| There's a world of languages Japanese too can learn
It seems to be conventional wisdom -- if "wisdom" is the word -- that Japanese people do not excel at mastering foreign languages. Some surveys of the results of international English-proficiency tests have them occupying the murky depths, below even the likes of North Koreans. Does the "Dear Leader," by chance, know something that the "Beautiful Leader" doesn't? It used to be said of Americans that they were "unable" to speak foreign languages -- except, of course, for those born into one. Despite the bizarre concept that any nationality could render a people mentally or temperamentally incapable of learning a foreign language, this was a "fact" routinely touted both in the United States and abroad. I thought so too at one time. Two years of foreign-language study was compulsory in my U.S.
Random Thoughts from Notre Dame's 78th Annual Blue-Gold Spring Game
* While the onus Saturday was obviously to see how the four quarterbacks performed, a less-appreciated part of the offense over the past few seasons was on full display, the rushing attack. One of the reasons the quarterback play could not be dissected and examined to the most minute detail was the fact that Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis wanted to showcase the rushing ability of his young but talented team."One of the main things I wanted to come out here in the spring was establish a toughness on the offense that I think we've started to get away from a little bit," Weis said. "That's why I want to see a heavy dose of running."For the game, the teams combined to call 25 passing plays and 54 running plays. A myriad of runs were utilized. From draws and off-tackle plays with James Aldridge and Travis Thomas to bruising runs up the middle by Asaph Schwapp.
Jol taunts Wenger after Spurs earn draw
Martin Jol showed little compassion for Arsene Wenger after Tottenham Hotspur rescued a 2-2 draw in Saturday's north London derby against Arsenal. To get the latest Premiership scores, simply SMS the letters SPREM to 34911 and the day's final scores will be sent to your cellphone. This is a SuperSMS service and costs just R2 per SMS. Jol's side avoided defeat against their bitter rivals thanks to a Jermaine Jenas equaliser in the last minute of stoppage time, but Arsenal should have had the points wrapped up long before then. The Gunners, who trailed to Robbie Keane's strike before going ahead through Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor, squandered a series of chances and hit the woodwork three times. The result put the seal on a traumatic week for Wenger, who saw his close friend David Dein quit as vice-chairman following a row with his fellow directors over a potential takeover by American Stan Kroenke.
Ethiopia - Ethiopian-ness - A term with vague meaning
Hi Again, I want to throw my two cents about some of my self-delusions with the term Ethiopian-ness and to raise and inject a simpler understanding to the concept and promote wider discussions so as to pass it to our kids. The term Ethiopianism according to the online Wikipedia is "...rather difficult term to define. It was not really an ideology, a theological school, or a political programme. It was rather a cluster of ideas and traditions and assumptions about being Christian in Africa that were shared by a group of Christian leaders in the period from 1890-1920. There was no sharp boundary to the movement, but it shaded off into other groups." The term was also used loosely as defiance to a colonial aggression ( Freedom from Anglican church, The discovery of Jah in Africa and self-sufficiency to some degree.) Today, its meaning is so vague and could be any thing from helping a person to hating another or destroying the same person you have helped yesterday.
Why size matters for British bank on the brink of going Dutch
Frits Seegers, who runs the retail side of Barclays, takes on the other division in the combined operation, global retail and commercial banking. Chris Lucas, the new finance director of Barclays, who is only a few weeks into the job, takes the combined finance director role. There is also a place on the planned group executive committee for Paul Idzik, the chief operating officer of Barclays, who retains the same title. Even at chairman level, Barclays will soon call the shots. Arthur Martinez, the ABN chairman, will, at an unspecified date, step down to make way for Marcus Agius, the Barclays chairman, who initially will take the role of deputy chairman. A U-turn on regulatory expectations means that the UK's Financial Services Authority takes the lead role in supervising the joint operation.
Affymetrix Launches Program to Advance Cancer Research
Affymetrix Inc. has announced the launch of the Collaborations in Cancer Research Program, an alliance between Affymetrix and up to 30 European cancer researchers. As part of the program, Affymetrix will partially fund selected research projects that demonstrate clinical utility, enabling participants to develop new approaches to elucidate cancer mechanisms and to accelerate discoveries in more than 10 different forms of cancer. The studies selected for the Collaborations in Cancer Research Program incorporate a number of different microarray-based applications, including copy number analysis, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), gene expression and splicing pattern analysis. In addition to helping participants obtain tools and training, Affymetrix will also provide forums where investigators can exchange knowledge and share best practices.
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