Atlanta: NEWSFLASH!

Im not from Houston or California. Im from Charlotte bitches! Atlanta sucks ass! Your night scene is not one of the best in the country! LOL @ that shit! Your only kidding yourself to think so! One fucking building over 1000 feet and you think you have the best skyscraper in America?!?!?! Get real. You lack N.Y., Chicago, Houston, L.A., San Fran, Dallas, Seattle, Minneapolis, Miami and us in best skylines! To the idiot who tried to give me a geography lesson, you need a comprehension lesson! I didnt say Atlanta wasnt in the south! I said you dont repesent the whole south like you think you do! Fuck Atlanta! The most overhyped city in the world. Stop putting out bad music and movies (ATL). On that note, one movie dosent mean you've arrived! Get off your fucking (non existant) high horse bitches! Fuck the ATL!>

1970's Skyscrapers vs. 1930's Skyscrapers

Which decade gave us better skyscrapers? 1920's Crysler Building ESB 1970's WTC Sears Tower Add pictures or more skyscrapers to either category if you want.>

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from SSC Philippines

___________________________________ Happy Holidays!!!! _______________________________________________ Maayung Paskua sa inyu TANAN (pic : Pototan Plaza, Iloilo, Philippines) From all Filipino Members of SSC >>

America's Most and Least Stressfull Cities

America's Most (and Least) Stressful Cities Sperling's BestPlaces ranks 331 Metro Areas with a New Stress Index Complete lists for all 331 metro areas. Check out the study's methodology. Portland, Oregon, January 9, 2004 - Between international terrorism and a struggling economy, today's Americans are faced with more stress than ever. In this new study, America's favorite research gurus at Sperling's BestPlaces have identified the most and least stressful U.S. cities. Which U.S. cities provide an environment that can help make our life more relaxed and enjoyable? Are there certain U.S. cities where residents regularly face particularly stressful conditions? Our "Sperling Stress Index" is comprised of nine different factors which are associated with stress: unemployment rate, divorce rate, commute time, violent and property crime rates, suicide rate, alcohol consumption, self-reported "poor mental health", and number of cloudy days. Study Highlights Tacoma, Washington ranks as the most stressful city of the 100 largest metro areas. Galveston, Texas earns the dubious honor in the mid-size category, and Yuba City, California is the most stressful among the smallest metro areas. On the brighter side, Albany, New York is the least stressful large metro area, while Provo, Utah anchors the top spot among the mid-size cities. Among the smallest metro areas, Bismarck, North Dakota in number one in a low-stress environment. "Most of the top-ten stress cities are grappling with high unemployment," said Bert Sperling, president of Sperling's BestPlaces. "It affects the entire community, whether you presonally have a job or not. Rising unemployment has been tied to increased crime, and declining tax revenues force reductions in social services that affect young and old alike." Las Vegas has a robust economy, but had the highest percentage of divorced residents and the highest rate of suicides. And despite Miami's #2 stress ranking, they maintained a positive mental attitude, with one of the lowest rates in residents reporting poor mental health. Among the low-stress cities, there appears a common theme of state capitals and institutions of higher learning. "Government and universities provide a solid economic base to smaller cities, lessening the stress caused by economic cycles," reported Sperling. There appears to be something special about Honolulu. In our studies, it seems that they have a unique attitude that allows them to be less affected by the stresses of today's busy lifestyle. A recent Sperling's BestPlaces study on the Best Cities for Sleep found Honolulu residents reporting the highest scores for restful and relaxing sleep. In this study, Honolulu also reported the lowest number of days that they felt anxious, tense, stressed or depressed. An interesting footnote to this study was the discovery of a strong correlation between the rates of suicide and divorce. In the great majority of the cities we investigated, those areas with a high percentage of divorced residents was matched with a high suicide rate. And the opposite was true as well... places with few divorces also had few suicides. This study will be updated regularly, and we have identified new categories for consideration in the next study. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Here is some analysis for the most and least stressful of the 100 largest metro areas: Top Five Most Stressful Cities Tacoma, WA Tacoma residents contend with one of the highest divorce rates in the country as well as one of the highest unemployment rates. It's cloudy in Tacoma much of the time, and the suicide and property crime rates are high. On a brighter note, Tacomans can feel safe from bodily harm thanks to the low violent crime rate. Miami, FL Miami has the highest violent crime rate in our study as well as one of the highest property crime rates. Making Miami even more stressful is the long commute time, a high unemployment rate, and a high rate of divorce. Despite these factors, Miami residents manage to maintain a positive mental attitude. New Orleans Maybe New Orleans should be nicknamed The Big Un -Easy, due to a high violent crime rate and a high unemployment rate. There's also a significant number of suicides and divorces. Las Vegas, NV The turbulent lifestyle of Las Vegas produces some extremely stressful conditions-- the highest suicide and divorce rates in our study, as well as a great deal of alcohol use. Unfortunately, the greatest number of sunny days per year doesn't seem to translate to overall happiness-- residents of Las Vegas have a great number of days experiencing poor mental health. New York, NY Beginning and ending their days with the longest commute in the country, the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple can really stress people out. Unemployment is high and so is violent crime, which may explain why New Yorkers spend many of their days experiencing stress, depression, and problems with emotions. But New Yorkers are not quitters - the suicide and divorce rates are some of the lowest. Top Five Least Stressful Cities Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY and Harrisburg-Lebanon-Carlisle, PA These hardworking state capitals and their surrounding areas boast two of the lowest unemployment rates in the country. In fact, both areas score well in many categories- low divorce rates, short average commute times, a low overall crime rate, and low rates of suicide. One downside to these northeastern cities is their often-cloudy skies and dreary winters Orange County, CA Life really goes smoothly in "the O.C."- little crime, low unemployment, and a whole lot of sunshine. The commute can take awhile, but Orange County residents seem to be able to handle it. And their suicide rate is one of the lowest. Nassau-Suffolk, NY Although residents of Nassau and Suffolk counties have a very long commute, the area has the lowest violent and property crime rates in the country. The divorce and suicide rates are also among the lowest in the country, indicating a safe and stable place to live. Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN The Twin Cities have a low unemployment rate and a low violent crime rate. Despite many cloudy days, the suicide rate is low and the stress scores are generally favorable across the board. 100 Largest Metro Areas (Ranked in order from most stressful to least stressful) Rank Metro Area 1 Tacoma, WA 2 Miami, FL 3 New Orleans, LA 4 Las Vegas, NV-AZ 5 New York, NY 6 Portland-Vancouver, OR-WA 7 Mobile, AL 8 Stockton-Lodi, CA 9 Detroit, MI 10 Dallas, TX 11 Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA 12 West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, FL 13 Houston, TX 14 Fort Lauderdale, FL 15 Riverside-San Bernardino, CA 16 St. Louis, MO-IL 17 Denver, CO 18 Jacksonville, FL 19 Jersey City, NJ 20 Phoenix-Mesa, AZ 21 Orlando, FL 22 Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC 23 Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 24 Oakland, CA 25 Kansas City, MO-KS 26 Chicago, IL 27 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 28 San Antonio, TX 29 Albuquerque, NM 30 Tucson, AZ 31 Gary, IN 32 Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA 33 Baton Rouge, LA 34 Bakersfield, CA 35 Baltimore, MD 36 Sacramento, CA 37 Tulsa, OK 38 Memphis, TN-AR-MS 39 Nashville, TN 40 Birmingham, AL 41 Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC 42 San Francisco, CA 43 Atlanta, GA 44 Colorado Springs, CO 45 Fresno, CA 46 Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI 47 Toledo, OH 48 Indianapolis, IN 49 Philadelphia, PA-NJ 50 Cleveland-Lorain-Elyria, OH 51 Youngstown-Warren, OH 52 Wilmington-Newark, DE-MD 53 Dayton-Springfield, OH 54 Little Rock-North Little Rock, AR 55 Newark, NJ 56 San Jose, CA 57 Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point, NC 58 Wichita, KS 59 El Paso, TX 60 Austin-San Marcos, TX 61 Oklahoma City, OK 62 Louisville, KY-IN 63 Springfield, MA 64 Salt Lake City-Ogden, UT 65 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN 66 Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, MI 67 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX 68 Sarasota-Bradenton, FL 69 Richmond-Petersburg, VA 70 Bergen-Passaic, NJ 71 Charleston-North Charleston, SC 72 Monmouth-Ocean, NJ 73 Akron, OH 74 Pittsburgh, PA 75 San Diego, CA 76 Knoxville, TN 77 Boston, MA-NH-ME 78 Hartford, CT 79 Columbia, SC 80 Ventura, CA 81 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA 82 Columbus, OH 83 Washington, DC-MD-VA-WV 84 Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon, NJ 85 Providence-Fall River-Warwick, RI-MA 86 Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY 87 Syracuse, NY 88 New Haven-Meriden, CT 89 Rochester, NY 90 Scranton-Wilkes-Barre-Hazleton, PA 91 Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 92 Honolulu, HI 93 Norfolk-Virginia Beach-Newport News, VA-NC 94 Omaha, NE-IA 95 Ann Arbor, MI 96 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI 97 Nassau-Suffolk, NY 98 Orange County, CA 99 Harrisburg-Lebanon-Carlisle, PA 100 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY>

