Tag: life

Shipping Containers

The first standard shipping container was invented and patented by Malcolm McLean (USA, 1956). Although he wasn’t an ocean shipper, he owned the largest trucking company in the country at that time. Gradually, he came up with idea of how to make intermodal transportation seamless and efficient. For years, when Malcolm started his trucking company, cargo was loaded and unloaded in odd sized wooden cases, he watched dock loaders unloading freight from trucks and transferring it to ships, and was amazed by the inadequacy of this method. He knew that both trucking carriers and shipping companies would gain from a standardized process of cargo transfer. So, Malcolm decided to make a change – he purchased Pan Atlantic Tanker Company with all its shipping assets. With it, he started experimenting with better ways of loading and unloading trucks. And finally came up with what is now called a shipping container. It’s strong, theft resistant, reliable and easy to transfer. In April 1956, the first container shipped, the Ideal X. It departed from Port Newark and successfully made its route to Houston.

Standard containers made a true revolution in freight transportation and changed international trade in many ways:

  • Cargo went on a journey sealed and safe, this reduced pilfering and damage on all stages of conveyance;
  • Containers have reduced labor required for loading and unloading and dramatically changed the character of port cities worldwide. Cranes substitute for man, and ports have changed to accommodate larger ships and loading facilities;
  • Innovation has reduced the expense of international trade and increased its speed by greatly shortening shipping time.

By the end of the century, container shipping was transporting approximately 90% of the world’s cargo. Containerization shaped the world we live in; it provides an opportunity of fast and safe delivery of millions of goods, each day. Undoubtedly, this invention influenced globalization and world economy.

History

Before containerization, goods were usually handled manually as break bulk cargo. Typically, goods would be loaded onto a vehicle from the factory and taken to a port warehouse where they would be offloaded and stored awaiting the next vessel. When the vessel arrived, they would be moved to the side of the ship along with other cargo to be lowered or carried into the hold and packed by dock workers. The ship might call at several other ports before off-loading a given consignment of cargo. Each port visit would delay the delivery of other cargo. Delivered cargo might then have been offloaded into another warehouse before being picked up and delivered to its destination. Multiple handling and delays made transport costly, time consuming and unreliable.

Containerization has its origins in early coal mining regions in England beginning in the late 18th century. In 1766 James Brindley designed the box boat ‘Starvationer’ with 10 wooden containers, to transport coal from Worsley Delph (quarry) to Manchester by Bridgewater Canal. In 1795, Benjamin Outram opened the Little Eaton Gangway, upon which coal was carried in wagons built at his Butterley Ironwork. The horse-drawn wheeled wagons on the gangway took the form of containers, which, loaded with coal, could be transshipped from canal barges on the Derby Canal, which Outram had also promoted.[4]

By the 1830s, railroads on several continents were carrying containers that could be transferred to other modes of transport. The Liverpool and Manchester Railway in the United Kingdom was one of these. “Simple rectangular timber boxes, four to a wagon, they were used to convey coal from the Lancashire collieries to Liverpool, where they were transferred to horse-drawn carts by crane.”[5] Originally used for moving coal on and off barges, “loose boxes” were used to containerize coal from the late 1780s, at places like the Bridgewater Canal. By the 1840s, iron boxes were in use as well as wooden ones. The early 1900s saw the adoption of closed container boxes designed for movement between road and rail.

Twentieth century

On 17 May 1917, Benjamin Franklin Fitch inaugurated exploitation of an experimental installation for transfer of the containers called demountable bodies based on his own design in Cincinnati, Ohio in US. Later in 1919, his system was extended to over 200 containers serving 21 railway stations with 14 freight trucks.

Prior to the Second World War, many European countries independently developed container systems.

In 1919, Stanisław Rodowicz, an engineer, developed the first draft of the container system in Poland. In 1920, he built a prototype of the biaxial wagon. The Polish-Bolshevik War stopped development of the container system in Poland.

The US Post Office contracted with the New York Central Railroad to move mail via containers in May 1921. In 1930, the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad began shipping containers between Chicago and Milwaukee. However, their efforts ended in the spring of 1931 when the Interstate Commerce Commission wouldn’t allow the use of a flat rate for the containers.

In 1931, in USA Benjamin Franklin Fitch designed the two largest and heaviest containers in existence anywhere at the time. One measured 17’6″ by 8’0″ by 8’0″ with a capacity of 30,000 pounds in 890 cubic feet, and a second measured 20’0″ by 8’0″ by 8’0″, with a capacity of 50,000 pounds in 1,000 cubic feet.

In November 1932 in Enola, PA the first container terminal in the world was opened by The Pennsylvania Railroad Company. The Fitch hooking system was used for reloading of the containers.

The development of containerization was created in Europe and the US as a way to revitalize rail companies after the Wall Street Crash of 1929, which had caused economic collapse and reduction in use of all modes of transport.

In 1933 in Europe under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce the International Container Bureau (French: Bureau International des Conteneurs, B.I.C.) was established. In June 1933, the B.I.C. decided on obligatory parameters for containers used in international traffic. Containers handled by means of lifting gear, such as cranes, overhead conveyors, etc. for traveling elevators (group I containers), constructed after July 1, 1933. Obligatory Regulations:

  • Clause 1.—Containers are, as regards form, either of the closed or the open type, and, as regards capacity, either of the heavy or the light type.
  • Clause 2.—The loading capacity of containers must be such that their total weight (load, plus tare) is: 5 metric tons for containers of the heavy type; 2.5 metric tons for containers of the light type; a tolerance of 5 percent excess on the total weight is allowable under the same conditions as for wagon loads.[8]

Shipping containers have transformed the logistics industry over the last decades! There are more than 20 million containers around the world, and the world container fleet is growing by 3.9% every year. Not only do containers keep the cargo safe, but they have also increased the cargo capacity extensively.

