Random
Source Code
Random
(US GOVERNMENT) one of two governing boards of the US Federal Reserve System (the Usonian Central Bank). The FRB consists of seven governors appointed by the White House to staggered terms of 14 years.
Governor appointments are subject to Senate confirmation.
The FRB sets monetary policy. Its seven members also serve on the other governing board of the Fed, the FOMC. However, the FRB has sole responsibility for discount rates and reserve requirements, and it is also responsible for enforcement of banking regulation.
Despite the fact that the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board has the same power as the other six governors, most people have only heard of Alan Greenspan (1987-2006) or Ben Bernanke (2006-present). About the same time, Susan M. Phillips (1991-1998) held approximately equal power on the Board; so did Roger W. Ferguson, Jr. (1997-2006).
Because governors almost never serve their full terms, there are currently only five governors on the board. The two longest-serving members, Bernanke and Vice Chair Donald Kohn, have only been there since August 2002.
26π 47π
(ECONOMICS) survey of 60,000 households in the USA conducted monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One of two ways in which the BLS gathers statistics on unemployment and hours worked. The other is the establishment survey.
According to an analysis of the 2009 March Current Population Survey, one in five men ages 18-64 - about 21.2 million - are uninsured, compared with 17.2 million women in the same age group. This gap in coverage is consistent across various demographic groups.
(CINEMA || TELEVISION) technique in which an actor reads lines, but is not shown speaking the lines in the video stream. So, for example, we might see Martin Sheen lying in bed in a decrepit hotel in Saigon, and hear his voice say, "Saigon... shit! I was still in Saigon!" But he's narrating in the past tense, and the Martin Sheen onscreen is not saying anything. Or we might see Robert Duvall sitting on the beach, and Martin Sheen's disembodied voice, calmly recalling, "Well, he loved his men... Felt safe with them.."
It serves to fill in events in the story that the director doesn't want to depict on screen; it helps to describe how a character feels about events shown in the scene, or remind viewers that they are currently watching a flashback; it also has been used successfully to explain away absurd holes in the plot that would otherwise ruin the movie.
The voice over (VO) is particularly popular in US cinema and somewhat less so in British and Japanese; non-US movies that are conscious imitating Hollywood cliches will usually use it as well.
Usually, artistic movies made outside the English-speaking world tend to avoid using the VO because it's a non-traditional narrative technique, and it looks lazy. A good screenwriter doesn't need to use it. However, in commercials and TV "journalism" it is almost supernaturally powerful in persuading people of utter nonsense; it's basically a form of posthypnotic suggestion.
The propaganda effect of commercials is massively enhanced by the use of voice over narration; usually the VO script is a grammatical mess and crammed with logical errors. This actually makes it work as a tool of brainwashing, since the logic cannot be followed by the listener.
12π 8π
(US GOVERNMENT) bureau within the federal government of the United States; part of the Department of Labor. Measures unemployment, hours worked, hourly wages, inflation, productivity, and so on.
The Department of Labor was created as a result of the NLRA (1935), which gave workers the right to organize.
Yesterday the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) published its monthly report of hours worked. This revealed that, while employees are working more hours, unemployment has not declined and wages continue to decline.
2π 3π
the current account balance; the net flow of liquid assets to the citizens of a particular country. The external balance includes the trade balance, net foreign factor income, and net foreign aid *received*. Usually the main cause of an external deficit is a trade deficit.
External balances are critical to good economic policies.
21π 3π
the current account balance; the net flow of liquid assets to the citizens of a particular country. The external balance includes the trade balance, net foreign factor income, and net foreign aid *received*. Usually the main cause of an external deficit is a trade deficit.
External balances are critical to good economic policies.
16π 7π
(ECONOMICS) A bank that is empowered to issue currency. In the USA, between 1863 (National Bank Act) and 1935, any bank with a federally issued charter (i.e., a national bank) was allowed to issue currency. After 1914, few did.
The US Treasury issued a small number of banknotes until 1971.
In the UK, banknotes of the Bank of England are legal tender; but the Royal Bank of Scotland is also a bank of issue.
Today, in almost every country of the world, the sole bank of issue is the central bank of that country.
The People's Bank of China is the bank of issue for the People's Republic of China.
20π 8π