2005 DMAs (TV Markets)

Nielsen Media Research Local Universe Estimates* (US) *Estimates used throughout the 2005-2006 television season which starts on September 24, 2005 RANK Designated Market Area (DMA) TV Homes % of US 1 New York 7,375,530 6.692 2 Los Angeles 5,536,430 5.023 3 Chicago 3,430,790 3.113 4 Philadelphia 2,925,560 2.654 5 Boston (Manchester) 2,375,310 2.155 6 San Francisco-Oak-San Jose 2,355,740 2.137 7 Dallas-Ft. Worth 2,336,140 2.120 8 Washington, DC (Hagrstwn) 2,252,550 2.044 9 Atlanta 2,097,220 1.903 10 Houston 1,938,670 1.759 11 Detroit 1,936,350 1.757 12 Tampa-St. Pete (Sarasota) 1,710,400 1.552 13 Seattle-Tacoma 1,701,950 1.544 14 Phoenix (Prescott) 1,660,430 1.507 15 Minneapolis-St. Paul 1,652,940 1.500 16 Cleveland-Akron (Canton) 1,541,780 1.399 17 Miami-Ft. Lauderdale 1,522,960 1.382 18 Denver 1,415,180 1.284 19 Sacramnto-Stkton-Modesto 1,345,820 1.221 20 Orlando-Daytona Bch-Melbrn 1,345,700 1.221 21 St. Louis 1,222,380 1.109 22 Pittsburgh 1,169,800 1.061 23 Portland, OR 1,099,890 0.998 24 Baltimore 1,089,220 0.988 25 Indianapolis 1,053,750 0.956 26 San Diego 1,026,160 0.931 27 Charlotte 1,020,130 0.926 28 Hartford-New Haven 1,013,350 0.919 29 Raleigh-Durham (Fayetvlle) 985,200 0.894 30 Nashville 927,500 0.842 31 Kansas City 903,540 0.820 32 Columbus, OH 890,770 0.808 33 Milwaukee 880,390 0.799 34 Cincinnati 880,190 0.799 35 Greenvll-Spart-Ashevll-And 815,460 0.740 36 Salt Lake City 810,830 0.736 37 San Antonio 760,410 0.690 38 West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce 751,930 0.682 39 Grand Rapids-Kalmzoo-B.Crk 731,630 0.664 40 Birmingham (Ann, Tusc) 716,520 0.650 41 Harrisburg-Lncstr-Leb-York 707,010 0.641 42 Norfolk-Portsmth-Newpt Nws 704,810 0.640 43 New Orleans 672,150 0.610 44 Memphis 657,670 0.597 45 Oklahoma City 655,400 0.595 46 Albuquerque-Santa Fe 653,680 0.593 47 Greensboro-H.Point-W.Salem 652,020 0.592 48 Las Vegas 651,110 0.591 49 Buffalo 644,430 0.585 50 Louisville 643,290 0.584 51 Providence-New Bedford 639,590 0.580 52 Jacksonville 624,220 0.566 53 Austin 589,360 0.535 54 Wilkes Barre-Scranton 588,540 0.534 55 Albany-Schenectady-Troy 552,250 0.501 56 Fresno-Visalia 546,210 0.496 57 Little Rock-Pine Bluff 531,470 0.482 58 Knoxville 516,180 0.468 59 Dayton 513,610 0.466 60 Richmond-Petersburg 510,770 0.463 61 Tulsa 510,480 0.463 62 Mobile-Pensacola (Ft Walt) 501,130 0.455 63 Lexington 478,560 0.434 64 Charleston-Huntington 477,890 0.434 65 Flint-Saginaw-Bay City 475,500 0.431 66 Ft. Myers-Naples 461,920 0.419 67 Wichita-Hutchinson Plus 446,820 0.405 68 Roanoke-Lynchburg 440,390 0.400 69 Green Bay-Appleton 432,810 0.393 70 Toledo 426,520 0.387 71 Tucson (Sierra Vista) 422,480 0.383 72 Honolulu 414,960 0.377 73 Des Moines-Ames 413,590 0.375 74 Portland-Auburn 407,050 0.369 75 Omaha 399,830 0.363 76 Syracuse 398,240 0.361 77 Springfield, MO 395,820 0.359 78 Spokane 389,630 0.354 79 Rochester, NY 385,460 0.350 80 Paducah-Cape Girard-Harsbg 383,330 0.348 81 Shreveport 382,080 0.347 82 Champaign&Sprngfld-Decatur 378,100 0.343 83 Columbia, SC 373,260 0.339 84 Huntsville-Decatur (Flor) 370,820 0.336 85 Madison 365,550 0.332 86 Chattanooga 354,230 0.321 87 South Bend-Elkhart 333,190 0.302 88 Cedar Rapids-Wtrlo-IWC&Dub 331,480 0.301 89 Jackson, MS 328,350 0.298 90 Burlington-Plattsburgh 325,720 0.296 91 Tri-Cities, TN-VA 323,690 0.294 92 Harlingen-Wslco-Brnsvl-McA 318,800 0.289 93 Colorado Springs-Pueblo 315,010 0.286 94 Waco-Temple-Bryan 310,960 0.282 95 Davenport-R.Island-Moline 308,380 0.280 96 Baton Rouge 305,810 0.277 97 Savannah 296,100 0.269 98 Johnstown-Altoona 294,810 0.267 99 El Paso (Las Cruces) 290,540 0.264 100 Evansville 288,800 0.262 101 Charleston, SC 283,730 