate swirl brioche. Those treats join returning favorite, the Cranberry Bliss Bar.
And, where holiday drinks are available, each store will be decked out for holidays! “Stores will transform with festive and warm trim and décor, Starbucks baristas will proudly wear their red aprons, customers can sip their favorite seasonal beverages from holiday cups, shop for Christmas Blend whole bean coffees and beautiful, giftable Starbucks Cards and merchandise,” Starbucks wrote on its official website.
In addition, Starbucks’ shift to more reusable cups is part of a series of environmentally friendly promises the company has made. They plan to move to eliminate single-use plastic straws globally by 2020.


Lancebase.com offers a powerful tool to help freelancers attract clients and foster relationships.
PORTLAND, Ore. - Oct. 23, 2016 - PRLog -- LanceBase is a next-generation message board, using state-of-the-art forum software that is fully responsive, easy to navigate and extremely user friendly. The Services Showcase section offers freelancers a powerful tool for attracting new clients and the site provides a lively discussion forum. Members can interact with one another, collaborate, and find invaluable tips and resources; there is a Tips and Tutorials section offering expert advice and also a Classified section where freelancers can find new opportunities.
"We wanted to create an open environment where freelancers could chat candidly about real-world issues affecting the freelance community," says PR Director Anthony Shearer. "F2F (freelancer to freelancer)."
Lancebase.com was built by freelancers for freelancers. The site embodies a strong sense of community and mutual helpfulness; its launch is the result of the efforts of a large team of people working together to promote their vision of giving freelancers a 'home base'. From a relatively modest beginning, Lancebase.com (https://www.lancebase.com/) has exceeded its founders' expectations, with the freelance community providing support and input throughout development.
Freelancers face great challenges - not least of which is attracting suitable clients. In addition to their particular skill, they need to be expert at time management and to be able to wear many hats: marketer, social media expert, and accountant, to name but a few. Such challenges can be daunting - especially for newcomers to the field - so a forum where they can chat freely, exchange ideas and share inspirations with other freelancers is a hugely helpful asset.
"We hope you find this project as exciting as we do," says Shearer. "As our LanceBase family continues to grow, we look to you, our members, to grow with us."


The U.K. Parliament has seized internal Facebook documents in an unusual move to answer questions it feels the company has been dodging, the Guardian reports.
Why it matters: Pressure has been mounting on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify in front of the members of Parliament and other world leaders for weeks, but Zuckerberg has repeatedly turned down such requests.
Details: The files reportedly contain "significant revelations" about Facebook decisions on data and privacy control, as well as correspondence between top executives, per the Guardian.
Damian Collins, chair of Parliament's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, invoked a rare parliamentary mechanism to force the founder of a U.S. software company to hand over the documents while on a business trip to London.
In a dramatic and unusual move, a serjeant at arms was sent to the founder of Six4Three's hotel and ordered him to hand over the documents or face fines and, potentially, imprisonment, according to the report.
The documents were obtained by Six4Three in a separate legal process, according to the Guardian, which caught the attention of U.K. officials. In its own legal fight, Six4Three alleges Facebook was aware of privacy problems and actively exploited them.
Background: Facebook has faced pressure to be more transparent with officials around the world, and particularly in the U.K. and EU, over how it handles an array of issues, like data privacy, election meddling and terrorist content.
On Friday, The Washington Post reported that Zuckerberg declined to testify at a rare joint hearing with lawmakers from seven countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Latvia, Singapore and the U.K.
Lawmakers had been lobbying Facebook to appear for weeks, even launching a Twitter campaign to get people to retweet their plea to have Zuckerberg testify.
Facebook will be sending Richard Allan, vice-president for policy, in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in Zuckerberg’s stead, as confirmed by the Washington Post and TechCrunch.
Last week British members of parliament urged advertisers to boycott Facebook and Google over their alleged inability to contain terrorist content.
Be smart: It's unusual for countries from four different continents to band together in an effort to hold a U.S.-based company accountable for its actions in this way. The move suggests that Facebook's public relations crisis in the U.S. is spilling over globally.
Between the lines: An article published earlier this month by the New York Times suggested that Facebook's top executives sought to deflect blame for a growing number of problems on its platform.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has since denied that the company intentionally ignored or sought to hamper investigations into those problems. But the allegations in the article have so far been enough to rattle lawmakers.
Facebook released a memo the evening before Thanksgiving in the U.S. that conceded executives may know more about the hiring of a controversial public relations firm that top executives initially denied knowing about.
Bottom line: Facebook's year of controversies in the U.S. might be the beginning of many more to come abroad.


Run your Linux applications on Windows. Enjoy the power of your Linux applications on Windows without the need to reboot! With Ulteo Virtual Desktop, you just have to run the application you need to use from the Ulteo panel and its window will show up like any other Windows application. You save time because you can have both Windows and Linux applications integrated into a single desktop. Additionally, the Ulteo Virtual Desktop is a safe and virus-free place. It will even self-upgrade regularly with latest version of the system and its applications.
Create a shortcut to reclaim memory in Windows. Guess what? Don't bother resetting!


How a startup disrupted "one of the oldest of old-school industries."
Health.com.au is a disruptive health insurer from Melbourne that seeks to “reinvent how people view health insurance in Australia,” according to founder and CEO Andy Sheats.
While heading up strategy at realestate.com.au, Andy Sheats saw an opportunity to disrupt the $16 billion health insurance industry in Australia.
Sheats saw room to break in because, while many people had private insurance, customer service was dated and confusing, he said.
Health.com.au takes “a more modern, online approach to this old-school industry that allows people to actually do more online,” said Sheats.
For example, the startup lets people file claims online without sending any receipts, verifying the authenticity of the claim afterward. It also has digitised much of the paperwork that has historically been involved in the industry, he said.
Health.com.au began development in June 2011 and sold its first product in April 2012. The company was named startup of the year last month at the Telstra Business Awards.
Even with a compelling idea, breaking in wasn’t going to be easy or cheap.
Health.com.au raised $3.6 million in a seed funding round to get to launch, he said. Over the last two years, it has raised a total of $34 million in equity.
Since launching in April last year, the startup has added 40,000 customers and raised significant revenue. Sheats said the company had a run rate revenue of $45 million in August.
It has a similar-sized network to other health insurance providers, he said. “The only way we could do that as a startup business is there’s a buying group that about 20 health insurers subscribe to that actually negotiate” with the healthcare providers, he said.
Health.com.au so far has focused its products on the domestic market. It does not yet offer overseas visa cover, but will in the future, he said.
It’s difficult to be a startup in Australia for financial, cultural and regulatory reasons, according to Sheats.
“It’s ironic to me because Australia is in my mind the land of small businesses and individual people starting businesses, but it isn’t really a small-business-friendly place and it’s even less a startup-friendly place,” he said.
From a regulation standpoint, Sheats said tax rules preventing startups from offering share options to employees has been a big problem. Three-year-old changes to tax law require that the employee is taxed on the value of the share option when the option is issued, before any payments are made.
However, Sheats said he sees a lot of talent and the scene has somewhat improved over the last few years.


The exposed data includes email addresses and/or user names, IP addresses and encrypted passwords.
The drag-and-drop website builder Weebly yesterday began notifying most of its more than 40 million users that hackers had accessed their email addresses and/or user names, IP addresses and encrypted (bcrypt hashed) passwords.
All affected users are being advised to reset their passwords.
"At this point we do not believe that any customer website has been improperly accessed," the company said in a statement posted on its website. "We do not store any full credit card numbers, and so we're not aware that any credit card information that can be used for fraudulent charges was a part of this incident."
"Weebly's security team is taking steps to further enhance our network security and protect our customers," the company added. "We are also working with a third party team of security experts to investigate the incident."
The company doesn't yet know how the data was accessed.
The passwords for all accounts set up after June 1, 2011 were encrypted using salted bcrypt hashes. Older accounts used a less secure hashed password format, and all of those passwords are being automatically reset.
Weebly was alerted to the breach by LeakedSource, which received the stolen data from an anonymous source.
According to LeakedSource, the data dates back to February 2016, and contains 43,430,316 users' information.
"In this particular case, Weebly understood that their customer information would be the inevitable target of an attack," Spirion CEO Dr. Jo Webber told eSecurity Planet by email. "They took certain steps to limit the manipulation of more than 40 million customer accounts and websites by ensuring key pieces of information such as credit card numbers and passwords were secured [and] stored properly."
IDT911 chairman and founder Adam Levin said by email that passwords aren't the only thing to be concerned about -- the other stolen information can also be useful to identity thieves."Email addresses and usernames are the foundation of our online identities, and typically contain significant information including numbers or other key personal information including birthdays, colleges or employers," he said.
"Hackers can easily use these bits of information to figure out passwords, use as valuable context in phishing schemes or answer security questions to access all stripe of online accounts, including banks and social networks," Levin added.
A recent survey of more than 500 IT security professionals found that only 25 percent of respondents are confident their organizations have the number of skilled cyber security experts they need to detect and respond effectively to a serious cyber security breach.
The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research and sponsored by Tripwire, also found that 72 percent of respondents have faced challenges hiring skilled cyber security experts.
Sixty-six percent of respondents said their organizations face increased security risks due to a lack of skilled cyber security experts.
"Having the right tools is only part of the solution," Tripwire director of IT security and risk strategy Tim Erlin said in a statement. "A lack of cyber security skills not only degrades an organization's ability to respond to incidents, it also inhibits organizations from developing and deploying effective prevention."
A recent eSecurity Planet article examined seven database security best practices.


"Regardless of any executive proclamation, I do not want the flags at the North Carolina Standards Laboratory flown at half staff to honor Jesse Helms any time this week," Eason wrote just after midnight, according to e-mail messages released in response to a public records request.
He told his staff that he did not think it was appropriate to honor Helms because of his "doctrine of negativity, hate, and prejudice" and his opposition to civil rights bills and the federal Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Eason said in an interview Tuesday that he did not typically lower the flag himself, but that, as head of the lab, he supervised the technician who did. He also trained new employees on proper flag etiquette, including a one-person folding technique he learned in Boy Scouts.
When the lab opened Monday morning, the flags were not out at all. An employee called Eason's boss, Stephen Benjamin, who worked in another building in Raleigh. About 10:45 a.m., Benjamin told one of Eason's co-workers to put the flags at half-staff.
Another of Eason's superiors later drove by the lab to make sure the flags were up properly.
In a string of e-mail messages with his superiors, Eason was told he could either lower the flags or retire effective immediately.
Though he's only 51, Eason chose to retire.
It was not the first time Eason felt uneasy about lowering the flag.
A registered Democrat who frequently votes a split ticket, he said he had no problems lowering the flag for former Sen. Terry Sanford or President Reagan. But he remembers wondering whether he would be willing to lower the flag after President Nixon's death.
He never had to make that decision, since it rained both days.
Monday was sunny. And Eason was out of a job.


More snow possible this week. Hooray!
The snow is expected throughout the day Wednesday.
Don't worry, Sioux Falls, your wishes have come true — more snow could be coming later this week.
The National Weather Service is forecasting possible snow accumulation on Wednesday, just as we'd all hoped.
Freezing rain, sleet and snow will mix together late Tuesday night and early Wednesday, with possible accumulation of 2 inches of snow. Snow will continue in the morning and afternoon with 3 more inches of accumulation expected.
The NWS says there is 'slight' risk for 6 or more inches of snow for Sioux Falls, with northwestern Iowa and southwestern Minnesota in a 'moderate' risk.
Union County in South Dakota and northwestern Iowa are already in a winter storm watch for Tuesday night into Wednesday.
Temperatures will continue to rise throughout the rest of the week, with a high of 40 on Thursday and 42 on Friday — which means we may, unfortunately, have to say goodbye to the wonderful snow we all love.


*** 1:20 p.m. update: Fox Sports’ Jeff Goodman reporting that Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams is retiring. I wonder if Terps will call Sean Miller, and if he’ll listen.
*** 10:55 a.m. update: Oregon fans: This is a list of rising seniors only, with the exception of Luck/Burfict/James. Read the criteria in the introduction … But thanks for proving my point about your righteous indignation.
*** Note: This was initially scheduled to be posted on the Hotline earlier this week, but I depayed because of the big news on the TV front. I’ll have more on the media deal in the next 24 hours.
Welcome to the Hotline’s annual NFL Draft look-ahead, a ranking of the top Pac-12 prospects for next April and exercise in semi-futility.
The conference looks to be light on elite offensive and defensive linemen but should be loaded at safety in 2011, with four early-to-mid round prospects.
Stanford QB Andrew Luck, who is on track to earn his degree next spring and will almost assuredly enter the draft as the top overall pick … and Arizona State LB Vontaze Burfict and Oregon TB LaMichael James, because I can’t see either player staying in school one nanosecond past the end of the season.
Action: West Coast Conference closes in on new TV deal with ESPN (to start in 2011-12).
Reaction I: We’re probably a month or two from the deal being finalized, and there’s little chance that the dollar figure will ever become public. But the guess here is that the WCC lands one of the best TV contracts, and maybe the best, of any basketball-only conference.
Reaction II: And by that I mean the best in both the dollar figure and the exposure. The conference is already doing very well on the exposure front — 13 of St. Mary’s 14 league games are on TV this season, for instance — and it should get even better now that it’s adding BYU.
Reaction III: One of the two mysteries surrounding the revised WCC is how the round-robin schedule will work with nine teams. I’m not sure we’ll get the answer until the spring/summer, but my guess is the Thursday-Saturday schedule will remain in place — although fans should expect to see some league games on Mondays.
Reaction IV: The other WCC hoops mystery is the format for the basketball tournaments. Will there be a “play-in game” … will only eight teams participate … will the double-bye configuration remain? Those answers may come sooner rather than later.
I made several references to Cal’s 2004 fate during Stanford’s late-season climb up the BCS ladder, mostly in the context of whether the Cardinal would get screwed … err, squeezed … out of the BCS the way the Bears did.
They’re clearly the best the Bay Area has produced in the past 10-15 years. I’m not familiar enough with Cal ’91 or Stanford ’92 to have a good sense for how those teams would compare and won’t get into that discussion here.
No doubt, Cal ’04 vs. Stanford ’10 is a tough, tough call.
Based on response (on the blog and via email) from outraged Baylor fans, I probably should address why the No. 10 Bears aren’t on my ballot — and haven’t been for several weeks.
They are 6-0 and, in my estimation, one of the 15 or 20 most talented teams in the country. But the ballot isn’t a projection of how the Bears might finish in the Big 12, or how deep they’ll go in March Madness.
It’s a reflection of what teams have done to date.
As I written many times (in regards to my football and basketball polls), I emphasize quality wins and even quality losses. I favor teams that lose close games to top competition over teams that do nothing but beat creampuffs.
Quick note regarding the “Conference of Quarterbacks,” which is just that this season … and many thanks to Merc writer Dan Brown for passing along the information from the NFL.
* The Pac-10 leads all conferences with eight projected NFL starters (none named Leinart).
Arizona’s Derek Anderson (Oregon State), Buffalo’s Trent Edwards (Stanford), Carolina’s Matt Moore (OSU), Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer (USC), Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers (Cal), Kansas City’s Matt Cassel (USC), Jets’ Mark Sanchez (USC) and Pittsburgh’s Dennis Dixon (Oregon).
* California leads all states with nine projected starters (none named Leinart).
NFL Draft preview: A big first round for the Pac-10?
Based on some quick research and quicker projections, it looks like this will be one of the league’s best first rounds of the decade (thanks to USC, of course).
* Four locks for the first round (USC’s Mark Sanchez, Brian Cushing and Rey Maualuga, plus Arizona’s Eben Britton).
* Two more possible first rounders (Cal’s Alex Mack and Oregon’s Max Unger).
If by chance they all go, the seven picks would constitute the league’s second-highest total of the decade behind the 2003 class, which had eight players go in the first round.
What a difference a Bay makes.
On a chilly night early last week, Stanford Coach Jim Harbaugh could barely contain his excitement over the performance of freshman quarterback Andrew Luck, who tossed five touchdowns in the Cardinal’s Spring Game.
Five days later, on a warm Saturday afternoon, Cal Coach Jeff Tedford gave a matter-of-fact review of quarterbacks Kevin Riley, Brock Mansion or Beau Sweeney following the last of Bears’ spring workouts.
Quick, slightly-random, definitely-bleary-eyed, insta-thoughts covering college and the NFL, focused mostly on local talent and with a decided slant towards Berkeley.
Action: Ex-Cal, current Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson celebrates one yard too early and has apparent touchdown nullified against Dallas.
Reaction: Veteran Jackson watchers probably were not surprised to see the showboating move. He was arguably the most selfish player to come through the Bay Area this decade.


A survey has revealed that retail C-level executives are still experiencing a lack of visibility into supply chain inventory, despite plans to invest in agility, intelligence and automation.
The survey, a collaboration between JDA, Microsoft and Incisiv, called upon more than 221 global C-level executives to look at their supply chain visibility and the data surrounding it.
It revealed that 78% of C-level executives do not have a real-time view of inventory across their supply chain channels, with 50% of them believing they do not have the right platforms or technology in place to support expanded fulfilment options.
Key to this digital supply chain journey is data and the use of supply chain data. The report revealed that almost half (46%) of respondents that their own data is of poor quality and that they cannot trust the accuracy of it. Almost half (45%) are unable to understand and utilise analytics tools and 44% don’t even have an analytics strategy in place.
The report concludes that 20019 represents a key turning point for AI in the retail supply chain, as 50% believe that its greatest impact will be in improving inventory levels.
Read the full 2019 Global Retail C-Suite Viewpoint Survey here.