The ISO has standardized the manufacture of shipping containers to make it suitable for international shipping. The standards include classification, dimensions and ratings. As a result of standardisation, we have 20-feet and 40-feet containers along with other standard varieties.

The three most common raw materials that container manufacturers are steel, flooring and paint.

Steel: In the last couple of decades, mild steel and Corten steel were used. But these days, Corten Steel dominates the industry because of its corrosion-resistant quality. It is also known as the “weathering steel”. When exposed to air and water, it oxidises and prevents corrosion.

Flooring: Earlier, oak was used in flooring. But today, hardwood plywood is used for the flooring. Oak trees take a long time to grow and are therefore not a conventional option. Bamboo grows relatively fast and is a futuristic option.

Paint: The choice of paint is important as it influences the ageing and rusting. The quality of the paint has improved a lot. Three things to take care of here is the thickness of paint, the ZINC rich primer which prevents corrosion and the undercoating of the container.

Before the first types of containers appeared, freight was handled manually as break bulk cargo. Goods were taken through a series of pick-ups and loads from factory to vessel, then from vessel to warehouse, from warehouse to another vessel and so on. This method required a lot of handling and delays, which was costly, time consuming and unreliable. Modern shipping containers were first used for combined rail and horse-drawn transport in Britain at the end of the 18th century. By the 1830s, railroads were carrying containers that were suitable for other transport modes. The U.S. Army used standard-sized small containers during WWII, which helped in faster distribution of supplies.

Interesting facts:

  1. the first TEU container ship was the Japanese de:Hakone Maru from shipowner NYK, who started sailing in 1968 and could carry 752 TEU containers.
  2. With a DWT (deadweight tonnage) of 191,317 metric tons, the OOCL Hong Kong has a cargo capacity of 21,413 TEU, making it the world’s largest container ship. The latter is an important statistic to note, as it is the TEU that determines title honours, not its length or beam

References:

  1. https://www.plslogistics.com/blog/the-history-of-containers/
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Containerization
  3. https://container-xchange.com/blog/biggest-container-manufacturers-of-the-world/

History of Coleslaw!

When I order at Popeyes chicken, I always order a large side of coleslaw, giving me the satisfaction of, with the large volume of fried chicken, eating vegetables.

Then I was reading up about history of Coleslaw and found this: Coleslaw (from the Dutch term koolsla meaning ‘cabbage salad’), also known as cole slaw or simply slaw, is a condiment consisting primarily of finely shredded raw cabbage with a salad dressing, commonly either vinaigrette or mayonnaise. Coleslaw prepared with vinaigrette may benefit from the long lifespan granted by pickling.

The term “coleslaw” arose in the 18th century as an anglicisation of the Dutch term “koolsla” (“kool” in Dutch sounds like “cole”) meaning “cabbage salad”. The “cole” part of the word comes from the Latin colis, meaning “cabbage”.[citation needed]

The 1770 recipe book The Sensible Cook: Dutch Foodways in the Old and New World contains a recipe attributed to the author’s Dutch landlady, who mixed thin strips of cabbage with melted butter, vinegar, and oil. The recipe for coleslaw as it is most commonly prepared is fairly young, as mayonnaise was invented during the mid-18th century.

According to The Joy of Cooking (1997), raw cabbage is the only entirely consistent ingredient in coleslaw; the type of cabbage, dressing, and added ingredients vary widely. Vinaigrette, mayonnaise, and sour cream based dressings are all listed; bacon, carrots, bell peppers, pineapple, pickles, onions, and herbs are specifically mentioned as possible added ingredients.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coleslaw

Hamsterdam

One of my top TV serials is HBO’s The Wire. It fascinated me on several levels in terms of the story as well as the portrayal of Baltimore. In season 3 episode 4 the concept of Hamsterdam was introduced – where they section a “Safe haven” for drug addicts – the police does not intervene.

Recently the city of Philadelphia passed a “Safe haven” law which allowed opiod addicts access to clinics where they can shoot up. Referred to as  a supervised injection site, they allow for the addict access to clean syringes and other items needed to get high- all while having medical staff on standby incase they overdose.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/philadelphia-residents-reacts-after-judge-rules-supervised-injection-site-does-not-violate-federal-law

Take a minute for that to sink in.

I have been back and forth on this issue- on one hand I argue that it’s better to be in the open and get help if things go south, quickly instead of getting treated for other issues such as infected needles etc. This also gives addicts access to help if they need it by giving them counselling and support where they congregate – instead of them having to take the effort to go to a de-addiction center.

On the other hand, it’s giving addicts a greenlight to say- hey- come here and get high- its like a BYOD party.

While I am hoping something like this will help ease the current crisis, by giving addicts avenues to seek help and not overdose or get infected from non-sterile conditions.

To end, “The ultimate goal of Safehouse’s proposed operation is to reduce drug use, not facilitate it,” the judge wrote.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsterdam

Traffic Jams

Have you ever wondered when you are driving down the road, the traffic seems to stop but then when you move forward, there is nothing which caused the slow down.

