“The Fallen Of World War II” – a powerful data graphics presentation
August 24th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
The Second World War was the bloodiest conflict in history. The actual death toll is the subject of many estimates and, for the purposes of his video, American Neil Halloran has used estimates which total around 70 million,
He has produced a graphic which explains how this total is made up and how the toll in the war compares to other conflicts both before and after. You can view the fascinating, but chilling, 18-minute presentation here.
Posted in History | Comments (0)
What are the most popular names for new babies in Britain?
August 23rd, 2015 by Roger Darlington
According to the data compiled annually by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the most popular names for children born in England & Wales during 2014 – published this week – were as follows:
| Position | Boys | Girls |
| 1 | Oliver | Amelia |
| 2 | Jack | Olivia |
| 3 | Harry | Isla |
| 4 | Jacob | Emily |
| 5 | Charlie | Poppy |
| 6 | Thomas | Ava |
| 7 | George | Isabella |
| 8 | Oscar | Jessica |
| 9 | James | Lily |
| 10 | William | Sophie |
| 11 | Noah | Grace |
| 12 | Alfie | Sophia |
| 13 | Joshua | Mia |
| 14 | Muhammed | Evie |
| 15 | Henry | Ruby |
| 16 | Leo | Ella |
| 17 | Archie | Scarlett |
| 18 | Ethan | Isabelle |
| 19 | Joseph | Chloe |
| 20 | Freddie | Sienna |
There are some patterns here.
First of all, astonishingly the most popular boys’ name and the second most popular girls’ name are essentially the same (Oliver and Olivia) – what is technically known as cognates – and these names have been in the top two for their gender for the last six years. Is this the case in any other nation? Second, it is striking how traditional most of the names are for both boys and girls, although for the boys it is interesting that the familiar form of names rather than the original version is often preferred – Jack instead of John, Harry instead of Harold, Charlie instead of Charles, Alfie instead of Alfred, