Biography.

Early life.

Poliziano was born as Angelo Ambrogini in Montepulciano, in central Tuscany in 1454. His father Benedetto, a jurist of good family and distinguished ability, was murdered by political antagonists for adopting the cause of Piero de' Medici in Montepulciano; this circumstance gave his eldest son, Angelo, a claim on the House of Medici.  At the age of ten, after the premature death of his father, Poliziano began his studies at Florence, as the guest of a cousin. There he learned the classical languages of Latin and Greek. From Marsilio Ficino he learned the rudiments of philosophy. At 13 he began to circulate Latin letters; at 17 he wrote essays in Greek versification; and at 18 he published an edition of Catullus. In 1470 he won the title of "homericus adulescens" by translating books II-V of the "Iliad" into Latin hexameters. Lorenzo de' Medici, the autocrat of Florence and the chief patron of learning in Italy at the time, took Poliziano into his household, made him the tutor of his children, among which were Piero the Unfortunate and Giovanni, the future Pope Leo X. The humanistic content of his lessons brought him into constant conflict with their mother, Clarice. Lorenzo also secured him a distinguished post at the University of Florence. During this time, Poliziano lectured at the Platonic Academy under the leadership of Marsilio Ficino, at the Careggi Villa.

Adulthood and teaching.

Among Poliziano's pupils could be numbered the chief students of Europe, the men who were destined to carry to their homes the "spolia opima" of Italian culture. He also educated students from Germany, England and Portugal.  It was the method of professors at that period to read the Greek and Latin authors with their class, dictating philological and critical notes, emending corrupt passages in the received texts, offering elucidations of the matter, and teaching laws, manners, religious and philosophical opinions of the ancients. Poliziano covered nearly the whole ground of classical literature during his tenure, and published the notes of his courses upon Ovid, Suetonius, Statius, Pliny the Younger, and Quintilian. He also undertook a recension of the text of Justinian II's Pandects and lectured about it. This recension influenced the Roman code.

Proposal to King John II of Portugal.

Poliziano wrote a letter to John II of Portugal paying him a profound homage:  and considering his achievements to be of merit above Alexander the Great or Julius Caesar. He offered himself to write an epic work giving an account of John II's accomplishments in navigation and conquests. The king replied in a positive manner, in a letter of October 23, 1491, but delayed the commission. The epic work regarding Portuguese discoveries was only written almost one hundred years later by Luís de Camões.

Final years.

Poliziano spent his final years without financial or other worries, studying philosophy. Piero the Unfortunate even asked Pope Alexander VI to make him a cardinal.  It is likely that Poliziano was homosexual, or at least had male lovers, and he never married. Evidence includes denunciations of sodomy made to the Florentine authorities, poems and letters of contemporaries, allusions within his work (most notably the "Orfeo") and the circumstances of his death. The last suggests he was killed by a fever (possibly resulting from syphilis) which was exacerbated by standing under the windowsill of a boy he was infatuated with despite being ill. He may also have been a lover of Pico della Mirandola.  But it is just as likely that his death was precipitated by the loss of his friend and patron Lorenzo de' Medici in April 1492, Poliziano himself dying on 24 September 1494, just before the foreign invasion gathering in France swept over Italy.  In 2007, the bodies of Poliziano and Pico della Mirandola were exhumed from the Church of San Marco in Florence to establish the causes of their deaths. Forensic tests showed that both Poliziano and Pico likely died of arsenic poisoning, possibly the order of Lorenzo's successor, Piero de' Medici.

Legacy.

Poliziano was well known as a scholar, a professor, a critic, and a Latin poet in an age when the classics were still studied with assimilative curiosity, and not with the scientific industry of a later period. He was the representative of that age of scholarship in which students drew their ideal of life from antiquity. He was also known as an Italian poet, a contemporary of Ariosto.  At the same time he was busy as a translator from the Greek. His versions of Epictetus, Hippocrates, Galen, Plutarch's "Eroticus" and Plato's "Charmides" distinguished him as a writer. Of these learned labors, the most universally acceptable to the public of that time were a series of discursive essays on philology and criticism, first published in 1489 under the title of "Miscellanea". They had an immediate and lasting effect, influencing the scholars of the next century.  Anthony Grafton writes that Poliziano's "conscious adoption of a new standard of accuracy and precision" enabled him "to prove that his scholarship was something new, something distinctly better than that of the previous generation": By treating the study of antiquity as completely irrelevant to civic life and by suggesting that in any case only a tiny elite could study the ancient world with adequate rigor, Poliziano departed from the tradition of classical studies in Florence. Earlier Florentine humanists had studied the ancient world in order to become better men and citizens. Poliziano by contrast insisted above all on the need to understand the past in the light of every possibly relevant bit of evidence — and to scrap any belief about the past that did not rest on firm documentary foundations... [But] when he set ancient works back into their historical context Poliziano eliminated whatever contemporary relevance they might have had.

Works.

His Latin and Greek works include:  His principal Italian works are:  His philosophical works are:

Agnolo (Angelo) Ambrogini (14 July 1454 – 24 September 1494), commonly known by his nickname Poliziano (; anglicized as Politian; Latin: " Politianus"), was an Italian classical scholar and poet of the Florentine Renaissance. His scholarship was instrumental in the divergence of Renaissance (or Humanist) Latin from medieval norms and for developments in philology. His nickname, "Poliziano", by which he is chiefly identified to the present day, was derived from the Latin name of his birthplace, Montepulciano ("Mons Politianus").

Angelo Poliziano ["andželo policiáno"] (14. července 1454 Montepulciano u Sieny - 29. září 1494 Florencie) byl italský učenec a básník, který významně ovlivnil podobu humanistické latiny.


Overview.

Companies use purchase orders for several reasons. Purchase orders allow buyers to clearly and explicitly communicate their intentions to sellers. They may also help a purchasing agent to manage incoming orders and pending orders. Sellers are also protected by POs in case of a buyer's refusal to pay for goods or services.  Purchase orders provide benefits in that they streamline the purchasing process to a standard procedure. Commercial lenders or financial institutions may provide financial assistance on the basis of purchase orders. There are various trade finance facilities that almost every financial institution allows business people to use against purchase orders such as:  The purpose of purchase orders is to procure materials for direct consumption or for stock, procure services, cover customer requirements using external resources, or procure a material that is needed in plants from an internal source (long-distance intra-plant stock transfers). They may also place once-only procurement transactions and optimize purchasing by taking full advantage of negotiated conditions or for optimal utilisation of existing transport capacities.  Creating a purchase order is typically the first step of the purchase to pay process in an ERP system. Purchase orders may require a SKU code. Within an ERP system, a purchase order can be created manually, and may require confirmation or changes via editing. Within an ERP system (such as in SAP), manually creating a purchase order within the system may look something like "Logistics -> Materials Management -> Purchasing -> Purchasing Order -> Create" and providing a Transaction Code. This document type will be chosen from the screen. A vendor code lookup may need to be selected for a purchase order steps, as well as things like organization group and company code.

Legal.

Although a typical purchase order may not contain contract language (in fact most contain little more than a list of the goods or services the buyer desires to purchase, along with price, payment terms, and shipping instructions), the purchase order is a specially regarded instrument regulated by the Uniform Commercial Code or other similar law which establishes a purchase order as a contract by its nature. Yet despite the nature of the purchase order as a contract, it is common to accompany the acceptance of a purchase order with a legal document such as the terms and conditions of sale, which establish specific or additional legal conditions of the contract.  The US Federal Acquisition Regulation states that purchase orders should generally be issued on a fixed-price basis, but provision is also made for unpriced purchase orders to be issued where "it is impractical to obtain pricing in advance of issuance of the purchase order".

Formats.

Electronic purchase orders.

Many purchase orders are no longer paper-based, but rather transmitted electronically over the Internet. It is common for electronic purchase orders to be used to buy goods or services of any type online.  There are many names for Electronic Purchase Orders. It is sometimes known as: E-Procurement, E-Purchasing, E-Purchase Requisition. These terms are normally all referring to Electronic Purchase Orders.

Non-electronic purchase orders.

The record of purchase order in most business firms are still on paper and thus there is a need for proper purchase order format. Many users wish to have professional formatting for purchase orders for several reasons. A company may wish to have a strong understanding of purchase transactions or to know the basic requirements of purchase order. It may also make it part of business documentation, which makes the process easier while keeping record of all transactions and to have good impression on the client or customer.

A purchase order (PO) is a commercial document and first official offer issued by a buyer to a seller indicating types, quantities, and agreed prices for products or services. It is used to control the purchasing of products and services from external suppliers. Purchase orders can be an essential part of enterprise resource planning system orders.

Objednávka je nabídka k uzavření kupní smlouvy či smlouvy o poskytnutí služby, učiněná dodavateli potenciálním odběratelem. Písemná objednávka je účetní doklad, který slouží občanům i podnikatelům jako prvotní podklad pro dodávku zboží nebo služeb. Obchodní zákoník ale nijak nestanoví její přesnou formu, objednávka tedy může být jak písemná tak i ústní, používá se jak v maloobchodě tak i při velkoobchodní činnosti. Při maloobchodní činnosti vlastně objednávku zákazník vysloví ústně prodavači a ten mu požadovanou zboží nebo službu, pokud je k dispozici, ihned prodá.


Development history.

The program was authorized by Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s who allocated ¥ 0.5 billion to develop an indigenous aircraft. Work on Project #10 started several years later in January 1988, as a response to the Mikoyan MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-27 then being introduced by the USSR, and F-15, F-16 already in service in the United States. Development was delegated to the 611 Institute, also known as the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute and Song Wencong was nominated as the chief designer, as he had previously been the chief designer of the J-7III. The aircraft was initially designed as a specialized fighter, but later became a multirole aircraft capable of both air-to-air combat and ground attack missions.  In 2006, the Russian Siberian Aeronautical Research Institute (SibNIA) confirmed its participation in the J-10 program; SibNIA claimed to have only observed and instructed as "scientific guides", while its engineers also believed the J-10 was "more or less a version" of the IAI Lavi, incorporating "a melting pot of foreign technology and acquired design methods".  The J-10 was officially unveiled by the Chinese government in January 2007, when photographs were published by Xinhua News Agency. The aircraft's existence was known long before the announcement, although concrete details remained scarce due to secrecy. Rumors of crashes during flight testing were actually mishaps related to the AL-31 engine.  The first prototype "J-10 01" was rolled out in November 1997 and first flown on 23 March 1998 in a twenty-minute flight.  AVIC plans to market an upgraded J-10 for export, most likely the J-10B, once development is complete. Several countries have shown interest.  In 2015, China Military Online published an analysis advocating Argentina's adoption of the J-10, claiming that while the operational range of current versions could not yet allow it to reach the Falkland Islands, the aircraft, particularly its radar, were superior to the Typhoon and that tanker aircraft could place the islands within range. China has been promoting the J-10 to the Argentine republic and during a February 2015 visit to China by President Kirchner established a joint fighter aircraft working group.

Design.

J-10 was designed and developed by the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute (CADI), a subsidiary of Chengdu Aircraft Corporation.

Airframe.

The airframe is constructed from metal alloys and composite materials for high strength and low weight, the airframe's aerodynamic layout adopts a "tail-less canard delta" wing configuration. A large delta wing is mid-mounted towards the rear of the fuselage, while a pair of canards (or foreplanes) are mounted higher up and towards the front of the fuselage, behind and below the cockpit. This configuration provides very high agility, especially at low speeds, and also reduces stall speed, allowing for a lower airspeed during instrument approaches. A large vertical tail is present on top of the fuselage and small ventral fins underneath the fuselage provide further stability.  A rectangular air intake ramp and a Splitter plate (only on J-10A) are located underneath the fuselage, providing the air supply to the engine. Newer variants use a diverterless intake that does not require a splitter plate, and may reduce radar cross signature. Also under the fuselage and wings are 11 hardpoints, used for carrying various types of weaponry and drop-tanks containing extra fuel.  The retractable undercarriage comprises a steerable pair of nose-wheels underneath the air intake and two main gear wheels towards the rear of the fuselage. The cockpit is covered by a two-piece bubble canopy providing 360 degrees of visual coverage for the pilot. The canopy lifts upwards to permit cockpit entry and exit. The Controls take the form of a conventional centre stick and a throttle stick located to the left of the pilot. These also incorporate "hands on throttle and stick" (HOTAS) controls. A zero-zero ejection seat is provided for the pilot, permitting safe ejection in an emergency even at zero altitude and zero speed.  Due to the J-10's aerodynamically unstable design, a digital quadruplex-redundant fly-by-wire (FBW) flight control system (FCS) aids the pilot in flying the aircraft. The FCS typically monitors pilot control inputs, preventing the pilot from accidentally exiting the flight envelope from applying too much control input during high performance flight situations. This is critical in canard wing aircraft, as they are capable of turning in a much tighter radius than conventional aircraft. The massive control surfaces are capable of moving so far that they can completely destroy the aircraft in flight at high airspeeds if not kept in check by the FCS.

Avionics.

The cockpit has three liquid crystal (LCD) Multi-function displays (MFD) along with a Chinese developed holographic head-up display (HUD), all of which are fully compatible with a domestic Chinese advanced helmet mounted sight (HMS), claimed by Chinese to be superior to the HMS on the Sukhoi Su-27 sold to China.

Radar.

According to Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation officials the J-10 uses a multi-mode fire-control radar designed in China. The radar has a mechanically scanned planar array antenna and is capable of tracking 10 targets. Of the 10 targets tracked, 2 can be engaged simultaneously with semi-active radar homing missiles or 4 can be engaged with active radar homing missiles.  For J-10B, the nose cone is modified to accommodate an active phased array airborne radar (AESA) radar. The general designer of AESA for J-10B is Mr. Zhang Kunhui (张昆辉, 1963 -), the head of 607 Research Institute in Neijiang, Sichuan. Mr. Zhang Kunhui became the deputy head of 607th Research Institute in 1997, and four years later in 2001, he became the head of the institute, when the AESA program for J-10B started. The primary contractor of this AESA is the Radar and Electronic Equipment Research Academy of Aviation Industry Corporation of China located in Sichuan, formed in March 2004 by combining the 607th Research Institute and 171st Factory together with Mr. Zhang Kunhui was named as the head of the research academy. According to Chinese governmental media, the AESA for J-10B took 8 years to develop, finally completed in 2008, and Chinese fighter radars hence achieved a quantum leap in that it went from mechanically scanned planar slotted array directly into AESA, skipping the passive phased array PESA radar. Many suspected the radar is a PESA, but during its brief debuts in the 7th China International Defense Electronics Exhibition (CIDEX) in May 2010 and the 6th International Conference on Radar held in Beijing in Sept 2011, Chinese official sources have claimed it is an AESA.

Propulsion.

The J-10A is powered by a single Russian Lyulka-Saturn AL-31FN turbofan engine giving a maximum static thrust of 12,500 kgf (123 kN). The AL-31FN is based on the AL-31F which was designed for a twin engine aircraft such as the Su-27, to fit the smaller J-10 the engine parts have been moved and re-designed to fit the smaller engine bay in the J-10.  The J-10 was intended to be powered by the Chinese WS-10 Taihang turbofan, but development difficulties forced the J-10A to use a Russian engine instead. Future J-10 will likely be equipped with an improved WS-10 type engine designed specifically for it, as the Chinese aeroengine industry matures and political/military pressure to indigenize increases.  In April 2014, China have entered into a contract with NPO Saturn to purchase the upgraded AL-31FN Series 3 that provides 13,700 kgf thrust and a 2,250-hour service life for future deliveries. Prior, the AL-31FN Series 3 had accumulated 750 hours of test operation on the J-10 aircraft in a test programme.  In Jan 2018, an image has emerged on Chinese online forums showing a Chengdu Aircraft Industries Company J-10 multirole fighter aircraft powered by what may be an engine featuring a thrust vector control (TVC) nozzle. Newer aircraft also use a diverterless intake, a design intended to reduce complexity and often reduces radar cross signature as well.  In November 2018, a J-10B powered by WS-10 thrust vector control (TVC) publicly displayed at the Zhuhai AirShow and made a Pugachev's Cobra action.

Weaponry and external loads.

The aircraft's internal armament consists of a Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23 twin-barrel cannon, located underneath the port side of the intake. Other weaponry and equipment is mounted externally on 11 hardpoints, to which 6,000 kg (13,228 lb) of either missiles and bombs, drop-tanks containing fuel, or other equipment such as avionics pods can be attached.  Air-to-air missiles deployed may include short-range air-to-air missiles such as the PL-8 and PL-9, medium-range radar-guided air-to-air missiles such as the PL-11 and PL-12, unguided and precision guided munitions such as laser-guided bombs, anti-ship missiles such as the YJ-9K and anti-radiation missiles such as the PJ-9.

Operational history.

China.

The first aircraft were delivered to the 13th Test Regiment on 23 February 2003. The aircraft was declared 'operational' in December of the same year, after 18 years in development. The first operational regiment was the 131st Regiment of the 44th Division.  The J-10C entered combat service in April 2018.

Pakistan.

In February 2006, then-President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf, toured the J-10 and JF-17 production facilities on a trip to China during which the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) was offered the J-10, and the purchase of 36 FC-20s, a Pakistan-specific J-10B variant, was approved in April 2006. In November 2009, Pakistan signed a deal with China to buy 36 J-10B fighters in a deal worth around $1.4 billion.  In July 2011, Daily Jang reported that China will give a squadron of the advanced J-10B fighter aircraft to Pakistan. According to the report, "the offer was made by senior Chinese military leaders to visiting Pakistan Army's Chief of General Staff, Lt Gen Waheed Arshad". In March 2012, talks were held between the two countries to discuss the delivery of latest J-10B fighter jets to Pakistan. However, this has been cancelled as of 2016. Pakistan Air Force is focussing on JF-17 Block 3 and in future it is looking to procure the export version of J-31, the FC-31 stealth fighter. 40 jets are to be procured initially.