Well, there is math behind this. MIT has did a study in place and came up with this paper.

https://math.mit.edu/projects/traffic/

Overview

This web site presents theoretical results about special traveling wave solutions of continuum traffic models. We consider mathematical equations that model traffic similar to the equations of fluid flow. Specifically, we consider the Payne-Whitham model, the Aw-Rascle model, and generalizations thereof. In the simplest case, a single-lane, straight, and uniform road is considered. The models are purely deterministic. All drivers behave according to the same laws, and fully predictably. The considered traffic models predict a nice, uniform traffic flow at low traffic densities. However, above a critical threshold density (that depends on the model parameters) the flow becomes unstable, and small perturbations amplify. This phenomenon is typically addressed as a model for phantom traffic jams, i.e. jams that arise in the absence of any obstacles. The instabilities are observed to grow into traveling waves, which are local peaks of high traffic density, although the average traffic density is still moderate (the highway is not fully congested). Vehicles are forced to brake when they run into such waves. In analogy to other traveling waves, so called solitons, we call such traveling traffic waves jamitons.

Our research is based on the observation that the considered traffic models are similar to the equations that describe detonation waves produced by explosions. Employing the theory of denotation waves, we have developed ways to analytically predict the exact shape and the speed of propagation of jamitons. Numerical simulations of the considered traffic models show that the predicted jamiton solutions are in fact achieved, if the initial traffic density is sufficiently dense. The considered jamitons can qualitatively be found both in observed real traffic as well as in experiments. The theoretical description of the jamiton solution admits a better understanding of their behavior.

Our work also demonstrates that jamitons can serve as an explanation of multi-valued fundamental diagrams of traffic flow that are observed in measurement data. In these, the spread in measurement data is caused by the unsteadiness of jamiton solutions in a systematic and predictable fashion. While the multi-valued nature in real fundamental diagrams is most likely due to a variety of effects, our studies show that traffic waves must not be neglected in the explanation of this phenomenon.

Further findings of our research are trains of multiple jamitons that can occur on long roads. In the language of detonation theory, such traffic roll waves are very similar to roll waves in shallow water flows. Moreover, on long periodic roadways, final states can arise that consist of multiple jamitons. Interestingly, these individual jamitons can be quite different from each other, resulting in highly complex traffic behavior, even after long times of traffic equilibration.

Theoretical Results

We consider continuum two-equation (“second order”) traffic models, such as the Payne-Whitham or the Aw-Rascle equations for traffic flow. The traffic flow is not modeled as individual vehicles. Instead, the evolution of a continuous vehicle density function and a continuous velocity function is described. We consider inviscid models, i.e. any smoothing exchange of momentum between neighboring vehicles is neglected. While in reality a small amount of viscosity is obviously present, the inviscid model can be interpreted as a limiting case that admits a simpler analysis. The considered models are purely deterministic, and all drivers behave according to the same laws.
Phantom traffic jams
It is well known that two-equation traffic models are linearly unstable for sufficiently large densities. In other words: A chain of equidistant vehicles that move all with the same velocity will not remain in this nice configuration. Instead, a small perturbation grows, and builds up to become a wave of high vehicle density. This phenomenon is called phantom traffic jam, since it arises in free flowing traffic, without any obvious reason, such as obstacles, bottlenecks, etc. Instabilities in traffic flow and the onset of phantom traffic jams have been studied extensively in various types of traffic models. In continuum traffic models, there are two competing effects. On the one hand there is a stabilizing traffic pressure due to preventive driving. On the other hand, there is a destabilizing effect, which comes from the combination of drivers slowing down when the vehicle density is higher and a delay in the adjustment of drivers to new conditions (the adjustment time is inverse to the “aggressiveness” of the drivers). If the density is above a certain threshold, then the destabilizing effect outweighs the stabilizing pressure, and small perturbations grow.
Jamitons
While the instability that leads to a local concentration of vehicles is understood and reported in many papers, the exact shape of the final traffic jam wave has not been addressed in traffic literature. Our studies show that in inviscid Payne-Whitham type traffic models, instabilities grow into traveling detonation waves. These consist of a sharp jump in vehicle density (a shock) on one side, and a smooth decay in density on the other side. These detonation waves are stable structures that travel unchanged with a constant velocity along the road. In analogy to traveling waves in other fields, solitons, we decided to christen the traveling traffic waves jamitons.
Properties of jamitons
Our analysis is able to predict fundamental properties of such jamitons. A central result is that sharp shocks must always face towards incoming vehicles. Furthermore it can be proved that jamitons always travel slower than the individual vehicles. Hence, vehicles run into a sharp and sudden increase in density (the end of a phantom traffic jam), which forces each vehicle to brake very suddenly. Then, vehicles accelerate again our of the jamiton. Our analysis also shows that jamitons are stable structures. They can only vanish by strong smoothing effects (extremely cautious drivers) or a lowering of density (a widening road, vehicles exiting).
Jamitinos
A growing jamiton may trigger a new instability downstream the road. This instability can also grow and become another traveling wave. A jamiton has given birth to another traffic wave: a jamitino. In a similar fashion, the second traveling wave may trigger a third wave, and so on. Thus, a single instability can trigger an infinitely growing sequence of jamitinos. This phenomenon is visible in the videos below. It resembles roll waves in shallow water flows.
Conclusions for traffic modeling
For simple traffic laws, the shape of jamitons can be described exactly, allowing a precise prediction of the maximum traffic density that is achieved in the presence of instabilities. This result is fundamentally based on the exact shape of the traveling traffic waves, and traditional analysis of continuum traffic models has not been able to make such predictions. Furthermore, having a description of the nonlinear traffic waves allows a study of the traffic outcome in dependence on the model parameters, such as anticipation and aggressiveness of the drivers. While one jamiton does not delay the travel time of individual vehicles significantly (vehicles travel through a jamiton rather quickly), the sharp jump in vehicle density is a potential hot spot for accidents. In addition, the results indicate that jamitons rarely stay alone. In practice, whole trains of jamitons can be expected in long stretches of heavy traffic, resulting in significantly increased fuel consumption, driver aggrevation, wear and tear on materials, and risk for accidents. Consequently, a detailed understanding of the structure of and the interaction between jamitons can be a fundamental step in understanding the mechanics of traffic flow, and thus working towards ameliorating the above effects.

