text:
[Historical financial statements]

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (or FINANCIAL REPORTS) are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity.

Relevant financial information is presented in a structured manner and in a form which is easy to understand. They typically include four basic financial statements accompanied by a management discussion and analysis:[1]

1.  A balance sheet or STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION, reports on a company's assets, liabilities, and owners equity at a given point in time.
2.  An income statement—or PROFIT AND LOSS REPORT (P&L REPORT), or STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME, or STATEMENT OF REVENUE & EXPENSE—reports on a company's income, expenses, and profits over a stated period. A profit and loss statement provides information on the operation of the enterprise. These include sales and the various expenses incurred during the stated period.
3.  A statement of changes in equity or STATEMENT OF EQUITY, or STATEMENT OF RETAINED EARNINGS, reports on the changes in equity of the company over a stated period.
4.  A cash flow statement reports on a company's cash flow activities, particularly its operating, investing and financing activities over a stated period.
5.  A comprehensive income statement involves those other comprehensive income items which are not included while determining net income.

(Notably, a balance sheet represents a _single point in time_, where the income statement, the statement of changes in equity, and the cash flow statement each represent activities over a stated _period_.)

For large corporations, these statements may be complex and may include an extensive set of FOOTNOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS and MANAGEMENT DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS. The notes typically describe each item on the balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement in further detail. Notes to financial statements are considered an integral part of the financial statements.

Purpose for financial statements

“The objective of financial statements is to provide information about the financial position, performance and changes in financial position of an enterprise that is useful to a wide range of users in making economic decisions.”[2] Financial statements should be understandable, relevant, reliable and comparable. Reported assets, liabilities, equity, income and expenses are directly related to an organization's financial position.

Financial statements are intended to be understandable by readers who have “a reasonable knowledge of business and economic activities and accounting and who are willing to study the information diligently.”[3] Financial statements may be used by users for different purposes:

-   Owners and managers require financial statements to make important business decisions that affect its continued operations. Financial analysis is then performed on these statements to provide management with a more detailed understanding of the figures. These statements are also used as part of management's annual report to the stockholders.
-   Employees also need these reports in making collective bargaining agreements (CBA) with the management, in the case of labor unions or for individuals in discussing their compensation, promotion and rankings.
-   Prospective investors make use of financial statements to assess the viability of investing in a business. Financial analyses are often used by investors and are prepared by professionals (financial analysts), thus providing them with the basis for making investment decisions.
-   Financial institutions (banks and other lending companies) use them to decide whether to grant a company with fresh working capital or extend debt securities (such as a long-term bank loan or debentures) to finance expansion and other significant expenditures.

Consolidated

Consolidated financial statements are defined as “Financial statements of a group in which the assets, liabilities, equity, income, expenses and cash flows of the parent (company) and its subsidiaries are presented as those of a single economic entity”, according to International Accounting Standard 27 “Consolidated and separate financial statements”, and International Financial Reporting Standard 10 “Consolidated financial statements”.[4][5]

Government

The rules for the recording, measurement and presentation of government financial statements may be different from those required for business and even for non-profit organizations. They may use either of two accounting methods: accrual accounting, or cost accounting, or a combination of the two (OCBOA). A complete set of chart of accounts is also used that is substantially different from the chart of a profit-oriented business.

Personal

Personal financial statements may be required from persons applying for a personal loan or financial aid. Typically, a personal financial statement consists of a single form for reporting personally held assets and liabilities (debts), or personal sources of income and expenses, or both. The form to be filled out is determined by the organization supplying the loan or aid.

Audit and legal implications

Although laws differ from country to country, an audit of the financial statements of a public company is usually required for investment, financing, and tax purposes. These are usually performed by independent accountants or auditing firms. Results of the audit are summarized in an audit report that either provide an unqualified opinion on the financial statements or qualifications as to its fairness and accuracy. The audit opinion on the financial statements is usually included in the annual report.

There has been much legal debate over who an auditor is liable to. Since audit reports tend to be addressed to the current shareholders, it is commonly thought that they owe a legal duty of care to them. But this may not be the case as determined by common law precedent. In Canada, auditors are liable only to investors using a prospectus to buy shares in the primary market. In the United Kingdom, they have been held liable to potential investors when the auditor was aware of the potential investor and how they would use the information in the financial statements. Nowadays auditors tend to include in their report liability restricting language, discouraging anyone other than the addressees of their report from relying on it. Liability is an important issue: in the UK, for example, auditors have unlimited liability.

In the United States, especially in the post-Enron era there has been substantial concern about the accuracy of financial statements. Corporate officers—the chief executive officer (CEO) and chief financial officer (CFO)—are personally responsible for fair financial reporting that provides an accurate sense of the organization to those reading the report.

Standards and regulations

Different countries have developed their own accounting principles over time, making international comparisons of companies difficult. To ensure uniformity and comparability between financial statements prepared by different companies, a set of guidelines and rules are used. Commonly referred to as Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), these set of guidelines provide the basis in the preparation of financial statements, although many companies voluntarily disclose information beyond the scope of such requirements.[6]

Recently there has been a push towards standardizing accounting rules made by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). IASB develops International Financial Reporting Standards that have been adopted by Australia, Canada and the European Union (for publicly quoted companies only), are under consideration in South Africa and other countries. The United States Financial Accounting Standards Board has made a commitment to converge the U.S. GAAP and IFRS over time.

Inclusion in annual reports

To entice new investors, public companies assemble their financial statements on fine paper with pleasing graphics and photos in an annual report to shareholders, attempting to capture the excitement and culture of the organization in a “marketing brochure” of sorts. Usually the company's chief executive will write a letter to shareholders, describing management's performance and the company's financial highlights.

In the United States, prior to the advent of the internet, the annual report was considered the most effective way for corporations to communicate with individual shareholders. Blue chip companies went to great expense to produce and mail out attractive annual reports to every shareholder. The annual report was often prepared in the style of a coffee table book.

Notes

Additional information added to the end of financial statements that help explain specific items in the statements as well as provide a more comprehensive assessment of a company's financial condition are known as notes (or “notes to financial statements”).

Notes to financial statements can include information on debt, accounts, contingent liabilities, on going concern criteria, or on contextual information explaining the financial numbers (e.g. to indicate a lawsuit). The notes clarify individual statement line-items. Notes are also used to explain the accounting methods used to prepare the statements and they support valuations for how particular accounts have been computed. As an example: If a company lists a loss on a fixed asset impairment line in their income statement, the notes may state the reason for the impairment by describing how the asset became impaired.

In consolidated financial statements, all subsidiaries are listed as well as the amount of ownership (controlling interest) that the parent company has in the subsidiaries. Any items within the financial statements that are valuated by estimation are part of the notes if a substantial difference exists between the amount of the estimate previously reported and the actual result. Full disclosure of the effects of the differences between the estimate and actual results should be included.

Management discussion and analysis

Management discussion and analysis or MD&A is an integrated part of a company's annual financial statements. The purpose of the MD&A is to provide a narrative explanation, through the eyes of management, of how an entity has performed in the past, its financial condition, and its future prospects. In so doing, the MD&A attempt to provide investors with complete, fair, and balanced information to help them decide whether to invest or continue to invest in an entity.[7]

The section contains a description of the year gone by and some of the key factors that influenced the business of the company in that year, as well as a fair and unbiased overview of the company's past, present, and future.

MD&A typically describes the corporation's liquidity position, capital resources,[8] results of its operations, underlying causes of material changes in financial statement items (such as asset impairment and restructuring charges), events of unusual or infrequent nature (such as mergers and acquisitions or share buybacks), positive and negative trends, effects of inflation, domestic and international market risks,[9] and significant uncertainties.

Move to electronic statements

Financial statements have been created on paper for hundreds of years. The growth of the Web has seen more and more financial statements created in an electronic form which is exchangeable over the Web. Common forms of electronic financial statements are PDF and HTML. These types of electronic financial statements have their drawbacks in that it still takes a human to read the information in order to reuse the information contained in a financial statement.

More recently a market driven global standard, XBRL (Extensible Business Reporting Language), which can be used for creating financial statements in a structured and computer readable format, has become more popular as a format for creating financial statements. Many regulators around the world such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have mandated XBRL for the submission of financial information.

The UN/CEFACT created, with respect to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, (GAAP), internal or external financial reporting XML messages to be used between enterprises and their partners, such as private interested parties (e.g. bank) and public collecting bodies (e.g. taxation authorities). Many regulators use such messages to collect financial and economic information.