0.257 102 Youngstown 276,720 0.251 103 Lincoln & Hastings-Krny 274,150 0.249 104 Ft. Smith-Fay-Sprngdl-Rgrs 273,000 0.248 105 Greenville-N.Bern-Washngtn 271,130 0.246 106 Ft. Wayne 270,500 0.245 107 Myrtle Beach-Florence 265,770 0.241 108 Springfield-Holyoke 264,840 0.240 109 Tallahassee-Thomasville 261,250 0.237 110 Lansing 256,790 0.233 111 Tyler-Longview(Lfkn&Ncgd) 255,770 0.232 112 Reno 255,090 0.231 113 Traverse City-Cadillac 247,600 0.225 114 Sioux Falls(Mitchell) 246,020 0.223 115 Augusta 245,590 0.223 116 Montgomery-Selma 245,090 0.222 117 Peoria-Bloomington 241,800 0.219 118 Fargo-Valley City 234,190 0.212 119 Boise 230,100 0.209 120 Macon 229,870 0.209 121 Eugene 229,280 0.208 122 SantaBarbra-SanMar-SanLuOb 224,290 0.204 123 La Crosse-Eau Claire 224,090 0.203 124 Lafayette, LA 220,030 0.200 125 Monterey-Salinas 218,080 0.198 126 Yakima-Pasco-Rchlnd-Knnwck 211,610 0.192 127 Columbus, GA 205,300 0.186 128 Bakersfield 201,850 0.183 129 Corpus Christi 192,380 0.175 130 Chico-Redding 191,190 0.173 131 Amarillo 190,250 0.173 132 Columbus-Tupelo-West Point 186,510 0.169 133 Rockford 183,090 0.166 134 Wausau-Rhinelander 182,620 0.166 135 Monroe-El Dorado 174,370 0.158 136 Topeka 170,650 0.155 137 Duluth-Superior 168,650 0.153 138 Columbia-Jefferson City 167,860 0.152 139 Wilmington 167,810 0.152 140 Beaumont-Port Arthur 167,430 0.152 141 Medford-Klamath Falls 163,090 0.148 142 Erie 158,660 0.144 143 Sioux City 156,950 0.142 144 Wichita Falls & Lawton 154,960 0.141 145 Joplin-Pittsburg 153,720 0.139 146 Lubbock 152,150 0.138 147 Albany, GA 152,140 0.138 148 Salisbury 147,890 0.134 149 Bluefield-Beckley-Oak Hill 145,850 0.132 150 Terre Haute 145,630 0.132 151 Bangor 142,790 0.130 152 Rochestr-Mason City-Austin 142,770 0.130 153 Palm Springs 142,730 0.130 154 Wheeling-Steubenville 142,020 0.129 155 Anchorage 141,290 0.128 156 Binghamton 138,560 0.126 157 Panama City 136,450 0.124 158 Biloxi-Gulfport 135,540 0.123 159 Odessa-Midland 135,100 0.123 160 Minot-Bismarck-Dickinson 133,910 0.122 161 Sherman-Ada 124,060 0.113 162 Gainesville 117,190 0.106 163 Idaho Falls-Pocatello 114,560 0.104 164 Abilene-Sweetwater 112,510 0.102 165 Clarksburg-Weston 108,730 0.099 166 Utica 106,130 0.096 167 Hattiesburg-Laurel 105,000 0.095 168 Missoula 104,700 0.095 169 Quincy-Hannibal-Keokuk 103,890 0.094 170 Yuma-El Centro 103,170 0.094 171 Billings 102,620 0.093 172 Dothan 98,370 0.089 173 Elmira (Corning) 97,210 0.088 174 Jackson, TN 95,010 0.086 175 Lake Charles 94,090 0.085 176 Alexandria, LA 93,120 0.085 177 Rapid City 91,070 0.083 178 Watertown 90,930 0.083 179 Jonesboro 89,530 0.081 180 Marquette 89,160 0.081 181 Harrisonburg 85,870 0.078 182 Greenwood-Greenville 76,800 0.070 183 Bowling Green 75,420 0.068 184 Meridian 71,210 0.065 185 Lima 70,940 0.064 186 Charlottesville 69,750 0.063 187 Grand Junction-Montrose 65,190 0.059 188 Laredo 64,410 0.058 189 Great Falls 64,130 0.058 190 Parkersburg 63,990 0.058 191 Lafayette, IN 63,330 0.057 192 Twin Falls 60,400 0.055 193 Butte-Bozeman 59,300 0.054 194 Eureka 58,340 0.053 195 Cheyenne-Scottsbluff 54,320 0.049 196 Bend, OR 54,250 0.049 197 San Angelo 53,330 0.048 198 Casper-Riverton 52,070 0.047 199 Ottumwa-Kirksville 51,290 0.047 200 Mankato 50,930 0.046 201 St. Joseph 45,840 0.042 202 Zanesville 33,080 0.030 203 Fairbanks 32,310 0.029 204 Presque Isle 31,140 0.028 205 Victoria 30,250 0.027 206 Helena 25,810 0.023 207 Juneau 24,130 0.022 208 Alpena 17,790 0.016 209 North Platte 15,320 0.014 210 Glendive 5,020 0.005 Total 110,213,910 100.000 Notes: NSI® and DMA® are registered trademarks of Nielsen Media Research, Inc. Nielsen Media Research is a trademark of Nielsen Media Research, Inc.>