Results for a Circular Road

A circular road is a particular friendly case for an analysis, since the total number of vehicles is exactly conserved. If the road is not too long, traffic will in general form one single traveling wave, i.e. a single jamiton, and thus a single shock is observed. Below figures and videos show the results of simulations and theoretical predictions for the case of a circular road of length 230m.
In the case of inviscid equations a sharp shock is realized. Here, the final solution is predicted theoretically. The match between theory and numerical results is generally very good. While the inviscid equations allow a simple analysis, using the Rankine-Hugoniot conditions at the shock, the resulting vehicle behavior is somewhat extreme. Vehicles slow down from high to low velocity in zero time.
Inviscid
model		 Large number of vehicles (22) Medium number of vehicles (18) Small number of vehicles (14)
Download Video side view (divx, 4MB) Download Video side view (divx, 4MB) Download Video side view (divx, 4MB)
Download Video 3D view (divx, 10MB) Download Video 3D view (divx, 10MB) Download Video 3D view (divx, 10MB)
In real traffic flow, a small viscosity is present. The physical rationale is that a fast vehicle running towards a slow vehicle results in the fast vehicle slowing down, and (to some extent) the slow vehicle speeding up, before a minimum distance is reached. Unlike above described traffic parameters (adjustment time, preventive driving), the nature of viscosity is difficult to model and extract from real traffic flow. The inviscid equations are expected to be a good approximation to real traffic with a small viscosity.
For comparison, below are simulation results for viscous traffic equations. The general behavior is similar to the inviscid case. In particular, again a traveling wave solution is obtained. However, now with continuous density and velocity functions (the shock is smoothed out). As a result, vehicles brake earlier and more smoothly.
Viscous
model		 Large number of vehicles (22) Medium number of vehicles (18) Small number of vehicles (14)
Download Video side view (divx, 4MB) Download Video side view (divx, 4MB) Download Video side view (divx, 4MB)
Download Video 3D view (divx, 10MB) Download Video 3D view (divx, 8MB) Download Video 3D view (divx, 8MB)

Comparison with Experimental Results

In March 2008, Sugiyama et al. have published an article Traffic jams without bottlenecks – Experimental evidence for the physical mechanism of the formation of a jam in the New Journal of Physics, in which they report experimental results of traffic waves. On a circular road of 230m length, 22 vehicles were placed equidistantly, and the drivers were instructed to drive, trying to preserve a fixed distance and fixed velocity. As the video below shows, small instabilities amplify, and a traveling arises that moves backwards on the road. Sugiyama et al. conclude: Finally, a jam cluster appears and propagates backward like a solitary wave with the same speed as that of a jam cluster on a highway.
In our simulations, a circular road of 230m length is considered. The desired velocity resembles the velocity in the experiment. A comparison of our computational results for 22 vehicles with the experimental result reveals strong similarities. While there is no one-to-one match in every detail, we do believe that the solitary wave found in the experiment is the same as the jamiton we find analytically and by numerical experiment.

Results for an Infinite Road

Below videos show simulations of a long road with a small initial perturbation. The instability grows into a jamiton. The shape of the jamiton converges to the theoretically predicted shape. In addition, a train of jamitinos is triggered, each of which grows to an independently traveling jamiton.
Lower traffic density Higher traffic density
Download Video (divx, 9MB) Download Video (divx, 9MB)
Download Video (divx, 18MB)

Comparison with Real Traffic

A nice video of emergent phantom traffic jams (copyright: Dirk Helbing) shows a long straight road in Cairo, Egypt. Strong similarities with the above simulations are present. The typical shape of jamitons is visible, as well as their ability to travel backwards on the road. Unfortunately, too many perturbations (on- and off ramps, interactions between multiple lanes) prevent an unperturbed evolution. In particular, roll waves, as predicted by our simulations, are not clearly visible here. We would love to hear of any observations of traffic roll waves.

Explanation of Multi-Valued Fundamental Diagrams

Our studies show that jamitons have a very specific profile: when plotted in a flow rate vs. density diagram, a jamiton is a straight line segment, whose slope is the travel velocity of the jamiton on the road. As such, jamitons form a two-parameter family of curves. As a first parameter, one can choose the vehicle density at the sonic point. For each such density (if the associated uniform flow is unstable), one obtains a maximum jamiton curve (infinitely long), and a one-parameter family of sub-jamitons, parametrized by their length (or their shock height, respectively).
Jamiton-induced fundamental diagram together with measurement data
The figure above shows a fundamental diagram, induced by jamitons. The black function is the equilibrium curve that vehicles relax towards. In the regime of densities marked by red dots, uniform traffic flow (of the respective density) is unstable, and jamitons arise. For each red dot (sonic point density), the maximal possible jamiton is marked by a green dotted line segment. Moreover, we calculate how any train of sub-jamitons would appear to a stationary sensor that records flow rate and density in an aggregated fashion (e.g., in intervals of 30 seconds). The resulting averages are given by the blue line segments, and their envelopes by the pink curves. Any point enclosed by the pink curves can arise as a sensor measurement of jamitons states. This construction is placed on top of real sensor measurement data (obtained on the southbound direction of I-35W in Minneapolis, MN; data provided by the Minnesota Department of Transportation). A strong qualitative agreement between the jamiton construction and the data is apparent.

