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The five least corrupt countries: 1. New Zealand, 2. Denmark, 3. Singapore, 3. Sweden (tie), 5. Switzerland; The five most corrupt countries: 1. Somalia, 2. Afghanistan, 3. Myanmar, 4. Sudan, 4. Iraq (tie) - Alan A. Lew

the two operators are among six cruise lines that plan to either cancel or reroute ships to Alaska next year, reducing the number of cruise visitors by more than 100,000. Some of the cruise lines have been vocal about their reasons for the changes, and are blaming Alaska’s new voter-enacted laws that require a hefty per-passenger head tax for each visit. - Alan A. Lew

website related to a new book - Alan A. Lew

It would remove restrictions on capacity and pricing, and provide unlimited opportunities for cooperative marketing arrangements between U.S. and Japanese carriers. The agreement likely will prompt Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways to seek joint ventures with U.S. airlines. - Alan A. Lew

"Air tickets are going to get a lot more expensive, but people will become a lot richer over the next 40 years. If you're going to constrain demand growth, you do need rising prices," ... "It's not that demand has to fall in order for us to meet the target, demand can increase but only in a limited way." - Alan A. Lew

The project, which uses cloud-penetrating radar to assess forest cover and structure, is part of an effort to provide a means to monitor and report deforestation, a critical component of the REDD mechanism, which aims to compensate tropical countries for reducing emissions from - Alan A. Lew

The database allows researchers to search over 500 publications that apply the tools of geography to analyze issues of human rights. - Alan A. Lew

Nepalese Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and 23 other ministers were flown by helicopters to the foot of Mt. Everest for the meeting. During the meeting, a 10-point "Everest Declaration" was released, which calls for concerted actions to minimize adverse effects of climate change in the Himalayan region - Alan A. Lew

The environmental benefits of Strasbourg’s transportation policies have been obvious: Thirty percent fewer cars now enter Strasbourg each day than in 1990. Less obvious is the economic impact, but it is quite real as well. ... it has been good for restaurants, retail and other tourism-related businesses such as hotels. “For service businesses it is clearly in their interest,” ... - Alan A. Lew

United Airlines has placed an order for 50 jets from Boeing and Airbus with a list value of nearly $10bn, in a move analysts say is a sign of a return to health for airline financing. The order for 25 jets from each group is a boost for both aircraft makers during the worst aviation downturn since the one that followed the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US in 2001 - Alan A. Lew

Last year the religious group complained to the community board that many of the young, female cyclists who rode through the neighborhood were "hotties," who "ride in shorts and skirts," both of which are against their dress code. - Alan A. Lew

For example, deployment of industrial energy efficiency technologies could reduce energy use in manufacturing 14 percent to 22 percent by 2020, relative to expected trends. Most of these savings would occur in the most energy-intensive industries, such as chemical manufacturing, petroleum refining, pulp and paper, iron and steel, and cement. - Alan A. Lew

Some say it’s because the leisure travel market is recovering faster than business travel, but I also think that an online travel agency has far less risks than a major airline or hotel chain. In fact, from previous reports, we know that such Web sites are muscling lower hotel prices when possible and can be seen as competitors more than collaborators. - Alan A. Lew

Moscow officials ... Now they're considering cloud seeding to keep snow-removal costs down in the winter. Neighboring towns may get dumped on. - Alan A. Lew

electronics manufacturers, phone service providers and consumer groups is trying to rally airline passengers this week to stop Congress from banning air-to-ground phone service. The group says that airline passengers in the USA should have the option of using technology that's available to them to talk while flying just as passengers in 72 other countries can. - Alan A. Lew

The first ever international cruise for cougars - older women who are interested in younger men - has set sail from San Diego, US. The sold-out International Cougar Cruise took place aboard Carnival’s Fun Ship Elation bound for Ensenada, Mexico. Guests participated in three nights of dancing and partying, featuring special guest Miss Cougar America. - Alan A. Lew

New rules are needed for tourist ships visiting Antarctica to prevent a disaster in the world's most isolated region, according to New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully. "I am greatly concerned that unless we take action, there will be a serious maritime casualty involving a tourist vessel in Antarctica, and we will be faced with a humanitarian and environmental disaster," - Alan A. Lew

Tuvalu's gambit, seconded by Grenada, the Solomons and other island states one by one on the floor of the cavernous Bella Center, quickly ran into stiff opposition from oil giant Saudi Arabia, which would be hurt by sharp rollbacks in fuel use, and from China and India. The U.S. delegation remained silent. - Alan A. Lew

... Macfarlane, a fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and lecturer in English, admitted rather candidly to his studio audience that he would rather like to be in the Cambridge geography department, as that was where things were really happening. I studied English as a student and could never have imagined wanting to switch to geography, but now I know exact ly what Macfarlane meant. - Alan A. Lew

The lighting of the tree is considered the city's third largest event after Carnival and New Year's Eve. An international reference for Christmas, which, according to the mayor's office, attracts nearly 80,000 visitors per day, the tree will remain on display until Epiphany Day, January 6, when it will be lit up for the last time. - Alan A. Lew

Every year, more than 10,000 tourists are drawn to Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, driven in no small part by the fear that the mountain's magnificent ice will soon melt. - Alan A. Lew

Several spectacular collisions between aircraft and birds in recent months are stark evidence that last January's water landing of a US Airways jet that hit geese is far from unique and that the hazards may be increasing, according to federal records and aviation safety experts. - Alan A. Lew

It is the first new cruise ship order for 20 months and has been negotiated in dollars rather than euros – even though it is being built in Europe, by Fincantieri’s Monfalcone shipyard near Trieste – to protect the company against a slide in the US currency. The total cost is about $738 million, with delivery set for spring 2012. - Alan A. Lew

"Last year, the average room rate had reached $700 in Dubai. Now, with increased competition, five-star properties are more affordable," ... This follows a report last month that Dubai hotels posted the largest drop in room revenues in the Middle East region in October, compared to the same month in 2008. The emirate posted the largest average daily rate (ADR) decrease, falling 29.3 percent to $264.73, while revenue per available room (revPAR) fell more than 35 percent to $198.22, according to the research by STR Global. - Alan A. Lew

The researchers focused particularly on intervals known as the "little ice age" and "medieval warm period". In the journal Science, they report that these climate "anomalies" were likely caused by changes to El Nino and the North Atlantic Oscillation. - Alan A. Lew

Why hasn't there been an increase in the Earth's temperature since 1998? Dr. LATIF: Well, we believe that a change in ocean current, especially in the tropical Pacific and in the southern oceans on the Southern Hemisphere, cooled the sea surface temperature, and this then led to an offset, you know, to global warming, and so the net effect is basically that there was no additional change. - Alan A. Lew

Just 9 storms took shape, instead of an average of 15. During El Niño, the winds—known as the jet stream—shift southward and disrupt hurricane formation and development in the Atlantic Basin, which includes the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. - Alan A. Lew

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia ? ( USA ) A: A-Fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe . Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not … Oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Kings Cross. Come naked. - Alan A. Lew

Newer ships like the Oasis of the Seas have taken great lengths to reduce the carbon footprint of their passengers up to 25%, with improvements to the hull design, energy efficient lighting, HVAC design, etc – but some in the environmental community say they haven’t gone far enough to reducing not only the carbon footprint of the cruise ship, but the overall environmental impact. - Alan A. Lew

- Profiles of 26 Professionals, Revealing the Challenges and Rewards of their Careers - A Chart of Representative Salaries Illustrating Advancement from Associate to Director Level - Insightful Essays from Urban Planning Professionals - Alan A. Lew