Block parties outside of the Northeast and Midatlantic

What other parts of the U.S. have similiar amounts of block parties as the Northeast and Midatlantic? What regions could use more of them?>

Is 2 million the new 1 million?

I was looking at CSA stats and was wondering, with so many places now achieving the 1 million mark, is it safe to say that 2 million is now the new 1 million? Below is the list of Cities within the 1 million to 2 million range. 20 Charlotte-Gastonia-Salisbury, NC-SC 2067810 21 Kansas City-Overland Park-Kansas City, MO-KS 1992836 22 Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN 1939349 23 Orlando-The Villages, FL 1922412 24 Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH 1920601 25 Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI 1709926 26 Las Vegas-Paradise-Pahrump, NV 1688385 27 Salt Lake City-Ogden-Clearfield, UT 1541091 28 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Columbia, TN 1470571 29 Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC 1467434 30 New Orleans-Metairie-Bogalusa, LA 1363750 31 Greensboro--Winston-Salem--High Point, NC 1335217 32 Louisville-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg, KY-IN 1334002 33 Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Holland, MI 1306768 34 Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic, CT 1298907 35 Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY 1237557 36 Oklahoma City-Shawnee, OK 1211438 37 Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL 1161382 38 Albany-Schenectady-Amsterdam, NY 1141637 39 Rochester-Batavia-Seneca Falls, NY 1136263 40 Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH 1081164 41 Fresno-Madera, CA 1005723>

regionalisms good or bad?