Conclusions

The observation that simple, purely deterministic traffic models possess jamiton solutions indicates that phantom traffic jams are not necessarily caused by individual drivers behaving in a “wrong” way. In fact, they can even occur if all drivers behave by the exact same laws. In the considered traffic models, two key effects work towards the occurrence of phantom traffic jams: first, denser traffic travels slower; and second, it takes a certain “adjustment time” for drivers to react to new traffic conditions. These effects are counter-acted by a certain tendency of the drivers to drive preventively. In light traffic, the good effects dominate. In heavy traffic, the bad effects prevail. Hence, phantom traffic jams are a feature of traffic flow that is not completely avoidable.
Benefits of a better understanding of jamitons
Real traffic possesses jamitons. Hence, a better understanding of their structure can be beneficial for the simulation and prediction of real highway traffic. Furthermore, the research can be one step towards answering the key question “how can the occurrence of phantom traffic jams be avoided”. The occurrence of jamitons depends on the model parameters, such as road capacities, speed limits, and driving behavior. A deeper understanding of jamitons may give indications on how to lower peak densities, and how to shift the critical threshold density at which jamitons occur upwards. The latter may be achieved by electronic driving assistence hardware that helps drivers (in a subtle fashion) to accelerate and decelerate more smoothly, and thus to make the occurrence of jamitons less likely.

History of Banking

The history of banking began with the first prototype banks which were the merchants of the world, who made grain loans to farmers and traders who carried goods between cities. This was around 2000 BC in Assyria, India and Sumeria. Later, in ancient Greece and during the Roman Empire, lenders based in temples made loans, while accepting deposits and performing the change of money. Archaeology from this period in ancient China and India also shows evidence of money lending.

Many histories position the crucial historical development of a banking system to medieval and Renaissance Italy and particularly the affluent cities of Florence, Venice and Genoa. The Bardi and Peruzzi Families dominated banking in 14th century Florence, establishing branches in many other parts of Europe.[1] The most famous Italian bank was the Medici bank, established by Giovanni Medici in 1397.[2] The oldest bank still in existence is Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, headquartered in Siena, Italy, which has been operating continuously since 1472.[3]

Development of banking spread from northern Italy throughout the Holy Roman Empire, and in the 15th and 16th century to northern Europe. This was followed by a number of important innovations that took place in Amsterdam during the Dutch Republic in the 17th century, and in London since the 18th century. During the 20th century, developments in telecommunications and computing caused major changes to banks’ operations and let banks dramatically increase in size and geographic spread. The financial crisis of 2007–2008 caused many bank failures, including some of the world’s largest banks, and provoked much debate about bank regulation.

Earliest forms of banking

Asia

Mesopotamia and Persia

Banking as an archaic activity (or quasi-banking[28][29]) is thought to have begun at various times, during a period as early as the latter part of the 4th millennium BCE,[30] to within the 4th to 3rd millennia BCE[31][32]

Among many other things, the Code of Hammurabi recorded interest-bearing loans.

Prior to the reign of Sargon I of Akkad (2335–2280 BCE[33]) the occurrence of trade was limited to the internal boundaries of each city-state of Babylon and the temple located at the centre of economic activity there-in; trade at the time for citizens external to the city was forbidden.[24][34][35]

In Babylonia of 2000 BCE, people depositing gold were required to pay amounts as much as one sixtieth of the total deposited. Both the palaces and temple are known to have provided lending and issuing from the wealth they held—the palaces to a lesser extent. Such loans typically involved issuing seed-grain, with re-payment from the harvest. These basic social agreements were documented in clay tablets, with an agreement on interest accrual. The habit of depositing and storing of wealth in temples continued at least until 209 BCE, as evidenced by Antioch having ransacked or pillaged the temple of Aine in Ecbatana (Media) of gold and silver.[36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]

Cuneiform records of the house of Egibi of Babylonia describe the family’s financial activities dated as having occurred sometime after 1000 BC and ending sometime during the reign of Darius I, show according to one source a “lending house” (Silver 2002), a family engaging in “professional banking…” (Dandamaev et al 2004) and economic activities similar to a degree to modern deposit banking, although another states the family’s activities better described as entrepreneurship rather than banking (Wunsch 2007). The provision of credit is apparently also something the Murashu family participated in (Moshenskyi 2008).

Asia Minor

From the fourth millennia previously agricultural settlements began administrative activities

The temple of Artemis at Ephesus was the largest depository of Asia. A pot-hoard dated to 600 BCE was found in excavations by The British Museum during the year after 1904. During the time at the cessation of the first Mithridatic war the entire debt record at the time being held, was annulled by the council. Mark Anthony is recorded to have stolen from the deposits on an occasion. The temple served as a depository for Aristotle, Caesar, Dio Chrysostomus, Plautus, Plutarch, Strabo and Xenophon.[58][59][60][61][62][63][64]

The temple to Apollo in Didyma was constructed sometime in the 6th century. A large sum of gold was deposited within the treasury at the time by king Croesus.[65][66]