Business EXPERT says focus should be on what really matters.
premium_icon Has Big W given us a clue we won't be on the chopping block?
News Driving Bundaberg jobs growth until 2022.


An 18-year-old black man was shot and killed by police late on Tuesday at a gas station in a St. Louis suburb near where unarmed teen Michael Brown was killed by a white officer in August, police and local media said.
A video feed showed the gas station cordoned off by yellow tape and guarded by police, some in helmets and carrying riot shields, with bystanders shouting at them in a tense standoff.
The shooting of Brown in August, and the decision not to prosecute the officer involved, set off demonstrations across the country. The St.
Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper reported that some 60 people had gathered at the scene of Tuesday’s incident and that at least three were arrested.
Images and video footage showed a flash, a loud bang and smoke filling an area near the gas pumps, but it was not clear whether they were caused by bystanders or the police. Local broadcaster KSDK reported people hurled rocks and bricks toward police.
Police said the man who was killed had pointed a handgun at an officer who was conducting a “routine business check” and had approached two men outside the gas station after 11pm (5am GMT) in the suburb of Berkeley.
“Fearing for his life, the Berkeley Officer fired several shots, striking the subject, fatally wounding him,” St. Louis County Police Department spokesman Brian Schellman said in a statement. The second man fled the scene.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch named the dead man as 18-year-old Antonio Martin, citing his mother, who said he was with his girlfriend around the time of the shooting.
St. Louis County police recovered the deceased’s man’s handgun at the scene. The did not confirm his identity.
Berkeley neighbours the suburb of Ferguson, where police officer Darren Wilson shot Michael Brown on August 9, a killing that fuelled criticism of the way police and the criminal justice system treat minority groups.
Protests in Ferguson have taken place for months and spilled over into violence when a grand jury decided not to charge Wilson.
Demonstrations in cities across the country gained in momentum when a New York grand jury decided not to charge police over the death of Eric Garner, a 43-year-old black man whom police tackled and put in a chokehold.
Before the latest incident, about 200 people marched in New York on Tuesday, defying Mayor Bill de Blasio’s call for protests to be suspended after two police officers were killed in their patrol car on Saturday in an apparent revenge attack.
In Los Angeles, police said they would investigate whether any officers were involved in the singing of a song, at a party organised by a retired policeman, that poked fun at the Ferguson killing.


[Video Link] The upcoming SimCity looks cool. It uses something called the GlassBox Simulation Engine to run the simulation. I won't pretend to understand how it works, but here's Maxis' Andrew Willmott's GDG 2012 "Inside Glassbox" presentation that goes into detail about it.
Apex Legends engages in the Seasonal format for managing major and minor game updates. With Season 1 comes a battlepass, a paid-for ticket to cool but not game influencing bling. I enjoy Apex but gravitate towards the more cartoony and clownish action of Fortnite. Perhaps I am immature.


ST. LOUIS, MO (KPLR) – Summer is quickly approaching, which means beach vacations and spending a lot of time in the sun. It is important to have your beach bag and summer essentials ready to go. Some of these items could include a beach hat from Charming Charlie’s or a “lounge on by the pool” book from Barnes and Noble.
Marketing director at St. Clair Square Christine Poehling joins us for more on beach bag and summer essentials.
For more information, visit www.stclairsquare.com.


Bid now to win autographed rundowns from the 2013 Conversation Hour, with all funds going to Oxfam's Philippines typhoon appeal.
Go straight to the auction page on ebay.
Throughout the year the Conversation Hour on 774 ABC Melbourne and ABC Victoria has been collecting autographs from guests on the show.
We've got a big book of rundowns signed by the likes of Mary Wilson, Paul Kelly, Michael Leunig, Elvis Costello, Germaine Greer and Rod Laver.
Art Spiegelman even drew a mouse.
We're auctioning them all as a job lot to raise funds for Oxfam's Philippines Typhoon appeal.
To bid go to the auction page.


Ninety percent of Republicans are glad the Senate rejected the auto bailout loan, according to an OC Political Pulse poll. But Democratic sentiment was divided 26% opposed the bailout, but about a third favored it and another third had mixed feelings.
See all of the vote results for these and other demographic groups in Orange County at ocregister.com/pulse. The “Public Poll” is not working, but you can sign up at the site to be a member and vote in every poll.


DEAR BARRY: We sold our house a few months ago and signed a disclosure statement that said no water problems existed. But the new owners found carpenter ants in a closet, which led them to rip off the drywall and remove the hardwood flooring. What they found was rot in the wall. No one could have known about this rot, but the new owners say we should have seen water stains on the subfloor when we installed the hardwood flooring last year. We don’t recall any stains or we would have disclosed them.


Add Senate Historian Richard Baker to the list of those adversely affected by the defeat of Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.).
Sen. Reid, above, maintains that Senate Democrats have no time for Richard Baker’s historical minute.
Baker, whom Daschle recruited after he was elected minority leader in 1995 to give a brief talk about the history of the Senate at the weekly meetings of the Democratic caucus, was informed last week that the caucus won’t have time for him when Harry Reid Harry Mason ReidSanders courts GOP voters with 'Medicare for All' plan Glamorization of the filibuster must end Schumer won't rule out killing filibuster MORE (D-Nev.) succeeds Daschle in January.
“I was told that Senator Reid wanted to tighten up the schedule, so I will no longer be doing the Senate historical minute for the Democratic caucus,” said Baker, whose three-minute presentations are popular with most senators and with readers of The Hill, where they appear each Wednesday under his byline.
Baker said he can no longer justify taking the time to research and write the historical minutes now that he is no longer preparing them for the Senate caucus.
Too bad for Senate history buffs, who learned from Baker last week that the Senate set a record that will never be broken when 28-year-old John Henry Eaton was sworn in as a senator from Tennessee in 1818, thereby violating the minimum age of 30 set by the Constitution. “Apparently, no one asked John Eaton how old he was,” Baker wrote.
Baker also noted that three other senators were elected before their 30th birthday, two in the early 1800s and the third in 1935 when the father of Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.) was elected just before his 30th birthday.
According to Baker, that gives Sen. Joe Biden Joseph (Joe) Robinette BidenAndrew Cuomo: Biden has best chance at 'main goal' of beating Trump Poll: Buttigieg tops Harris, O'Rourke as momentum builds Buttigieg responds to accusation of pushing a 'hate hoax' about Pence MORE (D-Del.), the distinction of being the fifth-youngest person sworn in as a senator. Biden took the oath of office a month and a half past his 30th birthday.
It happens almost every time a leadership spot opens up in the Senate, and the losing candidate discovers that he can’t rely on what his colleagues told him, or what he thought they told him.
The latest example is Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, who lost his bid to become chairman of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee to Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina last week by a single vote.
Coleman told Minnesota reporters in a conference call last week that the biggest reason he lost was the long relationship that Dole, and her husband, former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.), had with many senators.
“Many of my colleagues were coming to me and saying, ‘Norm, I’d support you except I have ties or obligations that go back a long time,” Coleman said.
Coleman has said privately that there were three senators whose votes he was counting on that he didn’t get: Alaska’s Ted Stevens and Lisa Murkowski Lisa Ann MurkowskiOn The Money: Cain withdraws from Fed consideration | Says he didn't want 'pay cut' | Trump sues to block subpoena for financial records | Dems plot next move in Trump tax-return battle Cain withdraws from Fed consideration Cain says he 'won't run away from criticism' in push for Fed seat MORE and newly elected Tom Coburn Thomas (Tom) Allen CoburnThe Hill's Morning Report — Presented by PhRMA — Worries grow about political violence as midterms approach President Trump’s war on federal waste American patients face too many hurdles in regard to health-care access MORE of Oklahoma.
Either Coleman wasn’t listening carefully enough or heard only what he wanted to hear when he asked the trio for their support.
Eight members from the Boston area took to the House floor last week to support a resolution recognizing the Boston Red Sox for winning the World Series.
Their comments ranged from breathless to bittersweet, but the prize surely goes to Rep. Edward Markey Edward (Ed) John MarkeyAmazon hiring alcohol lobbyist Tlaib rallies in support of Green New Deal at Detroit town hall Ben & Jerry's backs Green New Deal: 'We have to act now' MORE (D), who penned a lengthy verse on the last moments of Boston’s exorcism of the Bambino’s curse.
What deus ex machina would fall down from the sky?
What Bucky Dent/Bill Buckner ghost might steer things all awry?
Keith Foulke climbed up upon the mound, ball burning in his hand.
The Curse stepped up to face him, to make a final stand.
There was ease in the Curse’s manner as he stepped into his place.
There was pride in Bambino’s bearing, a smile on the Curse’s face.
So did Markey pen the poem himself? “These things are always a group effort,” said his spokesman, Israel Klein, but yes, the work was largely Markey’s own.
Rep. John Olver (D) conceded that he’s “not a poet and cannot really compete with” Markey, but he and the rest gamely offered up their thoughts as well.
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) rose to remember the late Reps. Silvio Conte (D-Mass.) and Joe Moakley (D-Mass.), both fanatical Sox fans. “I think Silvio Conte would have the full Red Sox uniform on tonight making his remarks if he were here,” said Lynch.
Only one non-New Englander joined the praise for the Red Sox. Rep. John Duncan (R-Tenn.) congratulated his “longtime friend” Johnny Pesky, the legendary Sox player, coach and broadcaster. “I had the privilege as an 11- and 12-year-old boy of serving as his batboy for the Knoxville Smokies minor league baseball team and got to know him in 1959,” said Duncan.
Members of the New York City delegation were not present to offer their rebuttal.
Hollings spills it, sort of: Just who were the drunks in 1966?
When retiring Sen. Fritz Hollings (D-S.C.) marked the end of his 38 years in the Senate on Nov. 16, he paid lavish tribute to his current colleagues but raised some doubts about the first group of senators he served with, in 1966.
Hollings’s remarks caused former senators and Senate aides and journalists who covered the Senate at the time to speculate on just whom he was referring to.
“There were two or three places senators could go to get a free drink, including the secretary of the Senate’s office,” recalled former Sen. Eugene McCarthy (D-Minn.).
McCarthy, who came to the Senate from the House in 1959, identified Russell Long (D-La.), Thurston Morton (R-Ky.), Warren Magnuson (D-Wash.), James Eastland (D-Miss.), Harrison Williams (D-N.J.) and Everett Dirksen (R-Ill.) as among those Hollings might have had in mind.
Robert Barrie, a retired lobbyist who was a Senate aide at the time, said it was not unusual to see a senator on the floor who was drunk, including at least one who had to be escorted off the floor. But most of the hard-drinking senators, including Long and Williams, later gave up drinking.
Bill Thomas: A committee of one?
Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (R-Calif.) wields such control over his committee that many wonder what say the other members of the panel have.
Josephine Hearn contributed to this page.


