$91.4M national statistics programme launched
In an effort to produce timely and quality statistics that would help stakeholders make more evidence-based policy decisions, Government, through the National Bureau of Statistics, on Monday launched the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics programme at the Tower Hotel.Finance Minister Winston Jordan centre and other guests at the launch of the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics programmeThe one-year programme, which is valued at $91.4 million, aims to increase the availability of statistics in relation to Guyana, the economy, poverty levels, employment, and other critical data necessary. The programme would also monitor various activities to provide accurate statistics.In delivering the keynote address at launch of programme, Finance Minister Winston Jordan underscored the importance of statistic to planning, policy formation, and decision- making.“This Government recognises the importance of statistics, and information in general, for effective decision-making. Guyana is part of a globalized environment where the role of, and access to, timely, accurate information are being brought into sharp relief,” he added.Statistics, he said, are important to Government, because they allow Government to create policy, promote development, and help reduce poverty. Businesses also use statistics to decide where to invest and how to run their businesses, and to measure results, he said.“Without good statistics that are fit for purpose, all of our lives would be much more difficult, and scarce national resources will be inefficiently used,” he said.The minister said Government recognises that an efficient and effective national statistical system is essential in order to meet certain development challenges of the 21st century.“This launch involves the development of a medium term strategic plan to develop and improve statistics across the spectrum of public agencies. This will raise the bar tremendously in terms of availability, accuracy, and timeliness of information for decision-making,” he added.Chairman of the National Bureau of Statistics, Dr Nelson Modeste, noted the importance of data relating to labour productivity, which he said could welcome investors.“I think we need to have some idea as to the productivity in the economy and in different sectors in the economy. It increases improvements in productivity, and it generally gives us an indication as to what is likely to happen towards the standard of living,” he stated.The main goal of the ‘National Strategies for Development of Statistics’ is to address the coordination, production and information issues that burden the national statistical systems, and to achieve the implementation of credible and relevant statistical systems in each country.The programme is being funded through a grant provided by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and is being assisted by Paris21 – The Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century.The launch will be followed by a one-week workshop.
…no formal notice issued…Union to meet today with company at Labour DeptThe Aurora Gold Mine recently terminated their contract between several miners, some of whom have been employed with the company for over one year.On Monday Guyana Times spoke to two miners, who said that their employment was terminated without any written notice, but rather via a telephone phone call. They indicated that the company would have laid them off with immediate effect without any reasons given. Some of these persons were working with the company for over 14 months.“We were laid off by the company without any notice, without any compensation. In just a normal conversation over the phone. So far, there is more but I don’t know how many more is in the process of receiving this. They never tell me the reason. The just say the contract terminated,” one worker said.Another recalled, “They just tell we by a phone call, not no letter or nothing and they didn’t tell me why. I working there one year and four months but the company don’t confirm you so when they ready, they can tell you to leave any time they want.”On Sunday the National Mine Workers Union (NMWU) expressed grave dissatisfaction that they were not given a chance to represent these workers completely. According to the Union President, Sherwayne Downer, it has been weeks since they provided documentation to visit the mine site but permission was never granted by the company. He insisted that they have not been able to assess the conditions under which these workers are operating among other matters.Guyana Times understands that the Union will be meeting with the officials of AGM today at the Labour Department to hammer out pressing issues.Employees of the AGM have decried that there is no formal working pattern or hiring scheme for miners at the mining company. In many instances, their services are terminated with immediate effect, since there is no merit to the contractual agreement signed upon employment.Back in June, over 200 workers had downed their tools and initiated strike actions for two days after calls mounted for them to be officially represented by a union and other improved working conditions and wages.During the strike, the workers had claimed that they were threatened with having their internet connection disconnected, which is vital to ensure communication from their Cuyuni-Mazaruni location to the coast. They were also demanding better wages, better quality food and laundry services, out of town allowance, missing NIS contributions among others.Later, they called on Government to establish an industrial court to settle disputes and other legal matters.