[1] “Presentation of Financial Statements” Standard IAS 1, International Accounting Standards Board. Accessed 24 June 2007.

[2] “The Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements” International Accounting Standards Board. Accessed 24 June 2007.

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6] FASB, 2001. Improving Business Reporting: Insights into Enhancing Voluntary Disclosures. Retrieved on April 20, 2012.

[7] MD&A & Other Performance Reporting

[8]

[9]

title: Financial statement

question: What does the text say about a balance sheet?

answer: A balance sheet is typically included in financial statements/reports. It reports on a company's assets, liabilities, and owners' equity at a single point in time. Notes may be utilized to describe items on the balance sheet.

question: What does the text say about the purposes of financial statements?

answer: Financial statements provide information on an enterprise's financial position, performance, and any changes to the financial position. They are typically used by owners/managers, employees, prospective investors, and financial institutions in making economic decisions.

question: What does the text say about how to file for bankruptcy?


split: test

text:
STANDARD CHARTERED SINGAPORE (officially STANDARD CHARTED (SINGAPORE) LIMITED) is the Singapore based subsidiary of British banking and financial services company, Standard Chartered. Opening its first branch in 1859, the bank is the one of the oldest in continuous operation in Singapore.[1] The bank received its Qualifying Full Bank (QFB) licence in October, 1999, being one of the first foreign bank to qualify for the licence.[2]

The bank (Standard Charted (Singapore) Limited) was officially incorporated in 2013 to handle Standard Chartered's Singapore Consumer Banking retail and SME banking business.[3] In 2018, operations of Standard Chartered in Singapore was merged with Standard Chartered Singapore, with the Qualifying Full Bank (QFB) licence transferred to the company. It currently operates a network of 19 branches, 7 Priority Banking centres and 31 ATMs in the country.[4][5][6] The number of ATMs available for customers is expanded through its shared network under the atm⁵ network with Citibank Singapore, HSBC, State Bank of India, Maybank, The Royal Bank of Scotland and Bank of China.

History

[Former Standard Chartered Building (far right).]

1860s to 1980s: Founding and establishment of first branch

Opened in early 1859, the bank, then known as CHARTERED BANK OF INDIA, AUSTRALIA AND CHINA, started off as an agency and was situated in a 3 storeys tall building located between Flint Street and Battery Road, with the third floor being used for staff accommodations.[7] In 1861, the bank was upgraded to a branch and over the following decades, it printed bank notes in Malaya.[8][9] In 1913, the bank acquired land situated between Bonham Street and Battery Road and constructed a new building to house its operations in Singapore. The building which was 4 storeys tall, was completed in 1916 and at that time it also housed the Singapore Chamber of Commerce and Exchange.[10]

Construction of a 44 storey tall skyscraper at Battery Road for the bank's head office was completed in 1984. The building, which was known as the Standard Chartered Building, was the largest Standard Chartered building worldwide and it also represented the largest single investment by a British company at that point of time.[11] Officially opened on 24 October 1984 by Anthony Barber, then chairman of the Standard Chartered Bank, the building stood on the site of the bank's first branch when it was first opened in 1859.[12] In 1986, Khoo Teck Puat, the founder of Maybank acquired a significant stake for US$100 million in the bank's parent, Standard Chartered and later became the single largest shareholder of the banking group.[13][14] Following his death in 2004, the stake valued at £2.3 billion was acquired by Temasek Holdings in 2006, making the investment arm of the Government of Singapore its largest shareholder.[15]

2000s to present: Local incorporation

In 2007, Standard Chartered opened its private banking global headquarters in Singapore[16] and in 2011, the bank moved its Singapore cooperate office to the Marina Bay Financial Centre, after being situated in Raffles Place since 1859.[17] On October 7, 2013, Standard Chartered officially incorporated a local subsidiary of the bank, STANDARD CHARTERED BANK (SINGAPORE) LIMITED. Following the incorporation, the bank's Singapore Consumer Banking retail and SME banking business was transferred to the new subsidiary.[18] In 2018, the operations of Standard Chartered was eventually merged into Standard Chartered Singapore, consolidating all of the group's Singapore operations and becoming the first major foreign bank to do so in Singapore.[19]

Banking services

Consumer Banking

-   Deposit and Savings accounts
-   Credit Cards
-   Loans
-   Mortgages
-   Investments
-   Insurance

Cooperate banking

-   Accounts and Cash Management
-   Loans & Government services
-   Business insurance

Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon

Beginning in 1982, the Singapore Marathon, also known as the Standard Chartered Marathon, is an annual international marathon held on the first Sunday of every December. It is the first competitive marathon in Singapore with an estimated participation size of 15,000 runners at its inaugural race on December 5, 1982.[20] Since then, the race has grown to attract many international marathoners to participate in the annual race and the 2013 event attracted a total of 60,000 entrants for all categories.

Incidents

In 2017, Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon announced its bid to join the Abbott World Marathon Majors event.[21] In 2019, the full- and half-marathons were held in the evening in order to fulfil criteria to be listed in the Abbott World Marathon Majors, instead of the usual flag off timing at dawn. This caused major traffic disruptions as traffic was at a standstill for 3 hours and drew criticism from the public as wedding banquets held in town also encountered problems, with guests and vendors unable to make the functions in time.[22]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

title: Standard Chartered Singapore

question: Summarize the traffic issues caused by the erection of the Standard Chartered Singapore Headquarters.

answer: The bank holds a marathon that they've had annually since 1982. One year the race held up traffic for three whole hours. Many events, including weddings and banquets, were blocked off, and people were late to their obligations.

question: Summarize the bank's competition in the East Asian market.


text:
ARLETTE NOUGARÈDE, wife Lance, born in 1930 in Narbonne, is a cell biologist specializing in plant development from embryogenesis to flowering. She was Professor Emeritus at Pierre and Marie Curie University from 1992 to 2013. She has been a corresponding member of the French Academy of sciences since 1987.[1][2]

Biography

After her graduate studies in Paris, she obtained, at the École Normale Supérieure (ENS, 1952), a DES, prepared under the direction of Professor Roger Buvat. She began her career at the CNRS (1953), passed her State thesis (February 1958) and became a supervisor at the ENS (1960), preparing for the agrégation, recruited her first thesis students and then became Professor (1964) at the University Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, where she developed her laboratory of Experimental Cytology and Plant Morphogenesis (CEMV), directed the DEA of the same name and integrated new thesis students and numerous trainees. Arlette Nougarède taught in all cycles until 1992 when she ended her career as Professor Emeritus, exceptional class 2.

The CEMV laboratory has regularly welcomed renowned foreign Professors: G. Bernier (Belgium), E.M. Gifford (USA), P.E. Pilet (Switzerland), C. Sterling (USA), S. Tepfer (USA), D. Francis (England), N. Bagni (Italy), who have come for collaborative work or to adapt to their equipment the new technologies developed in the team.

After her retirement, Arlette Nougarède continues her activities in the laboratory of Professor Dominique Chriqui (proofreading of theses, critical review of articles, participation in various juries and commissions, including the Neology and Terminology Commission of the French Academy of sciences).

Scientific Works

Arlette Nougarède's research focuses on the primary meristems of higher plants (structural and ultrastructural cytology; cytochemistry, DNA, RNA, proteins; functioning, cell cycle).

Caulinary meristem

After simple mitosis surveys for the vegetative point of Bean,[3] quantitative methods are gradually being used to estimate mean cell, nuclear, nucleolar volumes and to evaluate mitotic and labelling indices, after incorporation, by the meristem, of tritiated precursors of DNA and RNA synthesis.[4][5] For vegetative caulinary meristem, the notion of 3-component zonation is defended (axial apical zone, reserved territory, lateral leaf initiating zone, medullary meristem giving the pith), defined on cytological[6] [7] and functional criteria.[8][9] The total duration of the cell cycle, in hours, and that of its phases (G1,S,G2,M) show that the axial apical zone has the longest cycle, the lateral zone the shortest cycle and the medullary meristem a cycle of intermediate duration. In this cycle, the duration of mitosis, M, is not very variable, depending on the zone, and the same is true for synthesis, S, and postsynthesis, G2. Only the presynthesis phase G1, by its lengthening in the axial zone, its shortening in the lateral zone and, to a lesser degree, in the medullary meristem, ensures the control of proliferation in the vegetative meristem.