India

In ancient India there are evidences of loans from the Vedic period (beginning 1750 BC). Later during the Maurya dynasty (321 to 185 BC), an instrument called adesha was in use, which was an order on a banker desiring him to pay the money of the note to a third person, which corresponds to the definition of a bill of exchange as we understand it today. During the Buddhist period, there was considerable use of these instruments. Merchants in large towns gave letters of credit to one another.[67][68][69]

China

In ancient China, starting in the Qin Dynasty (221 to 206 BC), Chinese currency developed with the introduction of standardized coins that allowed easier trade across China, and led to development of letters of credit. These letters were issued by merchants who acted in ways that today we would understand as banks.[70]

Egypt

According to Muir (2009) there were two types of banks operating within Egypt: royal and private.[71] Documents made to show the banking of taxes were known as peptoken-records.[72]

Greece

Trapezitica is the first source documenting banking (de Soto – p. 41). The speeches of Demosthenes contain numerous references to the issuing of credit (Millett p. 5). Xenophon is credited to have made the first suggestion of the creation of an organisation known in the modern definition as a joint-stock bank in On Revenues written circa 353 BCE[8][73][74][75]

The city-states of Greece after the Persian Wars produced a government and culture sufficiently organized for the birth of a private citizenship and therefore an embryonic capitalist society, allowing for the separation of wealth from exclusive state ownership to the possibility of ownership by the individual

According to one source (Dandamaev et al), trapezites were the first to trade using money, during the 5th century BCE, as opposed to earlier trade which occurred using forms of pre-money

Specific locus of funds[edit]

The earliest forms of storage utilized were the rudimentary money-boxes (θΗΣΑΥΡΌΣ[79]) which were made similar in form to the construction of a bee-hive, and were found for example in the Mycenae tombs of 1550–1500 BC.[80][81][82][83][84][85][86]

Private and civic entities within ancient Grecian society, especially Greek temples, performed financial transactions. (Gilbart p. 3) The temples were the places where treasure was deposited for safe-keeping. The three temples thought the most important were the temple to Artemis in Ephesus, and temple of Hera within Samos, and within Delphi, the temple to Apollo. These consisted of deposits, currency exchange, validation of coinage, and loans.[8][8][74][87][88]

The first treasury to the Apollonian temple was built before the end of the 7th century BC. A treasury of the temple was constructed by the city of Siphnos during the 6th century.[89][90][91]

Before the destruction by Persians during the 480 invasion, the Athenian Acropolis temple dedicated to Athena stored money; Pericles rebuilt a depository afterward contained within the Parthenon.[92]

During the reign of the Ptolemies, state depositories replaced temples as the location of security-deposits. Records exist to show this having occurred by the end of the reign of Ptolemy I (305–284).[93][94][95][96]

As the need for new buildings to house operations increased, construction of these places within the cities began around the courtyards of the agora (markets).[97]

Geographical locus of banking activities[edit]

Athens received the Delian leagues‘ treasury during 454.[98]

During the late 3rd and 2nd century BC, the Aegean island of Delos, became a prominent banking center.[99] During the 2nd century, there were for certain three banks and one temple depository within the city.[100]

Thirty five Hellenistic cities included private banks during the 2nd century (Roberts – p. 130).[100]

Of the settlements of the Greco-Roman world of the 1st century AD, three were of pronounced wealth and centres of banking, Athens, Corinth and Patras.[101][102][103][104][105]

Loans

Many loans are recorded in writings from the classical age, although a very small proportion were provided by banks. Provision of these were likely an occurrence of Athens, with loans known to have been provided at some time at an annual interest of 12%. Within the boundaries of Athens, bankers loans are recorded as having been issued on eleven occasions altogether (Bogaert 1968).

Banks sometimes made loans available confidentially, which is, they provided funds without being publicly and openly known to have done so, in addition also, to act as intermediaries for persons to loan their own monies without this being known to others. This intermediation per se was known as dia tes trapazēs

A loan was made by a Temple of Athens to the state during 433–427 BCE

Engel Curve

I came across a very interesting concept and started reading about it:

The Engel Curve.

In microeconomics, an Engel curve describes how household expenditure on a particular good or service varies with household income.[1][2] There are two varieties of Engel curves. Budget share Engel curves describe how the proportion of household income spent on a good varies with income. Alternatively, Engel curves can also describe how real expenditure varies with household income. They are named after the German statistician Ernst Engel (1821–1896), who was the first to investigate this relationship between goods expenditure and income systematically in 1857. The best-known single result from the article is Engel’s law which states that the poorer a family is, the larger the budget share it spends on nourishment.

Engel’s law is an observation in economics stating that as income rises, the proportion of income spent on food falls, even if absolute expenditure on food rises. In other words, the income elasticity of demand of food is between 0 and 1.

The law was named after the statistician Ernst Engel (1821–1896).

Engel’s law does not imply that food spending remains unchanged as income increases: It suggests that consumers increase their expenditures for food products in percentage terms less than their increases in income.[1][2]

One application of this statistic is treating it as a reflection of the living standard of a country. As this proportion — or “Engel coefficient” — increases, the country is by nature poorer; conversely a low Engel coefficient indicates a higher standard of living.

More Details:

Income consumption curve is the locus, in indifference curve map, of the equilibrium quantities consumed by an individual at different levels of his income. Thus, the income consumption curve (ICC) can be used to derive the relationship between the level of consumer’s income and the quantity purchased of a commodity by him.

A nineteenth century German statistician Ernet Engel (1821-1896) made an empirical study of family budgets to draw conclusions about the pattern of consumption expenditure, that is, expenditure on different goods and services by the households at different levels of income.

