View allAll Photos Tagged diversification
Local governments, First Nations and other organizations looking to strengthen their communities can apply for new funding to build capacity and diversify rural and remote economies in B.C. Learn more:
After World War II, the Bristol Aircraft Company made the decision to diversify its business. They acquired a license from Frazer Nash to build cars based on the pre-war BMW models.
The first car was released in 1947, the Bristol 400 2 door Saloon. The aerodynamic shape was designed in a wind tunnel. The aluminium body sat on a BMW 326 frame. It had a very BMW-like grille at the front of its long bonnet.
The 1948 401 saloon and 402 cabriolet were the successors to the 400, now more spacious, a full five-seater. The headlights were moved into the centre of the body on either side of the narrow grille, the door handles now not exposed, a button was pressed in a groove to open the door. These changes made the car even more aerodynamic.
This car, the 403, built from 1953-55 retained the same styling, but featured many mechanical improvements including an extra 15hp
Engine; 100hp 1971cc BMW 328 6 cyl
Suzuki Motorcycle History
GP500.Org Part # 32505 Suzuki GSXR 1000 motorcycle windshields
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
GP500.Org Part # 31600 Suzuki motorcycle windshields
gp500.org/
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
FBI Stolen motorcycles
gp500.org/FBI_stolen_motorcycles.html
Motorcycles VIN Decoder
gp500.org/VIN_Decoder.html
The Four Seasons Hotel, New York
57 East 57th Street
New York, New York, U.S.A. 10022
58th Street view: The 54-story limestone skyscraper is finely proportioned.
------------------
In 1987 William Zeckendorf Jr. assembled land on 57th Street between Park and Madison Avenue, consisting of four empty 5-floor buildings on the north side of 57th and an adjoining 58th Street site. Zeckendorf determined the best use for the site was a luxury hotel and began discussions with hotel operators.
One of the parcels at 50 East 58th - is the site of the former 200-room Blackstone Hotel and its restaurant Lottie's Dogwood Room.
Zeckendorf sought I.M. Pei (whose firm designed the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center) to design the luxury hotel. Zeckendorf Jr's father William Zeckendorf Sr. provided Pei with his first design job in 1946.
During the same time Harunori Takahashi, who some called the king of resort development projects in the South Pacific, admired Robert H Burns the founder of Regent Hotels International (a Hong Kong hotel company owned by an American!). Burns' first globally recognized luxury hotel, The Regent Hong Kong, opened in 1980. (It is an InterContinental now and not quite its former self).
Takahashi had just bought from Robert Burn's company the The Regent Sydney and was looking for more hotels to buy through the company he controlled - EIE International Corp. (Electronic & International Enterprises got its start in the 1940s importing from the US magnetic disc tapes). Takahashi also bought 30% of Regent Hotels from Robert Burns who retained 65%. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation owns 5 percent.
Burns knew William Zeckendorf Jr. and he knew Takahashi wanted to own an extraordinary hotel in New York City. The concept of a tall limestone luxury hotel on the 25,000 square foot lot was ready to move forward.
The hotel was announced in January 1989. It was expected to be the grandest hotel built in New York since the Waldorf=Astoria. The original plan was for 400 rooms and a main tower of 46-stories. A consortium of six Japanese banks led by Long-Term Credit Bank (LTCB) secured construction financing. The hotel was named Regent New York Hotel and to be managed by Regent International Hotels of Hong Kong. William Zeckendorf, Jr. acted as development consultant. Architects were I.M. Pei and Frank Williams, and Tishman Construction was the construction manager. (Frank Williams designed the 55-story W hotel in Times Square)
The interiors were to be designed by John F. Saladino, who was replaced by Hong Kong based Chhada, Siembieda & Associates, which was founded by Chandu Chhada and Don Siembieda in 1980.
Total costs for the 372-room project were estimated at $370 million - a million per room. By completion time the cost had swelled to $477 million, or $1.3 million a room.
A contemporary-modern approach was taken for the Regent, not a classical motif. The hotel's 52-story tower required a series of cascading set backs to comply with strict zoning requirements. Custom designed 12-foot decorative lanterns grace the upper levels. Honey-colored French Mangy limestone from France clad the facade.
The standard guest rooms are 610 sq ft with 10'4" ceilings. Fiddleback English Sycamore was used for all cabinetwork, doors and furniture.
Robert Burns was a stickler for detail especially on how to build a bathroom. Burns is quoted saying "I just feel that nobody should sit in a tub where somebody stood." The Regent New York baths are built with a glass enclosed shower stall and separate soaking tub.
Just after the hotel's topping off event in 1990 the Japanese real estate market imploded. EIE and Regent Hotels was forced to sell the Regent hotel chain and hotels under development at that time were in New York City, Bali, Milan, and Istanbul - all were subsequently opened as Four Seasons.
One of the major figures during Japan's bubble economy years was EIE's Harunori Takahashi, who bought up Hyatt and Regent hotels with $6 billion borrowed from the credit unions that were run by his friends. He was also president of a credit union which lent his own businesses over $1.26 billion. Takahashi died in 2005 a convicted felon.
The opening of the Regent New York closely coincided with the chains loss of the Mayfair Regent, which was a Regent hotel from 1978 to 1991. That affiliation ended when Heitman Financial of Chicago, a longtime Mayfair owner, took on a new partner, Cogeta Hotels of Italy and rebranded the hotel to the Mayfair Baglioni.
In March 1992 Four Seasons Hotels Inc. paid $102 million for the Regent International Hotels group, providing the North American hotel operator an Asian foothold. Ownership of the under-construction Regent remained with Japan's Long-Term Credit Bank (LTCB).
LTCB, later renamed Shinsei, epitomized Japan’s banking problems. It is a story of greed, corruption and at time madness. LTCB was once the world’s 9th biggest bank. It collapsed in 1998 with $50 billion of bad loans.
The opening general manager was Wilfried N. Wagner.
According to the NY Times in August 1996 The Four Seasons Hotel was sold to a group of Hong Kong investors led by the Lai Sun Group (which also bought the Regent Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, Calif., in February 1996). The seller was the Japanese bank LTCB. The sale price was estimated between $190 million, well below the $450 million it cost to build. Four Seasons Hotels Ltd. of Toronto, with a minority interest in the hotel, continued to operate it.
In February 1999 57 BB Property LLC (BB stands for Beanie Babies) otherwise known as Ty Warner acquired the Four Seasons Hotel from Lai Sun Group for $275 million or $743,243 per room.
The Michelin star restaurant L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon took its place in the hotel lobby.
With renowned restaurants in Paris, Tokyo and Las Vegas, Joël Robuchon focuses on the highest-quality ingredients, prepared with precision and creativity. With just 20 seats at the pearwood counter – considered the most desirable, with their view of the kitchen – and only 26 more at individual tables, L’Atelier offers an atmosphere that is both intimate and dynamic.
Covering the entire top floor of the Hotel, the nine-room Ty Warner Penthouse, accessed by its own private elevator, is reported to be the most expensive hotel suite in the U.S. at $35,000 per night.
Ty Warner, collaborated with designer Peter Marino and architect I.M. Pei, who came out of retirement to design the 4,300 square foot suite - which creates the sense of living within a multilayered work of art. Amenities include TVs programmed for every channel worldwide, unlimited global telephone calling, a personal butler, a personal trainer/therapist, and a chauffeured Rolls Royce Phantom.
Warner has diversified beyond toys with significant investments in hotels, property and golf courses. Ty Warner Hotels and Resorts include the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, the Sandpiper golf course, the Four Seasons Resort in Santa Barbara, California, the San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito, the Kona Village resort in Hawaii purchased in July 2004, the Montecito Country Club and the Las Ventanas al Paraiso Resort in Los Cabos, Mexico which was acquired in September 2004. In 2005, Warner also bought the beachfront Miramar resort and Rancho San Marcos golf course.
In 2009 Ty Warner held discussions of a sale of the 368-room luxury hotel. He is holding firm on pricing expectations of $644,000.000 million or a whopping $1,750.000 per room - according to Real Estate Alert.
The property's occupancy rate averaged 58% in the 12 months ending June 30, 2009 down from 72% in calendar year 2008, according to Realpoint. The average room rate dipped slightly, to $1,086 from $1,112, but revenue per available room fell to $635 from $798.
The Four Seasons Hotel New York is not heavily leveraged. The property has $185.6 million of mortgage debt - well below the price being sought by Warner.
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
GP500.Org Part # 32504 Suzuki motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
. . . South Asian sweets are the confectionery and desserts of South Asia. Thousands of dedicated shops in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka sell nothing but sweets; however, outside of South Asia, South Asian sweet shops are uncommon.
Sugarcane has been grown in India for thousands of years, and the art of refining sugar was invented there. The English word sugar comes from a Sanskrit word sakhar, while the word candy comes from Sanskrit word khand (jaggery) - one of the simplest raw forms of sweet. Over its long history, cuisines of the Indian Subcontinent developed a diversified array of sweets. Some claim there is no other region of the world where sweets are so varied, so numerous, or so invested with meaning as the Indian Subcontinent.
In India's diverse languages, sweets are called by numerous names, one common name being Mithai (मिठाई). They include sugar, and a vast array of ingredients such as different flours, milk, milk solids, fermented foods, root vegetables, raw and roasted seeds, seasonal fruits, fruit pastes and dry fruits. Some sweets such as kheer are cooked, some like burfi are baked, varieties like Mysore pak are roasted, some like jalebi are fried, others like kulfi are frozen, while still others involve a creative combination of preparation techniques. The composition and recipes of the sweets and other ingredients vary by region. Mithai are sometimes served with a meal, and often included as a form of greeting, celebration, religious offering, gift giving, parties, and hospitality in India. On Indian festivals - such as Holi, Diwali, Eid, or Raksha Bhandan - sweets are homemade or purchased, then shared. Many social gatherings, wedding ceremonies and religious festivals often include a social celebration of food, and the flavors of sweets are an essential element of such a celebration.
HISTORY
Ancient Sanskrit literature from India mention feasts and offerings of mithas (sweet). One of the more complete surviving document, with extensive description of sweets and how to prepare them is the Sanskrit document, Mānasollāsa (Sanskrit: मानसोल्लास; literally, the delight of an idea,[or delight of mind and senses); this ancient encyclopedia on food, music and other Indian arts is also known as the Abhilaṣitārtha Cintāmaṇi (the magical stone that fulfils desires). Mānasollāsa was composed about 1130 AD, by the Hindu King Somesvara III. In this document, meals are described to include a rice pudding it calls payasam (Sanskrit: पायसं), which is another word for kheer. The document mentions seven kinds of rice.
Mānasollāsa also describes recipes for golamu as a donut from wheat flour and scented with cardamom, gharikas as a fried cake from black gram flour and sugar syrup, chhana as a fresh cheese and rice flour fritter soaked in sugar syrup that the document suggests should be prepared from strained curdled milk mixed with buttermilk, and many others. Mānasollāsa mentions numerous milk-derived sweets, along with describing the 11th century art of producing milk solids, condensed milk and methods for souring milk to produce sweets.
The origin of sweets in Indian subcontinent has been traced to at least 500 BC, where records suggest both raw sugar (gur, vellam, jaggery) as well as refined sugar (sarkara) were being produced. By 300 BC, kingdom officials in India were including five kinds of sugar in official documents. By the Gupta dynasty era (300–500 AD), sugar was being made not only from sugar cane, but other plant sources such as palm; sugar-based foods were also included in temple offerings, as bhoga for the deities, which after the prayers became Prasād for devotees, the poor or visitors to the temple.
VARIETIES
BARFI
Barfi is a sweet, made of milk solids (khoya) or condensed milk and various other ingredients like ground cashews or pistachios. Some barfi use various flours such as besan (gram flour). Barfi may be flavored with pastes or pieces of fruits such as mango, banana, berries, coconut. They may include aromatic spices such as cardamom and rose water to enhance the sensual impact while they are consumed.
Sometimes a thin inert silver or gold layer of edible foil is placed on top face of burfi for an attractive presentation. Gold and silver are approved food foils in the European Union, as E175 and E174 additives respectively. The independent European food-safety certification agency, TÜV Rheinland, has deemed gold leaf safe for consumption. Gold and silver leaf are certified kosher. These inert metal foils are neither considered as toxic to human beings nor broader ecosystem.
CHAM-CHAM
Cham Chams are prepared from flattened paneer (a form of curdled milk solids, cheese) sweetened in syrup.
CHENA MURKI
Chhena murki, or chenna murki, is a sweet made from an Indian version of cottage cheese, milk and sugar in many states such as Odisha. Milk and sugar are boiled to a thick consistency. Round, cubes, cuboid or other shapes of cottage cheese are soaked in the milky condensate. Other flavors and aromatic spices are typically added. It is also known by Bangladeshi and Guyanese people as pera.
CHIKKI
Chikki is a ready-to-eat solid, brittle sweet generally made from casting a mix of dry nuts and hot jaggery syrup. Peanuts and jaggery mix are most common. Other than almonds, cashews, walnuts, sesame and other seeds, varieties of chikki are also prepared from puffed or roasted Bengal gram, puffed rice, beaten rice, puffed seasonal grains, and regional produce such as Khobara (desiccated coconut). Like many Indian sweets, Chikki is typically a high protein delicacy.
GAJRELA
Gajrela, also called Gajar halwa, is a seasonal pudding-like sweet made from the root vegetable carrot. It is popular in Punjab regions of India and Pakistan, agricultural belt of North India, now common in many parts of South Asia. It is made by slowly cooking carrot with ghee, concentrated and caramelized milk, mawa (khoya) and sugar; often served with a garnish of aromatic spices, almonds, cashews or pistachios. The recipes vary by region, and Gajrela may be cooked without ghee, then include cheese or other milk solids for sophisticated mix of flavors. It is common in Indian restaurants, and also a seasonal street and cafe food during post-monsoon through spring festive celebrations.
GULAB JAMUN
Gulab jamun is a common sweet found in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan. It is made out of fried chenna (milk solids and cheese) balls soaked in sweet rose-water flavoured syrup.
JALEBI OR IMARTI
Jalebi is made by deep-frying a fermented batter of wheat flour with yoghurt, in a circular (coil-like) shape and then soaking it in sugar syrup. Imarti is a variant of Jalebi, with a different flour mixture and has tighter coils. Typically Jalebi is brown or yellow, while Imarti is reddish in colour. Often taken with milk, tea, yogurt or Lassi. In classical Sanskrit literature, jalebis have been referred to as kundalika or jalavallika.
KHAJA
Khaja is a sweet of India. Refined wheat flour, sugar and oils are the chief ingredients of khaja.
It is believed that, even 2000 years ago, Khajas were prepared in the southern side of the Gangetic Plains of Bihar. These areas which are home to khaja, once comprised the central part of Maurya and Gupta empires. Presently, Khajas are prepared and sold in the city of Patna, Gaya and several other places across the state of Bihar. Khajas of the Silao and Rajgir are known for their puffiness.
Khajas have travelled to some other parts of India, including Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Khaja of Kakinada is a coastal town of Andhra Pradesh. Where as khaja of Puri is too famous. At first, the batter is of wheat flour, mawa and oil. It is then deep fried until crisp. Then a sugar syrup is made which is known as "pak". The crisp croissants are then soaked in the sugar syrup until they absorb the sugar syrup. In Kakinada, Khaja is dry from outside and full of sugar syrup from inside and is juicy.
KULFI
Kulfis are traditional South Asian ice-cream, where flavored milk is first condensed and caramelized by slow cooking in presence of a small quantity of rice or seasonal grain flour; once condensed, dry nut pastes and aromatic spices are added, the mix frozen in small earthen or metal cans. This creates one of the densest known form of frozen sweets; it is typically served between -10 to -15 C when they are easier to spoon and eat. It comes in a variety of flavours such as mango, kesar, pistachios, badam (almond), coconut and plain. It is also a street side urban as well as rural India summer time snack and festive sweet, where food hawkers carry around frozen mounds of kulfi in a big earthen pot and play a particular horn music to attract customers. These vendors are known as "kulfiwalla" (one who sells kulfi).
KHEER OR PAYAS
Kheer is a pudding, usually made from milk, sugar and one of these ingredients - vermicelli, rice, Bulgar wheat, semolina, tapioca, dried dates, and shredded white gourd. It is also known as "Payas".
As sweet rice pudding, payas has been a cultural dish throughout the history of India, being usually found at ceremonies, feasts and celebrations. In many parts of India, ancient traditions maintain that a wedding is not fully blessed if payas (or payasam as known in South India) is not served at the feast during traditional ceremonies like marriage, child birth, annaprasan (first solid feed to child), and other occasions. Other than sweet yoghurt, some families include kheer in the last meal, as hospitality and auspicious food, before a family member or guest departs on a long journey away from the home.
LADDU
Kulfis are traditional South Asian ice-cream, where flavored milk is first condensed and caramelized by slow cooking in presence of a small quantity of rice or seasonal grain flour; once condensed, dry nut pastes and aromatic spices are added, the mix frozen in small earthen or metal cans. This creates one of the densest known form of frozen sweets; it is typically served between -10 to -15 C when they are easier to spoon and eat. It comes in a variety of flavours such as mango, kesar, pistachios, badam (almond), coconut and plain. It is also a street side urban as well as rural India summer time snack and festive sweet, where food hawkers carry around frozen mounds of kulfi in a big earthen pot and play a particular horn music to attract customers. These vendors are known as "kulfiwalla" (one who sells kulfi).
Kheer or payas
Kheer is a pudding, usually made from milk, sugar and one of these ingredients - vermicelli, rice, Bulgar wheat, semolina, tapioca, dried dates, and shredded white gourd. It is also known as "Payas".
As sweet rice pudding, payas has been a cultural dish throughout the history of India, being usually found at ceremonies, feasts and celebrations. In many parts of India, ancient traditions maintain that a wedding is not fully blessed if payas (or payasam as known in South India) is not served at the feast during traditional ceremonies like marriage, child birth, annaprasan (first solid feed to child), and other occasions. Other than sweet yoghurt, some families include kheer in the last meal, as hospitality and auspicious food, before a family member or guest departs on a long journey away from the home.
MALPOA
Malpoa is the most ancient homemade sweets of India. It is a form of pancake (made of wheat or rice flour) deep fried and sugar syrup.
NARKEL NARU
Narkel Naru is a dessert from Bengal. They are ball-shaped and made from khoa/condensed milk and coconut, a traditional food during Pujas such as the Lakshmi Puja
PARWAL KI MITHAI
Parwal Ki Mithai is a dry sweet made of the vegetable parwal, a kind of gourd. The shell of parwal is filled with milk solids, then cooked. It is rather popular in Bihar, but also found in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
PATHISHAPA
Pathishapta is a Bengali dessert. The final dish is a rolled pancake that is stuffed with a filling often made of coconut, milk, cream, and jaggery from the date palm. These desserts are consumed in Thailand as well.
RASGULLA
Rasgulla is a popular sweet in South Asia. They come in many forms, such as Kamalabhog (Orange Rasgulla), Rajbhog (Giant Rasgulla), Kadamba often served with kheer, Rasamundi, Raskadamba, and others. Some are white, others cream, brown, gold or orange colored. They are called Rasbari in Nepal. This dish is made by boiling small dumplings of chhenna and semolina mixture in sugar syrup. Once cooked, these are stored in the syrup making them spongy. Increasing the semolina content reduces the sponginess and hardens them, creating variety of textures. Some Rasgulla are stuffed inside with treats, such as dry fruits, raisins, candied peel and other delicacies to create a series of flavors experienced as they are consumed. Some versions, called danedhar, are removed from syrup and sugar coated into shapes of fruits and other creative designs. These are festive foods found year round, in many parts of India.
SANDESH
Sandesh is a sweet made from fine cheese made from cow's milk kneaded with fine ground sugar or molasses. This is a sweet from West Bengal and Odisha. Revered for its delicate making, and appreciated by the connoiseur, this represents sweet making at its finest. Sandesh comes in two varieties, "Norom Pak" (the softer version) and "Koda Pak" (the harder version). The softer version although more gentle and considered better, is fragile. The harder version is robust and often easier for storage. Molasses made from dates can be used to make a special variation of Sandesh called "Noleen Gurher Sandesh" (a Sandesh made from "Noleen Gurh" or molases from dates) or simply "Noleen Sandesh".
SEL ROTI
Sel roti is a Nepali home-made circular-shaped bread or rice donut, prepared during Tihar, a widely celebrated Hindu festival in Nepal. It is made of rice flour with adding customized flavors. A semi liquid rice flour dough is usually prepared by adding milk, water, sugar, butter, cardamom, cloves and other flavors of personal choice.
SHRIKHAND
Shrikhand is a creamy dessert made out of strained yogurt, from which water is drained off completely. Dry fruits, mango puree, saffron or cardamom and sugar are added to the thick yoghurt to get the desired flavour and taste. It is served chilled. It is a West Indian traditional dish.
OTHER INDIAN & PAKISTANI SWEETS
Other traditional Indian sweets and desserts famous throughout the history of Indian food include:
- Mysore pak (a dessert made out of ghee, sugar and chick pea flour),
- Halwa (or Halva in modern English spelling); made out of flour, butter and sugar
- Jangiri
- Jhajariya
WIKIPEDIA
Diversified Haulage twin steer Kenworth K104 pocket roadtrain heads North on the Goldfields Highway.
GP500 motorcycle windshields
Kawasaki Motorcycle History
Kawasaki emerged out of the ashes of the second World War to become one of the big players from Japan. In the late ’60s and early ’70s, Kawasaki built a reputation for some of the most powerful engines on two wheels, spawning legendary sportbikes like the Ninja series and a line of championship-winning off-road bikes. .1896
The company is founded by Shozo Kawasaki. His firm will come to be known as Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Over time, the company’s principal areas of activity will be shipbuilding, railroad rolling stock, and electrical generating plants. Motorcycles will become a small part of this diversified industrial conglomerate. 1960
Kawasaki signs agreement to take over Meguro motorcycles, a major player in the nascent Japanese motorcycle manufacturing business. Meguro is one of the only Japanese companies making a 500cc bike. In England and the UK, Meguro’s 500 – which bears a strong resemblance to the BSA A7 – is derided as a cheap copy. But in fact, it is a pretty high-quality bike. 1961
Kawasaki produces its first complete motorcycle – the B8 125cc two-stroke. 1962
A series of the two-stroke models from 50-250cc is released. The 250cc disc-valve ‘Samurai’ attracts notice in the U.S. 1966
The 650W1 is released and is the biggest bike made in Japan at the time. It’s inspired by the BSA A10. Over the next few years it will get twin carbs, and high pipes for a ‘scrambler’ version. 1969
Dave Simmonds gives Kawasaki its first World Championship, in the 125cc class
The striking Kawasaki H1 (aka Mach III) a 500cc three-cylinder two-stroke is released. Although its handling leaves something to be desired, the motor is very powerful for the day. It’s one of the quickest production bikes in the quarter-mile. The Mach III establishes Kawasaki’s reputation in the U.S. (In particular, it establishes a reputation for powerful and somewhat antisocial motorcycles!) A wonderful H1R production racer is also released – a 500cc racing bike.
Over the next few years, larger and smaller versions of the H1, including the S1 (250cc) S2 (350cc) and H2 (750cc) will be released. They’re successful in the marketplace, and the H2R 750cc production racer is also successful on the race track, but Kawasaki knows that the days of the two-stroke streetbike are coming to an end.
The company plans to release a four-stroke, but is shocked by the arrival of the Honda 750-Four. Kawasaki goes back to the drawing board.
1973
The first new four-stroke since the W1 is released. It’s worth the wait. The 900cc Z1 goes one up on the Honda 750 with more power and double overhead cams. Over the next few years, its capacity will increase slightly and it will be rebadged the Z-1000. 1978
Kork Ballington wins the 250cc and 350cc World Championships with fore-and-aft parallel-Twin racers (Rotax also built racing motors in this configuration. Ballington will repeat the feat in ’79. In 1980 he will finish second in the premier 500cc class. Anton Mang takes over racing duties in the 250 and 350 classes, and he will win four more titles over the next three years. This is the most successful period for Kawasaki in the World Championship.
Kawasaki’s big-bore KZ1300 is released. Honda and Benelli have already released six-cylinder bikes by this time, but Kawasaki’s specification includes water cooling and shaft drive. To underline the efficiency of the cooling system, its launch is held in Death Valley. Despite its substantial weight, journalists are impressed.
Over the next few years, the KZ1300 will get digital fuel injection and a full-dress touring version will be sold as the ‘Voyager.’ This model is marketed as “a car without doors”!
1981
Eddie Lawson wins the AMA Superbike championship for Kawasaki after an epic battle with Honda’s Freddie Spencer. He will repeat as champion the following year.
Kawasaki releases the GPz550. It’s air-cooled and has only two valves per cylinder, but its performance threatens the 750cc machines of rival manufacturers. This is the bike that launches the 600 class.
1983
The liquid-cooled four-valve GPz900R ‘Ninja’ is shown to the motorcycle press for the first time at Laguna Seca. They’re stunned. 1985
James “Bubba” Stewart, Jr. is born. Kawasaki supplies his family with Team Green diapers. 1989
The first ‘ZXR’-designated bikes reach the market. They are 750cc and 400cc race replicas. 1990
The ZX-11 is launched and features a 1052cc engine. It is the first production motorcycle with ram-air induction and the fastest production bike on the market. 1991
The ZXR750R begins a four year run as the top bike in the FIM Endurance World Championship. 1993
Scott Russell wins the World Superbike Championship, much to Carl Fogarty’s dismay. 2000
The ZX-12R is released – the new flagship of the ZX series. 2002
Bubba Stewart wins AMA 125 MX championship. 2003
Stewart is AMA 125 West SX champ. “What the heck is he doing on the jumps?” people wonder. It’s the “Bubba Scrub.”
In a daring move that acknowledges that only a small percentage of supersports motorcycles are ever actually raced, Kawasaki ups the capacity of the ZX-6R to 636cc. Ordinary riders welcome a noticeable increase in mid-range power, and the bike is the king of the ‘real world’ middleweights.
2004
Stewart wins the AMA 125 East SX title, and the 125cc outdoor championship. There are only one or two riders on 250s who lap any faster than he does on the little bikes.
Just when we thought motorcycles couldn’t get any crazier, the ZX-10R is released. OMG, the power!
2007
Although his transition to the big bikes hasn’t been as smooth as many expected it to be, Stewart wins the 2007 AMA SX championship. 2008
Kawasaki gives the Concours a much-needed revamp in the Concours 14. Sharing the 1352cc engine from the ZX-14, it’s touted as the ultimate sport touring motorcycle.
While they’re at it, Kawasaki also decides to give the Ninja 250 and KLR 650 major updates, after years of inactivity.
List of the tallest towers.
1 Burj Dubai 2,684 feet 818 m 2009 Skyscraper
2 Warsaw Radio Mast 2,121 feet 646.4 m 1974 Guyed mast
3 KVLY/KTHI TV Mast 2,063 feet 628.8 m 1963 Guyed mast
4 KXJB-TV mast 2,060 feet 627.8 m 1998 Guyed mast
5 KXTV/KOVR Tower 2,049 feet 624.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California Tallest structure in California
6 KATV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965?1967? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
7 KCAU TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sioux City, Iowa
8 WECT TV6 Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Colly Township, North Carolina
9 WHO-TV, KDIN-TV,WOI-FM Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1972 Guyed mast VHF-TV, FM radio transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
10 Des Moines Hearst-Argyle Television Tower Alleman 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alleman, Iowa
11 WEAU-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fairchild, Wisconsin
12 Diversified Communications Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Floyd Dale, South Carolina
13 AFLAC Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowley, Iowa
14 WBTV-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
15 Hearst-Argyle Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
16 WTTO Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Windham Springs, Alabama
17 WCSC-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
18 KTVE-Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bolding, Arkansas
19 WCTV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
20 WCIX/CH6 TV Mast 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Homestead, Florida
21 KDLT Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
22 KMOS TV Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Syracuse, Missouri
23 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Era 2,000 feet 609.6 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Era, Texas
24 Winnie Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.6 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnie, Texas
25 WRAL HDTV Mast 2,000 feet 609.5 m 1991 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
26 Perry Broadcasting Tower 2,000 feet 609.5 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Alfalfa, Oklahoma
27 KY3 Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
28 SpectraSite Tower Thomasville 1,999 feet 609.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Thomasville, Georgia
29 Pegasus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Metcalf, Georgia
30 CBC Real Estate Tower Auburn 1,999 feet 609.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
32 KLDE Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
33 WCKW/KSTE-Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vacherie, Louisiana
34 American Towers Tower Elkhart 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Elkhart, Iowa
35 Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
36 Stowell Cumulus Broadcasting Tower 1,999 feet 609.3 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Stowell, Texas
37 WLBT Tower 1,998 feet 609 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
38 Beasley Tower 1,997 feet 608.7 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Immokalee, Florida
39 KYTV Tower 1,996 feet 608.4 m 1973 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Marshfield, Missouri
40 SpectraSite Tower Raymond 1,996 feet 608.4 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
41 Hoyt Radio Tower 1,996 feet 608.38 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hoyt, Colorado
42 Service Broadcasting Tower Decatur 1,995 feet 608.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Decatur, Texas
43 WTVD Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Auburn, North Carolina
44 Channel 40 Tower 1,994 feet 607.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
45 Liberman Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,994 feet 607.7 m 2006 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
46 KHYS Tower 1,992 feet 607.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
47 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Devers 1,992 feet 607 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Devers, Texas
48 Media General Tower 1,992 feet 607 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Awendaw, South Carolina
49 Eastern North Carolina Broadcasting Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Trenton, North Carolina
50 WNCN Tower 1,989 feet 606.2 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garner, North Carolina
51 KELO TV Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rowena, South Dakota
52 WITN Tower 1,985 feet 605 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grifton, North Carolina
53 Noe Corp Tower 1,984 feet 604.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
54 Pappas Telecasting Tower 1,980 feet 603.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Plymouth County, Iowa
55 KHOU-TV Tower 1,975 feet 602 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
56 Richland Towers Tower Missouri City 1,973 feet 601.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
57 Senior Road Tower 1,971 feet 600.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
58 KTRK-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
59 Houston Tower Joint Venture Tower 1,970 feet 600.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
60 American Towers Tower Missouri City 1,970 feet 600.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
61 Fox-TV Tower 1,970 feet 600.4 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Missouri City, Texas
62 Mississippi Telecasting Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1982 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Inverness, Mississippi
63 WCNC-TV Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
64 Capstar Radio Tower 1,969 feet 600 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Middlesex, North Carolina
65 KDUH/CH4 TV Mast 1,965 feet 599 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Hemingford, Nebraska
66 American Towers Tower Liverpool 1,963 feet 598.3 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Liverpool, Texas
67 Media General Tower Dillon 1,962 feet 598 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dillon, South Carolina
68 Duffy-Shamrock Joint Venture Tower 1,960 feet 597.4 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bertram, Texas
69 AMFM Tower Collinsville 1,960 feet 597.4 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Collinsville, Texas
70 KOLR/KOZK Tower 1,960 feet 597.3 m (orig. 609.6 m) 1971 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri
71 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Winnabow 1,954 feet 595.6 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Winnabow, North Carolina
72 Spectra Site Communications Tower Robertsdale 1,944 feet 592.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
73 CBC Real Estate Co. Inc Tower 1,944 feet 592.4 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Dallas, North Carolina
74 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Grady 1,935 feet 589.8 m 1977 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Grady, Alabama
75 American Towers Tower Columbia 1,929 feet 587.9 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, Louisiana
76 Sonsinger Management Tower 1,928 feet 587.6 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Splendora, Texas
77 Cedar Rapids TV Tower 1,927 feet 587.3 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walker City, Iowa
78 Channel 6 Tower Eddy 1,924 feet 586.4 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Eddy, Texas
79 Entravision Texas Tower 1,920 feet 585.2 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greenwood, Texas
80 Multimedia Associates Tower 1,916 feet 584 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rio Grande City, Texas
81 American Towers Tower Randleman 1,910 feet 582.3 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Randleman, North Carolina
82 KTUL Tower Coweta 1,909 feet 581.8 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Coweta, Oklahoma
83 American Towers Tower Robertsdale 1,903 feet 579.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Robertsdale, Alabama
84 Baldpate Platform 1,902 feet 579.7 m 1998 Offshore platform Oil drilling U.S. Garden Banks, Gulf of Mexico (Offshore)
85 WDJR-FM Tower 1,901 feet 579.42 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bethlehem, Florida
86 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Redfield 1,889 feet 578.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Redfield, Arkansas
87 WFMY Tower 1,889 feet 575.9 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Greensboro, North Carolina
88 Cox Radio Tower 1,879 feet 572.8 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shepard, Texas
89 Media General Tower Spanish Fort 1,879 feet 572.7 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Spanish Fort, Alabama
90 WFTV Tower Saint Cloud 1,874 feet 571.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Cloud, Florida
91 Capstar Radio Operating Gray Court Tower 1,861 feet 567.1 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gray Court, South Carolina
92 KLKN Tower 1,854 feet 565.1 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Genoa, Nebraska
93 Pinnacle Towers Tower Princeton 1,842 feet 561.3 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
94 WTVJ Tower Princeton 1,841 feet 561.1 m 1993 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Princeton, Florida
95 Pappas Partnership Stations Tower Gretna 1,836 feet 559.6 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gretna, Nebraska
96 KBIM Tower 1,834 feet 559.02 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Roswell, New Mexico
97 Tulsa Tower Joint Venture Tower Oneta 1,834 feet 559 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oneta, Oklahoma
98 KTBS Tower 1826 ft 556.5 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Shreveport, Louisiana
99 CN Tower 1,814 feet 553 m 1976 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Canada Toronto, Ontario
100 SBA Towers Tower Haynesville 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
101 Channel 32 Limited Partnership Tower 1,797 feet 547.7 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Haynesville, Alabama
102 KATC Tower Kaplan 1,793 feet 546.6 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kaplan, Louisiana
103 Cosmos Broadcasting Tower Egypt 1,793 feet 546.5 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Egypt, Arkansas
104 Raycom Media Tower Mooringsport 1,791 feet 545.8 m 1975 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
105 Pinnacle Towers Tower Mooringsport 1,781 feet 542.8 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Mooringsport, Louisiana
106 Bold Springs Salem Radio Properties Tower 1,779 feet 542.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bold Springs, Georgia
107 Branch Young Broadcasting Tower 1775 ft 541 m ? Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Branch, Louisiana
108 Ostankino Tower 1,772 feet 540.1 m 1967 Concrete tower Observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Russia Moscow 2000 Fire led to renovation
109 KLFY TV Tower Maxie 1,772 feet 540 m 1970 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Maxie, Louisiana
110 American Towers Tower Eglin[5] 1,766 feet 538.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. 29045, South Carolina also known as WOLO TV Tower
111 Cusseta Richland Towers Tower 1,766 feet 538.2 m 2005 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia
112 Cox Radio Tower Flowery Branch 1,765 feet 537.9 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Flowery Branch, Georgia
113 Alabama Telecasters Tower 1,757 feet 535.5 m 1995 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Gordonsville, Alabama
114 WIMZ-FM-Tower 1,752 feet 534.01 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Knoxville, Tennessee also known as WBIR TV-mast, World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1963
115 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Broadway 1,749 feet 533.1 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Broadway, North Carolina dismantled
116 Capitol Broadcasting Tower Columbia 1,749 feet 533.1 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
117 WTVM/WRBL-TV & WVRK-FM Tower 1,749 feet 533 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cusseta, Georgia also known as WTVM TV Mast, World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1962-1963
118 WAVE-Mast 1,739 feet 530.05 m 1990 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Grange, Kentucky
119 Moody Centex Television Tower 1739 ft 530 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
120 Louisiana Television Broadcasting Tower Sunshine 1,737 feet 529.4 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Sunshine, Louisiana
121 Bullwinkle Platform 1,736 feet 529.1 m 1989 Offshore platform Oil drilling Gulf of Mexico Manatee Field Located appr. 160 miles (257 km) southwest of New Orleans
122 Pinnacle Towers Tower Addis 1,735 feet 528.8 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Addis, Louisiana
123 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,731 feet 527.6 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
124 Sears Tower 1,730 feet 527.3 m 1974 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Chicago, Illinois
125 World Trade Center, Tower 1 1,727 feet 526.3 m 1973 Skyscraper Office, UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. New York City destroyed on September 11, 2001
126 WAFB Tower Baton Rouge 1,725 feet 525.8 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
127 WAEO Tower 1,721 feet 524.5 m 1966 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Starks, Wisconsin destroyed on November 17, 1968 at aircraft collision
128 Media Venture Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
129 Media Venture Management Tower Fincher 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fincher, Florida
130 Orlando Hearst Argyle Television Tower 1,714 feet 522.5 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida
131 Pinnacle Towers Tower Moody 1,714 feet 522.4 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
132 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Rosinton 1,707 feet 520.3 m 1981 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rosinton, Alabama
133 Pacific and Southern Company Tower Lugoff 1,707 feet 520.2 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lugoff, South Carolina
134 Young Broadcasting Tower Garden City 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Garden City, South Dakota
135 Gray Television Tower Carlos 1,705 feet 519.7 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Carlos, Texas
136 South Dakota Public Broadcasting Network Tower 1,695 feet 516.7 m 1974 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Faith, South Dakota
137 Spectra Site Communications Tower Orange City 1,695 feet 516.6 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Orange City, Florida Height reduced to 512.7 metres
138 Christmas Brown Road Tower 1,695 feet 516.6 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
139 Gray Television Tower Madill 1,694 feet 516.3 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Madill, Oklahoma
140 American Tower Christmas 1,684 feet 513.3 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
141 Richland Towers Bithlo 1,682 feet 512.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
142 Northland Television Tower Rhinelander 1,682 feet 512.6 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Rhinelander, Wisconsin
143 Gray Television Tower Moody 1,679 feet 511.8 m 1978 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Moody, Texas
144 KFVS TV Mast 1,677 feet 511.1 m 1960 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Girardeau County, Missouri World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1960-1961
145 Taipei 101 1,671 feet 509.2 m 2004 Skyscraper Office, observation, UHF/VHF-transmission Taiwan Taipei
146 Cox Radio Tower Verna 1,667 feet 508.1 m 1994 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Verna, Florida
147 WMTW TV Mast 1,667 feet 508.1 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Baldwin, Maine
148 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill 1,661 feet 506.2 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
149 American Towers Tower Oklahoma City 1,647 feet 502 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
150 University of North Carolina Tower 1,642 feet 500.5 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Columbia, North Carolina
151 Richland Towers Tower Cedar Hill 2 1,635 feet 498.4 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
152 WWTV Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cadillac, Michigan Tallest Structure in Michigan
153 WWRR Renda Tower 1,631 feet 497 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kingsland, Georgia
154 QueenB Television Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. La Crosse, Wisconsin Height reduced to 484.3 metres
155 KDEB Tower 1,627 feet 496 m 1968 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Fordland, Missouri also known as American Towers Tower Fordland, dismantled
156 WPSD-TV Tower 1,627 feet 495.9 m 2004 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Kevil, Kentucky
157 NVG-Amarillo Tower 1,626 feet 495.6 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Amarillo, Texas
158 WGME TV Tower 1,624 feet 495 m 1959 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Maine World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1959-1960
159 Sinclair Television Tower Oklahoma 1,619 feet 493.5 m 1979 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
160 Shanghai World Financial Center 1,614 feet 492 m 2008 Skyscraper Office, hotels, residential China Shanghai topped out
161 WFTV TV Tower Christmas 1,613 feet 491.6 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Christmas, Florida
162 WJJY TV Mast 1,611 feet 491 m Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bluffs, Illinois collapsed in 1978
163 Media General Tower Jackson 1,611 feet 491 m 1989 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, Mississippi
164 WHNS TV-Tower 1,611 feet 491 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Brevard, South Carolina
165 KOBR-TV Tower 1,610 feet 490.7 m 1956 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Caprock, New Mexico also known as KSWS-TV Transmitter, World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1956-1959, collapsed in 1960 at storm, rebuilt afterwards
166 Joint Venture TV Tower Bithlo 1,608 feet 490.2 m 1992 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
167 American Towers Tower Bithlo 1,605 feet 489.2 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Bithlo, Florida
168 NYT Broadcast Holdings Tower Oklahoma 1,601 feet 488 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as WKY TV Mast
169 Clear Channel Broadcasting Tower Boykin 1,600 feet 487.8 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Boykin, Georgia
170 WVFJ Tower Saint Marks 1,600 feet 487.7 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Marks, Georgia
171 Paramount Tower Oklahoma 1,596 feet 486.4 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
172 WTVA TV Tower 1,593 feet 485.5 m 1972 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Woodland, Mississippi
173 KTVT Tower 1,587 feet 483.7 m 2002 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
174 GBC LP DBA Tower 1,582 feet 482.2 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas dismantled
175 WLFL Tower Apex 1,579 feet 481.3 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Apex, North Carolina
176 WFAA Tower 1,578 feet 481 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
177 Griffin Television Tower Oklahoma 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1954 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma also known as KWTV Tower, World''''''''''''''''s tallest structure, 1954-1956
178 WCOM-TV Mansfield, Ohio 1,576 feet 480.5 m 1988 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Butler, Ohio Was the tallest structure in Ohio until it was dismantled in 1995
179 Viacom Tower Riverview 1,575 feet 480 m 1998 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
180 Tampa Tower General Partnership Tower Riverview 1,573 feet 479.4 m 1987 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
181 Riverview Florida West Coast Public Broadcasting Tower 1,572 feet 479.1 m 1999 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
182 American Towers Tower Riverview 1,568 feet 478 m 2001 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Riverview, Florida
183 KBSI TV Mast 1,567 feet 477.6 m 1983 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cape Giradeau, Missouri
184 Media General Tower Saint Ansgar 1,565 feet 477.1 m 1964 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Saint Ansgar, Iowa
185 Red River Broadcast Tower Salem 1,565 feet 477 m 1976 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Salem, South Dakota
186 Hearst-Argyle Television Tower 1,563 feet 476.4 m 1963 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
187 Augusta Tower 1,561 feet 475.6 m 2003 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Jackson, South Carolina
188 WAGT TV Tower 1,560 feet 475.5 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Beach Island, South Carolina
189 KPLX Tower 1,559 feet 475.1 m 1969 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
190 KTAL TV Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 1961 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Vivian, Louisiana
191 Mississippi Authority for Educational Television Tower 1,558 feet 474.9 m 2000 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Raymond, Mississippi
192 KRRT TV Tower 1,553 feet 473.3 m 1985 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Lake Hills, Texas
193 Hearst-Argyle Tower Watsonville 1,552 feet 473.1 m 1984 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Watsonville, California
194 Media General Tower Forest Hill 1,552 feet 473 m 1965 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Forest Hill, Louisiana
195 WVAH Tower 1,552 feet 473 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Scott Depot, West Virginia destroyed on February 19, 2003
196 American Towers Tower Cedar Hill]] 2 1,551 feet 472.7 m 1980 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Cedar Hill, Texas
197 KXTV/KOVR/KCRA Tower 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1962 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Walnut Grove, California
198 SpectraSite Tower Holopaw 1,549 feet 472.1 m 1997 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Holopaw, Florida
199 Troll A platform 1,549 feet 472 m 1996 Offshore platform Oil drilling Norway North Sea
200 Morris Tower Perkston 1,540 feet 469.4 m 1986 Guyed mast UHF/VHF-transmission U.S. Perkston, Mississippi
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Diversification of Clambrian scallopillars from my scallop seedworld project, as of 20MY post-seeding.
Top row: Common Ormeter, Green Plact, Deep Sea Plesiophore.
Middle row: Ancestral basal scallopillar, Ancestral Diplospondyl scallopillar, Pink-Striped Raptopillar.
Bottom row: Fangorm, Common Red Trebuchet
GP500.Org Part # 31900 Suzuki motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
SALEM, Ore. – Husband and wife duo Chris and Elizabeth Miller believe that diversifying their farm is the key to success. That’s why their certified organic farm, Minto Island Growers, includes a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) component, in addition to a farm stand, food truck, and service at the Salem Saturday Market. The farm has been in the family since the 1970s. Since 2010, Chris and Elizabeth have worked with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to obtain financial incentives and conservation assistance to help them maximize the potential of their organic operation. With funding from the NRCS organic initiative, the Miller’s have upgraded their irrigation equipment to save energy and labor costs; installed a seasonal high tunnel to expand the crop production season; planted cover crops, and more. Pictured: Chris Miller and Jarod Seaman, NRCS District Conservationist. NRCS photos by Tracy Robillard.
Bangladeshi farmer Gopal Mohanta and his wife pictured at their home in the village of Boiragee, Dinajpur. They have been able to provide their family with a dramatically improved livelihood by working with CIMMYT.
This change in fortunes began when Mohanta attended a farmer training session provided by CIMMYT in collaboration with partners in Bangladesh. This opened a door for him to take advantage of a range of resources from CIMMYT and its partners—including seed, technologies, and practices—and to combine these with the family's own hard work and talent.
One of the changes Mohanta made was to plant a more diverse range of crops, and in 2005 he planted maize for the first time, using improved seed based on CIMMYT materials. He achieves high yields of 12-13 t/ha, which he is able to sell at a good profit, as a growing market is fueling high and stable maize prices in Bangladesh. The increased income has brought numerous benefits: as well as being able to invest in livestock and other farm diversification, such as a pond stocked with fish, Mohanta and his wife have built a new, larger house and are able to provide a better education for their two children.
The family has come a long way, providing a shining example of what is possible to others in their community. However, the success story is far from over; looking to the future, Mohanta plans to buy more land and to plant more crops.
Photo credit: S. Mojumder/Drik/CIMMYT.
For the latest on CIMMYT in Bangladesh, see CIMMYT's blog at: blog.cimmyt.org/?tag=bangladesh.
Hand in Hand business trainees learn all kinds of skills – customer care, market research, product diversification – but carpet weaver Habiba, who joined a self-help group last year, credits two in particular with lifting her out of extreme poverty: saving and carpet design. Given her six-fold increase in monthly income, it’s easy to see why. Read Habiba's full story here: www.handinhandinternational.org/casestudy/habiba_weaving/
Microfinance Afghanistan Women Entrepreneurs
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GP500.Org Part # 31701 GSXR Suzuki motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
Nishat Group is one of the leading and most diversified business groups in South East Asia. With assets over PRs.300 billion, it ranks amongst the top five business houses of Pakistan. The group has strong presence in three most important business sectors of the region namely Textiles, Cement and Financial Services. In addition, the Group has also interest in Insurance, Power Generation, Paper products and Aviation. It also has the distinction of being one of the largest players in each sector. The Group is considered at par with multinationals operating locally in terms of its quality of products & services and management skills.
Mian Mohammad Mansha, the chairman of Nishat Group continues the spirit of entrepreneurship and has led the Group successfully to make it the premier business group of the region. The group has become a multidimensional corporation and has played an important role in the industrial development of the country. In recognition of his unparallel contribution, the Government of Pakistan has also conferred him with “Sitara-e-Imtiaz”, one of the most prestigious civil awards of the country.
D.G. Khan Cement Company
D.G. Khan Cement Company Limited (DGKCC), a unit of Nishat group, is the largest cement-manufacturing unit in Pakistan with a production capacity of 5,500 tons clinker per day. It has a countrywide distribution network and its products are preferred on projects of national repute both locally and internationally due to the unparallel and consistent quality. It is list on all the Stock Exchanges of Pakistan.
Expansion -Khairpur Project
Furthermore, the Group is also setting up a new cement production line of 6,700 TPD clinker near Kalar Kahar, Distt. Chakwal, the single largest production line in the country. First of its kind in cement industry of Pakistan, the new plant will have two strings of pre-heater towers, the advantage of twin strings lies in the operational flexibility whereby production may be adjusted according to market conditions. The project will be equipped with two vertical cement grinding mills. The cement grinding mills are first vertical Mills in Pakistan. The new plant would not only increase the capacity but would also provide proximity to the untapped market of Northern Punjab and NWFP besides making it more convenient to export to Afghanistan from northern borders.