Phases of development

There is evidence that the meristem of preferred or strict photoperiodic plants, constantly subjected to light conditions unfavourable to their flowering, evolves towards a new phase: the intermediate phase[10] which is a preparation for flowering for preferred plants with increased yield, an ontogenic dead end for strict plants if favourable light conditions are not received. The following pre-flowering phase[11] is characterized by the reactivation of the axial apical zone, the cessation of foliar initiation and the rapid differentiation of the cells of the medullary meristem. The quantitative and/or qualitative changes in polypeptides and the time at which they occur are specified for each of the phases of development[12] and during initiation of the floral organs.[13]

The cell cycle is stopped at G1 in the meristem of dormant buds,[14][15] in that of the embryo contained in the seed[16] or in the cotyledonary bud of the fully inhibited Pea. Arlette Nougarède shows, on the Pea model, that there is an increasing gradient of inhibition from the buds located in the axils of the youngest leaves to the cotyledonal bud; the events related to the reactivation of the buds are examined.[17][18]

Root meristem. Geotropic reaction, Lentil, Corn

The very first data on the mechanism of the geotropic reaction are acquired - after experiments on starch lysis[19] of statenchyma amyloplasts and - microsurgery of the cuff and meristem. It has been proven that the cap amyloplasts are the geoperceptors and that the curvature of the root, placed in a horizontal position, is achieved in the zone of maximum elongation by growth asymmetry on both sides of the root under the control of an inhibitor from the cap.[20]

Rhizogenesis

Arlette Nougarède and her team identify, in the whole plant, regions of constant localization, differentiated into G1 and which possess organogenic capacities that neighbouring cells, which have become polyploid, have lost. Various types of rhizogenesis are compared (natural,[21] auxin-induced or _Agrobacterium rhizogenes_[22]).

Each era has its achievements. In the 20th century, histocytology and ontogenic examination made it possible to understand how plant meristems regularly form cells that differentiate into organ building tissues. These are indisputable data.[23] In the 21st century, molecular biology and mutants are bringing new ideas that will be able to solve[24] still unanswered problems.

Honours and Awards

-   1997: Chevalier of the Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur
-   2014: Officier of the Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur[25]
-   2006: Officier in the Ordre National du Mérite
-   2018: Commandeur of the Palmes Académiques
-   A. Nougarède is a Corresponding Member of the French Academy of sciences, Elected Member of the Botanical Society of America (1988) and listed among the pioneering women in Life Sciences, Plant Biology, by the American Society of Plant Biologists (2005).

Prizes

-   1965: Ernest Dechelle Prize of the French Academy of sciences
-   1976: Paul Doistau - Emile Blutel Prize of the French Academy of sciences

[1]

[2] Véronique Helft-Malz et Paule-Henriette Lévy, Les femmes dans la société française, Paris, Patrick Banon, 1997, 246 p.

[3] A. Lance, « Sur la structure et le fonctionnement du point végétatif de Vicia faba L. », _Ann. Sci. Nat. Bot._, 1952, 11è série, p. 301-339

[4] A. Nougarède, « Sur l'incorporation de l'adénine marquée au tritium (3H) dans les noyaux et le cytoplasme des cellules de deux méristèmes caulinaires : Lupinus albus (Papilionacées) et Teucrium scorodonia (Labiées) », _C. R. Acad. Sc._, 1961, 252, p. 1504-1506A.

[5] A. Nougarède et R. Bronchart, « Description des lieux d'incorporation de la thymidine tritiée au niveau des infrastructures du méristème préfloral du Perilla nankinensis (Lour.) Decne », _C. R. Acad. Sc._, 1967, 264, p. 1844-1847

[6] A. Lance, « Recherches cytologiques sur l'évolution de quelques méristèmes apicaux et sur ses variations provoquées par des traitements photopériodiques », _Ann. Sci. Nat. Bot., IIè série_, 1957, 18, p. 91-421

[7] A. Nougarède, « Experimental cytology of the shoot apical cells during vegetative growth and flowering », _Intern. Rev. of Cytology_, 1967, 21, p. 203-351

[8] A. Nougarède, « Méristèmes », _Encyclopaedia Universalis_, 1985, vol. 11, p. 1119-1133

[9] A. Nougarède, « Chrysanthemum segetum L. In Handbook of flowering, », _Halevy A. H., éd. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla_, 1985, vol. vi, p. 196-227

[10]

[11]

[12] J. Rembur et A. Nougarède, « Changes in the polypeptidic composition during the ontogenic development of the shoot apex of Chrysanthemum segetum analysed by two-dimensional mini-gel electrophoresis », _Plant Cell Physiol._, 1989, 30, p. 359-363

[13] D. Francis, J. Rembur et A. Nougarède, « Resolution of polypeptides in the shoot apex of Silene using 2D minigel electrophoresis: a feasibility study », _Society for Experimental Biology, Lancaster Univ Avril_, 1988

[14] S.S. Tepfer, A. Nougarède et P. Rondet, « Seasonal studies of vegetative buds of Helianthus tuberosus : concentration of nuclei in phase G1 during winter dormancy », _Can. J. Bot_, 1981, 59, p. 1918-1927

[15] E. Silveira, P. Rondet et A. Nougarède, « In nature dormant buds and in vitro dormant-like buds of Fraximus excelsior L. », _Proto-plasmas_, 1996, 190, p. 16-24

[16] E. Schatt, P. Landre et A. Nougarède, « Etat nucléaire des méristèmes du pois dans la graine sèche ; imbibition et reprise du cycle cellulaire », _Can. J. Bot._, 1985, 63, p. 2200-2208

[17] A. Nougarède et P. Rondet, « Evolution des index mitotiques et des teneurs de DNA nucléaire dans le méristème axillaire de la feuille de rang 6, lors de la levée de dominance apicale provoquée par ablation de l'axe principal, chez le Pisum sativum L. », _C. R. Acad. Sc._, 1975, 280, p. 973-976

[18] A. Nougarède, P. Rondet et J. Rembur, « Effets comparés de la fusicoccine, de la kinétine et de l'ablation de l'axe principal sur le bourgeon cotylédonnaire inhibé du Pois nain », _Can. J. Bot_, 1982, 60, p. 210-216

[19] A. Nougarède et P.E. Pilet, « Action de l'acide gibbérellique GA3 sur l'ultrastructure des amyloplastes du statenchyme de la racine du Lens culinaris L», _C. R. Acad. Sc_, 1971, 273, p. 864-867

[20] A. Nougarède et P.E. Pilet, « Inhibiteur racinaire et zone de courbure de segments verticaux du Lens culinaris et du Zea mays L. », _C. R. Acad. Sc_, 1974, 279, p. 477-480

[21] A. Nougarède et P. Rondet, « Rhizogenèse adventive dans l'épicotyle du Pois : Initiation et structuration de la racine », _Can. J. Bot._, 1982, 60, p. 210-218

[22] J. Bercetche, D. Chriqui et A. Nougarède, « Comparison between induced rhizogenesis by auxins and Agrobacterium rhizogenes in Pisum sativum », _Acta universitatis agriculturae, Brno,_, 1985, 33, p. 423-427

[23] R. Buvat, Ontogeny, cell differentiation, and structure of vascular plants, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York, London, Paris, Tokyo, Springer Verlag, 1989, 581 p.

[24] A. Nougarède, « Le méristème caulinaire des Angiospermes : nouveaux outils, nouvelles interprétations », _Acta Bot. Gallica_, 2001,148 (1), p. 3-77

[25]

title: Arlette Nougarède

question: Summarize Nougarede's career as a cell biologist.

answer:
Arlete Nougarede was born in 1930 and obtained a DES after her graduate studies at the Ecole Normal Superieure. She began her career at the CNRS in 1953 and became a Professor at the University Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris (1964) where she developed her laboratory of Experimental Cytology and Plant Morphogenesis (CEMV). She taught students in all cycles until 1992 when she retired as a Professor Emeritus.

Nougarede was honored with the CChevalier of the Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur in 1997 and Commandeur of the Palmes Académiques in 2018.


text:
[Police: Supporter of Richard Spencer aimed gun at protesters ]

© Getty Images

A supporter of alt-right leader Richard Spencer was arrested in Michigan on Sunday after he allegedly aimed a gun at individuals protesting the white nationalist.

Pittsfield Township authorities say Jonathan Kolanowski pulled a gun and pointed it at protesters after a dispute broke out between Spencer's supporters and those protesting him.

While no injuries were reported, Kolanowski was charged with illegally carrying a concealed weapon.

He was later arraigned and given $3,000 bond.

Spencer is set to speak at Michigan State University (MSU) on Monday, the school's first day of spring break.

However, hundreds of people protesting Spencer's appearance gathered on the university's campus prior to the alt-right leader's arrival.

