Bonnie Prince Charlie (and the NPG)

Grandson of James II, referred to as Charles III by his supporters, and "The Young Pretender" by his detractors. He was born in Italy, and spent his childhood in Roma and Bologna. The Duke of Cumberland caught up with Charles at the battle of Culloden, the last battle fought on British soil.

Bologna is home to the Hotel Royal Carlton on the Via Montebello.

A picture of BPC is displayed in the National Portrait Gallery, 2 St Martin's Place (WC2), a road that runs North from Trafalgar Square. A left turn as you move north and you are into Orange Street, which connects with Haymarket (home of the Theatre Royal Haymarket). The present TRH was designed by architect John Nash in 1821, when the Prince Regent was improving London (a Prince Regent is a prince who acts in stead of a monarch who is unable to rule e.g. George IV (1811-1820) during the incapacity of George III). It was the Prince Regent who commissioned the building of the Royal Pavillion in Brighton.

Haymarket is a one-way street, that goes Southbound, from Piccadilly to Pall Mall (on side Pall Mall East, the other side Pall Mall (West)). The first right is Jermyn Street that connects Haymarket to (Lower) Regent Street and is famous for shirtmakers. Regent Street is a one-way street that goes Northbound from Pall Mall to Piccadilly Circus. However, going North on LRS you cannot make a left-turn into Piccadilly, instead you should go along Pall Mall (another one-way systems). St James Square, off Pall Mall, is one of London's most exclusive addresses. St James' is the collective name for Pall Mall, Haymarket, Jermyn Street and St James' Square.

Captain Planet and other Great Cartoons

"Captain Planet" was a cartoon created in 1990 by Robert Larkin III, with Ted Turner and media innovator Barbara Pyle. "By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet". Together they battle the eco-villains who are looting and polluting the earth. Another great cartoon series was the "Mysterious Cities of Gold" which premiered in Japan in 1982 (co-produced by Studio Pierrot, hq'ed in Mitaka City, Japan, about 20 mins from Shinjuku station (the busiest train station in the world) and also home of Ghibli Museum) and ran for 39 episodes. Set in 1532, it is the journey of Spanish boy Esteban, searching for his father and the lost cities of gold. He is accompanied by Zia, Tao and Mendoza (a Spaniard, navigator of the Spanish fleet). It is based on the 1966 book "The King's Fifth" by Scott O'Dell. Scott published his first book at age 26 called "Representative Photoplays Analysed". "What first step shall I take into the maze of the Minotaur", says Esteban in Chapter 1 of The King's Fifth. To learn more about the animators of MCOG, we must learn more about Japan. Shinjuku is an inland ward of Tokyo (one of 23 special wards). Nishi-Shinjuku is the skyscraper district of Shinjuku (see the pictures of skyscrapers with Mount Fuji in the background, one of the impressive skyscrapers is the Mitsui building, built 1974). The main campus of Waseda University is located in Shinjuku. It is home of one of the oldest karate clubs in Japan formed in 1931, one of the graduates was Shigeru Egami, founder of Shotokai style of karate, who stressed flowing, continuous movement and development of perfect kime, focusing all energy at one point). West of Shinjuku is the (also inland) Nakano ward (it was just a village in 1897). Minato ward faces the sea to the East. It is home to the Shinto Atago Shrine built in 1603 (a lot of climbing, one of the highest points in Tokyo!) Choshi City is to the east of Tokyo and is famous for the Inubosaki lighthouse that faces the Pacific Ocean (the largest ocean in the World, whose name was given by Magellan, and means "peaceful sea") Learn more about the surrounding Chiba area here.

Winter Solstice

Longest day of winter, colloquially called "Midwinter". Occurs around dec 21,22 in the Northern hemisphere.

Origins of NAFTA

Treaty of "America del Norte", came into force on Jan 1 1994, during the Clinton administration (Clinton was 42nd President of the USA between 1993-2001, Clinton studied PP&E at University College, Oxford). The US had already signed a similar treaty with Canada in 1988. Some economists argue NAFTA has been positive for Mexico, which has seen poverty rates fall and real incomes rise (in the form of lower prices, esp food).

Who is the BEA?

The BEA is the Bureau of Economic Analysis, which provides economics accounts data. It's part of the Dept of Commerce and provides data on real GDP. They make available a number of methodology papers on their website.