The Evening Standard (London, England) articles from October 2003

The Evening Standard (London, England) archives from October 2003

This month in Odyssey.
October 1, 2003... When animals migrate, they're not trying to "keep warm"--they're off to breed, find food, and escape predators. Using extraordinary means of navigation (the sun, the stars, Earth's magnetic field, chemical odors, visual landmarks, instincts,...

Migrating penguins ... in a swimming pool!(Science Scoops)
October 1, 2003... It's true. Just ask San Francisco Zoo's penguin keeper, Jane Tollini. She witnessed firsthand one of the most bizarre migrations on record--dozens of Magellanic penguins attempting a 3,200-kilometer migration in the zoo's swimming pool. ...

Lobsters know the way.(Science Scoops)
October 1, 2003... Only a few species of animals are known to have "true navigation"--meaning that they can find their way home even if transported to a totally different and unfamiliar environment. Most vertebrates are thought to be true navigators, but...

Tracking salmon ears.(Science Scoops)
October 1, 2003... When you hear the word "salmon," what comes to mind? If you're like most people, you'll say "a pink fish jumping up a stream." Or maybe "a fresh fillet." But ask Brian Kennedy that question, and he'll probably reply, "Ear stones." ...

Basking sharks on the move!(Science Scoops)
October 1, 2003... New findings about endangered basking sharks, the United Kingdom's largest fish, have scientists harpooning a 50-year-old myth, stopping it dead. Basking sharks span 10 meters in length and weigh several tons. The solitary animals feed on...

"I spy" butterflies.(Science Scoops)
October 1, 2003... If a butterfly flaps its wings in a wind tunnel, will a revolution in aeronautics occur? That is not a Zen question. In fact, it's a distinct possibility--one that has attracted the attention of toy manufacturers and the military. The flap...

The atlantic flyway: bird superhighway.
October 1, 2003... Imagine a superhighway that extends from the Arctic down the eastern coast of the United States, and all the way to the tip of South America. This route is real--it's called the Atlantic Flyway, and its travelers are birds. Though no two...

Migration expectations.
October 1, 2003... What do you expect? Every day each us relies on accumulated past experiences to predict what will happen next. When your alarm clock goes off each morning, you likely get out of bed, shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and head to school. ...

Flyway traffic cop.(Brain Strain)
October 1, 2003... It's fall, and millions of familiar birds in North America are migrating south for the winter. With all that traffic, you can help the birds avoid collisions en route. Your job is to start at the red, green, blue, and yellow birds up north and...

Navigate with the Newts.(Activity To Discover)
October 1, 2003... Meet the Newts. Gingrich doesn't stray far from home. Rockne rambles farther afield. Meanwhile, their cousins, Isaac Newt and Figgie Newt, have somehow gotten far out of their home territory. Can you help the Newts navigate home? Get...

Amazing migrations.
October 1, 2003... From whales to butterflies, animals round the globe are on the move. Who hasn't noticed geese flying south for winter, or the seasonal appearance of whales off our coasts? Who isn't aware of the almost clockwork-like appearance and...

I spy with my high-tech eye.
October 1, 2003... One day in 1847, a bored sailor captured an albatross. He sealed a note inside a glass vial, tied the vial around the albatross's neck, and set the seabird free. The albatross vanished across the horizon. A few weeks later, the captain of...

Faith.
October 1, 2003... Fatigue pushed them onward. Concepts of time scattered in their wake. Hunger diminished--a a hollow thought remedied by expectation. On and on and on they soared through the comforting cold of liquid space. Above them, the great void;...

Winged mysteries.
October 1, 2003... Sometime this year, mysterious, six-legged creatures may land in your back yard. They're seeking a place to rest from their long journey--or searching for food. But don't worry. They weigh only one-fortieth of an ounce, and they'll take no more...

Do sharks have a sixth sense?
October 1, 2003... Hammerhead sharks by the hundreds swirl around Peter Klimley. This sounds like a nightmare with teeth, but for the adventurer and scientist, it's just another swim with his favorite animal. Klimley, a marine biologist at the University of...

What's up.
October 1, 2003... The monthly All-Sky Chart depicts the sky (minus the moon) as it appears at 7 p.m. (your local daylight-saving time) on Oct. 15. Useful all month, the chart (except for planet positions) is also accurate for 8 p.m. on Oct. 1 and 5 p.m. on Oct....

Stargazing with Jack Horkheimer: the farthest thing you can see with the naked eye.
October 1, 2003... GREETINGS, GREETINGS, FELLOW STARGAZERS! HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED ABOUT THIS...? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WELL, DON'T BE FOOLED, BECAUSE EVEN WITH THE NAKED EYE YOU CAN SEE 10 MILES AWAY, AND EVEN FARTHER! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

SCI-CHAT.
October 1, 2003... SCI-CHAT, ODYSSEY's reader response department, welcomes you original poems, stories, drawings, and responses to questions posed in the magazine and on our Web site at www.odysseymagazine.com odyssey@cobblestone.mv.com, or mail them to...