  Pure chaos right now ahead of Richard Spencer’s appearance on MSU’s campus pic.twitter.com/tsJi6TMgQX

  — Alexandra Ilitch (@WLNSAlexandra) March 5, 2018

  I've arrived at the Pavilon at #MSU. Very solid place. It's secure, and the police are admirably professional.

  This is going to be a fun, inspiring, and SAFE event!

  — Richard Spencer (@RichardBSpencer) March 5, 2018

The venue and date of Spencer's speech were agreed upon after Cameron Padgett, who organizes Spencer's speeches, sued MSU after the university denied his request to rent a space on campus.

MSU said the agreement was "based on the university's requirement that the event occur at a date and at a venue that minimizes the risk of violence or disruption to campus."

Spencer is considered a highly controversial figure due to his involvement in the alt-right movement.

He often draws raucous crowds and protests to his events.

Spencer helped organize the rally in Charlottesville, Va., in August, which turned violent and led to the death of one person.

[TheHill.com]

The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax

The contents of this site are ©2020 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

question: What is the main subject of the article?

answer: A man who was arrested for aiming a gun at people protesting a white nationalist

question: Approximately when was the article written?

answer: Based on the quoted tweets, around March 2018

question: Who was arrested?

answer: Jonathan Kolanowski

question: Who is Richard Spencer?

answer: An alt-right leader and white nationalist

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: A man was arrested for pulling a gun on people protesting Richard Spencer, a white nationalist. Spencer is scheduled to speak at a university, but protesters are already gathering there too.


text:
[]

HOWLER'S OFFICIAL BIO

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The History of Howler

Born alongside the roar of the mighty Colorado River, and beneath cavernous sandstone cliffs, a special breed of coyotes once roamed the majestic Grand Canyon. One young coyote – Canis Howlus Maximus – didn’t quite fit in with the rest of his pack. He disliked the desert heat and slow pace of living, and he dreamed about something faster, and colder. This did not sit well with the rest of his pack, who mocked him for his wild dreams, and howling skills. Thus, he set out on a westward adventure.

The first stop was the Pacific Ocean, where he was chased by carnivorous Sharks from San Jose. He then swam all the way to Los Angeles, where an evil group of Kings showed him no respect. After a trip to Anaheim, where he feasted on Ducks, this howling machine charged back to the desert. A long haul on the 10-Freeway East, led him to the 101 loop and before he knew it, he saw Jobing.com Arena. It did not take long for his skills to get noticed, and on October 7th, 2005, Howler became the official mascot of the Phoenix Coyotes Hockey Club. His quest for the cool air led him to learn to skate like the wind. Now he patrols the ice, and the arena, entertaining fans of all ages.

Clearly, there is only one “Howler”.

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Accomplishments

-   2-Time defending mascot battle royal champion
-   Mascot speed skating record holder
-   Most High Fives in the Western Conference

Favorite Foods

-   Grilled Shark Steaks
-   Shark Kabobs
-   Peking Duck
-   Chicken Fried Duck
-   Spicy Wings With Red Sauce
-   King Cake
-   Star Crunch
-   Angelo’s Italian Ices

Favorite Chef

-   Wolfgang Puck

Likes

-   Skating
-   Coyotes Fans
-   The Pack
-   The Moon
-   Drinking from large Silver Cups
-   Hunting Mallards
-   Hiking Camelback Mountain

Dislikes

-   Monarchy’s
-   Stars
-   The Bay Area
-   The O.C.
-   The City of Angels
-   Pacific Ocean
-   Ponds

Favorite Songs

-   Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon
-   Wolfman’s Brother by Phish

Least Favorite Songs

-   I Love L.A. by Randy Newman
-   Do You Know The Way To San Jose By Dionne Warwick
-   The theme song from the TV Show “Dallas”
-   The theme song from the TV Show “The O.C.”

Favorite Musician

-   Howlin’ Wolf

Favorite Rock Musician's Son

-   Wolfgang Van Halen

Favorite Bands

-   Los Lobos
-   The Stone Coyotes

Favorite Composer

-   Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Favorite Movies

-   Coyote Ugly
-   The Howling
-   Wolf
-   Brotherhood of the Wolf
-   Lone Wolf McQuade
-   Dancing With Wolves
-   Teen Wolf
-   All Dog’s Go To Heaven
-   Slapshot
-   Youngblood

Favorite Actors

-   Peter Coyote
-   Scott Wolf

Favorite Cartoon Character

-   Wile E. Coyote

Favorite DJ

-   Wolfman Jack

Favorite Expression

-   "Wolfin’ Down A Burger"

Favorite Bargains

-   Anything that comes in “Packs”

Hobbies

-   Playing Hockey
-   Howling
-   Growling
-   Prowling
-   Watching Hockey on FSN Arizona & AZ-TV
-   Listening to Hockey on XTRA Sports 910
-   Signing Autographs
-   Going to Birthday Parties

question: Write a ~0 sentence summary.


text:
Bonnie the cow has since been rescued from the forest and moved to Farm Sanctuary after eight months in the woods

By

June 26, 2018 05:19 PM

Are we out of the woods yet?

If you’re Bonnie the cow, then yes! This adorable brown and white cow now lives at Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, New York, but it was a long, scary and sometimes magical road to get there.

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At 4 months old the calf fled from her home in Holland, New York, which was a farm that raised cattle for slaughter, reports Farm Sanctuary. What made Bonnie run was the desperate cries of her bovine family, who were being rounded up to be sold to a slaughterhouse. With her owners busy loading a trailer with confused cows, Bonnie seized the moment and galloped off into the nearby forest.

[]

Word of Bonnie’s escape quickly spread through the neighborhood, and though those wandering through the woods would catch glimpses of the cow, none were able to capture her. Weeks passed, and Bonnie remained at large. Many marveled at how the cow was able to survive on her own in the woods during the winter. They soon found the farm animal wasn’t alone.

[]

Cameras set up in the forest by hunters started picking up footage of Bonnie surrounded by a herd of deer. Based on what the cameras were capturing, it appeared that Bonnie had found solace with the herd and that the herd, in turn, had accepted her. The cow traveled, ate and rested with the forest creatures. This herd animal, though a different species, was accepted into a new group after losing her original family.

[]

While Bonnie appeared to be surviving in the woods, animal lover Becky Bartels knew this would not always be the case. Bonnie was a domesticated animal facing a cruel northeastern winter. After spotting Bonnie on a camera she had set up, Bartels, who owns the land that Bonnie was frolicking on with her deer friends, started approaching the cow. Throughout the winter, every day, Bartels would trek through the snow, pulling a sled carrying food and bedding for Bonnie. Eventually, the cow, who was terrified of humans after her last encounter, warmed up to Bartels and began approaching her for pats and snacks.

[]

It sounds like a fairy tale, but Bartels knew it couldn’t last, especially with neighbors who threatened to kill the cow if she wandered onto their property. So Bartels reached out to Farm Sanctuary for help. Farm Sanctuary is a non-profit dedicated to rescuing and caring for abused, neglected and abandoned farm animals, providing them with a loving lifetime home where they can relax and not worry about being seen as food.

[]

Farm Sanctuary sent out a rescue crew to move Bonnie out of the woods to her new home. It took a few tries, but after safely corralling and sedating Bonnie, they were able to move her onto a truck that took her to Farm Sanctuary.

[]

After eight months out in the wild with her deer friends, Bonnie has adjusted well to her new digs at Farm Sanctuary. Here, she has made new friends and is constantly showered with the care and affection she desires.

_CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF CATS, DOGS AND OTHER FURRY FRIENDS?_ _CLICK HERE_ _TO GET THE CUTEST PET NEWS AND PHOTOS DELIVERED DIRECTLY TO YOUR INBOX._

[]

If you would like to learn more about Bonnie and how to help her and other animals like her, visit Farm Sanctuary’s website.

question: What would've happened to Bonnie if she would have stayed at her original farm?

answer: If Bonnie stayed at her original farm, she would have been raised by the farm then sold to a slaughterhouse.

question: What might have happened to Bonnie if she hadn't been rescued?

answer: If Bonnie hadn't been rescued she might have froze to death over the winter or fallen prey to predators.

question: How did Bonnie survive in the wild for as long as she did?

answer: Bonnie survived with the help of a deer herd.


text:
I had just finished smoking my Black and Mild with Brandon and Ryan when it happened. Cary didn’t want to smoke one. I had drank for a while because I thought I didn’t want to feel like myself, thought I should have fun because it’s the weekend. I had thrown up after 4 mixed drinks and a forty. Then had a couple more mixed drinks because throwing up sort of killed my buzz. I didn’t tell anyone I threw up, just calmly stole some of friends gum without him noticing, went to the bathroom, listened to my favorite Bob Dylan song, and got it over with. Then I cleaned it up, blew my nose, and chewed the gum. That stall was probably cleaner now than it was before.