Controversy.

The J-10 is externally similar to the IAI Lavi. In 2008, aviation publishing house Jane's alleged that China's development of the Chengdu J-10 had benefited from technical information from the Lavi project, citing senior Russian engineers who said they had heard this from Chinese colleagues. In 2007, the J-10's designer, Song Wencong (宋文骢), denied any connection with the Lavi, pointing to similarities with the Chengdu J-9, which developed in the 1960s. This was echoed by PLAAF major Zhang Weigang in a 2012 interview. There have been no public statements or formal claims along those lines; by 2000, however, openly disclosed advanced technology transfer of any origin had become anathema to the United States, which forced Israel to cancel a sale of Phalcon airborne early warning planes.

Accidents and incidents.

On 13 November 2016, the first J-10 female pilot, Captain Yu Xu, was killed in an aerobatics display in Hebei province while performing with the August 1st Aerobatics Team.

The Chengdu J-10 (simplified Chinese: 歼-10; traditional Chinese: 殲-10; NATO reporting name: Firebird, also known as "Vigorous Dragon" (), is a single-engine, lightweight multirole fighter aircraft capable of all-weather operation, configured with a delta wing and canard design, with fly-by-wire flight controls, and produced by the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) for the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).

Chengdu J-10 ( 殲-10, Čcheng-tu J-10) je čínský víceúčelový jednomotorový lehký stíhací letoun čtvrté generace. Je zkonstruován k ničení vzdušných a pozemních cílů za každého počasí. Výrobcem letounu je společnost Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC). Letectvo čínské lidové republiky stroj přijalo do operační služby roku 2003. Jako exportní název jsou uváděna označení F-10 Vanguard či Vigorous Dragon. Z možných zahraničních uživatelů stroj zatím v počtu 36 kusů objednal Pákistán.


History of economy.

The history of Lithuania can be divided into seven major periods. All the periods have some interesting and important facts that affected the economic situation of the country in those times.

History up to the 20th century.

The first Lithuanians formed a branch of an ancient ethno-linguistic group known as the Balts. Lithuanian tribes maintained close trade contacts with the Roman Empire. Amber was the main good provided to the Roman Empire from Baltic Sea coast, via a long route called the Amber Road.  Consolidation of the Lithuanian lands began in the late 12th century. King Mindaugas was the first pan-Lithuanian ruler, as the Catholic King of Lithuania in 1253. The expansion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania reached its height in the middle of the 14th century under the Grand Duke Gediminas (reigned 1316–1341), who established a strong central government which later came to dominate the territories from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. Grand Duke Gediminas issued letters to the Hanseatic league, offering free access to his domains for men of every order and profession from nobles and knights to tillers of the soil. Economic immigrants and immigrants, seeking religious freedom improved the level of handicrafts. During the reign of Duke Kęstutis (1297–1382), the first cash

Lithuania in the 20th century.

On 16 February 1918, the Council of Lithuania passed a resolution for the re-establishment of the Independent State of Lithuania. Soon, many economic reforms for sustainable economic growth were implemented. A national currency, called the Lithuanian litas, was introduced in 1922. It proved to become one of the strongest and most stable currencies in Europe during the inter-war period. Lithuania had a monometalism system where one litas was covered by 0.150462 grams of gold stored by the Bank of Lithuania in foreign countries. Litas remained stable even in the period of Great Depression. During the time of its independence, 1918–1940, Lithuania made substantial progress. For example, Lithuania was the third-ranking flax producer and exporter in the world market (export of flax constituted about 30 percent of all export share), being surpassed only by Soviet Russia and Poland; Lithuanian farm products such as meat, dairy products, many kinds of grain, potatoes, etc. were of superior quality in the world market. Lithuanian farmers were joining into cooperative companies – e.g. "Lietūkis", "Pienocentras", "Linas", which helped farmers to process and sell their products more efficiently and profitably. Having taken advantage of favorable international developments, and

Development since the 1990s.

Reforms since the mid-1990s led to an open and rapidly growing economy. Open to global trade and investment, Lithuania now enjoys high degrees of business, fiscal, and financial freedom. Lithuania is a member of the EU and the WTO, so regulation is relatively transparent and efficient, with foreign and domestic capital subject to the same rules. The financial sector is advanced, regionally integrated, and subject to few intrusive regulations.  One of Lithuania's most important reforms was the privatization of state-owned assets. The first stage of privatization was being implemented between 1991 and 1995. Citizens were given investment vouchers worth €3.1 billion in nominal value, which let them participate in assets selling. By October 1995, they

Lithuania in the 21st century.

Between 2000 and 2017, the Lithuanian GDP grew by 308%.  One of the most important factors contributing to Lithuania's economic growth was its accession to the WTO in 2001 and the EU in 2004, which allows free movement of labour, capital, and trade among EU member states. On the other hand, rapid growth caused some imbalances in inflation and balance of payments. The current account deficit to GDP ratio in 2006–2008 was in the double digits and reached its peak in the first quarter of 2008 at a threatening 18.8%. This was mostly due to rapid loan portfolio growth as Scandinavian banks provided cheap credit under quite lax rules in Lithuania. The volume of loans to acquire lodgings has grown from 50 million LTL in 2004 up to 720 million LTL in 2007. Consumption was affected by credit expansion as well. This led to high inflation of goods and services, as well as trade deficit. A housing bubble was formed.  The global credit crunch which started in 2008 affected the real estate and retail sectors. The construction sector shrank by 46.8% during the first three-quarters of 2009 and the slump in retail trade was almost 30%. GDP plunged by 15.7% in the first nine months of 2009.

Business climate.

Cumulative foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2017 was EUR 14.7 billion, or 35 per cent of GDP, EUR 5215 per capita. The largest FDI flow in Lithuania was into manufacturing (EUR 73.7 million), agriculture, forestry, fishery (EUR 27.4 million), information and communication (EUR 10 million). Sweden, The Netherlands and Germany have remained the largest investors.  Lithuania seeks to become an innovation hub by 2020. To reach this goal, it is putting its efforts into attracting FDI to added-value sectors, especially IT services, software development, consulting, finance, and logistics. Well-known international companies such as Microsoft, IBM, Transcom, Barclays, Siemens, SEB, TeliaSonera, Paroc, Wix.com, Philip Morris, Thermo Fisher Scientific established a presence in Lithuania. Lithuanian FEZs (Free economic zone) offer developed infrastructure, service support, and tax incentives. A company set up in an FEZ is exempt from corporate taxation for its first six years,

Corporations.

Lithuania traditionally has strong agricultural, furniture, logistics, textile, biotechnology and laser industries. Maxima is a retail chain operating in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Bulgaria and it is the largest Lithuanian capital company and the largest employer in the Baltic states. Girteka Logistics is a largest Europe's transport company. "Biotechpharma" is a biopharmaceutical research and development company with a focus on recombinant

Workforce.

The number of the population aged 15 years and over is 1.45 million, activity rate was 60 percent in 2017.  During the period of 1995–2017 average salary grew more than four times in Lithuania. Despite this, labour costs in Lithuania are among the lowest in the EU. Average monthly net salary in IV quarter 2018 was EUR 800 and increased by 9.5 percent. Unemployment in Lithuania has been volatile. Since the year 2001, the unemployment rate has decreased from almost 20% to less than 4% in 2007 thanks to two main reasons. Firstly, during the time of rapid economic expansion, numerous work places were established. This caused

Income and wealth distribution.

Lithuania belongs to intermediate wealth group according to Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report 2017. As of 2017,

Sectors of economy.

Services.

One of the most important sub-sectors is information and communication technologies (ICT). Around 37,000 employees work for more than 2,000 ICT companies. ICT received 9.5% of total FDI. Lithuania hosts 13 of the 20 largest IT companies in the Baltic States. Lithuania exported EUR 128 million worth ICT services in II quarter of 2018.  Development of shared services and business process outsourcing are some of the most promising fields. Companies that have outsourced their business operations to Lithuania include Barclays, Danske Bank, CITCO Group, Western Union, Uber, MIRROR, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Anthill, Adform, Booking Holdings (Kayak.com, Booking.com), HomeToGo, Visma, Unity, Yara International, Nasdaq Nordic, Bentley Systems, Ernst & Young and many more.

Financial services.