GP500.Org Part # 32002 Suzuki motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
GP500.Org Part # 32600 Suzuki motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
GP500.Org Part # 31801 racing windshield fits Suzuki: SV 400S 1998, SV 650S 1999 - 2002
GP500 Motorcycle windshields
Suzuki Motorcycle History
Suzuki is another member of the “Big Four” from Japan. It began manufacturing motorcycles in 1952 and has become well known around the world. Its off-road bikes and roadracers have won world titles, and its street machines range from the cruiser Boulevard series to the legendary GSX-R series of sportbikes. It, along with Honda, is unique in that the company also builds automobiles. .1909
Michio Suzuki founds the Suzuki Loom Company in Hamamatsu, Japan. He builds industrial looms for the thriving Japanese silk industry. 1937
To diversify activities, the company experiments with several interesting small car prototypes, but none go into production because the Japanese government declares civilian automobiles “non-essential commodities” at the onset of WWII. 1951
After the war, Suzuki (like Honda and others) begins making clip-on motors for bicycles. 1953
The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. 1955
The Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. 1961
East German star Ernst Degner defects to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix. He takes MZ’s most valuable secret – knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs – to Suzuki. 1962
Using MZ’s technology, Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too. 1963
U.S. Suzuki Motor Corp. opens in Los Angeles. 1965
The T20 is released (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. 1968
The T500 ‘Titan’ is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke. 1970
Joel Robert wins the 250cc World Motocross Championship for Suzuki. This is the first year of a three-year streak. 1971
The GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Although the bike is quite advanced in many ways and inspires a line of smaller air-cooled triples (GT380 and GT550), it’s clear that pollution control legislation will limit the use of two-strokes as street motorcycles. Even while the GT750 was in development, Suzuki had signed a licensing deal with NSU to develop a motorcycle with a Wankel (rotary) engine.
The TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races. Roger Decoster wins the 500cc World Championship on the factory version of this bike and will dominate the class, winning five times from 1971-’76.
1972
The Hustler 400, a street version of the TM400, is released. This bike features a double-cradle frame and 2-stroke single-cylinder 396cc engine. 1974
The RE5 is the first Japanese motorcycle with a rotary engine. It cost a fortune to develop and, while not bad, it’s a commercial disaster. After two years, the company abandons the project, and there are rumors the tooling was dumped into the sea so that Suzuki managers would never have to see it again. 1975
The RM125, with an air-cooled 2-stroke single-cylinder 123cc engine, is a production motocrosser 1976
With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike. 1978
The GS1000E becomes the flagship model of the GS series – it’s Suzuki’s first literbike. 1979
Wes Cooley wins the AMA Superbike Championship on the new GS. He’ll repeat the feat in ’80 before submitting to Eddie Lawson. 1980
The GSX750E adopts Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC) structure and a DOHC engine upgraded to four valves. Also, a new Anti Nose Dive Fork (ANDF) system is adopted for the front suspension.
Somewhere in Japan, Suzuki appoints a Vice President of Acronyms for Suzuki’s Success (V-PASS).
1981
German designer Hans A. Muth, styles the GSX1100S Katana. It boasts an output of 111 hp at 8,500 rpm.
Marco Lucchinelli wins the 500cc World Championship for Suzuki.
1982
Franco Uncini wins the 500cc World Championship. 1983
The RG250 is Suzuki’s first ever race replica. This bike features the AL-BOX, square aluminum frame, 16-inch tire and Anti Nose Dive Forks (ANDF) at the front. 1985
The RG500 “Gamma” features the same square-Four cylinder layout as the as the factory Grand Prix bikes. Other racy features are the square-tube aluminum frame and the removable cassette-type transmission. 1986
Although the rest of the world got the GSX-R750 a year earlier, the most important new motorcycle in a decade finally arrives in the U.S. in 1986. Kevin Cameron, reviewing the machine in Cycle World, rhetorically asks, “Where will we go from here?”
The new GSX-R1100 covers ¼ mile in 10.3 seconds and boasts a top speed of over 160 mph. That’s where we go from here.
1989
Jamie James wins the AMA Superbike Championship of the GSX-R750. 1990
The 779cc DR-BIG has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. 1991
The GSX-R750 switches from oil-cooling to water-cooling and gains weight. 1993
Kevin Schwantz wins the 500cc World Championship. “I’d rather not win it this way,” he says, referring to the career-ending injury of his arch-rival Wayne Rainey. 1995
The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene. 1996
Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system. 1997
The TL1000S is the first Suzuki sportbike with a V-Twin engine. It will be followed a year later by a racier R version, with a dodgy rotary vane damping system in the rear shock. Suzuki equipped the TL1000R with a steering damper, but it was still prone to headshake and customers approached it with caution, if at all. 1999
Mat Mladin wins the AMA Superbike Championship, beginning a run of unprecedented dominance. Mladin will win five more times, and Suzuki will win 8 of the next 9 titles.
With sport bikes getting more and more sharp edged, the company is one of the first to recognize what might be called the ‘semi-sport’ market, as opposed to the supersport market. The SV650 features an aluminum-alloy truss frame and a liquid-cooled 90° V-Twin DOHC 4-valve engine.
Suzuki calls the Hayabusa the ultimate aerodynamic sportbike. It’s powered by a 1298cc liquid-cooled DOHC in-line 4-cylinder engine that becomes the darling of land-speed racers. The name means “peregrine falcon” in Japanese.
2001
Based on the compact GSX-R750, the GSX-R1000 is powered by a liquid-cooled DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder 988cc engine, which features narrow-angle valves and downdraft individual throttle-body fuel injection. 2005
Suzuki’s original 4-stroke motocrosser, the RM-Z450, is equipped with a 4-stroke 449cc engine, which features the Suzuki Advanced Sump System (SASS).
Troy Corser gives Suzuki its first and only (so far) World Superbike Championship.
2006
The M109R, Suzuki’s flagship V-Twin cruiser, is powered by a 1783cc V-Twin engine with 112mm bore and 90.5mm stroke. It has the largest reciprocating pistons in any production passenger car or motorcycle. 2008
The B-King is launched, powered by the 1340cc Hayabusa engine, the B-King is Suzuki’s flagship big ‘Naked’ bike. Suzuki says it has the top-ranked power output in the naked category. 2010
Due to economic downturn, Suzuki decides not to import any sportbikes to America for the 2010 model year. It also sites a backlog of 2009 models still on showroom floors as part of the decision.
FBI Stolen motorcycles
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Improving tomato crop production in Honduras. USAID’s Rural Economic Diversification Project, (RED) has assisted farmers to increase their crop production not only to feed their families, but to sell to grocery stores to improve the family income.
2009
Early diversification from the spec evo scallop seedworld project "The Clambrian".
Clockwise from top left:
Proto-seallop feeding in the water column.
Mussel-scallop anchored to a rock with byssal threads.
Grazer scallop feeding on the seabed, probing the sediment with its sensory tentacles.
The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) East Africa is working with the Kenya Agriculture Research Institute (KARI) and the Ministry of Agriculture to empower farmers to manage climate risk through a combination of crop diversification and improved practices. They are introducing sorghum, pigeon peas, cowpeas, green grams and sweet potatoes to supplement the traditional maize, cassava and bean staples. More than 250 households are using improved agronomic practices and KARI has started on-farm multiplication of an improved cassava variety (MH95/0183) that resists mosaic virus. Photos: K. Trautmann. Read more about Climate Smart Practices in East Africa.
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Income diversification projects such as sea weed farming were introduced to reduce the pressure on the limited marine resources brought by over fishing and at the same time increase the income of fishing communities.
Read more on:
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
In order to strengthen the financial sector in South Sudan and help provide small entrepreneurs access to credit, USAID is funding the Finance Sudan Limited (FSL) Program, established in 2006 as one of the only microfinance lenders in the country.
Since March 2010, the program has increased the number of clients it serves nearly fourfold--from 2,535 to 9,385.
Adam is one of FSL’s beneficiaries in Juba. In 2007 he earned his living as a driver. After four weeks of training on business management skills and the loan policies , he qualified for his first loan cycle of 1,000 Sudanese pounds, an equivalent of $350 and the maximum amount a new client could receive.
With the loan, he opened his own shop and was so successful, he was able to finish paying off his first loan in six months. Now, Mr. Abraham is finishing repayment of a second loan of 2,000 Sudanese pounds ($700) to grow his business and he will be able to access a third loan in the coming months.
“The loan of 2,000 Sudanese pounds I am currently servicing has significantly multiplied my market’s stock and, through FSL, I am also opening another business. Now I am able to feed my family well out of the increased profits of the two businesses.” Adam plans to diversify his business by investing in the transport sector.
(FSL)
Diversified Transportation 5813, 5109 are Prevost X3-45 coaches.
Photo taken on 102 St at Macdonald Dr in Edmonton, AB.
South Asian sweets are the confectionery and desserts of South Asia. Thousands of dedicated shops in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka sell nothing but sweets.
Sugarcane has been grown in India for thousands of years, and the art of refining sugar was invented there. The English word sugar comes from a Sanskrit word sharkara, while the word candy comes from Sanskrit word khanda (jaggery) - one of the simplest raw forms of sweet. Over its long history, cuisines of the Indian Subcontinent developed a diversified array of sweets. Some[3] claim there is no other region of the world where sweets are so varied, so numerous, or so invested with meaning as the Indian Subcontinent.
In India's diverse languages, sweets are called by numerous names, one common name being Mithai (मिठाई). They include sugar, and a vast array of ingredients such as different flours, milk, milk solids, fermented foods, root vegetables, raw and roasted seeds, seasonal fruits, fruit pastes and dry fruits. Some sweets such as kheer are cooked, some like burfi are baked, varieties like Mysore pak are roasted, some like jalebi are fried, others like kulfi are frozen, while still others involve a creative combination of preparation techniques. The composition and recipes of the sweets and other ingredients vary by region. Mithai are sometimes served with a meal, and often included as a form of greeting, celebration, religious offering, gift giving, parties, and hospitality in India. On Indian festivals - such as Holi, Diwali, Eid, or Raksha Bhandan - sweets are homemade or purchased, then shared. Many social gatherings, wedding ceremonies and religious festivals often include a social celebration of food, and the flavors of sweets are an essential element of such a celebration.
HISTORY
Ancient Sanskrit literature from India mention feasts and offerings of mithas (sweet). One of the more complete surviving texts, with extensive description of sweets and how to prepare them is the Mānasollāsa (Sanskrit: मानसोल्लास; meaning in Sanskrit, the delight of an idea, or delight of mind and senses). This ancient encyclopedia on food, music and other Indian arts is also known as the Abhilaṣitārtha Cintāmaṇi (the magical stone that fulfils desires). Mānasollāsa was composed about 1130 AD, by the Hindu King Somesvara III. The document describes meals that include a rice pudding which are called payasam (Sanskrit: पायसं) are in modern Indian languages is called kheer. The document mentions seven kinds of rice.
Mānasollāsa also describes recipes for golamu as a donut from wheat flour and scented with cardamom, gharikas as a fried cake from black gram flour and sugar syrup, chhana as a fresh cheese and rice flour fritter soaked in sugar syrup that the document suggests should be prepared from strained curdled milk mixed with buttermilk, and many others. Mānasollāsa mentions numerous milk-derived sweets, along with describing the 11th century art of producing milk solids, condensed milk and methods for souring milk to produce sweets.
The origin of sweets in Indian subcontinent has been traced to at least 500 BC, where records suggest both raw sugar (gur, vellam, jaggery) as well as refined sugar (sarkara) were being produced. By 300 BC, kingdom officials in India were including five kinds of sugar in official documents. By the Gupta dynasty era (300–500 AD), sugar was being made not only from sugar cane, but other plant sources such as palm. Sugar-based foods were also included in temple offerings, as bhoga for the deities, which after the prayers became Prasād for devotees, the poor or visitors to the temple.
VARIETIES
BARFANI TODA
Barfi is a sweet, made from milk solids (khoya) or condensed milk and other ingredients like ground cashews or pistachios. Some barfi use various flours such as besan (gram flour). Barfi may be flavored with pastes or pieces of fruits such as mango, banana, berries, coconut. They may include aromatic spices such as cardamom and rose water to enhance the sensual impact while they are consumed.
Sometimes a thin inert silver or gold layer of edible foil is placed on top face of burfi for an attractive presentation. Gold and silver are approved food foils in the European Union, as E175 and E174 additives respectively. The independent European food-safety certification agency, TÜV Rheinland, has deemed gold leaf safe for consumption. Gold and silver leaf are certified kosher. These inert metal foils are neither considered toxic to human beings nor the broader ecosystem.
CHAM-CHAM
Cham Chams are prepared from flattened paneer (a form of curdled milk solids, cheese) sweetened in syrup.
CHHENA MURKI
Chhena murki, or chenna murki, is a sweet made from an Indian version of cottage cheese, milk and sugar in many states such as Odisha. Milk and sugar are boiled to a thick consistency. Round, cubes, cuboid or other shapes of cottage cheese are soaked in the milky condensate It basically started from coastal areas in the district of Bhadrak and nowadays it is available in all parts of Odisha. Other flavors and aromatic spices are typically added. It is also known by Bangladeshi and Guyanese people as pera.
CHHENA PODA
Chhena Poda is a cheese dessert from the state of Odisha in eastern India. 'Chhena poda' literally means 'burnt cheese' in Odia. It is made of well-kneaded homemade cottage cheese or chhena, sugar, cashew nuts and raisins, and is baked for several hours until it browns. The best quality of Chhena Poda is found in the localities of Nayagarh District in Odisha.This sweet is best taste when it is consumed within two days of preparation
CHIKKI
Chikki is a ready-to-eat solid, brittle sweet generally made from casting a mix of dry nuts and hot jaggery syrup. Peanuts and jaggery mix are most common. Other than almonds, cashews, walnuts, sesame and other seeds, varieties of chikki are also prepared from puffed or roasted Bengal gram, puffed rice, beaten rice, puffed seasonal grains, and regional produce such as Khobara (desiccated coconut). Like many Indian sweets, Chikki is typically a high protein delicacy.[
GAJRELA
Gajrela, also called Gajar halwa, is a seasonal pudding-like sweet made from carrot. It is popular in Punjab regions of India, agricultural belt of North India, now common in many parts of South Asia. It is made by slowly cooking carrot with ghee, concentrated and caramelized milk, mawa (khoya) and sugar; often served with a garnish of aromatic spices, almonds, cashews or pistachios. The recipes vary by region, and Gajrela may be cooked without ghee, then include cheese or other milk solids for sophisticated mix of flavors. It is common in Indian restaurants and is a seasonal street and cafe food during post-monsoon through spring festive celebrations.
GULAB JAMUN
Gulab jamun is a common sweet found in India, and Nepal. It is made out of fried chenna (milk solids and cheese) balls soaked in sweet rose-water flavoured syrup.
JALEBI OR IMARTI
Jalebi is made by deep-frying a fermented batter of wheat flour with yoghurt, in a circular (coil-like) shape and then soaking it in sugar syrup. Imarti is a variant of Jalebi, with a different flour mixture and has tighter coils. Typically Jalebi is brown or yellow, while Imarti is reddish in colour. Often taken with milk, tea, yogurt or Lassi. In classical Sanskrit literature, jalebis have been referred to as kundalika or jalavallika.
KHAJA
Khaja is a sweet of India. Refined wheat flour, sugar and oils are the chief ingredients of khaja.
It is believed that, even 2000 years ago,[citation needed] Khajas were prepared in the southern side of the Gangetic Plains of Bihar. These areas which are home to khaja, once comprised the central part of Maurya and Gupta empires. Presently, Khajas are prepared and sold in the city of Patna, Gaya and several other places across the state of Bihar. Khajas of the Silao and Rajgir are known for their puffiness.
Khajas have travelled to some other parts of India, including Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Khaja of Kakinada, a coastal town of Andhra Pradesh is very much famous in South India and Orissa. This Khaja is dry from outside and full of sugar syrup from inside and is juicy. Khaja of Puri is also very famous. At first, the batter is of wheat flour, mawa and oil. It is then deep fried until crisp. Then a sugar syrup is made which is known as "pak". The crisp croissants are then soaked in the sugar syrup until they absorb the sugar syrup.
KULFI
Kulfis are traditional South Asian ice-cream, where flavored milk is first condensed and caramelized by slow cooking in presence of a small quantity of rice or seasonal grain flour; once condensed, dry nut pastes and aromatic spices are added, the mix frozen in small earthen or metal cans. This creates one of the densest known form of frozen sweets; it is typically served between -10 to -15 C when they are easier to spoon and eat. It comes in a variety of flavours such as mango, kesar, pistachios, badam (almond), coconut and plain. It is also a street side urban as well as rural India summer time snack and festive sweet, where food hawkers carry around frozen mounds of kulfi in a big earthen pot and play a particular horn music to attract customers. These vendors are known as "kulfiwalla" (one who sells kulfi).