“You good, Colin?”

“Yeah, I just had to take a massive shit from that burrito.”

The four of us are signed up to go canoeing in the morning, which means I’ll have to wake up at 7:30. Ryan and I are both displeased with the vibe in the room for very different, but equally mistaken and embittered reasons. He’s sitting right in front of me, and I get a text from him asking if we should go get the Black and Milds. We both know the reason we’re getting the little cigars, but I can’t quite shake the feeling that we’re trying to live up to some romantic ideal for ourselves that isn’t accurate. But, either I’m relieved to get out of that room or I’m excited to see myself as a guy who drinks all night, then caps the night with a cigar so we head out. Does a Black and Mild even count as a cigar? Its about 1, so I say sure settling on getting 6 hours of sleep rather than the 8 I originally planned because I earnestly wanted to be well-rested for the canoeing trip.

I enjoyed the Black and Mild. It tasted kind of good and felt a bit of a head buzz so I was happy that I could place a positive, tangible reason that I actually felt onto the experience. I had been texting Lily throughout the night – keeping the option open of potentially fucking her, even though I really did want to get some sleep. Luckily, she was just as apathetic about our arrangement that would be better described as a convenience than a relationship. Lily texted me asking if was awake, which is abnormal; usually I have to contact her, even though she seems to want to have sex every time I ask. I go back up to Ryan’s room one last time to get my backpack with the empty bottles of cranberry juice, orange juice, a Naked smoothie, and the quarter-full handle of Taaka – the cheapest vodka around.

As I pass through the lobby of Branscomb, Ryan’s dorm, to leave to go to Lily’s room, is when it happened, specifically. I got a double dose of that panicky buzz that I always sadistically look forward to – seeing a girl I once hooked up with who decided that it probably isn’t in her best interest to do that anymore or ever again. I say double dose because on this special night, I saw Emma and Olivia together, dressed nicely, presumably coming back from some frat or some bar.

They’re friends? I wonder if Emma told Olivia anything about me. I hope so. I hope Olivia didn’t tell Emma anything about me. I bet they went to Tin Roof. I should have went to Tin Roof. If I was drunk enough at Tin Roof I might have been able to get with one of them. Why is this even bothering me right now? I’m going to fuck another girl, and I hooked up with both of them, and I didn’t even have to go to Tin Roof. Well, I just made out with Olivia, so doesn’t really count. But, regardless, I should feel good about myself. If 16 year old Colin saw me in this situation, and knew that I was still unhappy, he’d hate me. Why do I care so much about what 16 year old Colin would think of me?

I quietly, and slightly nervously – which I bet they perceived as unfriendily – say hi to them. I wish was friendlier. Its 2:00 now so I’ll probably end up only getting 4 or 5 hours sleep. Why do I care so much about these two girls? I quickly reminisce about what went wrong with each of them, and ignore the sense that each time I do that – which un-coincidentally happens each time I pass one of them on campus – the story becomes more distorted, more of an illusion.

I fucked it up with Olivia more recently so I once again run through the thoughts that have come to define that situation in my head. I was lucky enough to stumble onto charmingness when I met her one Thursday night at a bar. It was one of those nights that every drunk is chasing no matter how long ago the last time it happened was. I created a romantic conception of myself that I actually liked, and, imagine that, she liked it too. We went back to campus together from the bar. My conception of myself managed to make out with her a few times, but she told me she had class at 9am the next morning when I tried to take it further. I believed her and figured that I still sealed the deal; next time I saw her I should be able to have sex with her, she’ll be able to see me as funny, charming, and capable. I send a few mediocre texts trying to be friendly over the next couple weeks. We fail to meet up at a bar a few times because we’re both not going out (drinking) the same night. How could I be charming if I was sober the next time we met? Is she just thinking of excuses so she doesn’t have to see me? We finally meet up and I fail to recreate the same excitement, the same passion as the first night. I’m a little more myself – a little less charming. The night ends without passion, without a sense of connection, without us hooking up. A few more texts, a little more passion dies. I sense the dying connection between us (probably before she does) and my frustration is manifest in some drunk texts that hasten the process I was trying to prevent. Now we quietly say hi to each other if we happen to pass on campus. I run through all of this by the time I’m at the door of the lobby of Branscomb.

Then I’m onto the Emma situation. We met at Lonnie’s on one of the few other lucky nights where I managed to be charming while drunk. She is a friend of friend that I went to the bar with. We get to talking; we get to making out – the rest is a little hazy. We meet up at a frat another night. I make a move before I feel my charm wearing off just like a health bar would in a video game. She is luckily unperturbed by this quick move. We get to making out and even to fucking later that night. This lifts my spirits enough to feel like talking to her, feel like being friendly, and I end up thinking we genuinely connected. She’s really busy, seemingly, doesn’t want a relationship right now, but we agree we should hang out again sometime. Would she want a relationship if I had more social clout? It’s not that I even want a relationship, but I don’t want her to decide that we’re not going to have a relationship. I want to be undeniably great to her. I text her a few times about meeting at some bar, or some frat. Doesn’t happen. Text again. No response. I decided to ask our mutual friend if she knew what was going on. I didn’t see any reason why Emma would be avoiding me. Some minor investigative work leads to following conclusion.

“Oh, Emma has a boyfriend now. She wasn’t really looking for one, but the hot guy from Kappa Sig asked her to go to the symphony with him, and they’ve been on a few dates now.”

The hot guy from Kappa Sig? The symphony? I tend to focus more on the conclusion rather than the rising action of this story. I kept this all to myself for as long as could. A few months later, I drunkenly told my buddy Mike from back home laughed and called him a faggot. I agreed. He also tells me I shouldn’t stress about her because the kind of girl that would have sex the second time you meet her isn’t really worth getting upset about. I didn’t agree, but I kept that to myself.

I’m halfway to Lily’s dorm now, thinking about how I’ve never seen Emma and Olivia together. They’re in different sororities; I had no idea they were friends. How could I do better? How can I make sure this shit doesn’t keep happening to me? Or do I actually want this to keep happening to me to appeal to some over-romanticized view of myself as a self-destructive hedonist who can’t catch a break with women? I don’t know. It’s all too confusing. I get to Lily’s room and we have sex so I don’t think about it for a while. I end up getting just 3 hours of sleep before the canoeing trip, but it didn’t end up being a problem because I slept on the way there and got some caffeine.

The next day I call my girl back home, Morgan, because I’m feeling down on myself. She actually seems to like listening to me whine for some odd reason. I always figure that if I don’t want to hear it from myself, why would anyone else? I’m just figuring out that’s not always true, but I’m always secretively suspicious that they don’t actually, that they’re listening for some other reason. I never meant to tell Morgan any of this, but she kind of likes it when I talk about other girls. I think it’s weird, but she says it’d be worse if nobody other than her was attracted to me. I feel simultaneously lucky and completely un-special.

She asks about Lily, and I get into how angry I am with myself for reminiscing how I fucked up with two other girls as I am on my way to see one that I actually enjoy being with. Why can’t I let myself enjoy it? Why was I still thinking about what I don’t have? I sense the path that leads to the answers of these questions when I’m on the phone with her. She brings me to these conclusions somehow, even though she never explicitly suggests them. The paths to them just become illuminated. I say to her that I wish I could have went up to them and hugged Olivia and Emma, asked them how their night went, genuinely care about their well-being. I tell her that they put me on a tight rope between arrogance and insecurity. When I think about Olivia, I fall of to the left, thinking that I don’t have anything to offer. I can only keep up the illusion that I’m a commodity for so long. When I think about Emma start to lean right, thinking Duke girls aren’t worth my time. They don’t appreciate me enough. I start to sway to left and think that my best wasn’t even good enough for her, but the wind blasts me to the ground off the right side, and I finally conclude that Mike was right, and she wasn’t even worth it because of her lack of appreciation for me.

This makes me realize what an egomaniac I am, and I get a sense of existential dread that all my work has failed and somehow led to me being this hypocritical, insecure asshole. I don’t even think we have that great a connection with either of them, but I hate that they made that decision. What do I really want? I want them to love me. I want them to be incapable of keeping their mind off me. It doesn’t seem like this is the case. What, they make me feel un-special? Well, they could either be right or wrong. On worse days, I tend to think they’re right. On happier but equally ignorant days, they’re wrong. On the very rare, but absolute best of days, they’re right, but I don’t care. That’s what I want to be working towards, but I don’t feel like I’m moving in the wrong direction.