i found this facinating article, whats your opinion on the subject? -------------------------------------------------- Regionalism is job 1 By Erik Spanberg Charlotte Business Journal Updated: 7:00 p.m. ET Dec. 25, 2005 From billionaire David Murdock's sprawling biotechnology development in Kannapolis to the whitewater park on the Gaston County line, the notion -- and reality -- of regionalism pervades nearly every conversation concerning economic development and business health. That emphasis seems likely to grow in 2006, signaling a new approach in various sectors and among companies and organizations. Four executives from the area's most prominent business and development groups recently sat down for a roundtable discussion of regionalism and its importance in the coming year. It was the first time the four men leading the organizations -- all newcomers to their jobs, hired during the past two years -- had met together. As the roundtable progressed, however, they spoke of the likelihood of scheduling monthly meetings in the future. The executives, Tim ******, chief executive at the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority; Bob Morgan, president of the Charlotte Chamber; Michael Smith, president at Charlotte Center City Partners; and Ronnie Bryant, president and chief executive of the Charlotte Regional Partnership, all agreed on one thing: Regionalism is a key component of their jobs. During a 90-minute discussion, the executives explored a number of issues and challenges while displaying a playful sense of camaraderie. Following are excerpts from their conversation: Regionalism seems to be a theme for all metropolitan areas these days. Why is it so important for the Charlotte region now, and what does it mean to each of your organizations? Bob Morgan: I'm on the payroll now at the Charlotte Chamber, but my Gaston experience (running the Gaston Chamber of Commerce) is still fresh. In June, the Gaston Chamber brought together the CEOs of four companies that had, in the last 12 months, brought major operations to Gaston County. Every one of those CEOs started by saying how glad they are to be in Charlotte. In the mind of those companies, it's one place, it's an airport, it's an interstate, it's a place to live, which may be different from where one works. And the clients out there from an economic-development term, to them these county lines are not relevant. It's a marketplace. Tim ******: Ronnie (Bryant) and I both have regional in our organizational names whereas our (CRVA) specific boundary statutorily is Mecklenburg County. But we think about racing and how closely we work with Cabarrus County. We can't do amateur sports (events) without York County. As we talk about the hospitality and tourism, it's the region we're selling, not just Charlotte. What Bob says about those geographical and technical boundaries, (that they) really don't matter in the overall business that we're all trying to attract (is correct). Michael Smith: The same applies to us, too. The assets that are placed in the center city, it is the center of the region. They would not be here -- they would not have the draw, the jobs, the attendance and the hospitality -- if they didn't pull from the entire marketplace. You know, retailers don't care whether you're here or there as long as you shop. Ronnie Bryant: I don't want the concept of regionalism in Charlotte to be perceived as a new concept. The partnership was created with the geographical boundaries of 16 counties in 1989, so somebody sat around the table and thought, "Hey, there is some benefit to us being together." From the partnership's economic-development perspective, our decision-makers could care less about the lines that we draw that separate us into municipalities or counties or, in some cases, states. I truly believe the concept of regionalism has got to get to the point where when we look at our 16-county region, we draw the outline boundaries and erase all the lines on the inside. We've got to get to the point where we take the intra-regional competition out and look at ways of revenue-sharing and multi-jurisdictional tax districts and so on and maximize your resources. It does seem that the emphasis on regionalism has grown. Any particular reason for that? Morgan: I think that the record, going back to 1989, is we've been relatively successful at putting together a regional economic-development program. I think the Charlotte Regional Partnership is tied to the developers throughout the region -- there may not be a better model of regionalism in the day-to-day business of economic development. I think what we're seeing now is there is a growing hunger for more of a regional agenda. And I don't think we've spoken yet to a regional agenda. I think we in Charlotte make a real good case for why the region should support some of the things we want to do here in Charlotte, but it's a two-way street. If we think that the region has something to gain by something that's happening outside this window, in the center city of Charlotte, it's just as important for us to think about things like the Monroe bypass or the Garden Parkway (in Gaston County), pieces of transportation infrastructure that will help serve the region that we can be equally interested in. Everyone has stakeholders to answer to in your organizations. So how do you avoid turf battles? ******: You first meet your core discipline. I think in terms of, OK, Cabarrus County has their convention facility connected to the hotel there. Now, there are pieces of business that are going to go there instead of (the Charlotte) Convention Center. Does that create a competitive disadvantage? Really no, because you get to a certain size and (Charlotte's convention center) is the only game in town. That's what we need to maximize. We need to focus (on bigger conventions). We all can be most effective as we do our core business. (Morgan) is doing development within Charlotte-Mecklenburg, (Bryant) is setting the regional tone, (Smith) is taking care of the urban core, we're speaking to the visitor population. And then we have the platform for collaboration. Each of us has our own constituency to take care of and then where we have the opportunity for common ground is on things like branding, on things like advertising, where we can maximize finite dollars. But there have been turf battles in the past. It seems like the economic developers are more on board. Is that because of the changes in leadership? Bryant: I think the role the partnership played was very driven toward finding someone with economic development experience. That led them to the direction of hiring someone who understood what an economic developer goes through on a day-to-day basis. That's not a knock on my predecessor, but that was not his background. So that really has brought a degree of consensus and a greater appreciation for the direction of the partnership. With my background at three organizations (in economic development in other cities) and understanding the internal struggles of keeping a core issue together in an arena where there is always suspicion around the major city, there is probably not an issue I have not heard. So they can reach trust. Now, I've said the right things, but they're watching. We've still got work to do. It's not over, believe me. Morgan: It's less about