The three-time Olympic gold medalist pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators when she denied using performance-enhancing drugs, and announced her retirement after the hearing. Jones also pleaded guilty to a second count of lying to investigators about her association with a check-fraud scheme. Outside the U.S. District Court, Jones broke down in tears as she apologized for her actions, saying she understands she has disappointed her friends, family and supporters. “It’s with a great amount of shame that I stand before you and tell you that I have betrayed your trust,” Jones said, pausing frequently to regain her composure while her mother stood behind her, a supportive hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “I have been dishonest, and you have the right to be angry with me. I have let (my family) down. I have let my country down, and I have let myself down,” she said. “I recognize that by saying I’m deeply sorry, it might not be enough and sufficient to address the pain and hurt that I’ve caused you. “Therefore, I want to ask for your forgiveness for my actions, and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.” JURISPRUDENCE: Sprint star admits to lies in court and retires. By Jim Fitzgerald THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – For years, Marion Jones angrily denied using steroids. On Friday, she admitted it was all a lie. Jones and her mother embraced afterward, the elder Jones telling her daughter, “Good job.” The two then climbed into a black limousine with one of Jones’ attorneys and drove away without taking questions. “It’s bittersweet,” said Travis Tygart, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. “Any time a potential American hero admits to cheating us sports fans, people who watch Olympic games, it’s bittersweet.” Friday marked a stunning fall from grace for the 31-year-old Jones, once the most celebrated female athlete in the world. She captivated the country with the audacious goal of winning five gold medals at the Sydney Olympics. Though she fell short – only three of her five medals were gold, the other two bronze – her winsome smile and charming personality made her a star. Seven years later, she is broke, her reputation is ruined and she is looking at prison time. Jones is the biggest name to be brought down so far in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative scandal. But home run king Barry Bonds also has been linked to BALCO, and a grand jury is still investigating whether he lied to federal investigators. Bonds denied ever knowingly taking performance-enhancing drugs. In testimony before a grand jury in 2003, Bonds said he believed a clear substance and a cream given to him by his trainer were flaxseed oil and an arthritis balm. In court, Jones, seated at the defense table and speaking in a clear voice through a microphone, said she lied to a federal investigator in November 2003 when he asked if she had used performance-enhancing drugs. “I answered that I had not. This was a lie, your honor,” she said. Jones said she took steroids from September 2000 to July 2001 and said she was told by her then-coach Trevor Graham that she was taking flaxseed oil when it was actually “the clear.” That’s a performance-enhancing drug linked to BALCO, the lab at the center of the steroids scandal in professional sports.160Want local news?Sign up for the Localist and stay informed Something went wrong. Please try again.subscribeCongratulations! You’re all set!
Manchester United midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin wants to stay and fight for his place under Jose Mourinho – despite reported interest from Everton.The France international only signed for the Red Devils from Southampton last summer but, after a promising start to his career Old Trafford, his form suffered a dip during the second half of last season.Schneiderlin was left out of United’s FA Cup semi-final and final at the end of last season, sparking speculation over his future at Old Trafford.However, according to L’Equipe, the Frenchman has vowed to prove his value to Mourinho next season despite the plethora of signings expected under the Portuguese manager.Everton have made enquiries to United about Schneiderlin’s availability, with new manager Ronald Koeman keen for a reunion with his former player.But Schneiderlin is set to snub any offers of a move to Merseyside as he tries to prove he is worth the £25m United paid for him last summer. Does Morgan Schneiderlin have a future at Manchester United? 1