Oh shit, there’s no way Morgan still finds any of this interesting. Better change the subject, fast.

title: [RF] Panicky Buzz

question: What does the text say about canoeing?

answer: The narrator, Colin, and three of his friends have planned a canoeing trip. The narrator has to wake up at 7:30 am to leave for the trip and wants to get plenty of sleep. He planned for eight hours, then six, but actually got three hours so he slept on the way there.

question: What does the text say about goodness?

answer: The text speaks of goodness in four different ways. First, in relation to a state of being. Second, the sensation of a taste. Third, as a feeling. Fourth, as a quality measure; i.e., "my best wasn't even good enough..."

question: What does the text say about Morgan's education?


text:
The 1983 America's Cup was the occasion of the first winning challenge to the New York Yacht Club, which had successfully defended the cup over a period of 132 years. An Australian syndicate representing the Royal Perth Yacht Club fielded the _Australia II_, skippered by John Bertrand, against defender _Liberty_, skippered by Dennis Conner. _Australia II_ won the match races after fighting back from a 3–1 deficit to win the America's Cup, ending the longest winning streak in sporting history and ending U.S. domination of the racing series.

The defender: _Liberty_

Skippered by team principal Dennis Conner, _Liberty_ won all the Defender trials and on 2 September 1983, the New York Yacht Club confirmed that _Liberty_ was to represent the NYYC as defender of the America's Cup.[1]

During the summer preceding the trials, Conner had been the focus of extensive media attention in the U.S. He was even featured on the cover of _Sports Illustrated_ magazine, a rare recognition for a sailor.

The crew included Connor as skipper, Tom Whidden, navigator Halsey Chase Herreshoff, Scott Vogel, and mainsheet trimmer John Marshall.

Liberty had competed with John Kolius' _Courageous_ and Tom Blackaller's _Defender_ in a defender series before being selected by the New York Yacht Club.[2] Gary Jobson was the founder and tactician of the Courageous/Defender syndicate.[3]

The challenger: _Australia II_

Alan Bond arrived at Newport with _Australia II_, billed as one of the biggest threats to American dominance of the 12 Metre class. The boat was designed by Ben Lexcen and skippered by John Bertrand. The revolutionary “winged keel” of the Australian yacht was a subject of controversy from the outset of the challenger series, with the New York Yacht club alleging that the winged keel boat was not a legal 12 Meter, and that the keel design itself was the result of Dutch engineers, and not by Lexcen. This second point would have made _Australia II_ illegal under the requirement that the boat be “designed and constructed in country” as the Deed of Gift that governed the competition stipulated.[4] The boat was ruled a legal 12 Meter, and she was allowed to participate in the regatta. The speed of the new contender, along with the controversy and protests intensified international media attention to the series.

_Australia II_ dominated the challenger series and entered the America's Cup finals as the most promising contender to date.

The races

The U.S. yacht won the first and second races by margins of more than a minute when the Australian yacht suffered equipment failure, but the _Australia II_ took the third race, and came back to win the fifth and sixth races after _Liberty_ won the fourth. This was the first time the America's Cup had needed a sixth race, let alone a seventh.[5]

  Date                Winner           Yacht   Loser            Yacht   Score   Delta
  ------------------- ---------------- ------- ---------------- ------- ------- -------
  14 September 1983   _Liberty_        US-40   _Australia II_   KA-6    0-1     1:10
  15 September 1983   _Liberty_        US-40   _Australia II_   KA-6    0-2     1:33
  18 September 1983   _Australia II_   KA-6    _Liberty_        US-40   1-2     3:14
  20 September 1983   _Liberty_        US-40   _Australia II_   KA-6    1-3     0:43
  21 September 1983   _Australia II_   KA-6    _Liberty_        US-40   2-3     1:47
  22 September 1983   _Australia II_   KA-6    _Liberty_        US-40   3-3     3:25
  26 September 1983   _Australia II_   KA-6    _Liberty_        US-40   4-3     0:41

The cup title came down to the seventh and final race. For the seventh and deciding race on 26 September 1983 the wind was light at around eight knots. The pre-start was not a typical match race start. “Neither party wanted to make a mistake and end up in the protest room,” Conner would explain later.[6] _Liberty_ won the start by eight seconds ahead of _Australia II_ on paper but the Australians held a controlling position at the favoured end sailing toward the favoured side which gave them the early lead. _Australia II_ was subsequently overtaken by Conner who built up what seemed to be an unassailable margin. At the start of the penultimate leg (a square run) the America's Cup looked like it would stay in Newport. Conner failed to cover _Australia II_ which allowed them to run deeper and faster assisted by breeze and windshifts allowing _Australia II_ to overtake the Americans by the leeward mark. Conner then engaged _Australia II_ in a spectacular tacking duel with nearly 50 tacks including a number of faked “dummy” tacks trying to break the Australians' cover. _Australia II_ held on until both boats reached the starboard layline in amongst the spectator fleet and tacked several boat lengths ahead of _Liberty_ and sailed to the finish to take the race. _Australia II_ crossed the finish line with a winning margin of 41 seconds, becoming the first successful challenger in the 132 years “since the schooner _America_ won it in a race around England's Isle of Wight in 1851”.[7]

Aftermath

The final race was televised in Australia in the early hours of 27 September 1983 (Australian time) just before dawn, and the victory was celebrated in public venues across Australia. Prime Minister Bob Hawke was interviewed at the dawn celebration in Claremont, Western Australia. After humorously fending off repeated questioning by journalists about whether he would declare a public holiday he admitted this was a state matter and outside his power as Prime Minister. He joked that he thought it should be and that any state Premiers who disagreed with him might “find themselves in a spot of bother”. To rapturous laughter and applause he said with finality “Any boss who sacks a worker for not turning up today is a bum”.[8]

The loss of the 1983 America's Cup was considered a time of shame in U.S. sailing, as the U.S. had been able to defend the Cup for 132 years. Dennis Conner took the loss hard. Asked about how he felt initially after losing the Cup Conner said: “It was awful. I just did not want to get out of bed in the morning. I am usually full of life and energy... I just wanted to hide”.[9]

The America's Cup was transferred from the New York Yacht Club to the Royal Perth Yacht Club located in Perth, Western Australia, which subsequently hosted its first, but unsuccessful, defense in the 1987 America's Cup. After losing the Cup the U.S. had been determined to bring it back. Conner went to work on the next US America's Cup Campaign. With the help of designers Britton Chance, Jr., Bruce Nelson and David Pedrick, the boat _Stars and Stripes 87_ was created which, after progressively gaining speed in a grueling challenger series, became the 1987 challenger. Stars and Stripes sailed against Kookaburra, the Australian defender, with Conner winning the 1987 America's Cup and returning it to the U.S.[10] The 1992 film _Wind_ portrays in large part the loss of the 1983 Cup and the journey to regain it at the 1987 Challenge. While parts of the film take some creative license with the actual events, _Wind_ has generally been acclaimed as the single most accurate and realistic sailing film ever made, capturing not only the technical and physical challenges of sailing, but also the realistic and daily culture and lifestyle of professional yachtsmen and yachtswomen.[11]

In retrospect, Conner said that losing the Cup in 1983 had been good for the sport of sailing and the Cup itself: “Me losing after 132 years was the best thing that ever happened to the America's Cup and the best thing that ever happened to Dennis Conner...Before the win by the Australians, the America's Cup was only big in the minds of the yachties, but the rest of the world didn't know or care about it at all. But when we lost it... it was a little bit like losing the Panama Canal - suddenly everyone appreciated it. If I hadn't lost it, there never would have been the national effort... without that there never would have been the ticker-tape parade up Fifth Avenue in New York, lunch with the President at the White House and all the doors of opportunity that it opened”.[12]

[1] [http://www.americascup.com/en/acclopaedia/circlinggalaxy/bateau.php?idIndex=&idContent=4883 Liberty - US 40] _America's Cup 32nd Official Site_

[2] Bertrand, John _Born to win : a lifelong struggle to capture the America's Cup_ (as told to Patrick Robinson). Sydney : Bantam Books, c1985. . p. 175

[3]

[4] Australia II _America's Cup 32nd Official Site_

[5] America's Cup History _CBS Sports_

[6] “32nd America's Cup - Print - An Anniversary of Legendary Proportions.” 32nd America's Cup Official Website. Web. 20 February 2011. <http://32nd.americascup.com/en/scripts/print/popup_print.php?idRubrique=35&idContent=13165>

[7] Bob Fisher and Bob Ross (1987). The America's Cup 1987: The Official Record. Pierson.