turf and more about organizational clutter. We share a lot of the same investors and a lot of them -- it's not the amount of the four different checks that they may be writing -- it's they're unsure, where does the chamber stop and the partnership pick up? Part of our job is to clarify the mission where we get out of the partnership's way and they get out of our way, where it makes sense. We've been thoughtful about where the line is. And we're sitting around the table talking. Smith: The key to it is communication. And we as a group have said we're going to circle up and get together regularly and make sure we understand what each is working on. If you lay our missions on the table, it's clear who should be working on what. Through a quick conversation, it shouldn't take long to say, "Yeah, you're right, you should probably take this one on." This is a good opportunity because we've got four relatively new faces. ******: One thing that helps is Ronnie's a quick study, so he's gotten up to speed on this. Michael having been in the marketplace, Bob having been in the marketplace, me having been in the marketplace -- we've heard enough about some of these legendary turf issues. Let's just call it what it is a lot of times -- a lot of times it is personality (clashes). We have a good working rapport already that will only continue to grow over time. Bryant: A lot of the activities are driven by egos. That could be the ego of an executive director or the egos of different constituencies in an organization. This chairman wants to out-do that chairman or take the lead on this project. You have four people here in the room; I've not seen any sense of being constrained (in working together) by ego or superficial internal drive or external pressure to be out front. I told my board, "You might not ever see our name in the paper." That's not how I get paid. If I can help Bob (Morgan) look good, that's fine. I don't need to be listed as a leader on a project to show that I'm engaged. So if you can get that off the table, that sense of competition for ego satisfaction, life is easy (laughs). Are there specific issues in 2006 that you see tied to regionalism? Morgan: We're working on a concept of regional chamber membership. The idea is if somebody is already a member of one of the chambers around us, are we willing to offer them a discounted rate to be a member of the Charlotte Chamber? That brings strength in numbers. We've already begun preliminary discussions on that. ******: The one that is a continuing effort from (2005) is the NASCAR Hall of Fame. And when we're successful, God willing, the real pulling together in terms of promotion will come together. What happened for the hall of fame effort wouldn't have happened in 1989. I can dare say it wouldn't have happened in 1999. But having worked together on the Nextel All-Star Challenge and on a lot of other efforts, these things are bearing fruit. Bryant: One of the opportunities for us is to understand the significance of being bi-state. I think there is a little misunderstanding and confusion as to the significance (of being on the border). The four (S.C.) counties in the region bring us to some very significant benchmark numbers that are important to competition: 2 million and 1 million. Over 2 million population and 1 million work force -- if you fall below those benchmarks, there will be projects you don't have a chance to land. We have to appreciate the importance of that. The (S.C.) counties also bring us some very significant real estate options for attracting businesses. There is only one certified supersite -- pad ready, 1,000-plus-acre site -- and that site is in Chester County, in South Carolina, not North Carolina. That's important. We also need to work to understand the importance of multi-jurisdictional industrial parks in some of these contiguous counties. Could the Charlotte Chamber get behind things like that? Morgan: Alabama and Mississippi are together on a site, and they're probably going to land the next automotive plant in the southeastern United States. The site's in Mississippi and Alabama is going to put money into the incentive package (because it's near the border). And we're not even in the game because we're fighting over stealing jobs from each other between North and South Carolina. What if we could get over that and get to this site in Chester County, and what if the marketing of this entire region could be brought to bear to bringing a huge auto plant to this region? Yet we're down here with these competitive details -- we've got to figure a way to rise above that. I want to go back to another issue for 2006 -- the opening of the whitewater park. There's an asset funded by four governments on the other side of the Mecklenburg County line. They're joining with the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County and private dollars to build a park that's going to open up the Catawba River, something that's not been done beyond it being a place to take water from and put sewage back into it. This puts us into the eco-tourism game, which also puts us into the creative class. Imagine being in the admissions office at Belmont Abbey College. You take a student down to the whitewater park and they're sold on the region. Will the CRVA use the park to market the region? ******: We have already begun to talk about it. It'll absolutely be one of those things we talk about. And having those Olympic rings out on the highway will be huge (as the park conducts training sessions for Olympic athletes). You look at the opportunities for hotel operators and all the restaurants and people spending money here. But they won't be spending money uptown, will they? Smith: I don't believe that. Because I believe if we do tourism right, people come to town and they have a plethora of options. So they could easily stay at The Westin, take their boat to the whitewater park for the day and then come into the city for dinner and cultural events. I also think there could be multi-city opportunities. But whenever the region grows, we all benefit. Public education impacts business retention and recruiting. What do you think of the current situation? Morgan: I think the perception is a whole lot worse than the reality, and there is a role for all of us in the business community to play in telling the balance of the story. From an economic-development perspective, we can't lose sight of the fact that the regions of the country that generate the greatest economic growth are those that form the highest level of research in higher education. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is very important, but we're still far behind other regions in higher education. Anything we can do to harness political support in the research area at UNC Charlotte, we should do. Bryant: We've got to get to the point where we can separate the academic side and the business side of education. Where we're failing is on the business side of education. I like to go back to what Daley did in Chicago -- he had a CEO business guy running the business side and an academic on the academic system. Having enough buildings is a business decision, not an academic one. We have a good school system, we can compete. You want to see a bad system? I can show you some bad systems in this country. © 2005 Charlotte Business Journal>