The conclusions he arrived at are still believed to be generally valid. According to Engel’s studies, as the income of a family increases, the proportion of its income spent on necessities such as food falls and that spent on luxuries (consisting of industrial goods and services) increases.

In other words, the poor families spend a relatively large proportion of their income on nec­essaries, whereas rich families spend a relatively a large part of their income on luxuries. This change in the pattern of consumption expenditure (that is, decline in the proportion of income spent on food and other necessities and increase in the proportion of income spent on luxuries) with the rise in income of the families has been called Engel’s law.

 

Though Engel dealt with the relationship between income and expenditure on different goods, in order to keep our analysis simple we will describe and explain the relationship between income and quantities purchased of goods. However, both types of relations convey the same information about individual’s consumption behaviour as in our analysis of Engel’s curve; the prices of goods are held constant.

The curve showing the relationship between the levels of income and quantity purchased of particular commodities has therefore been called Engel curve. In what follows we explain how an Engel curve is derived from income con­sumption curve. In our analysis of Engel curve we relate quantity purchased of a commodity, rather than expenditure on it, to the level of consumer’s income.

It is worth noting that like the demand curve depicting relationship between price and quantity purchased, other factors remaining the same, Engel curve shows relationship be­tween income and quantity demanded, other influences on quantity purchased such as prices of goods, consumer preferences are assumed to be held constant.

For deriving Engel curve from income consumption curve we plot level of income on the Y-axis and quantity purchased of a commodity on the X-axis. Consider panel (a) in Fig. 8.26. Given the difference map representing the preferences of a consumer and the prices of two goods X and Y, ICC is the income consumption curve showing the equilibrium quantities purchased chased of a commodity by the consumer as his income increases from Rs.300 to Rs. 400 and to Rs. 500 per day. It will be seen from panel (a) of Fig. 8.26 that when income is Rs. 300, given prices of goods X and Y, the consumer is buying OQ1 quantity of the commodity.

In panel (b) of Fig. 8.26 in which level of income is represented on the vertical axis and quantity purchased of commodity X on the horizontal axis we directly plot quantity OQ1 against income level of Rs. 300. As the income increases to Rs. 400, prices of goods remaining constant, the budget line in panel (a) shifts outward to the left to the new position B2L2 with which consumer is in equilibrium at point S and the consumer buys OQ2 quantity of good X.

Thus, in panel (b) of Fig. 8.26 we plot quantity purchased OQ2 of commodity X against income level of Rs. 400. Likewise, as income further rises to Rs. 500, budget line in panel (a) shifts to B3L3 and the consumer buys OQ3 quantity of X in his new equilibrium position at T. Therefore, in panel (b) of Fig. 8.26, we plot OQ3 against income of Rs. 500. Thus equilibrium points constituting the income consumption curve in consumer’s indifference map have been transformed into Engel curve depicting quantity-income relationship.

Each point of an Engel curve corresponds to the relevant a point of income consumption curve. Thus R’ of the Engel curve EC corresponds to point R on the ICC curve. As seen from panel (b) Engel curve for normal goods is upward sloping which shows that as income increases, consumer buys more of a commodity.

The slope of Engel curve EC drawn in panel (b) of Figure 5.26 equals OM/OQ where AM stands for income and AQ a for change in quantity demanded of good X and has a positive sign. It is important to note that the slope of the Engel curve in Fig. 8.26 (panel (b)) increases as income increases. This indicates that with every equal increase in income, expansion in quantity purchased of the good successively declines.

This upward-sloping Engel curve with increasing slope as income rises depicts the case of necessities, consumption of which increases relatively less as income rises. For instance, in Fig. 8.26 when income is initially Rs. 300 (= M1) per week, the quantity purchased of the good X equals OQ, and when income rises by Rs. 100 to Rs. 400 (= M2) per week he increases his consumption to OQ2, that is, by quantity Q1Q2.

Now when his income per week further increases by Rs. 100 to Rs. 500 per week, the quantity consumed increases to OQ3, that is, Q2Q3which is less than Q1Q2. Thus, an Engel curve drawn in panel (b) of Fig. 8.26 the quantity purchased of the commodity increases with the increase in income but at a decreasing rate. This shape of the Engel curve is obtained for necessaries.

The Engel curve drawn in Fig. 8.27 is upward sloping but is concave. This implies that the slope of the Engel curve (ΔM/ΔQ) is declining with the increase in income. That is, on the Engel curve of a commodity depicted in Fig. 8.27 the equal increments in income result in successively larger increases in the quantity purchased of the commodity.

Thus, in Fig. 8.27 at income of Rs. 300 the consumer purchases OQ, quantity of a commodity. The increase in income by Rs. 100 to Rs. 400 results in increase in quantity purchased of the commodity equal to Q1Q2. With the further increase in income by the same amount of Rs. 100 to Rs. 500, the quantity purchased increases by Q2Q3 which is larger than Q1Q2.

This implies that as a consumer becomes richer he purchases relatively more of the commodity. Such com­modities are called luxuries. Examples of luxuries are air travel, butter, costly woollen suits, air conditioners, costly fruits, etc.

Engel Curve

In case of inferior goods, consumption of the commodity declines as income increases. Engel curve of an inferior good is drawn in Figure 8.28 which is backward bending indicating fall in quantity purchased of the good as income increases.

Backward Bending Engel Curve of an Inferior Good

An extreme case of an Engel curve is a vertical straight line as drawn in Fig. 8.29. This represents the case of a neutral commodity which is quite unresponsive to increase in income. The Engel curve of the shape of a vertical straight line shows that a person goes on consuming the same amount of a commodity whatever the level Commodity X of his income. For example, the quantity of common salt purchased by a family remains the same, determined as it is by food habits, with the increase in their income.