With her blond ponytail poking through the opening of a green company visor, Lisa L. Mathias looks like a high schooler taking a break from her summer job to chat with a customer.
But she's more than just the help here at the Subway sandwich shop in Taneytown. She owns the joint.
"I fix the subs, I bake the bread, I do everything," said Ms. Mathias, a 25-year-old from Randallstown who has become the newest member of Taneytown's business community. "I hire and I fire, too, though I haven't had to do that."
Ms. Mathias set up her shop -- tucked in the corner of the Exxon station on East Baltimore Street -- hired five locals to help run it and has enjoyed a steady stream of customers since its opening June 10.
But she doesn't like to talk about that.
Ms. Mathias nervously took several quick puffs on her cigarette (the first of two in 20 minutes), obviously uncomfortable talking about herself and her goals.
But Arthur J. Harvey, who comes from Glen Burnie to help out in the shop, had no problem discussing his ambitious girlfriend.
"She's career-oriented. She knows what she wants to do," said Mr. Harvey, a Baltimore city police officer. "It takes a lot of willpower to start your own business."
"She has a lot of high aspirations," he continued. "She's already thinking about other store locations. That's what it would take to make it in the business world."
But at one point, Ms. Mathias wanted nothing to do with it.
She had toyed with becoming a physical therapist or a travel agent, but a dislike of school stopped her from pursuing education higher than the diploma she received from Randallstown High School in 1987.
Her parents, Brenda and Richard Mathias, urged her to go to work at the Subway shop her brother Scott, 31, opened in Jessup about six years ago.
"Oh, . . I rebelled against this place when my brother opened his first store," said Ms. Mathias, rolling her eyes. Scott Mathias now owns stores in Randallstown and Silver Spring as well. "I mean, I didn't want to make subs for the rest of my life."
Instead, she became a secretary at the headquarters of the Salvation Army in Baltimore, where her mother worked. After about four years, she left her job and decided to follow her family's advice.
"I had never worked in the place [Subway shop] before," she admitted. "I didn't really know how it would be. Now, I love it."
Ms. Mathias' Subway shop makes four in the family. Scott Mathias' wife, Lauri, is the bookkeeper for all four franchises.
Brother and sister were going to open a franchise in Owings Mills, but the deal fell through.
"It's so easy," Ms. Mathias said. "You do the same thing every day."
It wasn't so easy at first.
"In the beginning, before we opened, it was a lot of pressure, a lot of stress," Ms. Mathias said. "I worked [from] open to close for about three weeks, that's 6 a.m. to 11 at night, to train everyone, get things ready."
She said she had disagreements with her brother about how to prepare for the store's opening, but she credits him with being a big part of her education.
"I had to go to school in Connecticut for two weeks [to learn about owning a franchise] but I didn't learn that much," she said. "I mean, I had worked for my brother for a year.
"It was hard to learn [from the class] the long way to get something done when I had already learned the short cuts from my brother."
Things are a bit easier now, especially with excellent staff support, Ms. Mathias said.
"It helps to have good employees to help the business running smoothly," she said.
One of those employees, Trish Adams, 18, believes it is Ms. Mathias who keeps things going.
"Lisa works hard. She's young, but she's just like any other boss I've had," said Ms. Adams, who will be a sophomore at Frostburg State in the fall.
"She's laid back, but she gets things done."


Set for August 24th, Kenya Fashion Week 2013 will be bringing together 14 designers from across the world at Villa Rosa Kempinski in Nairobi, Kenya.
Afrostreet Kollektions Started less than 2 years ago, by models Yvonne Odhiambo,Melanie Wachie and Gloria Baraza. AfroStreet Kollektions is slowly becoming a household name. And the three are all about bringing imagination to reality.
They mainly use Kitenge fabric with a mixture of lace,chiffon,silk and other types of fabric to bring out the best of designs. Their target is both the young and the young at heart.
BBA The Chase: Dillish takes home the big bucks!


LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / January 3, 2019 / Large businesses often operate in a number of geographically-dispersed facilities, which typically overlap in terms of the services provided or products produced. Moreover, these businesses regularly serve the same customers out of a number of different facilities, especially if the customers span a large geography. And despite the logistical challenges of managing multiple locations, all customers rightly have high expectations around consistency in terms of quality, customer service, and customer reporting, no matter what facilities are involved in their product or service delivery.
Unfortunately, too many companies still operate in a disjointed environment where either legacy, a false interpretation of the concept of empowerment, or the singular perspective of the individual plant manager determines the organization's processes and procedures. This approach, however, hinders corporations from achieving their full potential in terms of customer service and return-on-capital-employed.
The implementation of a rigorous and prescriptive universal operating structure is the most effective way to guarantee the highest level of standardization and scalability to deliver the greatest operational efficiencies and best performance against relevant customer KPIs.
Jozef, 'Jos', Opdeweegh has been a CEO of large international companies for close to two decades and recognizes the importance of standardizing operational practices for optimal efficiency. In the following, he shares his perspective and insights on the importance and hallmarks of standardized operational procedures.
When a company operates a number of geographically-dispersed facilities, they are likely interconnected in one or more of the following ways. They may share a supplier/customer relationship, with one facility producing components that are used further down in the assembly or production process in another company-operated facility. In other cases, such as in the distribution industry, facilities are interconnected as the products are collected and stored, or cross-docked, in various locations. More simply, the organization may serve the same customer out of different facilities.
In the case of interconnected facilities, though important, it is arguably not the average performance of the company against a number of critical customer KPIs that is most relevant. Instead, the variance around the mean, and specifically the negative outliers, is the most relevant component. While these worst performers will mathematically drag down the average performance of the company against relevant KPIs, they will have an even more harmful impact on the customer's perception of the quality of operations. The quality of the end product is only as good as the weakest link in the chain.
Since it is a strategic imperative of companies to grow, companies with a dispersed landscape of operating entities will typically increase the number of facilities and its geographic reach over time. In an environment where a consistent operating system is successfully deployed, launching incremental facilities becomes a much easier task. The platform is much more scalable, as the processes and procedures that determine how the operations and support functions inside the new facility will be organized are already largely determined. Some minor tweaking may be required to accommodate a new service offering, a new product design, or different customer requirements, but the core of the proven solution will already be solidified.
When a standardized operating system is in place, human talent is much more interchangeable and transferrable. Since the company's professionals have been trained in a standardized environment, they can easily and efficiently be deployed to fill talent gaps in other operations in the group or to help address quality deficiencies in sister facilities. Additionally, these resources are ideal in helping to launch new facilities in different geographies, or new service or production offerings as knowledge is portable, universally deployable, and highly valuable.
In a standardized operating environment, continuous improvement is a key imperative. Whether the improvement initiative finds its origin in one of the company's facilities where a colleague has devised a better way of performing a specific task, or in an idea that emanates from a continuous improvement team, once the idea has been tried and tested it should be rolled out and deployed throughout the entire organization. In the standardized environment, nobody can take a shortcut. A bad idea will not be implemented in any location, and a good idea will find its way to all locations.
As such, to provide the best service to customers in the most cost efficient and effective manner, Jos Opdeweegh suggests placing a dedicated focus on the development and implementation of a comprehensive set of processes and procedures from the outset.
Jozef Opdeweegh, also known as Jos, has served as CEO for over 17 years of global technology, distribution, and supply chain optimization companies with 5,000 to 20,000 employees, public or privately held. Opdeweegh has extensive board membership experience on 4 continents with related and unrelated companies.