Merry Xmas from the Netherlands and the Simcity Forummers

HOHOHO MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Best wishes for the next year!!! representative of the Simcity Subforum Muyangguniang>

Once Upon a Time in America...

My favorite pics I've taken this year. All are taken from the following cities: New York City. Chicago. Washington. Baltimore. Indianapolis. Detroit. Charlotte. Arlington. Jersey City. Okay, those are the cities, start guessing (this is pretty easy) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. See you next year!>

Which dialect do you speak ?

Click here to listen to a New England talker Click here to listen to a Northern talker Click here to listen to a North Midland talker Click here to listen to a South Midland talker Click here to listen to a Southern talker Click here to listen to a Western talker Where's He From? Perception of American English Regional Dialects Cynthia G. Clopper - cclopper@indiana.edu David B. Pisoni Speech Research Laboratory Psychology Department Indiana University Bloomington, IN 47405 (812) 855 4893 Popular version of paper 1aSC10 Presented Monday morning, June 4, 2001 141st ASA Meeting, Chicago, IL Human speech is highly variable, despite the apparent ease with which we can understand those around us. In addition to providing a means of communication of ideas through words, speech also provides us with detailed information about the speaker, such as his or her gender, emotional state, age, and dialect. Variation due to these so-called "indexical" properties of the speaker has only begun to be studied systematically in the last few years. Understanding how variation is used in human speech perception is of fundamental importance to speech recognition, natural-sounding speech synthesis, and cognitive models of speech perception. The present investigation was designed to learn about how much people know about dialect variation in their native language. We wanted to know if naive listeners can identify where an unknown speaker is from with any degree of accuracy. Results from this study provide insight into what information about a talker's dialect is processed and stored in memory during normal speech perception. A group of eighteen Indiana University undergraduates was asked to listen to sentences spoken by sixty-six white, male talkers in their twenties. Eleven speakers came from each of six dialect regions in the United States: New England, North, North Midland, South Midland, South, and West. After hearing each sentence, the listeners were asked to select the geographical region that they thought each talker was from. To hear a sample sentence from any of the regions, just click on the map corresponding to that region. The sentences were taken from the TIMIT Acoustic-Phonetic Continuous Speech Corpus, which is available from the Linguistics Data Consortium. The two sentences used in this study were: (1) She had your dark suit in greasy wash water all year. (2) Don't ask me to carry an oily rag like that. Overall performance on the task by the undergraduates was quite poor. Across the two different sentence conditions, accuracy was only 30 percent correct. However, analyses of the confusion matrices for the six regions revealed that the perceptual errors made by the listeners were quite systematic. Specifically, our listeners were able to reliably identify the talkers using broader perceptual categories than those used in this study. The broader categories and the regions they include are shown in Table 1. When performance was measured using these categories, accuracy for the two sentences improved to 60 percent correct. It appears that listeners are sensitive to certain phonetic and phonological properties of speech that provide useful information about where talkers are from. Category Regions North New England, North South South, South Midland West North Midland, West Table 1. Broad dialect categories. Acoustic analyses were also carried out on the speech samples themselves to identify and measure the dialect differences for the talkers used in this study. Results of the analyses revealed that the dialects did differ from one another on several acoustic-phonetic measures. For example, r-lessness, as in "dak" for "dark," was a characteristic feature of the New England talkers. Click here to listen to a New England talker. On the other hand, saying "greazy" for "greasy" was a characteristic feature of the Southern talkers. Click here to listen to a Southern talker Correlations were then computed between the results of the categorization task and the acoustic analysis measures. The pattern of results suggested that listeners were in many cases relying on the characteristic features of the dialects when selecting where the talkers were from, again providing evidence that listeners are sensitive to dialect variation in speech. When we listen to speech, we not only pay attention to the words and the meanings those words convey, but we can also perceive, encode, and use indexical information in the speech signal to learn more about specific properties of the talker.>