December 20, 2005

05:21:04 pm Laundry List of Things the US Should Adopt  

The rest of the world has these things, we should too.

1. $1 coins that people actually use; $2 coins would also be nice. Get rid of dollar bills. Accept $50 bills widely.
2. Stoplights that countdown in seconds how long before the green changes to yellow and the red changes to green. Also, red light changes to yellow for a few seconds before going green.
3. Scoreboard street signs that indicate in real-time how many open parking spaces exist in nearby parking lots.
4. In all subway stations, displays that show how many minutes until the next train. Same at bus stops.
5. Total non-smoking bans in all indoor places, including restaurants and bars, in the remaining cities and states that have not yet adopted this. Entire countries like New Zealand, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, and the UK (effective 2007 I think) have this. Our political system is different and I am not advocating national legislation--I just want the remaining states to get on with the inevitable ban. That Chicago passed a ban last week mollifies me greatly (even if the bar ban is not effective until July 2008).
6. 0 or negligible (e.g. .02) blood-alcohol content drink driving laws. Many countries in Northern and Eastern Europe, some of them less densely populated than the US, have this. If you can't drink at all, you will not plan to drive.
7. Speed cameras. Redeploy police to activities that are more productive--they do not need to play radar any more.
8. Flat income tax rates. Sweeping Eastern Europe and hopefully heading west.
9. German restaurant bill paying. Waitstaff brings bill, waits for you to pay, produces change immediately from moneybag he or she has on person. Great for impatient diners like me who just want to go once they put their money down.
10. Clean public toilets.
11. FM stations that send out text info that displays on car radio, such as station name, song/artist name, station phone number, and so on. Europe has had this for over a dozen years.
12. Cell phone coverage that does not drop calls and provides a decent signal, including GPRS (for receiving email), in the remotest of locations.
13. The metric system. A thoroughly superior and logical system of weights and measures.
14. True bike lanes that are physically separate from auto traffic.
15. Reserved seats at movie theaters so that you don't have to show up early to avoid sitting in the front row.

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December 18, 2005

04:32:24 am Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - Aswan and Cairo, Egypt - Hazy, High 70s. Includes comments on the US, UK, and New Zealand.  

Flew on Egypt Air from Aswan to Cairo. Flight delayed about two hours due to haze in Cairo. In Cairo, we toured the Egyptian Museum, home to the full King Tut exhibit and other Egyptian artifacts spanning thousands of years. Spent one night at Four Seasons Nile Plaza, which opened about a year ago and is fabulous. We were upgraded to a suite, which put us in a ridiculously large set of rooms, the largest we've had since our night at Burj al-Arab. Deanna stayed up to 3AM shopping for Christmas presents over the web. We've gotten numerous emails from people surprised that we (and this year that was 100% Deanna) were able to send out Christmas cards. That's the beauty of the internet. We did not buy a single postage stamp, lick an envelope, or print a single card. Yet we were able to custom design a card with multiple pictures from this trip, and send off dozens of cards to people in numerous countries. Go to shutterfly.com and you can probably still get your cards in people's hands before Christmas.

Now for a look at interest and exchange rates (normal readers may tune out here). The US dollar has had a couple of tough days, with the price of a euro increasing to $1.20 today. The dollar is weakening on the thought that the Fed is nearly done raising rates (4.25% after yesterday's increase) while the European Central Bank is just getting started with their increase to 2.25% a few weeks ago (their first increase in five years). I think the Fed is fairly certain to raise to 4.50% at the end of January, but a further increase to 4.75% at the meeting after that in March is only a 50/50 proposition at this point, in my opinion. If US economic growth slows next substantially next year (it is likely to slow, the question is by how much), then rate cuts at some point are possible, more likely in the second half than the first. Nevertheless, the Fed would be less likely to cut rates if inflation does not decrease, and oil prices will influence that. I can't predict oil prices, but my best guess is that they will remain in a $50-$60 range, but neither $30 nor $100 would stun me. My best guess is that Fed rates will end 2006 around where they are now, at 4.25%. That is, the Fed may follow one or two increases with one or two decreases. I expect the present two percentage point gap between the US and Europe to narrow to one percentage point as Europe ends 2006 around 3.25%, intermittently raising rates throughout the year as (and if) the EMU country's economies gradually improve (it is not certain that economic growth in the EMU will improve, though). I'm neutral on the dollar/euro exchange rate now. The dollar remains undervalued to the euro on a purchasing power basis but interest rate parity says the euro is due for a boost. The euro has greater political risk as the strains revealed in Europe in 2005 are not going away any time soon. On the other hand, the dollar has a greater issue with the US trade deficit possibly leading to a dollar decline. Thus, things could go either way. In any event, I no longer have the conviction of my March 20 call that the dollar was due to rise against the euro, so I will close out this prediction with a 12% gain (the dollar rose from 74.6 euro cents to 83.3 euro cents as the euro fell from $1.34 to 1.20). I am not saying that I now expect the dollar to fall; rather, I just don't feel as strongly that it must rise against the euro. My best guess is that the euro will range from $1.15 - $1.25 next year, but then I wouldn't be surprised to see it down to $1 or up over $1.35. About the only thing we can be sure of is now that I've closed out my prediction, the dollar will likely be very strong over the next week, hitting new highs for the year, and making my timing look foolish!