Ultimately, Bricklin made a living on speaking and consulting gigs and less famous creations, such as Demo, a program that let people assemble slide-like simulations of other pieces of software. More recently, he has been an avid blogger and podcaster. Even so, Bricklin will always be known as Mr. Spreadsheet, for better or worse. Which is why many people are watching closely as he updates the concept for the Web’s new era. Many of the solitary aspects of computing – think of one person at a terminal, reading something or creating something, then perhaps sending it off to someone else – are giving way to a new ideal. Groups of people are enhancing their productivity through collaborative programs known as wikis, in which multiple people can contribute at once. That’s what puts the “wiki” in the peer-to-peer encyclopedia Wikipedia. Wikis “are fulfilling the long-term promise of the Web by allowing people to engage in two-way conversation,” says Joe Kraus, founder of wiki provider JotSpot Inc. “It’s enabling people to publish as easily as they can read.” Because of wikis’ flexibility, JotSpot has seen its programs adopted in such diverse settings as a movie production team, class reunion planning and 2,500 families seeking to stay organized. Bricklin’s new project is a collaborative spreadsheet program – wikiCalc. He released a rough “alpha” version last fall and is now wrapping up a “beta” test version. Its functions – letting users place data in rows and columns and create formulas to make sense of the information – will be familiar. But its wiki nature will bring new twists. Rather than me adding data to it, saving it, and then e-mailing it so you can add your own figures, we could both work off the same document in real time. Running on a server like other online services, the wiki spreadsheet could be told to go onto the Web and dynamically update certain information, such as changing stock prices or census data. But it’s unlikely that wikiCalc will bring Bricklin untold spreadsheet millions at long last. The project is open source – its underlying code is open to other tinkerers and the software itself will be free. Businesses would pay for help in integrating or customizing the program. “If this is successful, I’ll show that a small-business person can go into open source and make a living on it,” Bricklin says. “Somehow money seems to show up for open source.” To that end, Bricklin has reached a deal in which Socialtext Inc., a maker of wikis for businesses, will distribute a commercial version of the program and host it on its servers. WikiCalc will not be free of competition. Excel itself and some Web-based spreadsheets have collaborative functions. Google Inc. just announced an online spreadsheet application. Ultimately, wikiCalc could provide an intriguing epilogue to VisiCalc because this notion that computers can help people better collaborate from afar is one of the earliest visions in the industry. It was powerfully described by Doug Engelbart and other pioneers 40 years ago, but became somewhat secondary in the emergence of the “personal” computer – the machine Bricklin did so much to popularize. “I think he’s cued into some of the models of how you let people work together,” Socialtext founder Ross Mayfield says of Bricklin. “Which nothing out of the PC generation of tools is able to do.”160Want local news?Sign up for the Localist and stay informed Something went wrong. Please try again.subscribeCongratulations! You’re all set! AD Quality Auto 360p 720p 1080p Top articles1/5READ MORE11 theater productions to see in Southern California this week, Dec. 27-Jan. 2This is not mere geek trivia. Before 1979, when Bricklin released the first spreadsheet, known as VisiCalc, personal computers still mainly were programming toys for hobbyists. VisiCalc changed that. By allowing businesses and households to automate their financial management – in a layout of their own choosing, even if they had zero programming ability – Bricklin ushered in the era in which personal computers would burrow deep into our everyday lives. He also helped shape the course of history. With VisiCalc as perhaps the first true “killer app,” the seminal Apple II computer began selling well enough to awaken IBM Corp., which decided to enter the PC market. IBM tapped a scrappy Microsoft Corp. to provide the operating system, the decision that would turn Bill Gates into … well, Bill Gates. Nowhere near those kind of riches flowed to Bricklin and his co-developer, Bob Frankston, who did most of the programming. Software often wasn’t patented in those days, and Bricklin didn’t pursue one for VisiCalc. Before long, Bricklin saw his idea taken up by such programs as Lotus Development Corp.’s 1-2-3 and Microsoft’s Excel. In 1985, Bricklin and Frankston sold their company to Lotus, which ceased publishing VisiCalc. NEWTON, Mass. – A lot of people are eager to see Dan Bricklin’s latest product. It’s a new piece of software, which means there are features to program and bugs to work out. This isn’t an easy task, especially when you work alone, as he does. And yet, sitting on a bench overlooking a lake at the end of his suburban street one fine spring day, Bricklin can afford some moments of reflection. “When I turned 40 – and now 50 – I never had to worry about whether I’d amount to much,” he says. “The pressure is off to make something of your life.” The biggest reason Dan Bricklin, 54, will forever be considered an unqualified success as a programmer is also the reason people have high expectations for his current endeavor, in online spreadsheets: Bricklin is the guy who gave us the spreadsheet program. 