Butterfly watch.(Fantastic Journeys)
October 1, 2003... EDITOR'S NOTE: This month, Fantastic journeys tokes us to Amery, WI, where Marlene Richter, a seventh grader at Amery Middle School, is working with her crass and her teacker, Zoe Rochester, to protect the habitat of the monarch buttery." ...

Talk about pressure!(Countdown)
October 1, 2003... Feeling pressured? Well, so is everyone else. We hear a lot about the too-much-to-do-and-too-little-time-to-do-it syndrome, called stress or psychological pressure, but there's another kind of pressure that's with us every minute of our lives....

Up from the twilight zone.(Animal Angles)
October 1, 2003... Before The Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss wrote McElligot's Pool, a zany tale about a boy hoping that all sorts of sea creatures would swim to the surface of his pond. How right he was! Every night billions of fish, crustaceans, and other...

London's Alternative Investment Market Thrives as EU Worries Fade.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--Investing in stock markets geared for small companies has never been for the faint of heart, and trading on London's Alternative Investment Market is no exception. But at a time when peers such as Germany's Neuer Markt and Nasdaq...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Jake Lloyd-Smith Oct. 9--SEVEN-ELEVEN SERVES UP A READY-MADE TREAT IN TOKYO: Retailing in deflation-hit Japan is no easy occupation but Seven-Eleven Japan, which runs more than 10,000 stores, has earned a reputation as the company...

Management Shuffle at British Bank Barclays Worries Investors.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Patrick Hosking Oct. 9--Barclays today soothed growing investor worries about the succession vacuum at the top of the bank, naming finance director John Varley as its new chief executive. However, the bank risked provoking a...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--JAPAN TRADE SURPLUS INCREASES BY A THIRD: The surplus in Japan's current account, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, rose 33.6 percent in August from a year earlier to 1.4428 trillion yen (UKpound 7.9 billion), Tokyo's...

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--HELP THE AGIUS AS TIME ROLLS ON: David Freud, the transport industry dealmaker who is retiring from UBS, appears to have brushed the fur against the grain with his comment: "I'm 53. I think that's pretty geriatric for an investment...

French Regulators Tell Eurotunnel to Clarify Financial Situation.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--French regulators today demanded that Eurotunnel clarify its financial situation amid massive short-selling of the shares and rumours circulating in Paris that the company will be forced to convene a special general meeting. ...

New California Governor to Face a Weighty Economic Task.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Richard Thomson Oct. 9--Now that Arnold Schwarzenegger has won the governorship of America's most populous state, he will have to figure out a way to fix its struggling economy. And he has to come up with a detailed plan by the...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Oct. 9--TRUST IS KEY TO REVIVAL OF FUNDS: The Investment Management Association yesterday made a powerful case against the Financial Services Authority's proposal that fund managers should make clear how much they...

Domecq Ditches Small Print in Battle to Acquire Australian Wine Producer.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Jake Lloyd-Smith Oct. 9--Drinks giant Allied Domecq today stripped the conditions from its A$150 million (UKpound 62.5 million) bid for Peter Lehmann Wines, seeking to bolster support for its offer for the Australian wine producer....

Evening Standard, London, Market Report Column.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--BLUE-CHIPS GET BOOST FROM BANK'S SAME-AGAIN STANCE: The Bank of England's decision to hold interest rates at 3.5 percent saw share prices clamber back above the 4300 level. At one stage the FTSE 100 index traded close to its high for...

Coutts on a Roll in Switzerland with UKpound 228 Million Bank Buy.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Jonathan Prynn Oct. 9--Upmarket banker Coutts is making a big push into the secretive world of Swiss private banking with the UKpound 228 million purchase of Zurich's Bank von Ernst. It will make Coutts, banker to the Queen and...

Evening Standard, London, Business News Column.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--CHATEAU CONTRACT GOES TO SIR ROCCO: Sir Rocco Forte today won the management contract of one of France's most prestigious hotels -- the 13th century Chateau de Bagnols near Lyon in Beaujolais, owned by philanthropist Lady Hamlyn. The...

Evening Standard, London, Business Notes Column.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--MOSS BROS today confirmed it is on course for profit after two years in the red. The dress hire and fashion firm reported halved first-half losses of UKpound 1.8 million as new lines and strong demand for formal wear from students...

Sales Slip for British Clothier Austin Reed despite Flagship Store's Success.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--Austin Reed's Regent Street flagship store got off to a flying start after its UKpound 12 million revamp last month, but failed to offset a slide in like-for-like sales across the group. The makeover, at the start of September,...

Bank of England Is Expected to Maintain Low Interest Rate.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Jane Padgham Oct. 9--London shares were expected to edge higher today ahead of the Bank of England's decision on interest rates, writes Jane Padgham. The Bank's monetary policy committee was widely tipped to leave the cost of...

Finance Chief Resigns from British Sports Retail Chain.
October 9, 2003... Oct. 9--John David Sports' finance director of 11 years, Malcolm Blackhurst, has resigned after sliding sales and a plunge into the red for the retailer that owns the JD Sports chain. Describing interims as disappointing, executive chairman...