[8] Nickless, Rachel. (29 August 2012). “Bosses urged to toughen up on sickies”. _The Australian Financial Review_. Retrieved 3 February 2013.

[9]

[10]

[11] Interviews with Dennis Conner, Australian experts and many critics and others

[12]

title: 1983 America's Cup

question: What does the text say about the qualities that make a good skipper?

question: What does the text say about the 1983 America's Cup?

answer: The 1983 America's Cup was the first time the New York Yacht Club lost a challenge after defending the cup for over a period of 132 years. They were beaten by an Australian syndicate representing the Royal Perth Yacht Club that fielded the "Australia II" skippered by John Bertrand. The defending Americans fielded "Liberty" skippered by Dennis Conner. Australia II won the match races after fighting back from a 3-1 deficit to win the match, ending the U.S. domination of the racing series and the longest winning streak in sporting history.

question: What does the text say about the defender?

answer: The New York Yacht Club (NYYC) fielded "Liberty", which won all the Defender trials under skipper Dennis Conner. Liberty competed with John Kolius' "Courageous" and Tom Blackaller's "Defender". On September 2, 1983, the NYYC confirmed that Liberty was to represent the club as the defender of the America's Cup. Conner had been the focus of extensive media attention in the U.S. and was even featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine. The Liberty's crew included Conner as skipper, Tom Whidden, navigator Halsey Chase Herreshoff, Scott Vogel, and mainsheet trimmer John Marshall.

question: What does the text say about the challenger?

answer: The challenger "Australia II" was billed as one of the biggest threats to American dominance of the 12 Meter class. The boat was skippered by John Bertrand and designed by Ben Lexcen. The Australian yacht's revolutionary "winged keel" design was the subject of much controversy from the outset of the challenger series. The New York Yacht Club alleged that the winged keel boat was not a legal 12 Meter and that the keel design itself was the result of Dutch engineers, not by Lexcen. The second point would have made "Australia II" illegal under the Deed of Gift competition stipulation that all boats must be designed and constructed in the country. The boat was ruled a legal 12 Meter and allowed to participate in the regatta. The speed of the new contender combined with the controversy and protests intensified international media attention to the series.

question: Summarize the aftermath of the 1983 America' Cup.

answer: After Australia II won the America's Cup, the victory was celebrated in public venues across Australia. Prime Minister Bob Hawke even suggested that state Premiers should declare a public holiday. The loss of the 1983 America's Cup was considered a time of shame in U.S. sailing, as they had been able to defend the Cup for 132 years. Dennis Conner took the loss really hard. After losing the cup, Conner went to work on the next America's Cup campaign with the help of designers Britton Chance Jr., Bruce Nelson, and David Pedrick. The end result was the boat "Stars and Stripes 87" that won the challenger series. The America's Cup was transferred from the New York Yacht Club to the Royal Perth Yacht Club in Perth, Western Australia. The Australians' first defense of the Cup in 1987 was unsuccessful and they lost to a determined U.S. team that wanted to return the Cup back stateside. Conner said that losing the Cup in 1983 had been good for himself, the sport of sailing, and the America's Cup itself. Before Australia won, the Cup was only big in the minds of the yachties and the rest of the world didn't know or care about it. When the Americans lost after 132 years, suddenly everyone appreciated it, and there was a national effort to bring the Cup back.


text:
[Binyam Mohamed]

Mr Mohamed claims he was brutally tortured in Morocco

THE GOVERNMENT SAYS IT WILL APPEAL AGAINST A RULING THAT US INTELLIGENCE DOCUMENTS DETAILING THE ALLEGED TORTURE OF AN EX-UK RESIDENT CAN BE RELEASED.

Ethiopian-born Binyam Mohamed, 31, who spent four years in Guantanamo Bay, claims British authorities colluded in his torture while he was in Morocco.

The UK government, which stopped judges publishing the claims on national security grounds, denies any collusion.

A US State Department spokesman said it was "not pleased" by the court ruling.

Any publication of the material will be delayed until an appeal takes place.

The key document in the case is a summary of abuse allegations that US intelligence officers shared with their counterparts in London.

When the High Court gave its original judgement on the case last year, a seven-paragraph summary of Mr Mohamed's torture claims was removed on the orders of Foreign Secretary David Miliband.

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| []                                | BINYAM MOHAMED                    |
|                                   |                                   |
|                                   | Detained in Pakistan in 2002,     |
|                                   | questioned there by MI5 officer   |
|                                   |                                   |
|                                   | Transferred to Morocco, claims he |
|                                   | was tortured in US custody and    |
|                                   | asked questions supplied by MI5   |
|                                   |                                   |
|                                   | Later interred in Guantanamo Bay  |
|                                   | and eventually released in 2009   |
|                                   |                                   |
|                                   | []                                |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+

Mr Miliband argued that releasing the material would threaten Britain's national security because future intelligence sharing with the US could be compromised.

But at the High Court on Friday, Lord Justice Thomas and Mr Justice Lloyd Jones ruled that the risk to national security was "not a serious one" and there was "overwhelming" public interest in disclosing the material.

Their judgement was also delayed on Friday because MI5 insisted part of it - explaining why there was such a significant public interest in the case - should be redacted.

Ex-shadow home secretary David Davis - who first raised the case in the House of Commons - said it was "time for the government to accept the ruling of the court and stop trying to delay proceedings with further futile appeals".

Mr Davis added: "The British public have a right to know the judges' assessment of the extent of complicity of the UK and US Intelligence services in torture, and to determine for themselves why the government has tried for so long to cover up this assessment."

David Miliband: "If we give away other people's secrets, they will give us less information"

But Mr Miliband told the BBC's Newsnight that the court had breached a "fundamental principle" of intelligence sharing.

He said: "I have absolutely no objection to this material being put into the public domain by the US."

But, he added, "the principle is that one country's intelligence secrets belong to that country.

"If I give you my secrets, you don't put them into the public domain."

He said that if the court's ruling were upheld, "every other country that works with us on security issues will have to think again because they will have to be confident that the intelligence material that they share with us is safe with us".

Kurt Volker, former US ambassador to Nato, told the BBC this argument went "right to the heart of the issue".

He said: "If it is US intelligence information shared with the UK, and then that is released on the order of a UK court, then I think it calls into question what future intelligence can be shared.

'NOT A THREAT'

"Please don't understand that as a threat that the US would seek to retaliate, but rather more an observation of how intelligence organisations are going to have to try to protect their own information if there is a risk it is going to be released."

The US also denies any allegations of torture concerning Mr Mohamed and a former senior official in the Bush administration told the BBC releasing the material would have an "enormous chilling effect" on US-UK relations.

Ian Kelly, a spokesman for the US State Department, praised Mr Miliband for his decision to appeal.

Asked at a press conference for his reaction to the court's verdict, Mr Kelly told reporters: "We are not pleased - and this has nothing to do with due process here.

"This has everything to do with the importance of protecting sensitive national security information and protecting this confidential channel that we have with our allies."

'DIRTY WORK'

Mr Mohamed, who once lived in north Kensington, London, was first detained in Pakistan in 2002. He was questioned there by an MI5 officer before being transferred to Morocco.

He says while in US custody in Morocco he was tortured at the behest of the CIA and asked questions supplied by British intelligence agency MI5.

Mr Mohamed was later transferred to Guantanamo Bay and eventually released in February this year.

Before Friday's judgment, Mr Mohamed told BBC the material should be released.

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| []                                | [] OUR COURTS SHOULD BE GAGGED NO |
|                                   | LONGER AND THE CRUCIAL            |
|                                   | INCRIMINATING PARAGRAPHS          |
|                                   | PUBLISHED WITHOUT DELAY []        |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+

He said: "The public needs to know what their government has been up to for the last seven years.

"There's information in there, which I'm 99% sure, states that the US sub-contracted the UK government to do its dirty work."

Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Ed Davey said the court was right to argue that publication would not jeopardise British-American security co-operation.

In March, Attorney General Baroness Scotland confirmed the police would investigate whether an MI5 officer had been complicit in the alleged torture of Mr Mohamed.

question: Explain Binyam Mohamed's claims.

answer: When Binyam Mohamed was detained in Pakistan in 2002, he was transferred to Morocco where he claims to have been tortured. The tortures occurred while in US custody whom colluded with the British authorities. When the information was revealed, UK and US intelligence services tried to cover it up.


text:
In a sun-drenched, sticky, tourist infected corner of Orlando, FL rests a Whole Foods Market. It was strategically planted within a few miles of Disney property in the hope we'd see our share of the tourist economy.