KHEER OR PAYAS
Kheer is a pudding, usually made from milk, sugar and one of these ingredients - vermicelli, rice, Bulgar wheat, semolina, tapioca, dried dates, and shredded white gourd. It is also known as "Payas".
As sweet rice pudding, payas has been a cultural dish throughout the history of India, being usually found at ceremonies, feasts and celebrations. In many parts of India, ancient traditions maintain that a wedding is not fully blessed if payas (or payasam as known in South India) is not served at the feast during traditional ceremonies like marriage, child birth, annaprasan (first solid feed to child), and other occasions. Other than sweet yoghurt, some families include kheer in the last meal, as hospitality and auspicious food, before a family member or guest departs on a long journey away from the home.
LADDU
Laddu (sometimes transliterated as laddoo or laadu) is made of varieties of flour, grains, pulses, semolina, regional or seasonal fruits, dry fruits, and other ingredients cooked with sugar, then shaped into bite-size or larger spheres. Laddu is mentioned in ancient Sanskrit documents as temple offerings, and is referred to as Ladduka. They are popular all over India, easy to prepare, and come in dozens of varieties. Laddu is often made to celebrate festivals, religious ceremonies, or household events such as weddings.
One example of laddu is Motichoor Ka Ladoo. It is a sweet food in states like Bihar, made from roasted gram flour flakes which are sweetened, mixed with almonds, rolled into a batter which is then cast into mini balls and fried in ghee. Every mini ball called 'boondi' has enough sugar that melts like a fresh sweet. The mini balls are then combined with aromatic spices and then formed into bite-size spheres, which are called Motichoor Ka Ladoo. When bit, the mini balls distribute over the tongue for a burst of flavors throughout the mouth. Other examples include Tirupati Laddu so popular that over a million Laddu are distributed every week from a single temple of Lord Venkateswara.
MALPOA
Malpoa is the most ancient homemade sweets of India.[citation needed] It is a form of pancake (made of wheat or rice flour) deep fried and sugar syrup.
NARIKOL LARU
Narikol Laru is a dessert from Assam. They are ball-shaped and made from khoa/condensed milk and coconut, a traditional food during bihu and pujas
PARWAL KI MIHAI
Parwal Ki Mithai is a dry sweet made of the vegetable parwal, a kind of gourd. The shell of parwal is filled with milk solids, then cooked. It is rather popular in Bihar, but also found in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
PATHISHAPTA
Pathishapta is a Bengali dessert. The final dish is a rolled pancake that is stuffed with a filling often made of coconut, milk, cream, and jaggery from the date palm. These desserts are consumed in Thailand as well.
RASGULLA
Rasgulla is a popular sweet in South Asia. They come in many forms, such as Kamalabhog (Orange Rasgulla), Rajbhog (Giant Rasgulla), Kadamba often served with kheer, Rasamundi, Raskadamba, and others. Some are white, others cream, brown, gold or orange colored. They are called Rasbari in Nepal. This dish is made by boiling small dumplings of chhenna and semolina mixture in sugar syrup. Once cooked, these are stored in the syrup making them spongy. Increasing the semolina content reduces the sponginess and hardens them, creating variety of textures. Some Rasgulla are stuffed inside with treats, such as dry fruits, raisins, candied peel and other delicacies to create a series of flavors experienced as they are consumed. Some versions, called danedhar, are removed from syrup and sugar coated into shapes of fruits and other creative designs. These are festive foods found year round, in many parts of India.
RAS MALAI
Ras malai or rosh malai is a dessert eaten in India and Bangladesh. The name ras malai comes from two words in Hindi: ras, meaning "juice", and malai, meaning "cream". It has been described as "a rich cheesecake without a crust. Ras malai consists of sugary white, cream or yellow-coloured (or flattened) balls of paneer soaked in malai (clotted cream) flavoured with cardamom.
SANDESH
Sandesh is a sweet made from fine cheese made from cow's milk kneaded with fine ground sugar or molasses. This is a sweet from West Bengal and Odisha. Revered for its delicate making, and appreciated by the connoiseur, this represents sweet making at its finest. Sandesh comes in two varieties, "Norom Pak" (the softer version) and "Koda Pak" (the harder version). The softer version although more gentle and considered better, is fragile. The harder version is robust and often easier for storage. Molasses made from dates can be used to make a special variation of Sandesh called "Noleen Gurher Sandesh" (a Sandesh made from "Noleen Gurh" or molases from dates) or simply "Noleen Sandesh".
SEL ROTI
Sel roti is a Nepali home-made circular-shaped bread or rice donut, prepared during Tihar, a widely celebrated Hindu festival in Nepal. It is made of rice flour with adding customized flavors. A semi liquid rice flour dough is usually prepared by adding milk, water, sugar, butter, cardamom, cloves and other flavors of personal choice.
SHRIKHAND
Shrikhand is a creamy dessert made out of strained yogurt, from which water is drained off completely. Dry fruits, mango puree, saffron or cardamom and sugar are added to the thick yoghurt to get the desired flavour and taste. It is served chilled. It is a West Indian traditional dish.
OTHER SWEETS
Other traditional Indian sweets and desserts famous throughout the history of Indian food include:
- Mysore pak (a dessert made out of ghee, sugar and chick pea flour),
- Halwa (or Halva in modern English spelling); made out of flour, butter and sugar
- Jangiri
- Jhajariya
- Dharwad pedha
- Karadantu
WIKIPEDIA
Costa Rica (/ˌkɒstə ˈriːkə/ (About this sound listen); Spanish: [ˈkosta ˈrika]; "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica (Spanish: República de Costa Rica), is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around 4.9 million, in a land area of 51,060 square kilometers; over 300,000 live in the capital and largest city, San José, which had a population of an estimated 333,980 in 2015.
Costa Rica has been known for its stable democracy, in a region that has had some instability, and for its highly educated workforce, most of whom speak English. The country spends roughly 6.9% of its budget (2016) on education, compared to a global average of 4.4%. Its economy, once heavily dependent on agriculture, has diversified to include sectors such as finance, corporate services for foreign companies, pharmaceuticals, and ecotourism. Many foreign companies (manufacturing and services) operate in Costa Rica's free trade zones (FTZ) where they benefit from investment and tax incentives.
In spite of impressive growth in the Gross domestic product (GDP), low inflation, moderate interest rates and an acceptable unemployment level, Costa Rica in 2017 was facing a liquidity crisis due to a growing debt and budget deficit. By August 2017, the Treasury was having difficulty paying its obligations. Other challenges facing the country in its attempts to improve the economy by increasing foreign investment include a poor infrastructure and a need to improve public sector efficiency.
Costa Rica was sparsely inhabited by indigenous peoples before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century. It remained a peripheral colony of the empire until independence as part of the short-lived First Mexican Empire, followed by membership in the United Provinces of Central America, from which it formally declared independence in 1847. Since then, Costa Rica has remained among the most stable, prosperous, and progressive nations in Latin America. Following the brief Costa Rican Civil War, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army.
The country has consistently performed favourably in the Human Development Index (HDI), placing 69th in the world as of 2015, among the highest of any Latin American nation. It has also been cited by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as having attained much higher human development than other countries at the same income levels, with a better record on human development and inequality than the median of the region.
Costa Rica also has progressive environmental policies. It is the only country to meet all five UNDP criteria established to measure environmental sustainability. It was ranked 42nd in the world, and third in the Americas, in the 2016 Environmental Performance Index, and was twice ranked the best performing country in the New Economics Foundation's (NEF) Happy Planet Index, which measures environmental sustainability, and was identified by the NEF as the greenest country in the world in 2009. Costa Rica plans to become a carbon-neutral country by 2021. By 2016, 98.1% of its electricity was generated from green sources particularly hydro, solar, geothermal and biomass.
HISTORY
PRE-COLUMBIAN PERIOD
Historians have classified the indigenous people of Costa Rica as belonging to the Intermediate Area, where the peripheries of the Mesoamerican and Andean native cultures overlapped. More recently, pre-Columbian Costa Rica has also been described as part of the Isthmo-Colombian Area.
Stone tools, the oldest evidence of human occupation in Costa Rica, are associated with the arrival of various groups of hunter-gatherers about 10,000 to 7,000 years BCE in the Turrialba Valley. The presence of Clovis culture type spearheads and arrows from South America opens the possibility that, in this area, two different cultures coexisted.
Agriculture became evident in the populations that lived in Costa Rica about 5,000 years ago. They mainly grew tubers and roots. For the first and second millennia BCE there were already settled farming communities. These were small and scattered, although the timing of the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture as the main livelihood in the territory is still unknown.
The earliest use of pottery appears around 2,000 to 3,000 BCE. Shards of pots, cylindrical vases, platters, gourds and other forms of vases decorated with grooves, prints, and some modelled after animals have been found.
The impact of indigenous peoples on modern Costa Rican culture has been relatively small compared to other nations, since the country lacked a strong native civilization to begin with. Most of the native population was absorbed into the Spanish-speaking colonial society through inter-marriage, except for some small remnants, the most significant of which are the Bribri and Boruca tribes who still inhabit the mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca, in the southeastern part of Costa Rica, near the frontier with Panama.
SPANISH COLONIZATION
The name la costa rica, meaning "rich coast" in the Spanish language, was in some accounts first applied by Christopher Columbus, who sailed to the eastern shores of Costa Rica during his final voyage in 1502, and reported vast quantities of gold jewelry worn by natives. The name may also have come from conquistador Gil González Dávila, who landed on the west coast in 1522, encountered natives, and appropriated some of their gold.
During most of the colonial period, Costa Rica was the southernmost province of the Captaincy General of Guatemala, nominally part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. In practice, the captaincy general was a largely autonomous entity within the Spanish Empire. Costa Rica's distance from the capital of the captaincy in Guatemala, its legal prohibition under Spanish law from trade with its southern neighbor Panama, then part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada (i.e. Colombia), and lack of resources such as gold and silver, made Costa Rica into a poor, isolated, and sparsely-inhabited region within the Spanish Empire. Costa Rica was described as "the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all America" by a Spanish governor in 1719.
Another important factor behind Costa Rica's poverty was the lack of a significant indigenous population available for encomienda (forced labor), which meant most of the Costa Rican settlers had to work on their own land, preventing the establishment of large haciendas (plantations). For all these reasons, Costa Rica was, by and large, unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own. The circumstances during this period are believed to have led to many of the idiosyncrasies for which Costa Rica has become known, while concomitantly setting the stage for Costa Rica's development as a more egalitarian society than the rest of its neighbors. Costa Rica became a "rural democracy" with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class. It was not long before Spanish settlers turned to the hills, where they found rich volcanic soil and a milder climate than that of the lowlands.
INDEPENDENCE
Like the rest of Central America, Costa Rica never fought for independence from Spain. On September 15, 1821, after the final Spanish defeat in the Mexican War of Independence (1810–21), the authorities in Guatemala declared the independence of all of Central America. That date is still celebrated as Independence Day in Costa Rica even though, technically, under the Spanish Constitution of 1812 that had been readopted in 1820, Nicaragua and Costa Rica had become an autonomous province with its capital in León.
Upon independence, Costa Rican authorities faced the issue of officially deciding the future of the country. Two bands formed, the Imperialists, defended by Cartago and Heredia cities which were in favor of joining the Mexican Empire, and the Republicans, represented by the cities of San José and Alajuela who defended full independence. Because of the lack of agreement on these two possible outcomes, the first civil war of Costa Rica occurred. The battle of Ochomogo (es) took place on the Hill of Ochomogo, located in the Central Valley in 1823. The conflict was won by the Republicans and, as a consequence, the city of Cartago lost its status as the capital, which moved to San José.
In 1838, long after the Federal Republic of Central America ceased to function in practice, Costa Rica formally withdrew and proclaimed itself sovereign. The considerable distance and poor communication routes between Guatemala City and the Central Plateau, where most of the Costa Rican population lived then and still lives now, meant the local population had little allegiance to the federal government in Guatemala. From colonial times to now, Costa Rica's reluctance to become economically tied with the rest of Central America has been a major obstacle to efforts for greater regional integration.
ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE 19TH CENTURY
Coffee was first planted in Costa Rica in 1808, and by the 1820s, it surpassed tobacco, sugar, and cacao as a primary export. Coffee production remained Costa Rica's principal source of wealth well into the 20th century, creating a wealthy class of growers, the so-called Coffee Barons. The revenue helped to modernize the country.
Most of the coffee exported was grown around the main centers of population in the Central Plateau and then transported by oxcart to the Pacific port of Puntarenas after the main road was built in 1846. By the mid-1850s the main market for coffee was Britain. It soon became a high priority to develop an effective transportation route from the Central Plateau to the Atlantic Ocean. For this purpose, in the 1870s, the Costa Rican government contracted with U.S. businessman Minor C. Keith to build a railroad from San José to the Caribbean port of Limón. Despite enormous difficulties with construction, disease, and financing, the railroad was completed in 1890.
Most Afro-Costa Ricans descend from Jamaican immigrants who worked in the construction of that railway and now make up about 3% of Costa Rica's population. U.S. convicts, Italians and Chinese immigrants also participated in the construction project. In exchange for completing the railroad, the Costa Rican government granted Keith large tracts of land and a lease on the train route, which he used to produce bananas and export them to the United States. As a result, bananas came to rival coffee as the principal Costa Rican export, while foreign-owned corporations (including the United Fruit Company later) began to hold a major role in the national economy and eventually became a symbol of the exploitative export economy. The major labor dispute between the peasants and the United Fruit Company (The Great Banana Strike) was a major event in the country's history and was an important step that would eventually lead to the formation of effective trade unions in Costa Rica, as the company was required to sign a collective agreement with its workers in 1938.
20TH CENTURY
Historically, Costa Rica has generally enjoyed greater peace and more consistent political stability than many of its fellow Latin American nations. Since the late 19th century, however, Costa Rica has experienced two significant periods of violence. In 1917–19, General Federico Tinoco Granados ruled as a military dictator until he was overthrown and forced into exile. The unpopularity of Tinoco's regime led, after he was overthrown, to a considerable decline in the size, wealth, and political influence of the Costa Rican military. In 1948, José Figueres Ferrer led an armed uprising in the wake of a disputed presidential election between Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia (who had been president between 1940 and 1944) and Otilio Ulate Blanco. With more than 2,000 dead, the resulting 44-day Costa Rican Civil War was the bloodiest event in Costa Rica during the 20th century.
The victorious rebels formed a government junta that abolished the military altogether, and oversaw the drafting of a new constitution by a democratically elected assembly. Having enacted these reforms, the junta transferred power to Ulate on November 8, 1949. After the coup d'état, Figueres became a national hero, winning the country's first democratic election under the new constitution in 1953. Since then, Costa Rica has held 14 presidential elections, the latest in 2014. With uninterrupted democracy dating back to at least 1948, the country is the region's most stable.
GEOGRAPHY
Costa Rica is located on the Central American isthmus, lying between latitudes 8° and 12°N, and longitudes 82° and 86°W. It borders the Caribbean Sea (to the east) and the Pacific Ocean (to the west), with a total of 1,290 kilometres of coastline, 212 km on the Caribbean coast and 1,016 km on the Pacific. Costa Rica also borders Nicaragua to the north (309 km of border) and Panama to the south-southeast (330 km of border). In total, Costa Rica comprises 51,100 square kilometres plus 589 square kilometres of territorial waters.
The highest point in the country is Cerro Chirripó, at 3,819 metres; it is the fifth highest peak in Central America. The highest volcano in the country is the Irazú Volcano (3,431 m) and the largest lake is Lake Arenal. There are 14 known volcanoes in Costa Rica, and six of them have been active in the last 75 years. The country has also experienced at least ten earthquakes of magnitude 5.7 or higher (3 of magnitude 7.0 or higher) in the last century.
Costa Rica also comprises several islands. Cocos Island (24 square kilometres) stands out because of its distance from the continental landmass, 480 kilometres from Puntarenas, but Isla Calero is the largest island of the country (151.6 square kilometres). Over 25% of Costa Rica's national territory is protected by SINAC (the National System of Conservation Areas), which oversees all of the country's protected areas. Costa Rica also possesses the greatest density of species in the world.