The yen also has also moved sharply up against the dollar this week after months of sliding. It is now 117, up from 121. Japan's central bank has not yet increased rates from near 0, but it sure looks like they will next year.

I still think the dollar is still in good shape versus the British pound. The pound began the year earning 2.50 percentage points more than a dollar (4.75% versus 2.25%) but now the rates have converged (4.50% versus 4.25%). With the UK economy looking weak heading into 2006, I expect it US rates to exceed the UK at some point in the first half. The UK also remains silly expensive on a purchasing power basis. Fair value in terms of purchasing power is probably for the pound to fall to $1.25, a 29% drop from $1.77 presently. I don't think we will see anywhere near that drop, but I do think the $1.40-$1.50 range that the pound traded in for much of the 1990s would be a reasonable target over the next couple of years based on purchasing power if Britain's economy stays weak, and if the US economy remains somewhat stronger than the UK.

Finally, I note that New Zealand's central bank raised rates to 7.25% last week. I continue to think--as I have since March--that New Zealand's economy is so good right now, that things there are far more likely to get worse than to improve or even stay where they are. Their currency is down some since I first said this, but their stock market is not. So I will keep saying it.

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November 04, 2005

11:45:08 am Italian Diary III  

Wednesday, November 2, 2005 - Rome, Italy - Mid 70s

The warmest day in a long time, perhaps since one day in late July in London. With a cloudless sky, it was hot under the sun, but it noticeably cooler by mid-afternoon. Went to Vatican Museum, Pantheon, and Museum of Rome (city history, last five centuries, as told through art, but generally excluding the 20th Century).

Afterward, I spent several hours in an internet cafe, catching up on news. Headlines: Chicago city council to vote on smoking ban for restaurants and bars at the end of this month. Undoubtedly, our web site has pushed them toward this, although I'm afraid they may water down the ban and pass a half measure. The lead story in USA Today is how US house price rises are moderating. Strangely, they fail to credit our site for predicting this back in June.

Over dinner, Deanna and I talked about what country in the world has the best food. Italy for example everywhere has food I like, but little variety--it's all Italian. Many restaurants seem identical. If you want something other than the three Ps--pizza, pasta, or panini--you need to leave the country. Okay, that's an exaggeration (they have meat, fish, and salad also), but try finding a Thai restaurant. You won't. And I would have to say that I have still not found the Italian food in Italy to surpass the Italian food elsewhere in Europe. For example, I think we had better Italian food the nine days we were in Germany than the week we have been in Italy so far. Anyway, after some discussion, the obvious became apparent to me. The best food in the world is in the largest US cities because 1) you can get any type of food from anywhere in the world; 2) innovative new fusion food concepts are most prominent there; 3) the service is the best; and 4) the cost is low for developed countries and the value for money (quality, service, portions) is better than anywhere else. To be clear, I'm talking about large cities like New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles only. I am not talking about the suburbs of these cities, nor am I talking about mid-sized cities (although you will find occasional gem in these places), nor am I talking about rural areas in the US. I will give an honorable mention to Japan for highest quality food preparation.

Thursday, November 3, 2005 - Rome and Vernazza (Cinque Terra), Italy - Mid 60s

Drove to Vernazza, leaving Rome around 8:30 and arriving around 2:30 after lunch. Only got lost once leaving Rome, a tremendous accomplishment. Initial impressions of Cinque Terra: the towns are more rustic, authentic, and smaller than I expected and getting there is more difficult--often a one-lane road clinging to the side of a steep hill. We are staying two nights at Hotel Gianni (I think that is the name--with my PC not working, I am not able to type these posts in my hotel room with all of my guide books and info surrounding me, so I have to guess a lot of place names). Getting to our room involves hiking up three or four sets of outdoor steps, and then two stories of a narrow spiral staircase within the building. Authentic, but tiring.

Friday, November 4, 2005 - Vernazza, Italy - mid 60s.

Hiked to all five Cinque Terra towns. The Cinque Terra is five (cinque) towns terraced (terra) on steep hillsides along the ocean. It takes four to six hours to hike from one end to the other, but also you can take a train or boat between each town. One of the trails was closed and the boat is closed for the season, so we had to take the train twice, each ride only a few minutes. We hiked from Vernazza (town #4) to Monterosso (town #5), a tough 90-minute hike. We then took the train to Riomaggiore (town #1), a ride of 10 minutes or less. We walked an easy 30 minutes to Manarola (town #2), and had lunch there. The path to Corniglia (town #3) was closed for repairs, so we took a 2-minute train ride. We then hiked 90 steep, up-and-down minutes to Vernazza. Being November, more restaurants and stores are closed than open, as tourist crowds are down even though the weather is still good. There is enough still open though to make the stay worthwhile. Tomorrow morning we drive a few hours to Milan to pick up my mom and step-dad Bill, who will accompany us for a final night in Italy, and then on to Monaco, France, Spain, Andorra, and then France again. We all leave from Paris on November 19, Deanna and I to Africa and my mom and Bill back home to the US.

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September 18, 2005

05:17:36 am News Roundup  

Tuesday, September 13, 2005 - Galway, Ireland

Mainly a day of to do's. I made forward travel bookings while Deanna did laundry. An experience we've had throughout this trip is that you begin to learn the current event of local culture, but just as you become tuned in to all that is happening--local sports, currency rate movements, interest rate trends, economic growth, politics, ongoing news stories--you leave for another country. Events in the countries we have traveled through continue after we leave, and we do follow them as best we can, but usually I don't have time to comment on them because I'm writing on the issues in our next location. So now, let's catch up some random things from countries we have left behind.

- England won The Ashes over Australia on Monday (that's cricket) in what was regarded as the most exciting Ashes series in history. Now that I understand the sport, I find it much more interesting than I would have ever imagined. Like baseball, it's rich with strategy and statistics. I find it superior to soccer, a sport I have tried my whole life to like, but which never really ignited a passion in me. While I can't deny that it is the world's most popular team sport, I find soccer to be too modest in terms of excitement, strategy, and statistics. It has all of things of course, but in quantities too small for my taste.

- The Australian Rules football season has ended and the playoffs are underway. This is a hard sport to follow outside of Australia and New Zealand. Since leaving, I have seen one match on TV in Indonesia (a popular Australian vacation spot), and I have seen scores printed in an Irish paper (since Aussie rules and Gaelic football are similar).

- I've been meaning to write for months that two Pacific economies--Japan and Australia--that appeared as if they were on the verge of recession early this year are performing much better than I expected. I did not get around to noting this after each released better-than-expected Q1 GDP numbers, so I'll say something now that the Q2 numbers are out. I don't have the number in front of me, but Japan's Q2 GDP growth, announced in the last two days, was much higher than expected, something in the 5% annualized range, similar to their strong Q1 showing. In Q4 of last year, they had a flattish or down (I don't remember which) quarter, leading me and others to think they were heading for recession yet again. Job growth there has been strong this year and it appears their 15-year slumber could be ending, although they have had many false starts before. Their prime minister Koizumi won a landslide election last week and appears to have a mandate for domestic reform. This includes privatizing the post office, which in addition to delivering the mail, also happens to be the world's largest financial institution. Whether he will tackle the country's demographic time bomb remains to be seen. I think Japan's near-term outlook is more promising than I thought at the beginning of this trip, but I think their long-term problems remain, and I am not sure that they will be addressed sufficiently. Again, I don't have the number with me, but Australia's Q2 GDP growth number was quite good, something like 4%-5% annualized. The Q1 number was in the 2%-3% range, so the flattish Q4 result appears to be just a blip. Their central bank has continued to keep rates at the 5.50% level. They last raised in February or March just before we arrived in the country.

- New Zealand's central bank has also kept rates steady at the 6.75% level (I think this is correct--New Zealand is small and remote enough that you don't get much news on it outside of the region) they increased to while we were in New Zealand.