That's where I work as a customer service supervisor.

It's a very transient place. The tourists, our team members, upper management, everyone is always arriving or departing. We have a permenent Uber lane. There are little grab and go shampoos and shaving creams at every register. A whole section of our store is dedicated to hotel-related items. We even sell sandwiches in adorable, airplane shaped boxes. Every customer you meet is heading home soon and all the employees will tell you they're "forming an exit plan". You'll work with a guy for 6 months and one day he's vanished. The next thing you hear is a Facebook notification - "Loading up the car for Portland, wish me luck Orlando!"

As a result it can be easy to stop concerning yourself with the everyday details of those around you, even co-workers you see ten or twenty times a day. No one sticks around here.

Case in point, this Asian chick whose been working behind the Juice Bar for somewhere between 4 months to a year, I can never tell. It just so happens most of my day is spent in a customer service booth directly across from this Bar. At that distance, maybe 50 feet, we'd exchange simple gestures - a glance here or nod there. I can tell you very little about her. She's maybe 5'3 with Dark Brown, chin length hair pinned up into a crayola orange beanie and covered neck to knees in an over-sized, white chefs coat. That's about it. One of the few other things I'd noticed was a handwritten name tag reading, "Bok Choy" in black permenent marker.

I'll mention that this isn't so strange a thing to see on a name tag at Whole Foods Market. We have a store manager whom we regard as "Juice" because he's a 6'9 hipster with a bright orange Slayer beard. On any given day his name tag might say "Juice", "The Juice" or "Juiced". There's also a few hippies from the holistic team who renamed themselves after their astrological sign. A person's name tag can say literally anything here.

This day I decided to order a Juice, which is unusual for me. Approaching the register, I say, a bit loudly, "Hey, Bok Choy, what's up?".

A cold stare came back in my direction.

"My name is Melanie. Seriously, Jason? I'm wearing a name tag and everything."

I put a stupid look on my face and pointed at her chest. As I'm dropping my finger arrogantly towards the tag it finally hits me - the tag says "Favorite Vegetable". Not name, but "Favorite Vegetable". The real one, it turns out, was attached to her beanie.

Instead of stopping here, as would be prudent, I did as I often do and talked myself into a worse place.

"But you can see where that's confusing for me, right Melanie? I'm over there, you're over here. That's a name tag from 50 feet away. I have basically no vantage point on your beanie. Your head is obstructed by the wheatgrass grinder."

Now she starts laying on the sarcasm.

"But it says Bok Choy AND Favorite Vegetable, dude." The font is nearly the same size on both."

"But it's a name tag in the spot where normal people pin name tags! I'm not responsible for checking whether it, just this once, also says Favorite Vegetable."

"It's green", she says. "The name tag is green and has a little cauliflower head sticking out of the top of it. Did you also not notice those two things?"

"I was thinking the Produce team just got cool, custom ones. Listen, people get nick names around here, ya know?"

"And so you thought they nicknamed the new Asian girl Bok Choy and put it on her name tag?"

I ordered my juice. It was a Bombay Sunrise - OJ, Turmeric and Ginger. Needless to say, She took a few "liberties" with the recipe and I nearly spit fire.

title: [HM] Bok Choy

question: What is the setting of the story?

answer: Whole Foods Market in Orlando, Florida near Walt Disney World.

question: Describe the narrator.

answer: The narrator is a supervisor at the customer service counter in a Whole Foods Market in Orlando, Florida.

question: Explain the plot of the story.

answer: The store where Jason (the narrator) works has a high employee turnover rate. Many of the employees rename themselves using creative names on their name tags. Jason embarassasses himself with mistaking the name of a woman who works at the juice bar.

question: What is the significance of the woman who works at the Juice Bar?

answer: Jason mistakenly calls the woman "Bok Choy." The tag specifies her favorite vegetable, not her name. Her name is clearly stated on her beanie. She is offended.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator, Jason, is a supervisor at the customer service counter in a Whole Foods Market in Orlando, Florida. The store has a high employee turnover rate. Many of the employees rename themselves using creative names on their name tags. Jason approaches the Juice Bar and mistakenly calls the woman "Bok Choy." She is offended and points out that the tag specifies her favorite vegetable, not her name. Her name is clearly stated on her beanie.


text:
Rastus, the stand-up comic, grabbed the mike and began his routine:

“Yowie, Yowie, Yowie—fun night—Friday night. How are we—fun people?” He stretched the word “night” out and put a mad, contorted look on his face.

A few women laughed. What most of the audience didn't know was that Rastus was not funny at all; he was, like all the comics or professional funny people I’d met to date, a very serious and rote minded character.

He routinely stole jokes and one liners at every opportunity. For instance he would sit or stand around BBQ’s asking people if they knew any good jokes. If one came up, he would never laugh, never.

But he would say,”Hey, that is funny!”

In the same way another person might admire a piece of art.

Most people when they hear a funny or humorous line take their joy in the act of laughing or being amused, not a comedian, they only analyze it and put it in their bag of tricks, a collector of what makes people laugh without real enjoyment in the simple act of laughter and humor itself.

Rastus’s real name was Vinnie Vincenszo, now that is a perfect name for a funny guy—Vinnie Vincenszo, not Rastus, which is a contrived silly name of someone, quite obviously trying to be funny.

We had this conversation many times, I would say,

“Vinnie drop the Rastus, thing man, it’s not funny”

“I am Rastus, he is funny, you ask anyone, Rastus is the Funster, Vinnie is not funny—I don’t want to have this conversation again— O.K.!”

Vinnie had just finished half his gig and I had called around to see him perform. I don’t know why really, he was the most boring, repetitive comic. It did annoy me that other people would be amused by his antics.

A tipsy woman came passed us and noticed Vinnie, she said. ” My God, Rastus, you are the funniest guy ever, hilarious!”

Vinnie smiled and said. ” Yowie, Yowie, Yowie—thank you!”
She walked away giggling.

“You see that, you see that—that’s what Rastus does! Learn from the master if you ever want to get a laugh.” Vinnie bragged.

“Are You kidding, that woman would not know funny, you think that Yowie, Yowie crap, is funny, that is not funny, man, get rid of it, show some class, funny; that’s not funny Vinnie!” I said getting quite annoyed.

“You know what, it’s you who doesn't know funny, you know that. These people love me, they know funny— funny is Rastus!” Vinnie was raising his voice now.

He continued, “why do you come here every night, it’s always the same, you come to criticize me, I’m going to ban you, if you keep it up. You know your problem, you’re a comedian wannabe, that’s it, isn't it. You can’t stand the fact that people get a real lift out of my stuff—because you my friend would like to be funny like me, but can’t because you got no sense of humor, you’re an unfunny guy, that’s your problem.”

Vinnie actually had a grin on his face, he was enjoying himself now, he felt the flow, the roll of it. I on the other hand was really annoyed; perhaps there was some truth in what he said, maybe there was a component of the comic wannabe that kept me coming back.

He let out one final jab, “I’m going to ban you—unfunny guy.” He was laughing now and headed back to the floor.

Grabbing the mike he made a sort of “stewwwww,” sound, followed by a longer “naaaagggooa,” almost spitting into the mike. People actually sniggered in their beer over this puerile sound-blast.

“You know what peeps, I have a friend, I call him the unfunny guy. He’s the opposite of funny. I betcha when he was born he came out with a sour look on his face. Thing is he wants to be funny; he’s the sort of guy that does a course in How to be the *Funny Guy at Parties.* Anyway I’m going to ban him from my show. You hear that—Mr. Unfunny guy.”

The audience picked up on Vinnie’s enthusiasm, they were with him, he was carrying their expectancy and his delivery had a confident punch to it.

He was looking straight at me; it was time for me to leave. People laughed at my departure, it was a good joke at my expense. My point had been proven, Vinnie could only be funny with my help, I’d be back, he needed me.

title: Funny Guy (feed back, improvements?)

question: Who is Rastus?

answer: Rastus, whose real name is Vinnie Vincenszo, is a comedian who is an acquaintance of the narrator. He routinely steals jokes and one liners at every opportunity. He makes the narrator the butt of one of his jokes.

question: What does Vinnie do at the end of the story?

answer: Vinnie makes a joke about the narrator during his routine. He calls him an unfunny guy and says that he is going to ban him from his show. The narrator

question: What does the narrator do for a living?