The financial sector concentrates mostly on the domestic market. There are nine commercial banks that hold a license from the Bank of Lithuania and eight foreign bank branches. Most of the banks belong to international corporations, mainly Scandinavian. The financial sector has demonstrated incredible growth in the pre-crisis period (1998–2008). Bank assets were only €3.2 billion or 25.5% from GDP in 2000, half of which consisted of loan portfolio.  By the beginning of the year 2009, bank assets grew to €26.0 billion or 80.8% to GDP, the loan portfolio reached €20.7 billion. The loan-to-GDP ratio was 64%. The growth of deposits was not as fast as that of loans. At the end of 2008, the loan portfolio was almost twice as big as that of deposits. It demonstrated high dependence on external financing. Contraction in the loan portfolio has been recorded over the past year, so the loans to deposits ratio are slowly getting back to healthy levels.

Manufacturing.

Manufacturing constitutes the biggest part of gross value added in Lithuania. The food processing sector constitutes 11% of total exports. Dairy products, especially cheese, are well known in neighbouring countries. Another important manufacturing activity is chemical products. 80% of production is exported so chemical products constitute 12.5% of total exports. Year 2019 was exemplary – more than 10 new factories were opened in Lithuania, working in the fields in engineering, high precision instruments, furniture and medical products.  Furniture production employs more than 50,000 people and has seen double-digit growth over the last three years. The biggest companies in this field work in cooperation with IKEA, which owns one of the biggest wood processing companies in Lithuania. Lithuania is the fourth biggest supplier of furniture for IKEA after Poland, Italy and

Tourism.

Tourism in Lithuania becoming increasingly important for local economy, constituting around 5.3% of GDP in 2016. Lithuania has 22,000 rivers and rivulets, 3,000 lakes, a well-developed rural tourism network, a

Agriculture.

Despite a decreased share in GDP, the agricultural sector is still important for Lithuania as it employs almost 8% of the work force and supplies materials for the food processing sector. 44.8% of the land is arable. Total crop area was 1.8 million hectares in 2008. Cereals, wheat, and triticale are the most popular production of farms. The number of livestock and poultry has decreased twofold compared to the 1990s. The

Regional situation.

Lithuania is divided into ten counties. There are four cities with a population over 100,000 and four cities of over 30,000 people. The gross regional product is concentrated in the three largest counties – Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipėda. These three counties account for 70% of the GDP with just 60% of the population. Service centers and industry are concentrated there. In five

Infrastructure.

The transport, storage, and communication sector has increased its importance to the economy of Lithuania. In 2008, it accounted for 12.1% of GDP compared to 9.1% in 1996.

Communications.

Lithuania has a broadly developed radio, television, landline and mobile phone, as well as broadband internet networks.  Lithuanian National Radio and Television, the public broadcaster in Lithuania operates 3 television channels, including a satellite channel, as well as 3 radio stations. Privately owned commercial TV and Radio broadcasters operate a multitude national, regional and local channels.  There are four TIER III datacenters in Lithuania. Lithuania is 44th globally ranked country on data center density according to Cloudscene.  The fixed landline network connects 625 thousand households and businesses (down from the record 845 thousand in

Energy.

The utilities sector accounts for more than 3% of gross value added in Lithuania. Electricity production exceeded 12 billion kWh in 2007, and consumption exceeded 9.6 billion kWh. Surplus electricity is exported.  Lithuania operated a nuclear power plant in Visaginas, which produced 72% of electricity in Lithuania. The plant was shut down on 31 December 2009 in line with the commitments made when Lithuania joined EU in 2004. New nuclear power plant in Visaginas has been proposed but the status of the project is uncertain after it was rejected by the voters in a referendum in 2012.  The supply of heating energy has been modernized during the last decade (1998–2008). Technological loss in the heat energy system has decreased significantly from

Transport.

Lithuania forms part of the transport corridor between the East and the West. The volume of goods transported by road transport has increased fivefold since 1996. The total length of roadways is more than 80,000 km, and 90% of them are paved. The government spending on road infrastructure exceeded €0.5 billion in 2008. Via Baltica highway passes through Kaunas, while membership in the Schengen Agreement allows for smooth border crossing to Poland and Latvia.  Railway transport in Lithuania provides long-distance passenger and cargo services. Railways carry approximately 50 million tons of cargo and 7 million passengers a year. Direct rail routes link Lithuania with Russia, Belarus, Latvia, Poland, and Germany. Also, the main transit route between Russia and Russia's Kaliningrad Region

Storage.

There are more than 600,000 m of modern logistics and warehousing facilities in Lithuania. The biggest supply of new, modern warehousing facilities is in the capital city Vilnius (after the completion of several new projects in the third quarter of 2009, the supply of modern warehousing premises has increased by nearly 12% in Vilnius and currently

International trade.

Lithuanian economy is highly open and International trade is crucial. As a result, the ratio of foreign trade to GDP for Lithuania has often exceeded 100%.  The EU is the biggest trade partner of Lithuania with a 67% of total imports and 61.3% of total exports during 2015. The Commonwealth of Independent States is the second economic union that Lithuania trades the most with, with a share of imports of 25% and a share of exports of 23.9% during the same period. The vast majority of commodities, including oil, gas, and metals

Natural resources.

The total value of natural resources in Lithuania reached €17 billion, or half of Lithuania's GDP.

Macro-economic.

The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1995–2017.

The economy of Lithuania is the largest economy among the three Baltic states. Lithuania is a member of the European Union and its GDP per capita is the highest in the Baltic states. Lithuania belongs to the group of very high human development countries and is a member of WTO and OECD.

Ekonomika Litvy patří i přes značný rozvoj v uplynulém desetiletí mezi pět nejméně vyspělých ekonomik EU. Světová banka ji řadí do skupiny "Upper-middle-income economies" (nadprůměrně příjmové ekonomiky). Dle Mezinárodního měnového fondu má Litva HDP na obyvatele v paritě kupní síly 17 733 USD (2007) a je tak čtyřicátášestá na světě. Litva byla jednou z nejrychleji rostoucí ekonomik Evropy díky úspěšným reformám. Pro vysoký růst HDP v letech 2000–2007 byla označována za ekonomického tygra. V současnosti je však litevská ekonomika značně zasažena světovou finanční krizí.


Early life.

James Edward Franco was born in Palo Alto, California on April 19, 1978. His mother, Betsy Lou ("née" Verne), is a children's book author and occasional actress, and his father, Douglas Eugene Franco, ran a Silicon Valley business. His father was of Portuguese (from Madeira) and Swedish ancestry, while his mother is Jewish, from a family of Russian-Jewish descent. His maternal grandfather, Daniel, changed his surname from "Verovitz" to "Verne" some time after 1940. His paternal grandmother, Marjorie ("née" Peterson), is a published author of young adult books. His maternal grandmother, Mitzie ("née" Levine), owned the prominent Verne Art Gallery in Cleveland, Ohio, and was an active member in the National Council of Jewish Women.  Franco's family upbringing was "academic, liberal, and largely secular". He grew up in California with his two brothers, actors Tom and Dave. A "math whiz", Franco interned at Lockheed Martin. He was often encouraged by his father to get good grades and did well on his SATs. He graduated from Palo Alto High School in 1996,

Acting career.

1997–2001.

After 15 months of training, Franco began auditioning in Los Angeles. His first paid role was a television commercial for Pizza Hut, featuring a dancing Elvis Presley (who had died in 1977). He found guest roles on television shows but his first break came in 1999, after he was cast in a leading role on the short-lived but well-reviewed NBC television series "Freaks and Geeks", which ran for 18 episodes and was canceled due to low viewership. Later, the show became a cult hit among audiences. He has since described the series as "one of the most fun" work experiences that he has had. In another interview, Franco said: "When we were doing "Freaks and Geeks", I didn't quite understand how movies and TV worked, and I would improvise even if the camera wasn't on me... So I was improvising a little bit back then, but not in a productive way." After his

2002–2007.

Franco achieved worldwide fame and attention in the 2002 superhero film "Spider-Man", when he played Harry Osborn, the son of the villainous Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) and best friend of Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire). Originally, Franco was considered for the lead role of Spider-Man/Peter Parker in the film. Todd McCarthy of "Variety" noted that there are "good moments" between Maguire and Franco in the film. "Spider-Man" was a commercial and critical success. The movie grossed $114 million during its opening weekend in North America and went on to earn $822 million worldwide.  He next starred in "Sonny", a 2002 release in which he was directed by

2008–2010.

He next starred in "Pineapple Express" (2008), a stoner comedy co-starring and co-written by Seth Rogen and produced by Judd Apatow. Of Franco's character, Apatow said, "You tell him, 'Okay, you're going to play a pot dealer', and he comes back with a three-dimensional character you totally believe exists. He takes it very seriously, even when it's comedy". In her "New York Times" review, critic Manohla Dargis wrote: "He's delightful as Saul, loosey-goosey and goofy yet irrepressibly sexy, despite that greasy curtain of hair and a crash pad with a zero WAF (Woman Acceptance Factor). It's an

2011–present.

On February 23, 2011, Franco made a cameo appearance on NBC's "Minute to Win It" where the real-life Ralston was participating as a contestant playing for charity. After having an uncredited cameo in the opening scene of "The Green Hornet" (2011), he starred opposite Natalie Portman and Danny McBride in the Medieval fantasy comedy "Your Highness". In the film, he plays Fabious, a prince who teams up with his brother (McBride) to rescue the soon to be bride of Fabious (played by Zooey Deschanel). In May 2010, he was cast to star in Rupert Wyatt's $93 million budgeted "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", a reboot of the "Planet of the Apes" series which was released on August 5. Franco starred alongside Winona Ryder in "The Letter", originally entitled "The Stare", directed by Jay Anania. He was cast as a drug-addicted lawyer in "About Cherry", also starring Heather Graham, which started shooting the following month in California. He dropped out of the indie film "While

Other projects.

Franco produced and directed a documentary titled "Saturday Night" documenting a week in the production of an episode of "SNL". The film began as a short for an NYU class but grew due to his two episodes as host, while short stories he wrote for other classes appeared in "Esquire" and "McSweeney's". In summer 2010, the fictional Franco from "General Hospital" held an exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, while the real Franco held an exhibit at the museum based on his experiences on the soap opera.  In 2008, Franco was named as the face of Gucci's men's fragrance line. His short films as director "The Feast of Stephen" and "Herbert White" were both presented within Maryland Film Festival in May 2010. Another of his short movies, "The Clerk's Tale", was screened in competition at the Hamptons Film Festival at the end of 2010. In June 2010, James Franco presented his first solo exhibition, "The Dangerous Book Four Boys", presented at The Clocktower Gallery in New York City. Curated by Alanna Heiss, the show featured video, drawings, sculptures and installation.  On October 19, 2010, Scribner published a collection of short stories, "Palo Alto", by Franco. The book is named after the California city where Franco grew up and is dedicated to many of the writers he worked with at Brooklyn College. Inspired by some of Franco's own teenage memories "Palo Alto", and memories written and submitted by high school students at Palo Alto Senior High School, consists of life in Palo Alto as experienced by a series of teenagers who spend most of their time indulging in driving drunk, smoking weed and taking part in unplanned acts of violence. Each passage is told by a young narrator. The book has received mixed reviews; "Los Angeles Times" called it "the work of an ambitious young man who clearly loves to read, who has a good eye for detail, but who has spent way too much time on style and virtually none on substance". "The Guardian" reported that Franco's "foray into the literary world may be met with cynicism in some quarters, but this is a promising debut from a most unlikely source". Writing in "The New York Times", reviewer and fellow author Joshua Mohr praised Franco for how, in the story "American History", he juxtaposed historical parts with a present-day social commentary that "makes the we wonder how much we've actually evolved in post-bellum America". At least one editor of a literary journal testified he would not publish Franco's stories, claiming he has been published due to his star power, not literary talent. "Publishers Weekly" reviewed the collection, stating "The author fails to find anything remotely insightful to say in these 11 amazingly underwhelming stories".  In January 2011, the actor screened his multimedia project entitled "Three's Company The Drama", in which he merges video and art

In the media.

Viewed as a sex symbol, Franco was named the Sexiest Man Living in 2009 by Salon.com. There has often been frequent media coverage of Franco, particularly regarding his interest in going to colleges. In addition to that, Franco has also claimed to have been strongly misquoted by reports in the media and news outlets reporting erroneous information about him. This led to the actor being parodied in an episode of "SNL"s Weekend Update segment, which an "Entertainment Weekly" writer deemed "clever". In a 2011 interview, he stated:  I've been perceived as this guy yelling, 'Hey, look at me. I want attention'. I'm not going to school to get articles written about me. I'm just going to school. But the fact that I'm going to school or that someone takes a picture of me sleeping is like, 'We're gonna jump on that and criticize him for his antics'. What antics? I write. I make movies. I'm going to school. I hosted the Oscars. I take these projects seriously.  Franco has deliberately garnered a reputation for publishing "selfies" and wrote an explanatory article for "The New York Times" in December 2013. Franco writes:  But a well-stocked collection of selfies seems to get attention. And attention seems to be the name of the game when it comes to social networking. In this age of too much information at a click of a button, the power to attract viewers amid the sea of things to read and watch is power indeed. It's what the movie studios want for their products, it's what professional writers want for their work, it's what newspapers want — hell, it's what everyone wants: attention. Attention is power.  In April 2012, "Shalom Life" ranked Franco and his brother, Dave, together as number two on its list of 50 talented and attractive Jewish men. In 2013, Franco was featured as the cover model and featured focus in the men's magazine "Man of the World".  In other forms of media, a Chicago-based theater company, Under the Gun Theater, developed a show inspired by and titled after Franco. The 2015 production of "Dear James Franco" used, parodied and deconstructed letters penned to or by celebrities. The performances used improvisation to satirize their subject matter.

Accusations and lawsuit.

In 2014, a 17-year-old girl posted screenshots of alleged messages between her and Franco on Instagram. The messages showed that Franco, who was 35 at the time, tried to meet her in a hotel room after she told him she was 17. Franco sent multiple pictures of himself to prove his real identity. Franco admitted on "Live! With Kelly and Michael" that he had written the messages. His actions were legal (the age of consent in New York is seventeen) but he was criticized by the media because of the wide age gap. He initially responded to the scandal with the tweet, "I HOPE PARENTS KEEP THEIR TEENS AWAY FROM ME. Thank you." He later stated he was "embarrassed" and "I learned my lesson."  At the 2018 Golden Globes, Franco wore a Time's Up pin in solidarity with the #MeToo movement, to protest harassment against women. Franco's pin drew criticism on social media from actress Ally Sheedy, who hinted she had quit acting after working with Franco in a play. A former girlfriend, Violet Paley, also alleged that Franco once forced her to give him oral sex in a car while

Personal life.

Religion.

Franco has described himself as Jewish; regarding his secular upbringing, he told "The Guardian" that he feels as if he has "missed out on the Jewish experience", but has been told not to worry about that by his

Relationships.

Due to his support for the LGBT community, and his portrayal of gay characters in his projects, Franco's sexuality has been a subject of discussion in media sources, relentlessly questioning if he himself is gay. In response to questions regarding his sexuality, he insists he finds plenty more dimensions to the characters than their bedroom proclivities. "Or, you know what," he quipped, "maybe I'm just gay." In a March 2015 interview with "Four Two Nine" magazine, Franco again opened

Education.

Franco, dissatisfied with his career's direction, reenrolled at UCLA in autumn 2006 as an English major with a creative writing concentration. He received permission to take as many as 62 course credits per quarter compared to the normal limit of 19, while still continuing to act, receiving many of his credits from independent study for his involvement on the set of "Spider-Man 3". He received his undergraduate degree in June 2008 with a GPA of 3.5/4.0. For his degree, Franco prepared his departmental honors thesis as a novel under the supervision of Mona Simpson.  Franco was selected as the commencement speaker at his alma mater, UCLA, and was to speak at the ceremony on June 12, 2009. Several months before commencement, an editorial in the student newspaper questioned his "caliber" and a student created a Facebook page protesting the choice. On June 3, Franco withdrew, citing a date conflict with location pre-production on a film. On January 26, 2011, Franco and the "Harvard Lampoon" released a satirical video on prominent comedy website Funny or Die mocking his last-minute cancellation.  Franco moved to New York to simultaneously attend graduate school at Columbia University School of

Charitable work.

Franco has said "aiding others is the key to life, the key to happiness and, as an actor, you can get wrapped up in yourself and your career... A little secret is one of the greatest ways to break that is to stop thinking about yourself for a second". When Franco was at a point in his life where he wanted to give back but was unsure how, he asked his "Spider-Man" co-star Kirsten Dunst for advice. At her suggestion, he started volunteering at the charity Art of Elysium, where she also volunteers, which helps children with serious medical conditions. He said the experience helped save his life. In January 2011, at the Art of Elysium Heaven Gala in Los Angeles, Franco was honored for his work at the hospital, receiving the Spirit of Elysium accolade.  On March 31, 2011, the actor took part in "An Evening with James Franco", a Washington D.C. dinner benefit for 826DC, a non-profit foundation created to help neighborhood students reach their goals, as well as provide after-school literature programs and workshops that encourage them to improve their writing skills. Franco became involved with Dave Eggers' 826 National after Eggers asked him to do a conceptual idea for the program, and he directed a documentary for them and has since been a supporter of them. At the event, he spoke about how he thought schools needed to be more original with their literature programs. "Writing can do things that video cannot", he added. In April 2011, Franco autographed a T-shirt that would be auctioned off through the Yoshiki Foundation, with the proceeds being donated for Japanese tsunami relief. On June 14, he was honored by amfAR, the foundation for AIDS research, at the Museum of Modern Art. Franco received the Piaget Award of Inspiration for his humanitarian work and contributions to men's style.  In April 2013, Franco received the Ally Award at the 15th annual Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. The award was presented to him in recognition of his unwavering support of the LGBT community.  In April 2014, Franco presented at Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Easter Bonnet Competition with Leighton Meester and Chris O'Dowd, after raising donations at his Broadway show "Of Mice and Men". In June 2014, Franco performed in the BC/EFA benefit Broadway Bares.