- Germany has a key election on Sunday. If we had a vote, we'd cast it for opposition Christian Democratic Union leader Angela Merkel for prime minister. We wrote on Germany and France's economic woes in one of our New Zealand posts. She has styled herself as a Ronald Reagan agent for change after a decade and a half of economic stagnation. France's next presidential election is not until 2007, but already the leading opposition candidate is casting himself in a similar role, and openly urging German voters to elect Merkel. Notable for Americans, both leaders reject the anti-American tilt of their countries present leaders, Schroder and Chirac. Merkel plainly states that an anti-American Europe cannot remain vibrant and relevant to the world. Germany knows it needs to change, but they are fearful of what the change entails. How well Merkel's party does on Sunday will say a lot about whether the country is ready to take the tough medicine it needs.

- We've written how flat income tax rates have swept through Eastern Europe and Russia, and noted with irony that these former communist countries now have a tax regime that we would prefer to that of the US. Merkel's finance chief advocates a 25% flat income tax rate for Germany and now the Conservative Party in the UK is considering whether they should adopt a flat tax theme after being routed earlier this year in the last parliamentary election. (They need to do something--like the Democrat party in the US they seem completely devoid of ideas. Why, they have so little to offer, that I would have voted for the Tony Blair and the Labour party, and that's saying something.) The integration of the EU tends to encourage economic competition between countries, and that makes it possible that the flat tax will spread to Western Europe. If it does, look for it to receive more serious consideration in the US.

- In an election result I don't really understand, Norway voters, apparently not content with a booming economy, being rated the best place in the world to live, and having one of the world's highest standards of living, have ousted the tax-cutting incumbent party and elected a Red-Green alliance that has pledged to spend part of the country's oil trust fund on welfare. That's like eating the seed corn when you are already full. The kind of thing you might consider if you were in a recession, but not during a boom time. Don't underestimate the ability of foolish politicians to project blue sky and sunshine forever when times are good, as many US state governments did when they spent their windfall in the late 90s and faced huge deficits in the early 2000s. There must be some local issues at play in Norway that we don't understand, but on the surface, this seems quite a bad decision. I'm bearish on Norway until I learn more, although I acknowledge that high oil prices can cover a multitude of management errors.

- I've seen two conflicting stories on housing prices in the UK. One said that prices were down again in the most recent month, and have fallen every month this year. The other showed a slight increase from July to August, but the rate of increase is declining.

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July 07, 2005

10:03:15 pm World's Tallest Buildings  

A couple of months ago we posed a trivia question that asked what two cities had projects underway that would surpass Taipei 101 as the world's tallest building. We received several responses, but we never got around to answering the question because the responses revealed that we needed to do more research. Moreover, that research reveled, well, the answer we had in mind was not correct, and any answer is more complicated than we anticipated. Now having just visited Taipei 101, we procrastinate no further and provide an answer.

The cities we had in mind were Shanghai and Dubai, and the buildings we had in mind were, respectively, the World Financial Center (WFC), and Burj Dubai. Subsequent research on our part has shown Shanghai's WFC not to be a correct answer. At the time of its original conception in mid 90s, it was to be the world's tallest. A multi-year construction delay occurred, however, due to--take your pick--1) a glut of office space in Shanghai; 2) financing problems after the 1997 Asian crisis; or 3) soil tests showing the site would not support the original design structurally. Whatever the reason, the architects changed the design during the delay, and the WFC will now be shorter, coming close, but no longer surpassing Taipei 101. On our visit to Shanghai, we confirmed that construction has resumed, although at this point there is nothing to see but a hole in the ground. Some rumors suggest there is a secret plan to add some form of structural appendage to the top so that WFC would be taller than Taipei 101. This strikes us as wishful thinking by Shanghai boosters because the design of WFC does not allow easily for such an appendage (see Shanghai image gallery for a depiction of the finished building). Further, it's probably a moot point anyway, because with the delay in Shanghai, the much taller Dubai building is now scheduled for completion around the same time.