CLIMATE
Because Costa Rica is located between 8 and 12 degrees north of the Equator, the climate is tropical year round. However, the country has many microclimates depending on elevation, rainfall, topography, and by the geography of each particular region.
Costa Rica's seasons are defined by how much rain falls during a particular period. The year can be split into two periods, the dry season known to the residents as summer (verano), and the rainy season, known locally as winter (invierno). The "summer" or dry season goes from December to April, and "winter" or rainy season goes from May to November, which almost coincides with the Atlantic hurricane season, and during this time, it rains constantly in some regions.
The location receiving the most rain is the Caribbean slopes of the Cordillera Central mountains, with an annual rainfall of over 5,000 mm. Humidity is also higher on the Caribbean side than on the Pacific side. The mean annual temperature on the coastal lowlands is around 27 °C, 20 °C in the main populated areas of the Cordillera Central, and below 10 °C on the summits of the highest mountains.
FLORA AND FAUNA
Costa Rica is home to a rich variety of plants and animals. While the country has only about 0.03% of the world's landmass, it contains 5% of the world's biodiversity. Around 25% of the country's land area is in protected national parks and protected areas, the largest percentage of protected areas in the world (developing world average 13%, developed world average 8%). Costa Rica has successfully managed to diminish deforestation from some of the worst rates in the world from 1973 to 1989, to almost zero by 2005.
One national park, the Corcovado National Park, is internationally renowned among ecologists for its biodiversity (including big cats and tapirs) and is where visitors can expect to see an abundance of wildlife. Corcovado is the one park in Costa Rica where all four Costa Rican monkey species can be found. These include the white-headed capuchin, the mantled howler, the endangered Geoffroy's spider monkey, and the Central American squirrel monkey, found only on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and a small part of Panama, and considered endangered until 2008, when its status was upgraded to vulnerable. Deforestation, illegal pet-trading, and hunting are the main reasons for its threatened status.
Tortuguero National Park – the name Tortuguero can be translated as "Full of Turtles" – is home to spider, howler, and white-throated capuchin monkeys; the three-toed sloth and two-toed sloth; 320 species of birds; and a variety of reptiles. The park is recognized for the annual nesting of the endangered green turtle, and is the most important nesting site for the species. Giant leatherback, hawksbill, and loggerhead turtles also nest there. The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is home to about 2,000 plant species, including numerous orchids. Over 400 types of birds and more than 100 species of mammals can be found there.
Over 840 species of birds have been identified in Costa Rica. As is the case in much of Central America, the avian species in Costa Rica are a mix of North and South American species. The country's abundant fruit trees, many of which bear fruit year round, are hugely important to the birds, some of whom survive on diets that consist only of one or two types of fruit. Some of the country's most notable avian species include the resplendent quetzal, scarlet macaw, three-wattled bellbird, bare-necked umbrellabird, and the keel-billed toucan. The Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad is allowed to collect royalties on any biological discoveries of medical importance. Costa Rica is a center of biological diversity for reptiles and amphibians, including the world's fastest running lizard, the spiny-tailed iguana (Ctenosaura similis).
WIKIPEDIA
Quiggins was home to many small 'alternative' stores that were housed within three linked adjacent warehouse buildings on a site between School Lane, Peters Lane and College Lane in the city centre of Liverpool, UK. Originally established as an antiques business, with parts of the building rented out to other antique traders, it later diversified into providing space for specialist and alternative stores where many of the stall holders were local artists and craftsmen. It was also the home of "Fraggle Radio", an internet based station streaming rock and punk music, which was founded by Lex and Davey Carter, and the popular Brook Café provided a late night venue for live alternative music.
The business's first location was on Renshaw Street which opened in 1986, where it adopted the name of the long established (1911 Kelly's Directory at that location!) Quiggins architectural supplies & ironmongers which had formerly owned the premises and whose sign still adorned the shop front. The business outgrew the building and in 1988 moved to a larger location on School Lane where Quiggins soon became a significant part of Liverpool's cultural scene. Next to the Bluecoat Centre and only two blocks from the busiest pedestrian traffic on Merseyside, it was seen as an ideal place to trade and congregate.
As part of its Capital of Culture bid, Liverpool City Council drew up the Bluecoat Triangle plan, later to become the Paradise Street Development Scheme, to boost the retail and cultural areas in the city centre, one aspect of which was the proposed acquisition of the building containing Quiggins Centre. Many local residents and businesses lodged objections to these proposals and a well-publicised four-year public relations and political campaign was launched against the plans spearheaded by Peter Tierney, (co-owner & founder) and his supporters. These included a protest march, a petition with over a hundred and fifty thousand signatures presented to Parliament, letter writing and media events, etc.
Quiggins' attached warehouses with 'No Surrender' banner, protesting the CPO (compulsory purchase order) and imminent demolition. The banner is an adapted version of the famous image of Che Guevara to feature owner and founder Pete Tierney's face
A Public Inquiry was held in September to November 2003, at which fifty objectors to the scheme were heard, Quiggins being prominent among them. Noted barrister specialising in planning issues, Mr. Robert McCracken QC led for Quiggins; Mr. David Elvin QC for Liverpool Council and Grosvenor Estates. On the Quiggins' team were Joe Kenny, 'Save Quiggins' campaign manager, Prof. Iain Taylor, urban renewal consultant, Mike Franks, planning consultant and other experts and supporters.
Following the hearing, the Planning Inspector, Derek Mumford upheld the proposed CPOs and on 18 May 2004, the development scheme was approved by John Prescott, the British Deputy Prime Minister. This resulted in the issuance of CPOs against several businesses in the development area, including that of Quiggins. A further vigorous campaign was launched in the Spring of 2006 by the owners of Quiggins and its supporter. However last-ditch negotiations between the partners and with the developer, Grosvenor Estates in June 2006, apparently led to an undisclosed agreement and a withdrawal of the Quiggins' challenge.
The CPO was then executed, which reputedly granted Quiggins a compensation claim of £1.2M before legal costs and tax. On 1 July 2006 Quiggins closed its doors for the last time at the School Lane site. By early 2007 the buildings had been demolished except for the retained ornate facade at the corner of School Lane (Palatine Building) which has been re-used by the Liverpool One development as part of a street of boutiques between Church Street and Paradise Street which opened in late 2008.
In late 2006 Peter Tierney opened 'Quiggins AttiQue' in Aigburth, South Liverpool, and continues trading from there while planning a return to Liverpool City Centre retailing. Continuing its ethos of helping small independent businesses gain a strong foothold under the "Quiggins" banner, it had long been Quiggins' intention to acquire the lease to the John Lewis Store (formerly George Henry-Lee) on Church Street, and lengthy negotiations took place with Grosvenor and City Council in an attempt to achieve this. However an announcement on 1 October 2007 declared that Rapid Hardware would take over the premises in 2011.
The name Quiggins is now also associated with a shopping centre on Renshaw Street, Liverpool (the old Central Hall) as it came to accommodate some of the tenants who left Quiggins on Peters Lane after closure, but there is no business connection or ownership link between the two.
LIVERPOOL JUNE 2012
ICI, was a very well known British company synonymous with the production and development of chemicals, fertilisers, insecticides, dyestuffs, metals, paints, and explosives. During the 1930s, ICI diversified into pharmaceuticals and developed drugs to control bacterial and parasitic infection. The Company was also credited with the development of the first effective synthetic malaria drug (1940s), and invented beta blockers for heart problems in the 1960s.
I came across this very early ICI (Imperial Chemical Industries) lapel badge in 2000, eight years before ICI ceased trading as a company. I bought the badge from an antique/collectables/bric-a-brac shop and was immediately intrigued by the lion trademark as it differed greatly from the familiar ICI roundel logo. Its size is also impressive, measuring approximately 2 x 2 inches.
In order to glean background information about the design, I wrote to ICI at its Millbank, London HQ in 2000 and received the following detailed information (via letter) from their public relations department.
'We can confirm that it has been associated (the design) with the company for the best part of its history and probably, the use of the lion as a symbol, predates the formation of ICI in 1926.
My research indicates that it probably made its first appearance as a design competition winner for the cover of the new house journal called 'ICI Magazine' which was published for all ICI staff throughout the world. The first edition published in 1928 carried the results of a competition with 421 entries and the designs of five of the winners were illustrated, including the lion device designed by W E Anderson of the British Dyestuffs Corporation Ltd., Sales Department, Blackley, Manchester.
British Dyestuffs Corporation Ltd (BDC), was one of the four major chemical companies (the others being Nobel Industries Ltd., Brunner Mond & Co Ltd and the Alkali Co Ltd) which were amalgamated to form ICI late in 1926 to combat foreign competition, particularly from the German chemical industry at that time. Incidentally, the present ICI roundel logo originated through an adaptation of one of the Nobel Industries logos which we felt to be the most easily adapted.
There may have been some use of a lion in BDC's product promotion prior to Mr Anderson's competition entry, but this would appear to be the first use of a lion combined with the ICI initials. It symbolises ICI and British Imperialism striding across the industrial world, a popular sentiment of the time.
Subsequently the device in various forms was used by the ICI Dyestuffs Division and their agents in certain product promotion overseas, particularly China and the Far East, Africa and the Near East, in the 30s and 40s. It was registered with adaptations as a trademark in some territories and was also used by ICI Paints Division later in the 1940s and 1950s. Indeed a large version of the ICI lion device was still affixed to the end of one of the buildings at our Paints site at Slough in the early 1990s and may still be there.
The Lion device gained popularity with the internal workforce and adopted as a symbol for factory recreation and social clubs, including some of the inter-site personnel activities which required a strong identification with the workforce.
Health and Safety has always been a prime consideration of the Company, who ran competitions to promote good practice and employees were encouraged to qualify as 'First Aid' staff. The badge is therefore an example of an award given to an employee of one of our sites.....'
This badge was purchased near Merthyr, South Wales and a calculated guess would suggest that the piece is linked to the former ICI Landore plant near Swansea, thirty miles west of Merthyr.
Photography, layout and design: Argy58
(This image also exists as a high resolution jpeg and tiff - ideal for a variety of print sizes
e.g. A4, A3, A2 and A1. The current uploaded format is for screen based viewing only: 72pi)
South Asian sweets are the confectionery and desserts of South Asia. Thousands of dedicated shops in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka sell nothing but sweets.
Sugarcane has been grown in India for thousands of years, and the art of refining sugar was invented there. The English word sugar comes from a Sanskrit word sharkara, while the word candy comes from Sanskrit word khanda (jaggery) - one of the simplest raw forms of sweet. Over its long history, cuisines of the Indian Subcontinent developed a diversified array of sweets. Some[3] claim there is no other region of the world where sweets are so varied, so numerous, or so invested with meaning as the Indian Subcontinent.
In India's diverse languages, sweets are called by numerous names, one common name being Mithai (मिठाई). They include sugar, and a vast array of ingredients such as different flours, milk, milk solids, fermented foods, root vegetables, raw and roasted seeds, seasonal fruits, fruit pastes and dry fruits. Some sweets such as kheer are cooked, some like burfi are baked, varieties like Mysore pak are roasted, some like jalebi are fried, others like kulfi are frozen, while still others involve a creative combination of preparation techniques. The composition and recipes of the sweets and other ingredients vary by region. Mithai are sometimes served with a meal, and often included as a form of greeting, celebration, religious offering, gift giving, parties, and hospitality in India. On Indian festivals - such as Holi, Diwali, Eid, or Raksha Bhandan - sweets are homemade or purchased, then shared. Many social gatherings, wedding ceremonies and religious festivals often include a social celebration of food, and the flavors of sweets are an essential element of such a celebration.
HISTORY
Ancient Sanskrit literature from India mention feasts and offerings of mithas (sweet). One of the more complete surviving texts, with extensive description of sweets and how to prepare them is the Mānasollāsa (Sanskrit: मानसोल्लास; meaning in Sanskrit, the delight of an idea, or delight of mind and senses). This ancient encyclopedia on food, music and other Indian arts is also known as the Abhilaṣitārtha Cintāmaṇi (the magical stone that fulfils desires). Mānasollāsa was composed about 1130 AD, by the Hindu King Somesvara III. The document describes meals that include a rice pudding which are called payasam (Sanskrit: पायसं) are in modern Indian languages is called kheer. The document mentions seven kinds of rice.
Mānasollāsa also describes recipes for golamu as a donut from wheat flour and scented with cardamom, gharikas as a fried cake from black gram flour and sugar syrup, chhana as a fresh cheese and rice flour fritter soaked in sugar syrup that the document suggests should be prepared from strained curdled milk mixed with buttermilk, and many others. Mānasollāsa mentions numerous milk-derived sweets, along with describing the 11th century art of producing milk solids, condensed milk and methods for souring milk to produce sweets.
The origin of sweets in Indian subcontinent has been traced to at least 500 BC, where records suggest both raw sugar (gur, vellam, jaggery) as well as refined sugar (sarkara) were being produced. By 300 BC, kingdom officials in India were including five kinds of sugar in official documents. By the Gupta dynasty era (300–500 AD), sugar was being made not only from sugar cane, but other plant sources such as palm. Sugar-based foods were also included in temple offerings, as bhoga for the deities, which after the prayers became Prasād for devotees, the poor or visitors to the temple.
VARIETIES
BARFANI TODA
Barfi is a sweet, made from milk solids (khoya) or condensed milk and other ingredients like ground cashews or pistachios. Some barfi use various flours such as besan (gram flour). Barfi may be flavored with pastes or pieces of fruits such as mango, banana, berries, coconut. They may include aromatic spices such as cardamom and rose water to enhance the sensual impact while they are consumed.
Sometimes a thin inert silver or gold layer of edible foil is placed on top face of burfi for an attractive presentation. Gold and silver are approved food foils in the European Union, as E175 and E174 additives respectively. The independent European food-safety certification agency, TÜV Rheinland, has deemed gold leaf safe for consumption. Gold and silver leaf are certified kosher. These inert metal foils are neither considered toxic to human beings nor the broader ecosystem.
CHAM-CHAM
Cham Chams are prepared from flattened paneer (a form of curdled milk solids, cheese) sweetened in syrup.
CHHENA MURKI
Chhena murki, or chenna murki, is a sweet made from an Indian version of cottage cheese, milk and sugar in many states such as Odisha. Milk and sugar are boiled to a thick consistency. Round, cubes, cuboid or other shapes of cottage cheese are soaked in the milky condensate It basically started from coastal areas in the district of Bhadrak and nowadays it is available in all parts of Odisha. Other flavors and aromatic spices are typically added. It is also known by Bangladeshi and Guyanese people as pera.
CHHENA PODA
Chhena Poda is a cheese dessert from the state of Odisha in eastern India. 'Chhena poda' literally means 'burnt cheese' in Odia. It is made of well-kneaded homemade cottage cheese or chhena, sugar, cashew nuts and raisins, and is baked for several hours until it browns. The best quality of Chhena Poda is found in the localities of Nayagarh District in Odisha.This sweet is best taste when it is consumed within two days of preparation
CHIKKI
Chikki is a ready-to-eat solid, brittle sweet generally made from casting a mix of dry nuts and hot jaggery syrup. Peanuts and jaggery mix are most common. Other than almonds, cashews, walnuts, sesame and other seeds, varieties of chikki are also prepared from puffed or roasted Bengal gram, puffed rice, beaten rice, puffed seasonal grains, and regional produce such as Khobara (desiccated coconut). Like many Indian sweets, Chikki is typically a high protein delicacy.[
GAJRELA
Gajrela, also called Gajar halwa, is a seasonal pudding-like sweet made from carrot. It is popular in Punjab regions of India, agricultural belt of North India, now common in many parts of South Asia. It is made by slowly cooking carrot with ghee, concentrated and caramelized milk, mawa (khoya) and sugar; often served with a garnish of aromatic spices, almonds, cashews or pistachios. The recipes vary by region, and Gajrela may be cooked without ghee, then include cheese or other milk solids for sophisticated mix of flavors. It is common in Indian restaurants and is a seasonal street and cafe food during post-monsoon through spring festive celebrations.
GULAB JAMUN
Gulab jamun is a common sweet found in India, and Nepal. It is made out of fried chenna (milk solids and cheese) balls soaked in sweet rose-water flavoured syrup.