James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, comedian, film producer, television producer, academic, painter and writer. For his role in "127 Hours" (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in live-action films, such as Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" trilogy (2002–2007); "Milk" (2008); "Pineapple Express" (2008); "Eat, Pray, Love" (2010); "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (2011); "Spring Breakers" (2012); "Oz the Great and Powerful" (2013); "This Is the End" (2013); and "The" "Disaster" "Artist" (2017), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. He is known for his collaborations with fellow actor Seth Rogen, having appeared in eight films and one television series with him.

James Edward Franco (* 19. dubna 1978, Palo Alto, Kalifornie, Spojené státy americké) je americký herec, režisér, scenárista, producent, malíř a model.


Childhood and education.

Morgan was born and raised in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Junius Spencer Morgan (1813–1890) and Juliet Pierpont (1816–1884) of the influential Morgan family. Pierpont, as he preferred to be known, had a varied education due in part to his father's plans. In the fall of 1848, he transferred to the Hartford Public School, then to the Episcopal Academy in Cheshire, Connecticut (now Cheshire Academy), where he boarded with the principal. In September 1851, he passed the entrance exam for The English High School of Boston, which specialized in mathematics for careers in commerce. In the April 1852, an illness struck Morgan which became more common as his life progressed: Rheumatic fever left him in such pain that he could not walk, and Junius sent him to the Azores to recover.  He convalesced there for almost a year, then returned to Boston to resume his studies. After graduation, his father sent him to Bellerive, a school in the Swiss village of La Tour-de-Peilz, where he gained fluency in French. His father then sent him to the University of Göttingen to improve his German. He attained passable fluency within six months, and a degree in art history; then traveled back to London via Wiesbaden, his formal education complete.

Career.

Early years and life.

Morgan went into banking in 1857 at the London branch of merchant banking firm Peabody, Morgan & Co., a partnership between his father and George Peabody founded three years earlier. In 1858, he moved to New York City to join the banking house of Duncan, Sherman & Company, the American representatives of George Peabody and Company. During the American Civil War, in an incident known as the Hall Carbine Affair, Morgan financed the purchase of five thousand rifles from an army arsenal at $3.50 each, which were then resold to a field general for $22 each. Morgan had avoided serving during the war by paying a substitute $300 to take his place. From 1860 to 1864, as J. Pierpont Morgan & Company, he acted as agent in New York for his father's firm, renamed "J.S. Morgan & Co." upon Peabody's retirement in 1864. From 1864–72, he was a member of the firm of Dabney, Morgan, and Company. In 1871, he partnered with the Drexels of Philadelphia to form the New York firm of Drexel, Morgan & Company. At that time, Anthony J. Drexel became Pierpont's mentor at the request of Junius Morgan.

J.P. Morgan & Company.

After the death of Anthony Drexel, the firm was rechristened J. P. Morgan & Company in 1895, retaining close ties with Drexel & Company of Philadelphia; Morgan, Harjes & Company of Paris; and J.S. Morgan & Company (after 1910 Morgan, Grenfell & Company) of London. By 1900 it was one of the world's most powerful banking houses, focused primarily on reorganizations and consolidations.  Morgan had many partners over the years, such as George W. Perkins, but always remained firmly in charge. He often took over troubled business and reorganized their structures and management to return them to profitability, a process that became known as "Morganization". His reputation as a banker and financier drew interest from investors to the businesses that he took over.

Railroads.

In his ascent to power, Morgan focused on railroads, America's largest business enterprises. He wrested control of the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad from Jay Gould and Jim Fisk in 1869; led the syndicate that broke the government-financing privileges of Jay Cooke; and developed and financed a railroad empire by reorganization and consolidation in all parts of the United States. He raised large sums in Europe; but rather than participating solely as a financier, he helped the railroads reorganize and achieve greater efficiency. He fought speculators interested only in profit and built a vision of an integrated transportation system. He successfully marketed a large part of William H. Vanderbilt's New York Central holdings in 1883. In 1885 he reorganized the New York, West Shore & Buffalo Railroad, leasing it to the New York Central. In 1886 he reorganized the Philadelphia & Reading, and in 1888 the Chesapeake & Ohio. After Congress passed the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887, Morgan set up conferences in 1889 and 1890 that brought together railroad presidents to help the industry follow the new laws and write agreements for the maintenance of "public, reasonable, uniform and stable rates". The first of their kind, the conferences created a community of interest among competing lines, paving the way for the great consolidations of the early 20th century. In addition, J P Morgan & Co, and the banking houses which it succeeded, reorganized a large number of railroads between 1869 and 1899. Morgan also financed street railways, especially in New York City.  A major political debacle came in 1904. The Northern Pacific Railway went bankrupt in the great depression of 1893. The bankruptcy wiped out the railroad's bondholders, leaving it free of debt, and a complex financial battle for its control ensued. In 1901, a compromise was reached between Morgan, New York financier E. H. Harriman and St. Paul, MN railroad builder James J. Hill. To reduce expensive competition in the Midwest, they created the Northern Securities Company to consolidate the operations of three of the region's most important railways: the Northern Pacific Railway, the Great Northern Railway, and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The consolidators ran into unexpected opposition, however, from President Theodore Roosevelt. An energetic trustbuster, Roosevelt considered the giant merger bad for consumers and a violation of the (until then) seldom-enforced Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. In 1902, Roosevelt ordered his Justice Department to sue to break it up. In 1904 the Supreme Court dissolved the Northern Security company and the railroads had to go their separate, competitive ways. Morgan did not lose money on the project, but his all-powerful political reputation suffered.

Treasury gold.

The Federal Treasury was nearly out of gold in 1895, at the depths of the Panic of 1893. Morgan had put forward a plan for the federal government to buy gold from his and European banks but it was declined in favor of a plan to sell bonds directly to the general public to overcome the crisis. Morgan, sure there was not enough time to implement such a plan, demanded and eventually obtained a meeting with Grover Cleveland where he claimed the government could default that day if they didn't do something. Morgan came up with a plan to use an old civil war statute that allowed Morgan and the Rothschilds to sell gold directly to the U.S. Treasury, 3.5 million ounces, to restore the treasury surplus, in exchange for a 30-year bond issue. The episode saved the Treasury but hurt Cleveland's standing with the agrarian wing of the Democratic Party, and became an issue in the election of 1896 when banks came under a withering attack from William Jennings Bryan. Morgan and Wall Street bankers donated heavily to Republican William McKinley, who was elected in 1896 and re-elected in 1900.

Steel.

After his father's death in 1890, Morgan took control of J. S. Morgan & Co. (renamed Morgan, Grenfell & Company in 1910). He began talks with Charles M. Schwab, president of Carnegie Co., and businessman Andrew Carnegie in 1900, with the goal of buying Carnegie's steel business and merging it with several other steel, coal, mining and shipping firms. After financing the creation of the Federal Steel Company, he merged it in 1901 with the Carnegie Steel Company and several other steel and iron businesses (including William Edenbirn's Consolidated Steel and Wire Company), forming the United States Steel Corporation. In 1901, U.S. Steel was the world's first billion-dollar company, with an authorized capitalization of $1.4 billion, much larger than any other industrial firm and comparable in size to the largest railroads.  U.S. Steel's goals were to achieve greater economies of scale, reduce transportation and resource costs, expand product lines, and improve distribution to allow the United States to compete globally with the United Kingdom and Germany. Schwab and others claimed the company's size would enable it to be more aggressive and effective in pursuing distant international markets ("globalization"). U.S. Steel was regarded as a monopoly by critics, as it sought to dominate not only steel but the construction of bridges, ships, railroad cars and rails, wire, nails, and many other products. With U.S. Steel, Morgan captured two-thirds of the steel market, and Schwab was confident that the company would soon hold a 75% market share. However, after 1901, its market share dropped; and in 1903, Schwab resigned to form Bethlehem Steel, which became the second largest U.S. steel producer.  Labor policy was a contentious issue. U.S. Steel was non-union, and experienced steel producers, led by Schwab, used aggressive tactics to identify and root out pro-union "troublemakers". The lawyers and bankers who had organized the merger—notably Morgan and CEO Elbert Gary—were more concerned with long-range profits, stability, good public relations, and avoiding trouble. The bankers' views generally prevailed, and the result was a "paternalistic" labor policy. (U.S. Steel was eventually unionized in the late 1930s.)

Panic of 1907.