This illustrates an issue with the announcement of future world's tallest buildings. Most announcements never get off the ground. We recall that two different projects announced in Chicago over the past two decades, the Miglin-Beitler Tower at Madison and Wells in 1989, and the Dearborn Tower at Madison and Dearborn in 1999 were never built due to financing problems. That developers announced each shortly before a recession that scuttled their financing plans is no coincidence. Tall building announcements are often a contrarian indicator about future economic activity. For someone to have audacity to build the world's tallest building usually takes a prolonged period of economic prosperity. And after such a prolonged period, things are usually due to take a tumble. For such a project to be completed, it must be well under construction when the downturn hits. Consider three prior world's tallest buildings. Each signaled a major economic downturn, but each was far enough along to be completed. The Petronas Towers were completed in 1998, the year after the Asian Crises hit Malaysia and the rest of developing Asia. The Sears Tower was completed in 1974, while the painful 1973-1974 OPEC oil embargo recession was underway. The Empire State Building topped out in 1931 during the Great Depression.

Here are the figures. Taipei 101 is 1,670 feet tall. Burg Dubai is scheduled to finish in 2008 at an eye-popping 2,314 feet. While a building is never certain until it's finished, the foundation work is complete and we think more likely than not, this building will be built. (We will be in Dubai in two weeks and probably will talk more about what's happening in that city at that time.) There are some rumors that the final height of Burj Dubai may be different from the initial figure here, and it could be even higher. The Shanghai WFC now will not finish until 2008 and it will be 1,614 feet.

Here's a web link to information on Burj Dubai:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burj_Dubai

Note that outdated information for Shanghai WFC remains prevalent on the web, indicating an earlier completion date than 2008 and taller height. You will also find incorrect information on the web for a project called Union Square Phase 7 or Kowloon Station Phase 7 in Hong Kong. The outdated information is that this building will be around 1900 feet, which could have made it the world's tallest. Developers have since redesigned that building down to 1,588 feet. It has a 2007 completion date--we do not know if it remains on schedule. Also on the web are extremely sketchy details on something called the Center of India Tower in Katangi, India that is to be 2,222 feet, making it the world's tallest, if you ignore the Dubai building. This project was first announced years ago and with no substantial information available on it today, we are skeptical it will ever be built. Finally, there's the Freedom Tower in New York City to be built on the site of the World Trade Center. A third iteration of its design was released last week. While this iteration fixes the security problems present in the second iteration, in our opinion it re-introduces the aesthetic concerns that scuttled the first iteration. Now not scheduled to be completed until 2010, the present design retains the spire that will rise to a symbolic 1,776 feet. At present, we believe the chance of the current design being built is 50% at best. Even if it is, we think it is unlikely that this building will ever hold the title of the world's tallest building.

Now let's recognize those who answered our question. Cheryl Hays of Plant City, Florida, aka Deanna's mom, was not the first to answer, but she was the first to provide the answer we had in mind. She not only named the buildings in Dubai and Shanghai, she also mentioned Union Square in Hong Kong and the Freedom Tower in New York City. No penalties for guessing here! We award her the no*prize for this trivia question!

Larry Padgett of Buchanan, Michigan aka Nick's dad responded first. He also named the Hong Kong building, which he prefers to call Kowloon Station, as well as the Center of India Tower. Sorry dad, but you had outdated information on Kowloon Station's height and the India building is does not have a credible chance of being built, in our opinion. Nevertheless, we do not want to be ungracious, so we award you an honorable mention early bird no*prize for your superior responsiveness!

Finally, John Stierman of Macomb, Illinois, aka Nick's mom's neighbor, correctly, albeit a bit belatedly, named Dubai as one of the two cities we were looking for. He had the good sense not to name Shanghai since it wasn't a correct answer anyway. John wins the high-percentage answerer no*prize honorable mention award.

The link below details the 100 tallest buildings in world as of right now (buildings under construction are not listed). We list the top 20 in this post (the formatting is messed up but you should be able to read the table). We note that the city of Hong Kong now has as many buildings in the top 20 as the entire United States. China leads all countries with five in the top 20--nine if you include Hong Kong and 11 if you include Taiwan. Asia has 16 of the top 20, the US four. The US does have 11 buildings in the next top positions, 21-40.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001338.html