MTV Networks, the cable television company, named two executives yesterday to replace Robert W. Pittman, the president and chief executive who is leaving to form an entertainment and communications company financed by MCA Inc.
The company said Tom Freston, 40 years old, would be president of MTV Networks Entertainment, and Robert A. Roganti, 43, would be president of MTV Networks Operations.
The new management structure does not include a chief executive. Mr. Freston and Mr. Roganti will report to Kenneth F. Gorman, executive vice president of Viacom International and chairman of the Viacom Networks Group.
Viacom International, an entertainment and communications company, recently bought MTV Networks.
Mr. Freston will have responsibilities for programming, production, marketing, business development, affiliate sales and marketing and press and public affairs. Mr. Roganti will have responsibilities for advertising sales, promotional marketing and corporate services, which includes audience research.
MTV Networks owns and operates four cable televison networks: MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon and Nick at Nite.


Skype 5.0 is the latest release of the popular VoIP, instant messaging and chat tool.
A major addition in this version is the new Facebook tab, which provides easy access to your Facebook news stream. You can check what's going on with your friends, add comments and update your own status, all within Skype. And another click gives access to your phonebook, from where you can text or call your Facebook friends (free of charge, if they're also Skype users, potentially a real money-saver).
The program also currently includes a free trial of the group video calling feature, currently in beta. This lets you have a video chat with more than two people, intelligently moving the focus to the person who's speaking so it's easy to follow the conversation.
If you've had problems with connection quality before then you'll appreciate the new call quality manager, which monitors performance during a call and provides help on resolving problems.
And while poor quality calls might be down to line or internet issues that you can't control, Skype 5.0 now includes automatic call recovery, which quickly reconnects you when a connection has failed.
Elsewhere the Skype interface has been redesigned a little, making it easier to find your way around. If you're used to the program you'll still feel immediately at home, though, and in fact you can just install the new version and carry on as normal: your account details, contacts, conversations and more will all be immediately available in Skype 5.0.
Please note, although there are Windows, Mac and Linux versions of the Skype software, every one has a different version number. Skype for Windows is now at v5.x, whereas the Mac and Linux versions are still behind on v2.x. For most people, this isn’t a problem - you can still make audio calls, have a one-to-one video chat, type messages and swap files, irrespective of the version or operating system.


In a Google+ hangout, internet-savvy social activist-turned-politician Shashi Tharoor, who holds the HRD portfolio, answered live questions from across geographies on higher education and shared government’s perspective.
While answering a question by Bangalore-based school teacher Chanda Bhide, he said that creation of new schools is imperative and expansion is one of the major focus areas of education policymakers. Tharoor also said the ministry intends to set up a research and innovation university.
With regard to a question by Shantanu Gupta of Bangalore on the Kothari Commission report and Supreme Court decisions way back in 2000 and 2005, Tharoor said profitability in education is not permitted. “We are finding many private institutions charging heavy fees and engaging in unfair practises,” he added.
“We aim to make the education sector transparent by putting information on the Web. The more transparent the process is, there would be less corruption,” the minister said. Both UGC and AICTE, Tharoor believes, are taking similar initiatives.
Assuring Nipun Kaushik of improved infrastructure to help poorer schools, he said: “The idea would be to ensure parity and bridge the rural-urban divide. While answering Delhi-based entrepreneur Robert Mann, Tharoor said that they are keen to facilitate collaboration between various universities.
“We have seen improvement in higher education uptake while knowledge economy is vital to help India grow at 8/9 per cent,” the minister told the Nottingham University student Saurabh Tripathi.
“As a part of RTE, we are taking many initiatives for girls to take advantage of education system in India.” He said that only 6 per cent students take loans for higher education. “We are encouraging banks to offer loans on reduced interest rates,” the minister added.
Tharoor, while speaking on the Delhi University’s four-year programme, informed that the decision was entirely of the university and it was not healthy for a politician to intervene in academia. “The DU has followed certain procedures, including consultation to arrive at that decision, he said.
With the National Knowledge Network, he said that the government wants schools to be connected with ICT. “We are keen on NME-ICT (National Mission on Education through Information Communication Technology) as Communications Minsiry has embarked on ICT roadmap. Tharoor, although raised concern over power unavailability in rural and remote regions.
Tharoor also slammed the Opposition for hindering the national growth by holding delaying Bills in Parliament. “The disruption to House is a betrayal to right of voters and democracy. Why they (BJP) don’t want discussion or debate,” he asked.


Former NFL running back Chris Johnson announced his retirement on Monday. He last played during the 2017 season.
“After a great deal of thought and consideration, I have decided to close this chapter of my life and look forward to the new possibilities that have been afforded to me,” he wrote in a statement issued by his management company.
Tennessee selected Johnson in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft out of East Carolina. He spent his first six seasons in the league with the Titans, highlighted by a stellar 2009 season: 2,006 rushing yards and 2,509 yards from scrimmage. He led the league in both categories and was named first-team All-Pro that season.
The Titans cut Johnson before the 2014 season and he spent that year with the New York Jets, followed by three partial seasons with the Arizona Cardinals.
For his career, Johnson appeared in 130 games and rushed for 9,651 yards (4.5 yards per carry). He had 2,255 receiving yards and 64 career touchdowns combined. He had six straight 1,000-yard seasons, all with the Titans.
Johnson, who turned 33 in September, ranks 35th on the NFL’s all-time rushing list. He is one of only seven players to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season.


Leading edge information on innovative call center & workforce optimization solutions.
International Data Corp. today named Artificial Solutions, CogniCor, Inbenta, Kore.ai, and Personetics as IDC Innovators in the conversational AI platforms market.
“Conversational AI platforms are used to build applications that answer questions, provide advice and/or recommendations using natural language processing and other dialog related technologies,” IDC said.
The research firm noted that adoption of consumer tools like Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa, and Google Assistant helped spark this movement. It added that conversational AI solutions can enhance or replace traditional customer service practices and resources such as human agents, IVRs, live chat, and mobile and web interfaces.
Artificial Solutions offers a solution called Teneo. It allows business users and developers to quickly create natural language applications.
wealth management advice automation use cases.
Kore.ai offers a bot building tool, AI, NLP, and ML to turn human requests and system data into conversations. The company notes it offers robust security controls and an admin console as part of its solution.
Personetics offers cognitive chatbot solutions for the financial services industry. “Cognitive analysis, personalized decision-making and curation represent three areas where AI can support financial recommendations,” Personetics says.
Organizations that want to offer education and/or learn about the available tools, processes, and benefits – as well as the potential risks – of using AI, ML, and NLP for customer interactions are invited to participate in The Future of Work.
The Future of Work event will take place Jan. 30 through Feb. 1 at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
TMC is accepting session and speaker suggestions for The Future of Work through July 31. To submit your ideas, please visit this link.
Want to learn more about the latest contact center solutions for enhancing your customer's experience? Call us at 1 888 547 2481 or visit www.aspect.com to chat or send us an email inquiry.
Or, participate in one of our upcoming events.
Contact Center Solutions is Powered by Technology Marketing Corporation 35 Nutmeg Drive Suite 340, Trumbull, Connecticut 06611 USA Ph: 800-243-6002, 203-852-6800; Fx: 203-866-3326 General comments: tmc@tmcnet.com.


Paramount Pictures is folding it microbudget division Insurge into its main movie studio, forcing the label’s president Amy Powell to give up all film duties.
The only film on Insurge’s slate, Bad Robot/Insurge thriller “The Cellar,” starring John Goodman, will be released under the big Paramount banner.
Of the division’s three remaining staffers, two will now report to newly appointed president of production Marc Evans. Powell will now answer to Paramount chairman and CEO Brad Grey and focus on TV and digital projects, with one other staffer moving with her. Powell is currently overseeing four pilots including “School of Rock” at Nickelodeon (which was ordered at right to series), “Minority Report” at Fox and “Shooter” at USA. New hire Dina Hillier will join Powell as an exec focused on scripted comedy.
The news comes only weeks after president of production Adam Goodman was fired and replaced by Evans, and the sense around the lot was that more dominoes could still fall. Several sources who had business with Insurge told Variety they had already began reassessing further development on some projects based on the rumblings of the division’s demise.
Insurge launched following the success of “Paranormal Activity” in 2010 in hopes of delivering low-risk products at smaller budgets with a high profitability potential.
The division saw early success with pics like “The Devil Inside,” which overperformed with $101 million worldwide, but subsequent movies struggled. The division’s most recent pic, “Project Almanac,” disappointed at the box office, and except for “The Cellar,” no other project was even close to a greenlight from the studio.
This is the second niche label, after Paramount Vantage, that the Viacom-owned studio has failed to turn into a viable business.
TheWrap first reported the news about Insurge.


In court papers, the actress also says she switched talent agencies upon encouragement as part of an alleged act of retaliation against CAA.
Zooey Deschanel has lobbed a big cross-complaint in her dispute with her former management firm over commissions. The New Girl star alleges that Seven Summits partner Sarah Jackson purposely barged into her private dressing room with two strangers while she was changing her clothes.
According to papers filed last week in Los Angeles Superior Court, Deschanel says she was on tour performing with her musical group She & Him when "Jackson brought the two strangers in the dressing room to help further [the manager's] career and to potentially generate revenue for [the firm]," states the cross-complaint.
That's not all she's alleging.
Seven Summits originally brought the lawsuit in December 2015. The firm said it had represented the star from 1996 to 2013 and demanded 10 percent of what she received for selling the female-focused site Hello Giggles. After Deschanel refused, the actress-singer allegedly also refused to pay post-termination commissions for other work including Deschanel's role on New Girl.
Initially, Deschanel challenged the claim by filing a petition with the California Labor Commissioner asserting that Seven Summits and Jackson had been acting as unlicensed talent agents. But the petition was dropped. Deschanel's attorney Marty Singer appears to have a new strategy.
Deschanel is now claiming that Seven Summits doesn't really have an enforceable written agreement — "the document upon which Cross-Defendants rely does not appear to contain [her] signature," states her court papers — and that the firm has breached fiduciary duties.
She alleges that Seven Summits attempted to take advantage of Deschanel's relationship with Creative Artists Agency by requesting that agent Jim Toth set up a meeting with an actor that Seven Summits sought to manage. When the actor wouldn't sign up, Seven Summits allegedly decided to retaliate against CAA by encouraging Deschanel to switch to UTA "despite the fact that [Seven Summits] knew CAA and the agents representing [Deschanel] were (at the time) the agency and agents most well-suited for [her] entertainment career and that changing to UTA was not in [her] best professional interests."
After she terminated Seven Summits in 2013, Deschanel switched back to CAA. Two years later, shortly after many CAA agents (including hers) defected for UTA, triggering a separate lawsuit, Deschanel again moved over to UTA.
In her cross-complaint, Deschanel also alleges that Jackson has sought to get producer credits on projects the actress was involved in as well as tried to obtain backend participation for her work. Deschanel attempts to create a portrait of a manager whose actions were self-serving. She's demanding disgorgement of all commissions since January 2013 as well as declaratory relief that Seven Summits has no right to collect commissions on her earnings or any monies received from investments.
"This is just another attempt by Ms. Deschanel to muddy the waters and not to pay the commissions owed," Seven Summits attorney Kenneth Freundlich tells THR. "We intend to vigorously litigate against this cross-complaint."


Former high school guidance counselor switches career paths to provide food to people in need.
Since he was a boy, Rick Caywood says he always dreamed of one day driving a big rig.
About 15 years ago, Rick finally realized his dream after leaving his job as a high school guidance counselor, taking a leap of faith into the trucking world.
The OOIDA member started his organization, Rick Caywood Ministries in Crawford, TX, more than 16 years ago to support other Christian ministries and missionaries along the U.S.-Mexican border. For nearly two years, he kept his day job as a counselor and worked part time in the missionary. As the ministry grew, so did the demand on his time and his services.
“We started out our ministry with an Astro minivan and a 16-foot flatbed trailer,” Caywood said. “Then we added a Ford one-ton truck with a Powerstroke diesel engine. Then another group donated a spanking new Wells Cargo trailer,” he told Land Line.
He said the ministry soon realized they needed a “big truck,” as it was quickly growing, but at the time Rick didn’t have a CDL, or the funds to purchase one.
“All I knew about trucking at the time was that it would be really great to drive one,” he said.
Rick said the opportunity to buy a truck first came about after a supporter of RCM sold his business and made a sizable profit.
One of the remaining pieces was to get his CDL.
He credits Cathy Koncilia, in OOIDA’s permits and licensing department, as being a huge help when he was navigating the “phenomenal maze” of getting his own authority and necessary permits.
“She cut through all of the mystery and got it all done for me,” Rick said.
Through the years, generous supporters have helped Rick Caywood Ministries add a Kenworth T600, a 2000 Peterbilt Classic and, most recently, a brand-new 2011 Volvo. They now have four dry van trailers and two refrigerated trailers.
Rick Caywood Ministries is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) that hauls food supplies, mainly rice and beans, to mission outposts on the U.S. side of the border with Mexico. Besides Rick, RCM employs two other experienced trucking veterans, Darrell Lehde and Dennis Christian. He credits them with aiding in the ministry’s success.
He said all of the people he works with are “absolute heroes.” The missionaries he works with cross over into Mexico daily to deliver food, medical supplies and build homes.
After the devastating earthquake struck Haiti in 2010, Rick said the ministry partnered with Operation Ukraine to provide food relief to the victims.
In 2010, RCM sent a container/truckload to Haiti once a month. In 2011, the ministry dropped back to a truckload every 45 days. Rick said the ministry is going to start shipping a load of rice or beans once a month again.
The ministry has also done missionary work in several countries in South America and Central America.
Rick said he doesn’t regret for a minute leaving his steady job behind to enter the less predictable world of trucking.
His leap of faith has allowed him to travel the world. He’s been to every continent on the globe, including Antarctica.
His advice for those wanting to follow their dreams, but fear the unknown, is simple.


Gamers who want to be able to play their favorite new games as soon as possible typically preload the games ahead of launch. Most major game launches allow this; you can get the game installed so when the launch happens you are ready to play. EA has offered up information on when gamers can preload Battlefield V on all platforms.
All PC versions of the game can start to preload on November 7 at 5 am PT. PS4 gamers can preload the game in North America with Deluxe Edition preloads kicking off November 7 at 9 pm ET. Standard edition buyers can preload starting November 12 at 9 pm PT.
In Europe, PS4 gamers can preload November 13 at 12 am local time for the Deluxe version on November 18 at 12 am local for the standard edition. Preloading for Battlefield V on Xbox One is available now.
Battlefield V will launch on November 20 on all platforms for the standard version. The Deluxe Edition of the game will go live on November 15 reports VG247.


Cathay Pacific Airways, PCCW NETVIGATOR, and Tenzing Communications today announced a new partnership to offer the NETVIGATOR Inflight email service.
The service will initially be offered on a free trial basis, from today until June, to passengers on 42 Cathay Pacific aircraft, over half of the airlineÁ?s fleet. The entire Cathay Pacific fleet will be equipped with the service by the end of 2003.
. Meanwhile, all @netvigator.com email account holders are pre-registered for the service providing NETVIGATOR customers a simple and immediate access to inflight email using their existing user name and password.
was the first airline to commit to offering inflight email across its entire fleet. It was also the first to offer data connections to a high-speed onboard network. The service is made possible through the Tenzing network, which bridges the gap between earthbound ISP networks and the aircraft cabin. This unique system allows passengers to gain access anywhere ÁV from halfway across the Pacific to the middle of Siberia.
Dominic Leung, Executive VP of PCCWÁ?s Consumer Group said: “NETVIGATOR Inflight is part of our total solution in connectivity, extending internet access to customers from broadband at home to wireless hotspots in Hong Kong and now even email in the air”. PCCW NETVIGATOR is the first ISP in the world to offer inflight email.
After the free trial period, there will be a number of pricing plans available to customers. The basic package offers the viewing of incoming emails` headers at US$9.95 per flight. Sending or retrieving the email and file attachments is charged at US$0.60 per kilobyte - equivalent to approximately one page of text. Customers can select to view the details of important messages only, helping them to manage costs. NETVIGATOR customers will enjoy special rates and exclusive privileges for NETVIGATOR Inflight.


The next meeting of the Norfolk and Waveney Prostate Cancer Support Group will be held on Monday, August 9, from 7pm to 9pm.
The meet and chat evenings are put on regularly by the group, which is conscious men were often reluctant to talk about health issues.
Attendees will have the chance to chat with others who are, or have been, on the same cancer journey.
It affords them the chance to benefit from fellow cancer patients experiences and to be reassured on the many concerns they might have about their own prostate cancer. Anyone who would like to learn more about prostate cancer is also welcome to attend.
The meeting will be held at the Big C Cancer Centre, at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.


DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Florida was cruising toward a surprisingly easy victory over Nevada in its opening NCAA Tournament game.
Then Nevada furiously tried to stave off the upset with a frantic second-half push that fell just short. Florida nearly squandered a double-digit lead before finally stopping the comeback and closing out a 70-61 Thursday night victory in the West Region.
''I thought we were just watching the clock and hoping a little bit,'' Florida coach Mike White said about Nevada's late push.
Cody Martin scored 23 points and twin brother Caleb Martin had 19 for the Wolf Pack (29-5). The two combined for 28 of their team's 33 points in the second half as Nevada rallied.
Florida: The Gators can count on Nembhard in the postseason. He had only eight points against Nevada, but he came up big when needed and stemmed the Wolf Pack's comeback with a dazzling drive to the basket against Jazz Johnson.
''We just couldn't get over the hump against a team that slows it down. This one will hurt.'' - Cody Martin.