Engel Curve of a Neutral Good

:Read more: 

A Polo Shirt

which ironically is not a shirt but a T-Shirt.

A polo shirt is a form of shirt with a collar, a placket neckline with typically two or three buttons, and an optional pocket. Polo shirts are usually short sleeved; they were originally used by polo players during the 1920

History of the polo shirt

At the end of the 19th Century outdoor activities became important for the British ruling class. Johdpur pants and polo shirts became part of the wardrobe for horse-related sports. The two garments were brought back from India by the British, along with the game of polo. A picture shot at the end of the XIX (19th) century presumably in India, shows players wearing a striped polo shirt.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, tennis players ordinarily wore “tennis whites” consisting of long-sleeved white button-up shirts (worn with the sleeves rolled up), flannel trousers, and ties.This attire presented problems for ease of play and comfort.

René Lacoste, the French seven-time Grand Slam tennis champion, felt that the stiff tennis attire was too cumbersome and uncomfortable. He designed a white, short-sleeved, loosely-knit piqué cotton (he called the cotton weave jersey petit piqué) shirt with an unstarched, flat, protruding collar, a buttoned placket, and a shirt-tail longer in back than in front (known today as a “tennis tail”; see below), which he first wore at the 1926 U.S. Open championship.

Beginning in 1927, Lacoste placed a crocodile emblem on the left breast of his shirts, as the American press had begun to refer to him as “The Crocodile” a nickname which he embraced.

Lacoste’s design mitigated the problems that traditional tennis attire created:

  • the short, cuffed sleeves solved the tendency of long sleeves to roll down
  • the soft collar could be loosened easily by unbuttoning the placket
  • the piqué collar could be worn upturned to protect the neck skin from the sun
  • the jersey knit piqué cotton breathed and was more durable
  • the “tennis tail” prevented the shirt from pulling out of the wearer’s trousers or shorts

In 1933, after retiring from professional tennis, Lacoste teamed up with André Gillier, a friend who was a clothing merchandiser, to market that shirt in Europe and North America. Together, they formed the company Chemise Lacoste, and began selling their shirts, which included the small embroidered crocodile logo on the left breast.

Application to polo

Until the beginning of 20th century polo players wore thick long-sleeve shirts made of Oxford-cloth cotton.[12] This shirt was the first to have a buttoned-down collar, which polo players invented in the late 19th century to keep their collars from flapping in the wind (Brooks Brothers‘ early president, John Brooks, noticed this while at a polo match in England and began producing such a shirt in 1896).

Brooks Brothers still produces this style of button-down “polo shirt”. Still, like early tennis clothing, those clothes presented a discomfort on the field.

In 1920, Lewis Lacey, a Canadian born of English parents in Montreal, Quebec, in 1887, haberdasher and polo player, began producing a shirt that was embroidered with an emblem of a polo player, a design originated at the Hurlingham Polo Club near Buenos Aires. The definition of the uniform of polo players – the polo shirt and a pair of white trousers – is actually a fairly recent addition to the sport. Until the 1940s shirts were generally very plain, with no numbers, writing or logos. When necessary, numbers (ranging from 1 – 4) were simply pinned on to the back of the player’s shirts a few minutes before the start of a match. To differentiate the polo teams from one another, some polo shirts had horizontal stripes, others bore diagonal coloured stripes.

The story behind US Polo’s Polo T-shirts

U.S. Polo Assn. is the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA), the non-profit governing body for the sport of polo in the United States. With worldwide distribution through over 1,000 U.S. Polo Assn. branded stores, independent retail, department stores and e-commerce, the U.S. Polo Assn. brand offers apparel for men, women and children, as well as accessories, footwear, travel and home goods in approximately 150 countries worldwide. The Association’s trademarks and logos registered worldwide are managed by USPA Global Licensing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the USPA.

USPA Global Licensing, Inc. partners with licensees in North and South America,[1] Asia, Europe,[2] Scandinavia, Russia, and the Middle East[3] to provide consumers with branded apparel, accessories, luggage, watches, shoes, small leather goods, eyewear and home furnishings.

As a for-profit corporation, USPA Global Licensing, Inc. pays taxes on its profits generated by sales from U.S. Polo Assn. products and submits royalties to the USPA for the exclusive rights to license its trademarks. Since its incorporation in 1890, U.S. Polo Assn. has realized annual global retail sales in excess of $1.6 billion. The royalties paid to the USPA enables them to promote the sport of polo and underwrite educational and training programs such as benefits for polo player members, support training centers for interscholastic and intercollegiate polo competition [4] and fund programs in umpiring, competition and equine welfare.

Very interesting indeed!

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Polo_Assn.
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polo_shirt

 

Fertility of the sea

I came across this really powerful Japanese Taiko drum ensemble

got me really thinking and doing more research on the composer: Eitetsu Hayashi. The title : Fertility of the sea.

More about Hayashi San: Eitetsu Hayashi (林英哲 Hayashi Eitetsu)(born February 2, 1952) is an acclaimed Japanese musician best known for his solo performance work in taiko.[1] Hayashi joined the group Ondekoza at an early age. Later, after parting from group, helped found the taiko group Kodo, though he quickly left to begin a solo career.[2] Hayashi has performed in notable venues such as Carnegie Hall in 1984 and was the first featured taiko performer at the institution.[3][4] He is also the recipient of multiple awards recognizing the cultural value of his work

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eitetsu_Hayashi