The Panic of 1907 was a financial crisis that almost crippled the American economy. Major New York banks were on the verge of bankruptcy and there was no mechanism to rescue them, until Morgan stepped in to help resolve the crisis. Treasury Secretary George B. Cortelyou earmarked $35 million of federal money to deposit in New York banks. Morgan then met with the nation's leading financiers in his New York mansion, where he forced them to devise a plan to meet the crisis. James Stillman, president of the National City Bank, also played a central role. Morgan organized a team of bank and trust executives which redirected money between banks, secured further international lines of credit, and bought up the plummeting stocks of healthy corporations.  A delicate political issue arose regarding the brokerage firm of Moore and Schley, which was deeply involved in a speculative pool in the stock of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company. Moore and Schley had pledged over $6 million of the Tennessee Coal and Iron (TCI) stock for loans among the Wall Street banks. The banks had called the loans, and the firm could not pay. If Moore and Schley should fail, a hundred more failures would follow and then all Wall Street might go to pieces. Morgan decided they had to save Moore and Schley. TCI was one of the chief competitors of U.S. Steel and it owned valuable iron and coal deposits. Morgan controlled U.S. Steel and he decided it had to buy the TCI stock from Moore and Schley. Elbert Gary, head of U.S. Steel, agreed, but was concerned there would be antitrust implications that could cause grave trouble for U.S. Steel, which was already dominant in the steel industry. Morgan sent Gary to see President Theodore Roosevelt, who promised legal immunity for the deal. U.S. Steel thereupon paid $30 million for the TCI stock and Moore and Schley was saved. The announcement had an immediate effect; by November 7, 1907, the panic was over. The crisis underscored the need for a powerful oversight mechanism.  Vowing never to let it happen again, and realizing that in a future crisis there was unlikely to be another Morgan, in 1913 banking and political leaders, led by Senator Nelson Aldrich, devised a plan that resulted in the creation of the Federal Reserve System in 1913.

Banking's critics.

While conservatives in the Progressive Era hailed Morgan for his civic responsibility, his strengthening of the national economy, and his devotion to the arts and religion, the left wing viewed him as one of the central figures in the system it rejected. Morgan redefined conservatism in terms of financial prowess coupled with strong commitments to religion and high culture.  Enemies of banking attacked Morgan for the terms of his loan of gold to the federal government in the 1895 crisis and, together with writer Upton Sinclair, they attacked him for the financial resolution of the Panic of 1907. They also attempted to attribute to him the financial ills of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. In December 1912, Morgan testified before the Pujo Committee, a subcommittee of the House Banking and Currency committee. The committee ultimately concluded that a small number of financial leaders was exercising considerable control over many industries. The partners of J.P. Morgan & Co. and directors of First National and National City Bank controlled aggregate resources of $22.245 billion, which Louis Brandeis, later a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, compared to the value of all the property in the twenty-two states west of the Mississippi River.

Unsuccessful ventures.

Morgan did not always invest well, as several failures demonstrated.

Nikola Tesla.

In 1900, the inventor Nikola Tesla convinced Morgan he could build a trans-Atlantic wireless communication system (eventually sited at Wardenclyffe) that would outperform the short range radio wave-based wireless telegraph system then being demonstrated by Guglielmo Marconi. Morgan agreed to give Tesla $150,000 () to build the system in return for a 51% control of the patents. Almost as soon as the contract was signed Tesla decided to scale up the facility to include his ideas of terrestrial wireless power transmission to make what he thought was a more competitive system. Morgan considered Tesla's changes, and requests for the additional amounts of money to build it, a breach of contract and refused to fund the changes. With no additional investment capital available, the project at Wardenclyffe was abandoned in 1906, and never became operational.

London subways.

Morgan suffered a rare business defeat in 1902 when he attempted to enter the London Underground field. Transit magnate Charles Tyson Yerkes thwarted Morgan's effort to obtain parliamentary authority to build the Piccadilly, City and North East London Railway, a subway line that would have competed with "Tube" lines controlled by Yerkes. Morgan called Yerkes' coup "the greatest rascality and conspiracy I ever heard of".

International Mercantile Marine.

In 1902, J.P. Morgan & Co. financed the formation of International Mercantile Marine Company (IMMC), an Atlantic shipping company which absorbed several major American and British lines in an attempt to monopolize the shipping trade. IMMC was a holding company that controlled subsidiary corporations that had their own operating subsidiaries. Morgan hoped to dominate transatlantic shipping through interlocking directorates and contractual arrangements with the railroads, but that proved impossible because of the unscheduled nature of sea transport, American antitrust legislation, and an agreement with the British government. One of IMMC's subsidiaries was the White Star Line, which owned the RMS "Titanic". The ship's famous sinking in 1912, the year before Morgan's death, was a financial disaster for IMMC, which was forced to apply for bankruptcy protection in 1915. Analysis of financial records shows that IMMC was over-leveraged and suffered from inadequate cash flow causing it to default on bond interest payments. Saved by World War I, IMMC eventually re-emerged as the United States Lines, which went bankrupt in 1986.

Morgan corporations.

From 1890 to 1913, 42 major corporations were organized or their securities were underwritten, in whole or part, by J.P. Morgan and Company.

Later years.

After the death of his father in 1890, Morgan gained control of J. S. Morgan & Co (renamed Morgan, Grenfell & Company in 1910). Morgan began negotiations with Charles M. Schwab, president of Carnegie Co., and businessman Andrew Carnegie in 1900 with the intention of buying Carnegie's business and several other steel and iron businesses to consolidate them to create the United States Steel Corporation. Carnegie agreed to sell the business to Morgan for $480 million. The deal was closed without lawyers and without a written contract. News of the industrial consolidation arrived to newspapers in mid-January 1901. U.S. Steel was founded later that year with an authorized capitalization of $1.4 billion, the first billion-dollar company in the world.  Morgan was a member of the Union Club in New York City. When his friend, Erie Railroad president John King, was black-balled, Morgan resigned and organized the Metropolitan Club of New York. He donated the land on 5th Avenue and 60th Street at a cost of $125,000, and commanded Stanford White to "...build me a club fit for gentlemen, forget the expense..." He invited King in as a charter member and served as club president from 1891 to 1900.

Personal life.

Marriages and children.

In 1861, Morgan married Amelia Sturges, called Mimi (1835–1862). She died the following year. He married Frances Louisa Tracy, known as Fanny (1842–1924), on May 31, 1865. They had four children:

Appearance.

Morgan often had a tremendous physical effect on people; one man said that a visit from Morgan left him feeling "as if a gale had blown through the house." Morgan was physically large with massive shoulders, piercing eyes, and a purple nose. He was known to dislike publicity and hated being photographed; as a result of his self-consciousness of his rosacea, all of his professional portraits were retouched. His deformed nose was due to a disease called rhinophyma, which can result from rosacea. As the deformity worsens, pits, nodules, fissures, lobulations, and pedunculation contort the nose. This condition inspired the crude taunt "Johnny Morgan's nasal organ has a purple hue." Surgeons could have shaved away the rhinophymous growth of sebaceous tissue during Morgan's lifetime, but as a child he suffered from infantile seizures, and Morgan's son-in-law, Herbert L. Satterlee, has speculated that he did not seek surgery for his nose because he feared the seizures would return. His social and professional self-confidence were too well established to be undermined by this affliction. It appeared as if he dared people to meet him squarely and not shrink from the sight, asserting the force of his character over the ugliness of his face.  Morgan smoked dozens of cigars per day and favored large Havana cigars dubbed "Hercules' Clubs" by observers.

Religion.

Morgan was a lifelong member of the Episcopal Church, and by 1890 was one of its most influential leaders. He was a founding member of the Church Club of New York, an Episcopal private member's club in Manhattan. In 1910, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church established a commission, proposed by Bishop Charles Brent, to implement a world conference of churches to address their differences in their “faith and order.” Morgan was so impressed by the proposal for such a conference that he contributed $100,000 to finance the commission's work.

Homes.

His house at 219 Madison Avenue was originally built in 1853 by John Jay Phelps and purchased by Morgan in 1882. It became the first electrically lit private residence in New York. His interest in the new technology was a result of his financing Thomas Alva Edison's Edison Electric Illuminating Company in 1878. It was there that a reception of 1,000 people was held for the marriage of Juliet Morgan and William Pierson Hamilton on April 12, 1894, where they were given a favorite clock of Morgan's. Morgan also owned East Island in Glen Cove, New York, where he had a large summer house.

Yachting.

An avid yachtsman, Morgan owned several large yachts, the first being the "Corsair", built by William Cramp & Sons for Charles J. Osborn (1837-1885) and launched on May 26, 1880. Charles J. Osborn was Jay Gould's private banker. Morgan bought the yacht in 1882. The well-known quote, "If you have to ask the price, you can't afford it" is commonly attributed to Morgan in response to a question about the cost of maintaining a yacht, although the story is unconfirmed. A similarly unconfirmed legend attributes the quote to his son, J. P. Morgan Jr., in connection with the launching of the son's yacht "Corsair IV" at Bath Iron Works in 1930.  Morgan was scheduled to travel on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the, but canceled at the last minute, choosing to remain at a resort in Aix-les-Bains, France. The White Star Line, which operated "Titanic", was part of Morgan's International Mercantile Marine Company, and Morgan was to have his own private suite and promenade deck on the ship. In response to the sinking of "Titanic", Morgan purportedly said, "Monetary losses amount to nothing in life. It is the loss of life that counts. It is that frightful death."