JALEBI OR IMARTI
Jalebi is made by deep-frying a fermented batter of wheat flour with yoghurt, in a circular (coil-like) shape and then soaking it in sugar syrup. Imarti is a variant of Jalebi, with a different flour mixture and has tighter coils. Typically Jalebi is brown or yellow, while Imarti is reddish in colour. Often taken with milk, tea, yogurt or Lassi. In classical Sanskrit literature, jalebis have been referred to as kundalika or jalavallika.
KHAJA
Khaja is a sweet of India. Refined wheat flour, sugar and oils are the chief ingredients of khaja.
It is believed that, even 2000 years ago,[citation needed] Khajas were prepared in the southern side of the Gangetic Plains of Bihar. These areas which are home to khaja, once comprised the central part of Maurya and Gupta empires. Presently, Khajas are prepared and sold in the city of Patna, Gaya and several other places across the state of Bihar. Khajas of the Silao and Rajgir are known for their puffiness.
Khajas have travelled to some other parts of India, including Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Khaja of Kakinada, a coastal town of Andhra Pradesh is very much famous in South India and Orissa. This Khaja is dry from outside and full of sugar syrup from inside and is juicy. Khaja of Puri is also very famous. At first, the batter is of wheat flour, mawa and oil. It is then deep fried until crisp. Then a sugar syrup is made which is known as "pak". The crisp croissants are then soaked in the sugar syrup until they absorb the sugar syrup.
KULFI
Kulfis are traditional South Asian ice-cream, where flavored milk is first condensed and caramelized by slow cooking in presence of a small quantity of rice or seasonal grain flour; once condensed, dry nut pastes and aromatic spices are added, the mix frozen in small earthen or metal cans. This creates one of the densest known form of frozen sweets; it is typically served between -10 to -15 C when they are easier to spoon and eat. It comes in a variety of flavours such as mango, kesar, pistachios, badam (almond), coconut and plain. It is also a street side urban as well as rural India summer time snack and festive sweet, where food hawkers carry around frozen mounds of kulfi in a big earthen pot and play a particular horn music to attract customers. These vendors are known as "kulfiwalla" (one who sells kulfi).
KHEER OR PAYAS
Kheer is a pudding, usually made from milk, sugar and one of these ingredients - vermicelli, rice, Bulgar wheat, semolina, tapioca, dried dates, and shredded white gourd. It is also known as "Payas".
As sweet rice pudding, payas has been a cultural dish throughout the history of India, being usually found at ceremonies, feasts and celebrations. In many parts of India, ancient traditions maintain that a wedding is not fully blessed if payas (or payasam as known in South India) is not served at the feast during traditional ceremonies like marriage, child birth, annaprasan (first solid feed to child), and other occasions. Other than sweet yoghurt, some families include kheer in the last meal, as hospitality and auspicious food, before a family member or guest departs on a long journey away from the home.
LADDU
Laddu (sometimes transliterated as laddoo or laadu) is made of varieties of flour, grains, pulses, semolina, regional or seasonal fruits, dry fruits, and other ingredients cooked with sugar, then shaped into bite-size or larger spheres. Laddu is mentioned in ancient Sanskrit documents as temple offerings, and is referred to as Ladduka. They are popular all over India, easy to prepare, and come in dozens of varieties. Laddu is often made to celebrate festivals, religious ceremonies, or household events such as weddings.
One example of laddu is Motichoor Ka Ladoo. It is a sweet food in states like Bihar, made from roasted gram flour flakes which are sweetened, mixed with almonds, rolled into a batter which is then cast into mini balls and fried in ghee. Every mini ball called 'boondi' has enough sugar that melts like a fresh sweet. The mini balls are then combined with aromatic spices and then formed into bite-size spheres, which are called Motichoor Ka Ladoo. When bit, the mini balls distribute over the tongue for a burst of flavors throughout the mouth. Other examples include Tirupati Laddu so popular that over a million Laddu are distributed every week from a single temple of Lord Venkateswara.
MALPOA
Malpoa is the most ancient homemade sweets of India.[citation needed] It is a form of pancake (made of wheat or rice flour) deep fried and sugar syrup.
NARIKOL LARU
Narikol Laru is a dessert from Assam. They are ball-shaped and made from khoa/condensed milk and coconut, a traditional food during bihu and pujas
PARWAL KI MIHAI
Parwal Ki Mithai is a dry sweet made of the vegetable parwal, a kind of gourd. The shell of parwal is filled with milk solids, then cooked. It is rather popular in Bihar, but also found in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
PATHISHAPTA
Pathishapta is a Bengali dessert. The final dish is a rolled pancake that is stuffed with a filling often made of coconut, milk, cream, and jaggery from the date palm. These desserts are consumed in Thailand as well.
RASGULLA
Rasgulla is a popular sweet in South Asia. They come in many forms, such as Kamalabhog (Orange Rasgulla), Rajbhog (Giant Rasgulla), Kadamba often served with kheer, Rasamundi, Raskadamba, and others. Some are white, others cream, brown, gold or orange colored. They are called Rasbari in Nepal. This dish is made by boiling small dumplings of chhenna and semolina mixture in sugar syrup. Once cooked, these are stored in the syrup making them spongy. Increasing the semolina content reduces the sponginess and hardens them, creating variety of textures. Some Rasgulla are stuffed inside with treats, such as dry fruits, raisins, candied peel and other delicacies to create a series of flavors experienced as they are consumed. Some versions, called danedhar, are removed from syrup and sugar coated into shapes of fruits and other creative designs. These are festive foods found year round, in many parts of India.
RAS MALAI
Ras malai or rosh malai is a dessert eaten in India and Bangladesh. The name ras malai comes from two words in Hindi: ras, meaning "juice", and malai, meaning "cream". It has been described as "a rich cheesecake without a crust. Ras malai consists of sugary white, cream or yellow-coloured (or flattened) balls of paneer soaked in malai (clotted cream) flavoured with cardamom.
SANDESH
Sandesh is a sweet made from fine cheese made from cow's milk kneaded with fine ground sugar or molasses. This is a sweet from West Bengal and Odisha. Revered for its delicate making, and appreciated by the connoiseur, this represents sweet making at its finest. Sandesh comes in two varieties, "Norom Pak" (the softer version) and "Koda Pak" (the harder version). The softer version although more gentle and considered better, is fragile. The harder version is robust and often easier for storage. Molasses made from dates can be used to make a special variation of Sandesh called "Noleen Gurher Sandesh" (a Sandesh made from "Noleen Gurh" or molases from dates) or simply "Noleen Sandesh".
SEL ROTI
Sel roti is a Nepali home-made circular-shaped bread or rice donut, prepared during Tihar, a widely celebrated Hindu festival in Nepal. It is made of rice flour with adding customized flavors. A semi liquid rice flour dough is usually prepared by adding milk, water, sugar, butter, cardamom, cloves and other flavors of personal choice.
SHRIKHAND
Shrikhand is a creamy dessert made out of strained yogurt, from which water is drained off completely. Dry fruits, mango puree, saffron or cardamom and sugar are added to the thick yoghurt to get the desired flavour and taste. It is served chilled. It is a West Indian traditional dish.
OTHER SWEETS
Other traditional Indian sweets and desserts famous throughout the history of Indian food include:
- Mysore pak (a dessert made out of ghee, sugar and chick pea flour),
- Halwa (or Halva in modern English spelling); made out of flour, butter and sugar
- Jangiri
- Jhajariya
- Dharwad pedha
- Karadantu
WIKIPEDIA
SALEM, Ore. – Husband and wife duo Chris and Elizabeth Miller believe that diversifying their farm is the key to success. That’s why their certified organic farm, Minto Island Growers, includes a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) component, in addition to a farm stand, food truck, and service at the Salem Saturday Market. The farm has been in the family since the 1970s. Since 2010, Chris and Elizabeth have worked with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to obtain financial incentives and conservation assistance to help them maximize the potential of their organic operation. With funding from the NRCS organic initiative, the Miller’s have upgraded their irrigation equipment to save energy and labor costs; installed a seasonal high tunnel to expand the crop production season; planted cover crops, and more. Pictured: Chris Miller and Jarod Seaman, NRCS District Conservationist. NRCS photos by Tracy Robillard.
Reginald Ansett had made his first fortune building a small ground shuttle business in southern Australia, proving so successful he threatened a government monopoly on rail travel. Fearing the Australian government would shut his ground service down, Ansett diversified into air travel, then in its infancy in Australia. Revenue service with a Fokker Universal began in 1936 and was just as successful as his ground service; he expanded his routes during World War II by taking charters from US Army Air Forces units operating from Australia. This allowed him to acquire several Douglas C-47s from war surplus, putting them into service in 1946.
Ansett’s small service was able to survive in a niche market; postwar, the real competition was between state-owned Trans-Australian Airlines (TAA) and Australian National Airways (ANA), owned by a British consortium. TAA gradually drove ANA out of business by 1957, but the Australian government feared the backlash from a government-owned monopoly. Ansett offered to buy out ANA, an offer accepted in October 1957, and the two airlines became known as Ansett-ANA, until 1968, when it became Ansett of Australia. Both Reginald Ansett and the Australian government ensured that only two airlines would be allowed to operate domestically in Australia—the former by buying up several smaller Australian airlines, and the latter by forbidding the import of any new aircraft into Australia. Ansett was also able to temporarily halt the introduction of jet aircraft to domestic operations, preferring to fly turboprop Vickers Viscounts and Lockheed L-188 Electras.
Reginald Ansett retired in the late 1970s, and Ansett itself was acquired by Australian freight magnate Peter Abeles and British news media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Ansett changed its livery from its previous red-tail-and-delta motif to a stylized Australian flag on an all-white fuselage. The 1970s had seen the airline gradually modernize, finally acquiring jet Boeing 727s. The 1980s proved a time of expansion for Ansett, gradually moving into international operations with the acquisition of Boeing 767s, as well as opening a new subsidiary, Ansett New Zealand, for operations in that nation. This ended in 1995 when Air New Zealand acquired a 50% share of Ansett Australia.
By 2000 Ansett was in direct competition with Qantas both domestically and internationally. Air New Zealand bought out Abeles and Murdoch and owned Ansett directly, fighting off Singapore Airlines’ attempt to buy the airline. Ansett, however, was in trouble: the Australian government had considerably loosened Australia’s air corridors, allowing foreign airlines to fly domestic routes within the country. Facing competition from other airlines, low-cost startups like Virgin Blue, aging aircraft, and maintenance problems (the latter of which grounded Ansett’s 767 fleet in 2001, permanently), Ansett faced bankruptcy.
The situation worsened still when Air New Zealand, also facing bankruptcy, was bailed out by the New Zealand government; New Zealand could bail out its flag carrier or Ansett, but not both. With no money, Ansett collapsed on 13 September 2001, throwing 16,000 people out of work without warning. The Australian government allowed the airline to relaunch on a limited basis in October 2001, with a no-frills Airbus A320 service, in the hopes that it would attract a buyer. This was unsuccessful, and Ansett finally closed down for good in 2002.
From 1957 to 1968, Ansett operated in a dual livery with Australian National Airways, at the insistence of the Australian government, until Ansett was allowed to drop the ANA name. Towards the end of this arrangement, Ansett expressed interest in ordering wide-bodied airliners. In the end, the airline would instead order more Boeing 727s instead, and would not get their first wide-bodies until the late 1980s. The airline never flew the L-1011 Tristar, but it expressed interest in the design, as Ansett had flown L-188 Electras. Had the Ansett-ANA livery remained a few years and the airline operated the L-1011, this is what it would have looked like. As such, this is something of a "what-if."
VH-RME was an Ansett aircraft, but this time, it was a 727. This aircraft shows the hybrid Ansett-ANA livery of the late 1960s.
The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding antenna, but including a 244 m spire[2]) of 828 m (2,717 ft), the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world. The building was opened in 2010 as part of a new development called Downtown Dubai. It is designed to be the centrepiece of large-scale, mixed-use development. The decision to construct the building is based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy, and for Dubai to gain international recognition.
Lost Einsteins: Diversifying Innovation
Amy Brachio, Global Deputy Vice-Chair, EY, USA. Kevin Frey, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Unlimited, UNICEF, Generation Unlimited, USA. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General-elect, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva
Maria Leptin, President, European Research Council, Belgium. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief, Nature, United Kingdom
Tuesday 2 May 2023
14.45 - 15.30
Stakeholder Dialogue
World Economic Forum Headquarters, Eiger
Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jean-Luc Auboeuf
The Growth Summit: Jobs and Opportunity for All 2023 in Geneva, Switzerland
Bangladeshi farmer Gopal Mohanta fetches water as part of his daily task of feeding and watering his livestock. He did not previously have animals, but was able to buy them thanks to a dramatic improvement in his livelihood after he began to work with CIMMYT. He grows a variety of crops that meet the family's food and feed needs, and each day he and his wife mix up a balanced meal for their animals.
The family's fortunes began to change when Mohanta attended a farmer training session provided by CIMMYT in collaboration with partners in Bangladesh. This opened a door for him to take advantage of a range of resources from CIMMYT and its partners—including seed, technologies, and practices—and to combine these with his own hard work and talent.
One of the changes Mohanta made was to plant a more diverse range of crops, and in 2005 he planted maize for the first time, using improved seed based on CIMMYT materials. He achieves high yields of 12-13 t/ha, which he is able to sell at a good profit, as a growing market is fueling high and stable maize prices in Bangladesh. As well as being able to invest in livestock and other farm diversification, such as a pond stocked with fish, the increased income has brought other benefits for the family. Mohanta and his wife have built a new, larger house and are able to provide a better education for their two children.
The family has come a long way, providing a shining example of what is possible to others in their community of Boiragee, Dinajpur. However, the success story is far from over; looking to the future, Mohanta plans to buy more land and to plant more crops.
Photo credit: S. Mojumder/Drik/CIMMYT.
For the latest on CIMMYT in Bangladesh, see CIMMYT's blog at: blog.cimmyt.org/?tag=bangladesh.
GOVERNOR TOMBLIN DELIVERS
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO STATE LEGISLATURE
CHARLESTON, W.VA. (January 11, 2017)-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today
delivered his farewell address to the West Virginia Legislature in the House Chamber at the State Capitol Complex after serving six years as governor and a total of 42 years in public service in the Mountain State.
Information on Gov. Tomblin's accomplishments during his six-year
administration can be found here.
See below for the speech as prepared for delivery:
Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, members of the Board of Public Works, justices of
the Supreme Court of Appeals, members of the Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow West Virginians, I stand before you today, after six years in the Governor's office and 42 years in this grand statehouse, with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection and an equally profound hope for West Virginia's future.
Public service has anchored my life's work-from a young 22-year-old in this very House chamber, to a desk across the hall in the State Senate, the Senate President's podium for 17 years and now as your 35th Governor.
It has been the greatest honor-and the greatest reward-to serve the people of this state that we all love. Together, we have put West Virginia first and moved our state forward-even in the midst of tough times, including far-reaching economic shifts, budgetary challenges and historic natural disasters.
West Virginians are strongest in the toughest times. We come together. We lift each other up. And we don't just hope for a better future; we fight for it.
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION & JOB CREATION
Working hard is exactly what we've done over the past six years to create new economic opportunities for the Mountain State.
We have all seen the dramatic impact of the coal industry's decline in our state. We've seen thousands of jobs lost. Families and communities struggling. People beginning to lose hope.
But I believe in-and have fought to reach-the light around the corner.
Shortly after becoming Governor, I pledged to go anywhere and meet with anyone to grow our state's economy. Across West Virginia, the country and the globe, we have succeeded.
Last year, global giant Procter & Gamble announced it would build its first U.S. manufacturing facility since the 1970s right here in West Virginia in the Eastern Panhandle. This will ultimately be a half-billion dollar investment in the Mountain State and result in hundreds of new jobs.
P&G chose our state after an exhaustive search of many others. And as numerous companies have discovered, I know they will find it to be the best decision they've ever made.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, has expanded continuously-nine times, in fact.
Today, Toyota employs more than 1,600 people. And the company has invested $1.4 billion since 1996.
Manufacturing jobs, like those at P&G in Martinsburg and Toyota in Buffalo, will be among the most critical to our state's economic future.
In my time as your Governor, I have fought for jobs like these and many more. From Amazon in Huntington and Macy's in Berkeley County, to Bombardier Aerospace manufacturing in Harrison County-which just in November announced an expansion of 150 jobs.
Companies are finding that when they invest in West Virginia, it pays off.
In fact, since 2011, West Virginia has seen more than $15 billion in new investments, spanning 275 projects. We have welcomed more than 60 new companies and secured 215 competitive expansion projects.