It’s not every day that a brand-name stock loses a quarter of its value in a matter of minutes, as Netflix did after reporting its financial earnings Wednesday. It’s even rarer when executives respond as if it’s no big thing.
After Wednesday’s stock market close, Netflix reported a net profit that exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. So far so good. But Netflix’s success hinges on whether it can keep signing up new subscribers, and it’s here where the company came up short: The company added 3 million net subscribers around the world after publicly predicting it would add 3.7 million.
There are a few reasons why Hastings can get away with this attitude without investors calling for his head. Wednesday’s stock market was a tumultuous one in general, seeing the Dow close down 173 points after a 458-point drop at its worst. And amid lingering concerns that tech valuations in general were too high, many investors were ready to sell any stock on bad news.
On top of that, Netflix has long been a favorite of speculators, who have made it one of the most consistently volatile issues in the tech sector for the past decade. This has long been a headache for Hastings, who’s complained before about “momentum investor-fueled euphoria.” Such euphoria usually ends in nasty hangovers, like the 80% plunge in Netflix’s stock price after it raised prices in 2011. What Netflix is seeing today is another bender coming to an end, one Hastings predicted a year ago.
The main reason Netflix is shrugging off the current decline is that the company has always hewed, come what may, to a single strategy of finding a more efficient way to distribute video content. That tactic, which has always worked out in the long run, is the classic distrupt-the-incumbent model. And in the world of video content, no one has done this better, and more consistently, than Netflix.
The creation myth of Netflix says that Hastings founded the company after racking up $40 in video rental late fees. As DVDs emerged, Hastings started delivering them by mail, precipitating the slow but sure extinction of video-store giants like Blockbuster. As bandwidth improved, Netflix switched to an even more efficient way to deliver movies: by streaming them online. Today, 87% of Netflix revenue comes from streaming movies and TV shows. Netflix has effectively disrupted its own founding business model. Netflix wasted no time disrupting its founding business model, splitting off its DVD-by-mail business into an ill-fated venture called Qwikster. Today, Quikster is an unsightly footnote in the company’s history, and 87% of Netflix revenue comes from streaming movies and TV shows.
More recently, Netflix has begun to bump up against the cable companies that are so loathed by consumers by pushing more into TV programming, notably several of its own series. In a victory for cord-cutters, Time Warner said Wednesday it would offer HBO as a standalone online service starting next year. That will provide Netflix a strong competitor, but it’s likely to do more damage to the cable providers in the long run. In effect, HBO is hedging its future by adapting to the model Netflix pioneered. CBS followed suit Thursday with its own launch of an on-demand subscription service for its programs.
Now Netflix is moving into a new area by producing its own original films, reasoning that it’s often cheaper than entering into bidding wars for titles every several years. This is likely to work with “branded” films, like a sequel to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and a series of Adam Sandler vehicles (Netflix says data shows Sandler’s comedy translates well in global markets like Brazil and Germany — who knew?).
This latest move is angering movie theater chain owners, mostly because their own aged business model has turned into another unpleasant experience for consumers. Moviegoing often involves paying upward of $15 a ticket to endure a gauntlet of pre-film commercials and obscenely overpriced popcorn. Another recent technological development, the rise of affordable, high-def home entertainment systems, is making it easier to bypass that experience. And Netflix is now working to speed up the time it takes for new movies to reach home theaters.
All this is costing Netflix a lot of money. Streaming content obligations rose to $8.9 billion from $7.7 billion in the last three months alone. Netflix is warning that these obligations will weigh down cash flows for years. This is risky, because the new content costs may not translate into enough new subscribers. And that’s why investors freaked out about the low subscriber figures this quarter. Netflix keeps building more content, but what if subscribers don’t come?
Right now, Netflix is shrugging in the face of all this fretting. Investors also worried two years ago, when the company’s overseas operations were losing $400 million a year. This year, Netflix’ international subscriptions are close to breaking even. Most of all, the company has learned to ignore speculators and naysayers as it pursues its core strategy of finding better ways to bring quality video content to consumers. Producing movies may sound like a new and risky area to move into, but as Netflix sees it, it’s the same old business model that’s worked so well in the past.


Desperation comes in many forms but you can usually guarantee the demon drink will be involved somewhere. Take John Daly, who was last seen down the street from Augusta National selling T-shirts and who will today be seen trying to break par on the opening day of the Spanish Open, the latest comeback in a long line of comebacks for the former Open champion.
If he was a character in a horror film – and there are some people who seem to think Daly is exactly that – then you could write this off as just another unwanted sequel in the life of golf's very own Freddy Krueger, or at least you could if you were the kind of prissy hypocrite who believes the American has nothing left to offer but an irresistible opportunity to prove golf is the last bastion of decorum in professional sport.
Alas for Daly, and alas for the sport, there are plenty of prissy hypocrites around in the royal and ancient game and some of them are in positions of power, which explains, at least in part, why he now finds himself in dire straits, professionally and financially.
Not that the player himself is an innocent in his own sorry demise. By his own admission, he gambled away somewhere in the region of £15m, and he has been treated for alcoholism on several occasions, most recently in the aftermath of a drunken night in North Carolina which ended with him being locked up until he was sober.
Daly's problem, clearly, is an addictive personality, coupled with his inability to resist his worst impulses. Does this make him an inherently bad person, or does it make him an innocent victim of a terrible disease? This is a complex question for medical professionals, although clearly not for the PGA Tour in the United States, which responded to Daly's 24-hour incarceration in North Carolina by banning him from its events for six months. "Our job is to maintain the image of the sport," explained the tour's commissioner, Tim Finchem.
In fairness to the PGA Tour, it has welcomed back Daly several times through the years after his various scrapes and stints in rehab. For this it deserves credit, but also quizzing: what was the difference this time? And if the answer is that even sympathy and understanding has its limits, then there is another question – why should there be any limit on sympathy and understanding shown to Daly? After all, he has done more damage to himself than to golf, unlike, say, a former major champion in years past who was known to his peers as a notorious cheat but who entered his dotage as a much-revered figure within the game.
More recently, television has been able to eavesdrop on players mid-round – a welcome development, no doubt, but one that has introduced the viewing public to a wide selection of barrack-room language.
What is worse for the image of professional golf: the sights and sounds of leading players cursing aloud on live TV on a regular basis, or a two-paragraph report on Daly being huckled off to the cells after another hard night on the town? This is one for the photo-finish equipment, perhaps, although not in the eyes of golf's etiquette police, who have decided that Daly's pariah status is now irreversible.
Oh that we were all blessed with the moral certitude to make such judgments, that we were all so eminently qualified to decide when Daly – an alcoholic, with all the weaknesses and vulnerabilities this implies – is no longer worthy of our leniency.
The truth, of course, is that no one is qualified to make such judgments, just as everyone has weaknesses and vulnerabilities – even the PGA Tour which, according to reports this week, is considering overturning its long-standing ban on taking sponsorship money from alcohol companies, as well as loosening its rules on doing deals with casinos. Apparently, a policy reversal could result in a £30m windfall.
Developments are awaited, not least one presumes by Daly, who will surely see the irony in finding himself no longer alone in the world of professional golf in finding the attractions of alcohol and gambling irresistible.
Frequent exposure over the years to the outpourings of American talk radio is enough to inure anyone to the worst excesses of the genre, but it did nothing to quell the nausea felt listening to the LBC presenter James O'Brien attempting to disown his own characterisation of Frank Lampard as "weak" and "scum" during the pair's now famous on-air exchange.
"I didn't call you scum. I was asking questions," said O'Brien, who had earlier spent 30 minutes assassinating the Chelsea player's character on the basis of a newspaper "interview" with his former girlfriend that had been obtained by deception.
Lampard might have lost the head – many would have – but instead set about exposing O'Brien's sophistry, making the presenter seem small, and small-minded, in the process. No doubt he regrets making the call to LBC, not least because it temporarily lifted O'Brien out of his well-deserved obscurity, but he should he proud. He was a credit to himself and his family, living proof in fact that professional footballers aren't as unctuous and self-obsessed as they are often made out to be. Unlike professional radio loudmouths.
Even in his least impressive moments, Howard Webb continues to impress. "It was a mistake, but we make these decisions honestly," the referee said of his decision to award Manchester United a penalty against Tottenham Hotspur. "But show me a man who's never made a mistake and I'll show you a man who's done nothing."
As mea culpas go, that is about as comprehensive as it gets, although this will come as no comfort to Harry Redknapp, who watched his team subsequently washed away in the United tide, and Rafa Benítez, whose hopes of winning the league were probably extinguished as a result. But as they curse their luck, or more likely United's good luck, both managers can surely find it within themselves to acknowledge Webb could have chosen silence over self-flagellation, career preservation over public ridicule. He chose not to, and for that he deserves respect.
The seven new "positive" results obtained in the re-testing of athletes' samples from last year's Olympics brings the total number of doping cases in Beijing to 16. Given that almost 5,000 samples were taken at the Games that is, depending on your level of cynicism, either an astonishingly heartening number or a number that will see some revision in due course. With the samples being placed in storage for eight years to allow for further re-testing should new detection methods be developed, I would bet my life – or at least collection of Beijing Olympics memorabilia – the latter will prove to be the case.
Believe in the power of Twitter. Stewart Cink, possibly the dullest man in professional golf (quite an achievement), is now a certifiable cult figure, having accumulated 110,000 "followers". Sample tweet: "Still made flight on time. Good thing I came early to airport. :)"