Collector.

Morgan was a notable collector of books, pictures, paintings, clocks and other art objects, many loaned or given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (of which he was president and was a major force in its establishment), and many housed in his London house and in his private library on 36th Street, near Madison Avenue in New York City.  For a number of years the British artist and art critic Roger Fry worked for the Museum, and in effect for Morgan, as a collector.  His son, J. P. Morgan Jr., made the Pierpont Morgan Library a public institution in 1924 as a memorial to his father, and kept Belle da Costa Greene, his father's private librarian, as its first director.

Benefactor.

Morgan was a benefactor of the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Groton School, Harvard University (especially its medical school), Trinity College, the Lying-in Hospital of the City of New York, and the New York trade schools.

Gem collector.

By the turn of the century, Morgan had become one of America's most important collectors of gems and had assembled the most important gem collection in the U.S. as well as of American gemstones (over 1,000 pieces). Tiffany & Co. assembled his first collection under their Chief Gemologist, George Frederick Kunz. The collection was exhibited at the World's Fair in Paris in 1889. The exhibit won two golden awards and drew the attention of important scholars, lapidaries, and the general public.  George Frederick Kunz continued to build a second, even finer, collection which was exhibited in Paris in 1900. These collections have been donated to the American Museum of Natural History in New York where they were known as the Morgan-Tiffany and the Morgan-Bement collections. In 1911 Kunz named a newly found gem after his best customer morganite.

Photography.

Morgan was a patron to photographer Edward S. Curtis, offering Curtis $75,000 in 1906, to create a series on the American Indians. Curtis eventually published a 20-volume work entitled "The North American Indian". Curtis also produced a motion picture, "In the Land of the Head Hunters" (1914), which was restored in 1974 and re-released as "In the Land of the War Canoes". Curtis was also famous for a 1911 magic lantern slide show "The Indian Picture Opera" which used his photos and original musical compositions by composer Henry F. Gilbert.

Death.

Morgan died while traveling abroad on March 31, 1913, just shy of his 76th birthday. He died in his sleep at the Grand Hotel Plaza in Rome, Italy. His body was brought back to America aboard the "SS France", a French Line passenger ship. Flags on Wall Street flew at half-staff, and in an honor usually reserved for heads of state, the stock market closed for two hours when his body passed through New York City. His body was brought to lie in his home and adjacent library the first night of arrival in New York City. His remains were interred in the Cedar Hill Cemetery in his birthplace of Hartford, Connecticut. His son, John Pierpont "Jack" Morgan Jr., inherited the banking business. He bequeathed his mansion and large book collections to the Morgan Library & Museum in New York.  His estate was worth $68.3 million ($1.39 billion in today's dollars based on CPI, or $25.2 billion based on share of GDP), of which about $30 million represented his share in the New York and Philadelphia banks. The value of his art collection was estimated at $50 million.

Legacy.

His son, J. P. Morgan Jr., took over the business at his father's death, but was never as influential. As required by the 1933 Glass–Steagall Act, the "House of Morgan" became three entities: J.P. Morgan & Co., which later became Morgan Guaranty Trust; Morgan Stanley, an investment house formed by his grandson Henry Sturgis Morgan; and Morgan Grenfell in London, an overseas securities house.  The gemstone morganite was named in his honor.  The Cragston Dependencies, associated with his estate, Cragston (at Highlands, New York), was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became known as J.P. Morgan and Co., he was a driving force behind the wave of industrial consolidation in the United States spanning the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

John Pierpont Morgan (17. dubna 1837, Hartford, Connecticut, USA – 31. března 1913, Řím, Itálie) byl americký podnikatel a jeden z nejvýznamnějších bankéřů své doby. V roce 1860 založil v New Yorku banku "J. P. Morgan & Co". Tato banka se dnes jmenuje "JPMorgan Chase & Co."


Polish.

In Polish and Kashubian, "ą" is right after "a" in the alphabet but never appears at the beginning of a word. Originally "ą" was a nasal "a" but in modern times, its pronunciation has shifted to a nasal "o" sound. The letter doesn't simply have one determined pronunciation, but most often it will be pronounced, or just simply followed by a nasal consonant with a place of articulation that appears in the Polish language. Therefore, "ą" will sometimes be pronounced as,,,,.  Unlike French but rather like Portuguese "ão", nasal vowels in Polish are asynchronous: they are pronounced as an oral vowel + a nasal semivowel or a nasal vowel + a nasal semivowel. For the sake of simplicity, it is sometimes represented as :  Before all stops and affricates, it is pronounced as an oral vowel + nasal consonant, with appearing before most consonants and before or :  Loss of all nasal quality is rare with "ą", occurring only before "ł", thus,.  In dialects of some regions, "ą" in final position is also pronounced as ; thus, is occasionally pronounced as.

History.

Polish ą evolved from being a long nasal "a" of medieval Polish into a short nasal "o" in the modern language. The medieval vowel, along with its short counterpart, evolved in turn from the merged nasal *"ę" and *"ǫ" of Late Proto-Slavic.  Another explanation is connected to the adoption of the Old Czech-style orthography of the Latin alphabet to write Polish at the turn of the 16th century. In Poland-Lithuania, Latin still dominated in writing in the Kingdom of Poland, and the Cyrillic-based vernacular of Ruthenian had been in official use in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since the 13th century. In pronunciation, the Church Cyrillic letter big yus (Ѫ ѫ) corresponds to the pronunciation of the Polish "ą". However, it is little yus (Ѧ ѧ) (phonetically similar to "ę" that is strikingly similar to the Latin alphabet initial letter (A, a) plus the ogonek. Some believe that the letter gave the beginning to the diacritic of ogonek, resulting in the letter "ą" for denoting the nasal "o", when it logically should have been rather "ǫ" than "ą". When the ogonek had already been in place as the diacritic for marking nasality in vowels, it was appended to "e", resulting in "ę" for nasal "e".

Alternations.

The letter often alternates with. However, in words derived from ("government"), the vowel does not change. Thus, (genitive of ) retains the, e.g., ("government's ordinance")

Lithuanian.

In modern Lithuanian, it is no longer nasal and is now pronounced as a long "a". It is the second letter of the Lithuanian alphabet called (nasal "a").  The letter is most often found at the end of the noun to construct an ending of accusative case, as in, the accusative of (ground, floor); both "a" and "ą" in are pronounced (a long "a"). Thus, "ą" is used to distinguish between the transcription of accusative and the nominative cases of the noun.  It is also used when converting present tense verbs into participles, e.g., ( (somebody who is seeing () right now).  Nasal "an/am" forms are now pronounced, as in (list) and (turnover, return).  In some cases, "ą", "ę" and "į" (but never "ė") may be used in different forms interchangeably, as in (extension) - (extends) - (to lie extended). Finally, some verbs have it in the middle of a word but only in the present tense, e.g., ( (is getting white), but not (has become white).  The letter can also be found at the beginning of several words, e.g., (jug).

The Americas.

In some indigenous languages of the Americas, the letter denotes a nasal "a" sound:

Elfdalian.

The Elfdalian alphabet contains the letters that occur in the Swedish alphabet as well as various letters with ogonek to denote nasality. "Ą" and "ą" denote a nasal "a" sound.

Reconstructed language.

Scholars who have reconstructed the Proto-Germanic language (the ancestor of all modern Germanic languages, spoken c. 500 BC – AD 500) use the letter "ą" to denote a nasal vowel.

Ą (minuscule: "ą") is a letter in the Polish, Kashubian, Lithuanian, Creek, Navajo, Western Apache, Chiricahua, Osage, Hocąk, Mescalero, Gwich'in, Tutchone, and Elfdalian alphabets. It is formed from the letter "a" and an ogonek and usually, except for modern Lithuanian and Polish, denotes a nasal "a" sound.

Ą (minuskule ą) (litevsky "a nosinė", polsky "a z ogonkiem", kašubsky "a z blewiązką", latinsky "a caudata", švédsky "svansförsett a"), je písmeno latinky. Vyskytuje se v polštině, kašubštině, litevštině, v dalších jazycích, jako je například Creekština (ze skupiny jazyků Muskogí v makro-algonkinském kmeni), Navažština, Západní apačština, Čirikavština, Meskalero-čirikavština, Hocąkština, Gwich'inština, Tutčonština a Elvdalština. Obvykle se používá jako nosovka, v litevštině již jen jako historický grafický příznak, podobně jako v češtině ú versus ů, v litevštině se někdy vyslovuje jako poněkud delší než "a". V litevštině se může "ą" vyskytovat také na začátku slova (například "ąžuolas" – dub), na rozdíl od například polštiny, kašubštiny a dalších jazyků, ve kterých se na začátku slova vyskytovat nemůže.