Canadian Duo Plan to Drive Into People-Carrier Market.
October 9, 2003... Byline: James Rossiter Oct. 9--A pair of Canadian entrepreneurs aim to shake up the capital's UKpound 850 million taxi market with the launch this week of their Blueback private car hire service. Backed by UKpound 1.1 million of...

Bitter Bidding War for Australian Wine Maker Appears to Lean Toward Hess.
October 9, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Oct. 9--The ding-dong takeover battle for control of Australia's Peter Lehmann Wines burst into all-out war today as rival bidders Allied Domecq and Hess traded UKpound 61 million blows. Allied kicked off the...

Cutbacks in Charter Flights Hurt British Airports.
October 10, 2003... Oct. 10--The collapse in the package holidays market due to a decent British summer and tourists organising their own trips using low-fare airlines, is hurting the airports. Gatwick Airport said today it flew 125,000 fewer passengers in...

Boeing Lashes Out at Former Home of Washington State.
October 12, 2003... Oct. 12--Planemaker Boeing, which shifted its headquarters to Chicago from Seattle, now says the competitive business climate in its former home state "sucks". The uncomplimentary assessment was delivered by Commercial Airlines president...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Oct. 20--The surge in Tokyo's equity trading in recent months has raised hopes for earnings for Japan's top brokerages, due out this month. The brokers' earnings rose more than sixfold in the five months to August...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
October 20, 2003... Oct. 20--CHANCELLOR GORDON BROWN'S spending plans have blown a UKpound 22.5 billion black hole in the Government's finances over the first half of the financial year. Net borrowing last month reached UKpound 2.8 billion, slightly less than...

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
October 20, 2003... Oct. 20--EUROSTAR? CAN'T COMPLAIN: John Hollinrake, head of specie (that's jewellery and fine art) at HSBC Insurance, tells me of an unpleasant confrontation with Eurostar a week ago. Hollinrake, a shareholder in the Boisdale restaurant, is...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Oct. 20--DISASTER LURKS IN HOUSE SALES TAX: The Chancellor and the Treasury are reported to be considering putting capital gains tax on the sale of houses. They have been advised that the yield from such a tax, had...

Head of Financial Services Firm Purchases Group of Boutique Hotels.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Andy Williamson Oct. 20--Guy Hands built a gilded reputation -- and a personal fortune -- as head of the principal finance group at Nomura International, on the back of a string of successful deals that involved everything from...

US Billionaire Ups the Pace in Manchester United Stake Race.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Neil Thapar Oct. 20--American billionaire Malcolm Glazer has scooped up another two million shares in Manchester United for an estimated UKpound 5 million in the past week, taking his total holding to 9.66 percent. Glazer, who...

British Prime Minister's Heart Scare Sends Flutter Through Stock Market.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Steve Hawkes Oct. 20--City traders were glued to their screens today amid fears that the Prime Minister's weekend heart scare could knock the resurgent FTSE 100 share index out of its stride. With Tony Blair forced to take a...

International Philanthropist Blasts Bush over "Soviet-Style' Rhetoric.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Richard Thomson Oct. 20--Multi-billionaire George Soros has launched a scathing public attack on President Bush, likening his administration's rhetoric to that of the former Soviet Union. "I lived through both German and Soviet...

London Property Owners Launch Selling Frenzy to Cash In.
October 20, 2003... Oct. 20--City property owners are rushing to cash in their investments, with more than 800,000 square feet of offices -- the size of 18 football pitches -- on the market for UKpound 3.5 billion, according to FPD Savills. Investment agents...

Moscow Faces Tough Struggle in Campaign to Price Oil in Euros.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Tom McBride Oct. 20--Efforts by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the EU to beef up the euro's challenge to the dollar as the global currency would be boosted by the pricing of Russian oil in the single currency but it is not...

About 20,000 Face Axe as Sony Battles Falling TV Sales.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Oct. 20--Consumer electronics giant Sony is poised to axe about 20,000 jobs -- more than 10 percent of its workforce -- in a major review of its worldwide operations. Sony will unveil the cuts next week as part of a...

Dissident Shareholders of British Television Firm Demand CEO's Ouster.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Nick Goodway Oct. 20--The entire board of Carlton Communications could be ejected by rebel shareholders if it refuses to deliver the head of chairman Michael Green by tomorrow lunchtime. Sources close to Fidelity Investments, a...

Head of British TV Firm's Rebel Shareholders likely to Reject Peace Offering.
October 20, 2003... Oct. 20--Carlton offered the most leafless of olive branches to the rebellious shareholders today, saying : "The board desires a solution to this issue and looks forward to meeting Fidelity to discuss a practical way forward that is consistent...

Euro Disney Likely to Announce Losses of euro58 Million in 2002.
October 23, 2003... Byline: Ross Tieman Oct. 23--Troubled Paris theme park operator Euro Disney looks set to announce near-doubled losses of euro58 million (UKpound 40.3 million) for last year. The Euronext-quoted group, which is in talks with its parent...