Over the past six years, investment projects have reached 22 industries and provided West Virginians with more than 12,000 good-paying jobs.
Right here in the Kanawha Valley, we have one of the best examples of that remarkable progress.
Gestamp has grown beyond the bounds of any of our expectations. Since opening in 2013, Gestamp has tripled production and more than doubled its workforce, now employing nearly 900 West Virginians.
I know that one of the fundamental reasons behind their growth has been our ability to transform workforce training in West Virginia for the better.
STRENGTHENING WORKFORCE TRAINING & EDUCATION
For example, the Learn and Earn program which we launched in 2012, gives our community and technical college students classroom instruction and hands-on work experience simultaneously. These students earn a competitive salary while giving employers a cost-effective way to recruit and train new employees.
Joe Atha is one of these students. A former coal miner, Joe is now a student at BridgeValley Community and Technical College where he is also supporting his family by earning a wage through the Learn and Earn program at Gestamp.
Joe is here today with his wife, Rita. Please stand to be recognized... along with Dr. Sarah Tucker, Chancellor of our Community and Technical College System.
Through forward-thinking programs like this, we can make a real, lasting difference for West Virginians.
That's why I personally convened the West Virginia Workforce Planning Council, which has helped us break down bureaucratic silos and better align classroom learning with the workforce needs of our businesses and industries.
We've even started that process in high schools through the Simulated Workplace program.
Today, our career technical education classrooms have been transformed into businesses. Medical classes are now clinics. Hospitality programs are now catering businesses and restaurants.
And instead of just going to a welding or carpentry class, our students are now part of a construction company, complete with job foremen and safety inspectors.
Just last month, we celebrated a heartwarming moment as a result of the hard work of more than 2,000 of these students from 12 high schools across the state.
Together with the Department of Education's Career Technical Education division, the West Virginia National Guard and our Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, we presented keys to tiny homes that were designed and built by these students for survivors of the historic floods that hit our state last June.
REBUILDING FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Time and again, in the aftermath of this tragic flooding we have seen the selflessness of West Virginians make a difference for one another.
The "Big Hearts Give Tiny Homes" project was a shining example of that West Virginia spirit-one that made an overwhelming difference for 15 families impacted by the flooding, including Brenda Rivers from Nicholas County, whose home was a total loss in the flooding. Brenda now lives in a new tiny home built by students, including Chance Ballard from Spring Valley High School in Wayne County.
Please join me in welcoming Brenda and Chance ... along with Dr. Kathy D'Antoni ... whose visionary leadership at the Department of Education has made Simulated Workplace the success it is today.
Working hand-in-hand with the federal government and local officials, our immediate response to the flooding was quick and effective. We were able to expedite federal assistance to our communities and families in need. And over the past seven months, we have been able to shift our focus to long-term recovery.
Through a public-private approach, we launched the RISE West Virginia program, which in total has provided nearly $2 million to 230 small businesses in the flood-impacted counties-funding that is helping them reopen or continue operations and keep fueling our local economies.
I would like to thank, once again, West Virginia native and champion Brad Smith-the CEO of Intuit, one of the world's leading financial software companies-and his wife Alys for their family donation of $500,000, which gave the RISE program its first, needed boost.
West Virginia has experienced more than its share of disasters during my time as your Governor-this historic flooding, the Derecho, Hurricane Sandy, Winter Storms Thor and Jonas and the water crisis.
Through it all, we have grown stronger, we have improved our emergency response capabilities and we have strengthened public safety.
Adversity demands resilience. That's what we have shown in these challenges and many more-including one of the most trying epidemics I believe the Mountain State has ever faced-with the sharp rise in substance abuse and addiction.
FIGHTING SUBSTANCE ABUSE
That's why in 2011, I issued an Executive Order to create the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse, made up of representatives of substance abuse prevention, behavioral medicine, law enforcement, child and adolescent psychology, the legal system, residential treatment facilities, the public school system, the faith community and health care.
My vision for this Council was a community-driven, ground-up approach to tackling this epidemic. Through community-based task forces in six regions across the state, we have made significant progress and enacted life-saving reforms.
We now look at substance abuse as an illness-not a crime.
We have decreased the number of meth labs across the state as the result of making it more difficult to obtain pseudoephedrine.
We have expanded access to the life-saving drug Narcan to first responders and family members of those struggling with addiction. Last year alone, hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
We have substance abuse prevention services in all 55 counties. We have expanded and improved community-based treatment options and recovery services. Across the state, we have 188 crisis detox beds in residential treatment facilities with more sites under development.
We have 118 beds designated for youth and postpartum treatment as well as short-term and long-term residential treatment. And we have over 1,000 beds for those seeking help and support through peer and provider recovery homes and facilities.
We are working closely with our prisons and correctional facilities to ensure all West Virginians are provided access to substance abuse rehabilitation.
In fact, the Division of Corrections operates nine residential substance abuse treatment units in correctional centers across the state and we have expanded this model to our regional jail facilities as well.
And-through Justice Reinvestment-we have successfully worked to address substance abuse, which is the root cause of many crimes.
Because of that work, we have expanded drug courts, substance abuse counseling and greater supervision after release.
And ultimately, we have better controlled incarceration rates, which prevented our state from having to build a new $200 million prison that was projected to be needed because of our previous rising prison population.
Just this week, we announced the news that West Virginia reached settlements with two additional drug wholesalers totaling $36 million, which resolves allegations by our state regarding the distribution of controlled substances in West Virginia.
This brings the total amount of drug settlement money paid to our state by drug wholesalers to $47 million, which will expand our efforts even further for more law enforcement diversion options, more treatment recovery services and many more efforts to fight this epidemic.
I am also deeply proud of the work we have done in creating the state's first 24-hour substance abuse call line, 844-HELP-4-WV, which has received nearly 8,500 calls since it launched in September 2015.
The help line provides referral support for those seeking help and recovery services. It's an opportunity for people who are struggling to talk with someone who cares, get connected to treatment options and begin the road to recovery.
No caller is ever placed on hold and they are immediately connected with treatment staff representing the best and most appropriate treatment options for them.
Administered by First Choice Health Systems of West Virginia, the help line is staffed by certified professionals, many who have overcome addiction themselves and want to help others turn their lives around as well.
One young gentleman I met did just that because he picked up the phone.
A.J. Walker, a recovering alcoholic and addict, was given the help line number by his brother.
A.J. said when he called, he was treated like a person-not like a drug addict-and he found hope. They got him into a detox facility and into recovery, and the help line staff called and checked in on him every step of the way.
Today, A.J. is employed by the treatment facility that helped him and he's in school studying to become a substance abuse counselor.
A.J. is here today with his brother, Andrew, and Vickie Jones ... Commissioner of our Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities.
A.J. we are so proud of you. And today ... you are giving hope to so many.
When I hear stories like A.J.'s, I am incredibly optimistic for West Virginia's future. With economic changes, job losses and families struggling, we have to seize every opportunity before us to become stronger as individuals and as a state.
One such opportunity lies in Boone and Lincoln Counties, where I believe we have the chance to revitalize Southern West Virginia and make the Mountain State stronger.
EMBRACING THE FUTURE
It was here in this chamber, one year ago during my State of the State Address, where I announced plans for the largest development project in West Virginia's history at the former Hobet surface mine site.
Since last year at this time, we have worked every day and we have made tremendous progress on this project, which is now known as Rock Creek Development Park.
We have worked with local landowners, who are generously donating land that will result in more than 12,000 developable acres for Rock Creek, which is the size of the city of Huntington.
The West Virginia National Guard-Rock Creek's first tenant-is on the ground with newly-expanded operations for maintenance work and training.
And we have a long-term strategic plan now in place, which looks at demographics and market trends to help us identify the best investment opportunities for Rock Creek.
For generations, our coal miners, workers and their families have kept West Virginia strong. Now, it's our turn to help them.
By realizing the full potential of Rock Creek Development Park for job creation and economic diversification, we can build up a region of our state hard hit by the downturn in the coal industry.
My vision for Rock Creek started many years ago as I rode my four-wheeler around the hills of Southern West Virginia and saw the possibilities that such an enormous site-with such a great amount of flat land-could have.
Embracing opportunities like this takes careful thought and planning, and this public-private project will require some investment by the state. But I believe wholeheartedly that the returns will vastly exceed our investment.
That isn't something I say lightly.
Throughout my 42 years in public service, fiscal responsibility has been at the heart of every project I've undertaken, every policy I've fought for and every decision I've made.
GOVERNING RESPONSIBLY
As a result of much hard work, over the years we have decreased taxes, embraced responsible spending, made great progress toward paying off the state's unfunded liabilities and controlled growth of the state's budget.
We have realized milestone tax reforms, including progressive elimination of the food tax, saving West Virginians $162 million each year.
We have gradually eliminated the state's business franchise tax and decreased the corporate net income tax-changes that make West Virginia more attractive for business investments.
As a result of responsible reforms, last year the National Council on Compensation Insurance filed the 12th reduction in workers' compensation premiums in 12 years. And West Virginia employers have seen a savings of more than $352 million since we privatized the program in 2006.
We addressed our Other Post Employment Benefits by dedicating $30 million annually to pay off the $5 billion unfunded liability, which was caused by previous promises that became too expensive to maintain.
As I did last year, I present to you today a budget that is balanced, but a budget that requires difficult decisions and thinking about the next generation rather than the next election.
I continue to be proud of the fiscal responsibility we have shown not just for the past six years, but over the last generation. Our commitment to paying down our long-term liabilities has not wavered and we have responsibly reduced taxes on both our employers and our employees.
Because of our improved fiscal policies, we have been able to refinance bonds that pay for schools, water and sewer lines, college campus improvements and roads to save more than $100 million in the past six years.
So when people ask me why I'm so concerned with maintaining our Rainy Day Fund and our bond rating, that's why. It means more schools, more roads and more homes with clean water.
As part of tough decisions during tough economic times, we have cut more than $600 million from our budget in the past five years. While we all continue to hope that the coal industry will rebound, that hasn't happened quickly and it likely won't ever return to the levels that we once saw.
We continue to work to diversify our economy and I know the improvements we've made will pay long-term dividends in job growth and investment.
But we're not there yet, and part of being fiscally responsible means making sure that we can pay our bills without taking the Rainy Day Fund to dangerously low levels or cutting services to the point where we cannot care for our people or educate our students.
Therefore, the budget I present to you today includes a 1 percent increase in the consumer sales tax to raise $200 million and elimination of the current sales tax exemption on telecommunications services-a move that would make our system the same as 80 percent of the country.
I understand these taxes will not be easy, but asking people to pay a few dollars more now is a far better choice than seeing PEIA cards not accepted by medical providers or going back to the days when we couldn't finance school and road improvements, or even pay the gas bill at the Governor's Mansion.
I urge you to consider these responsible actions to balance the budget until the brighter economic picture that we all expect comes into focus.
CLOSING
I believe the thing that compelled each of us to public service is our love for West Virginia. And that is the very thing that should compel us to work together.
When I became your Governor, I said that we must put West Virginia first.
That's what we have done. And I encourage you to continue working together out of that deep devotion to our beloved state-in the coming year and beyond.
I am proud of the work that we have accomplished. I look forward to the leadership of Governor-elect Jim Justice and I thank all of you who have worked with me over the years.
I thank my cabinet members and agency directors. And I thank my dedicated staff members who have worked every day-not for me, but for the people of West Virginia.
It has been the honor of my life to be your Governor-to be West Virginia's Governor. Joanne and I thank the people of West Virginia for your abiding trust, counsel and support.
And we look forward-with the greatest hope and optimism-to an even stronger West Virginia.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the great state of West Virginia.
###
Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
By the early nineteenth century, as ways of consuming the seaside matured and diversified, there was a growing appreciation of the joys and benefits to be gained by not just being beside the sea but venturing out onto the water itself without the disadvantages and dangers associated with boats.
The West Pier was designed and engineered by Eugenius Birch to attract visitors and survive in the hostile environment of the seashore. Built in 1866, it was a simple and functional structure built out from the sea using dozens of cast iron threaded columns screwed into the seabed and strengthened by a lattice of ties and girders that provide the necessary strength to support the promenade deck whilst allowing seas to pass harmlessly underneath.
Originally the West Pier had an open deck with only six small ornamental houses of Oriental design, two toll houses, glass screens at the pier head to protect visitors from the wind and lamps, with columns decorated with entwined serpents, placed around the perimeter and lit by gas. In 1875 a central bandstand was added and in the 1880′s weather screens the full length of the pier, steamer landing stages and a large pier head pavilion were constructed.
The final building, completed in 1916, was a graceful concert hall. The result was seaside architecture at its finest, designed to attract and entertain holiday-makers with all the pomp and frippery that is the essence of the English seaside resort.
The West Pier story closely follows the changing fortunes of the English seaside holiday. It began simply as a promenade pier where visitors could enjoy the thrill of walking on water; it was the place for the Victorian middle classes to socialise and exhibit their wealth, to see and be seen, to take in the sea air and admire the panoramic views of the land. By WW1 it had evolved into a pleasure pier with a great variety of seaside entertainment both indoors and out. Throughout the twenties it was immensely popular with attractions ranging from paddle steamer excursions, daring high divers and bathing from the pier head to military bands, recitals by the pier’s resident orchestra in the Concert Hall and an all-year-round programme of plays, pantomimes and ballets in the Theatre.
During WWII, the Pier was closed and mined for security reasons and sections were dismantled to prevent enemy landings. When the mines were removed and the pier reopened, after the repair of its war wounds, it completed its evolution into a funfair pier. The Theatre was converted into a restaurant on one floor and on the other the ‘Laughter Land’ games pavilion. The Concert Hall became a tea room, and the delights of the dodgems, helter-skelter, ghost train and miniature racing track could be enjoyed by all.
The pier was shut to the public in 1975 as it was deemed unsafe. A huge storm in December 2002 resulted in the dramatic collapse of the south east corner of the Concert Hall; in March 2003 the Pavilion was destroyed in an arson attack, and in May 2003 the Concert Hall was also burnt out deliberately. 2003 was a catastrophic year for the West Pier and by December 2003, a report concluded that despite the significant damage, given the wealth of salvaged material from the pier and the considerable photographic and video archive, repair and reconstruction of the pier was still viable. Unfortunately funding was not available.
The collapsed Concert Hall, being close to the beach, became a public hazard and in 2010 was removed. However, the skeletal ruin of the pier Pavilion has become an iconic feature of Brighton’s seafront. Its unique desolate beauty makes it much discussed, wondered about and photographed. The Pier has been too dangerous to access since the fires of 2003 and cannot be maintained. Over the coming years it will be reclaimed by nature and will inevitably degenerate and decay. The Trust has no intention of removing the remains unless overwhelming safety issues arise.
In 2006, planning permission was granted to the creators of the London eye to build the i360, an observation tower. It will be sited on the root-end of the pier and will open an exciting new chapter for the West Pier. This new landmark, which will be tied in with the original pier, has now commenced construction. At 175 metres high, and with an observation pod rising to 141 metres, the i360 will be Britain's highest observation tower outside London – taller even than the London Eye. The i360 follows in the spirit of the original pier, inviting visitors to "walk on air" and gain a different perspective of the city, just as they "walked on water" in the past and viewed the city from the sea. Chairman of the Brighton West Pier Trust, which owns the site of the former pier “believes that the Brighton i360 – a 'vertical pier' – is entirely in the spirit of the original pier's history and the best option to replicate its success and ethos." The i360 will restore parts of the original pier to their former glory, including the Victorian tollbooths. Parts of the cast iron supporting structure will be reused in the new visitor centre and an exhibition will enable visitors to learn about the pier's history. The cast iron structure off shore, known as the sea island, will stay but the wreckage of the derelict pier on the beach will be removed. A proportion of ticket revenues from the i360 will also go to the West Pier Trust charity, enabling it to continue promoting the pier's unique heritage.
This part of the plan really appeals to be - in the evenings, the Brighton i360 will transform into the Sky Bar – a chic, modern and accessible venue in which to relax and enjoy a glass of champagne, wine or a cocktail while taking in the stunning night-time views. The ride will be extended to 30 minutes to allow people plenty of time to enjoy their drink!!
The changing weather over a 3 day period is reflected in the photos I took of this fascinating and haunting structure – it looks quite eerie in the fog.