We celebrate National Homemade Soup Day with Laura Grimmer to learn how to make a healthy and easy soup for the whole week! Visit perfectpearct.com to get more information on Laura's cooking classes.
1. Soften carrot, celery and onion in a little olive oil in a large saucepan. Stir in garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add dried thyme, salt and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
2. Add drained and rinsed cannelloni beans and diced tomatoes (including juice), cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15-30 minutes.
3. Add ½ cup each any other veggies -- I use whatever I've got in the freezer. Add greens to soup and return to a simmer. Cook until greens are softened, adding a bit more water if needed. Taste for seasoning and add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
4. Garnish finished soup with a bit of Pecorino or Parmigiano cheese and a light drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.


The number of UK university applicants has dropped by 8.7% compared with last year – but school leavers have not overwhelmingly been deterred by the tripling of tuition fees, official figures show. They also reveal a sharper drop among more affluent candidates than among those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The decision to let universities raise undergraduate fees to a maximum of £9,000 a year provoked widespread public anger and battered the credibility of the Liberal Democrats. Nick Clegg's party had gone into the general election promising to phase out fees.
However, figures from the Universities and Colleges Admission Service (Ucas) published on Monday show that the number of 18-year-old UK applicants – the largest single group of candidates – has decreased by 3.6%, representing a drop of just under 8,500 people. The number of 18-year-olds in the population has declined by 11,000 this year, to 772,000, according to the Office for National Statistics, a fall of 1.4%.
But total applicant numbers, including overseas and mature candidates, are 7.4% lower than at the same point in 2011, Ucas says. The number of applicants from the UK has decreased by 8.7%.
There has been a sharper drop among male applicants. The proportion of men is down 8.5% on last year, while female applicants are down 6.7%. A 13.7% increase in overseas candidates from non-EU countries was also found.
Mary Curnock Cook, the chief executive of Ucas, said: "Our analysis shows that decreases in demand are slightly larger in more advantaged groups than in the disadvantaged groups. Widely expressed concerns about recent changes in HE [higher education] funding arrangements having a disproportionate effect on more disadvantaged groups are not borne out by these data."
The application rate from the most disadvantaged fifth of the population is down 0.2% in England, Ucas said. Among the wealthiest quintile, it is down 2.5%. This analysis is based on a ranking of neighbourhoods according to the participation of young people in higher education.
Demand will continue to outstrip the supply of university places this year. There are already 50,000 more applications this year than there were acceptances at universities in 2011. Competition will be more intense as the number of government-funded places at English universities will drop by 10,000.
David Willetts, universities minister, said: "The proportion of English school leavers applying to university today is greater than ever before, barring last year. It is encouraging that applications from people from some of the most disadvantaged backgrounds remain strong, with only a 0.2% decrease.
"Even with a small reduction in applications, this will still be a competitive year like any other as people continue to understand that university remains a good long-term investment in your future."
The Guardian Data Blog has matched application figures with data for fees to show that institutions charging higher fees have not seen disproportionate falls in applications.
Tim Leunig, chief economist at the thinktank CentreForum, said: "There are two ways to interpret this. The first is that students are confused, and failing to pick universities rationally. The second is that students know that the lifetime effect of picking the right course at the right university is much more important than the relatively small differences in fees."
Wendy Piatt, the director general of the Russell Group, which represents some of the most competitive universities, including Oxbridge, said: "Demand for higher education is not only strong – it's actually rising over the long term. This year 540,073 prospective students have applied, which is 16% more than the 464,167 who applied just three years ago in 2009.
"More than half a million potential students have rightly recognised the benefits of going to university. Prospective students know a good degree remains a smart investment.
"It's not surprising the number of applications is lower than last year, but there are a number of reasons for that. Demographic changes mean there are fewer 18-year-olds in 2012 than in 2011 and we also know there was a peak in applications last year as fewer people chose to take gap years."
There are big falls in the number of mature students applying this year: nearly 2,400 fewer 30- to 39-year-olds, and more than 1,000 fewer students over the age of 40. Going back to study full-time is an expensive choice as the government does not provide fee or maintenance loans for second degrees. The proportion of the population that has never been to university is naturally dwindling.
The number of 19-year-olds applying is down 12.6%, from 137,531 to 120,151.
Labour's Shabana Mahmood, shadow minister for higher education, said that the decline in applications by mature student reflected "the worries of these potential students with often greater financial commitments".
Mahmood argued that the raising of fees to £9,000 had hit young people's aspirations.
She said: "Labour would reverse the corporation tax cut for banks and use the money to help cut fees to a maximum of £6,000. That is the difference between Labour, which makes investing in skills and knowledge a priority, and a Tory-led government that will restrict opportunity and damage the future of our economy."
Simon Hughes, the Lib Dem deputy leader and the government's advocate for access to education, said: "Today's figures show that on the whole young people have not been put off by the changes in the student finance system.
"This is due in no small part to the serious effort put in by the coalition government and many others in making sure that each young person and their parents knew all the facts about funding higher education.
"In particular, many families clearly now understand that all graduates will pay less each month towards the cost of their university education than they did before.
"There has been a larger drop in the number of older students applying to university. The government will have to take a serious look at why this has happened, particularly as mature students for the first time also do not have to pay for their university education in advance."
There were big percentage rises in applications at some private institutions with degree-awarding powers. BPP is up 139% from 455 applications last year to 1089 this year while its School of Finance is up 118.7% to 164 applications.
There have been sharp falls in applications to study for subjects including creative arts, architecture and mass communications, figures show.
Data published by Ucas show that applications for creative arts and design are down 16% to 227,729 this year. Architecture has also dipped 16% to 35,825. Applications for European languages and literature are down 11% to 21,675. Mass communications and social science courses have registered double-digit drops in applications.
Non-European languages showed the steepest drop, of 21.5%, though there were only 6,165 applications for courses in this subject area. Linguistics and classics were down 8.4% to 62,266. History and philosophical studies were down 7.3% to 73,967.
Degree courses which lead to lucrative professional careers were among those which did not reflect the overall trend of a 7% decline across all subjects.
Applications for medicine and dentistry declined more modestly, falling 3.1% to 94,374. Applications for law were down 3.8% to 103,613 while engineering was down 1.3% to 117,221.
The most popular subjects remain the same as in previous years. There were nearly 330,000 applications for subjects allied to medicine – a range of medically related fields – and over 260,000 applications for business studies. Despite a drop, creative arts and design remains the third most popular subject area overall.
Entry into university remains intensely competitive. A total of 492,030 students were accepted at UK universities last year. More than 540,000 students have applied for entry to university for this September, and while the main deadline has now passed, applicants can still apply to Ucas. Every year since 2005 around 100,000 applicants have applied through Ucas after the January deadline.


We’re now between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day so it’s a good time to take a look at moms and dads in Vermont.
We’re now between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day so it’s a good time to take a look at moms and dads in Vermont. We don’t know exactly how many mothers and fathers there are in the state, but we do know a lot about mothers and fathers with children under 18. And raising children is one of mothers’ and fathers’ most important jobs.
According to the Census Bureau, there are almost 66,000 families in Vermont who have among them 115,000 children under the age of 18. Seventy percent of those children, 82,000 of them, live in married couple families where there’s both a mother and father at home.
Those kids live, on average, in a pretty good economic situation. They live with two parents and in a family with a median income of about $81,000 — half of these families earn more than $81,000 and half earn less.
The other 34,000 children live in single parent families, 25,000 of them in a family with only a mother present. Those single-mother families have a median income of only $24,000, less than a third of the income of married couple families.
The 9,000 children living with families with only a father present do somewhat better financially than single mother families. But their median family income is still only $38,000, less than half that of married couple families with young kids.
There’s a large literature in economics, sociology, and in the popular press dealing with single parent families and their impact on children’s growth and development, and their outcomes later in life. We don’t need to get into that literature to see that simple economics tells us that children growing up in a two-parent family have a lot more resources at their disposal than their friends in single-parent families.
It’s expensive and problematic for government to make up the difference in the economic resources available to these different family structures. And it’s very difficult for government, religious organizations, or any other institution to replace the intangibles that go along with a two parent family.