Rank; Building; City; Year; Stories; Height in Feet
1. Taipei 101, Taipei, Taiwan
2004 101 509 1,670
2. Petronas Tower 1, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
1998 88 452 1,483
3. Petronas Tower 2, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 1998 88 452 1,483
4. Sears Tower, Chicago
1974 110 442 1,450
5. Jin Mao Building, Shanghai 1999 88 421 1,380
6. Two International Finance Centre, Hong Kong 2003 88 415 1,362
7. CITIC Plaza, Guangzhou, China 1996 80 391 1,283
8. Shun Hing Square, Shenzhen, China 1996 69 384 1,260
9. Empire State Building, New York
1931 102 381 1,250
10. Central Plaza, Hong Kong 1992 78 374 1,227
11. Bank of China, Hong Kong 1989 72 369 1,209
12. Emirates Tower One, Dubai 1999 54 355 1,165
13. Turntex Sky Tower, Kaohsiung, Taiwan 1997 85 348 1,140
14. Aon Centre, Chicago 1973 80 346 1,136
15. The Center, Hong Kong 1998 73 346 1,135
16. John Hancock Center, Chicago 1969 100 344 1,127
17. Wuhan International Securities Building, Wuhan UC05 68 331 1,087
18. Shimao International Plaza, Shanghai UC05 60 331 1,087
19. Ryugyong Hotel, Pyongyang, N. Korea 1995 105 330 1,083
20. Burj al Arab Hotel, Dubai 1999 60 321 1,053

Finally, as we have written before, there are multiple definitions of how a building's height is measured. The definitions multiplied when Petronas Towers surpassed Sears Tower by the official measure, but Sears boosters pointed out that it was actually still taller by three alternative measures. As of its completion, Taipei 101 now tops the list under three of the four definitions (including the official definition), with Sears still holding the title under one definition, and Petronas no longer having any claim as world's tallest.

Here is an article that explains these definitions (1 meter = 3.28 feet). Again, the formatting is messed up, but you should be able to read what it says.

For immediate release – April 20, 2004

“World’s Tallest” Confirmed for Taiwan

Chicago . . . The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Height Committee, after reviewing its height criteria, has officially designated Taiwan’s Taipei 101 as the “World’s Tallest”. The initial announcement was made by CTBUH Chairman, Ron Klemencic, at the Structural Engineers Foundation of Illinois’ 2004 Lecture on April 15 in Chicago, where members of the Taipei 101 design team made a presentation on the construction of the building.

Measured to the architectural top, Taipei 101 has a height of 508m, which places it above Malaysia’s twin Petronas Towers, measuring in at 452m. Chicago’s Sears Tower now moves into fourth place at 442m, followed by the Jin Mao Building in Shanghai at 421m.

The CTBUH official criteria states that “The height of a building is measured from the sidewalk level of the main entrance to the architectural top of the building, including penthouse and tower. Towers include spires and pinnacles. Television and radio antennas, masts, and flag poles are not included.”

In 1996 the Council voted to expand the data gathered to include three additional height categories – Highest Occupied Floor, Top of the Roof, and Top of Pinnacle or Antenna. Although the Sears Tower held the record in these three categories, Taipei 101 has now taken over two of the three, with the Sears Tower remaining as the record holder for Top of Pinnacle or Antenna at 527m.

The international membership of the CTBUH Height Committee includes Mir Ali of the University of Illinois, Champaign, IL; Eli Attia of Eli Attia Architects, New York, NY; Georges Binder of Buildings & Data, Brussels, Belgium; John Chapman of Schindler Elevator Corporation, Morristown, NJ; Joseph Colaco of CBM Engineers, Houston, TX; W. Gene Corley of Construction Technology Labs, Skokie, IL; Mahjoub ElNimeiri of the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL; James Forbes of Scott Wilson Irwin Johnson Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia; Tom Fridstein of the Hillier Group, New York, NY; Marshall Gerometta, St. Joseph, MO; Jeff Herzer of World’s Tallest Media, Inc., St. Joseph, MO; Nicholas Isyumov of The University of Western Ontario, Southwold, Canada; Tom McCool of Turner Steiner International, Doylestown, PA; R. Shankar Nair of Teng & Associates, Chicago, IL; Gary Pomerantz of Flack + Kurtz, New York, NY; Mark Sarkisian of Skidmore Owings & Merrill, San Francisco; Jan Vambersky of Corsmit Consulting Engineers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; and George von Klan of Edgett Williams Consulting Group, Mill Valley, CA.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, based at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, IL is the only international organization that brings together all of the disciplines involved in creating the urban environment on a global basis. Its mission is to disseminate information on healthy urban environments and tall building technology, to maximize the international interaction of professionals involved in creating the built environment, and to make the latest knowledge available to professionals worldwide in a useful form. Currently there are over 1,000 members from 80 countries representing a wide spectrum of professional specialization.

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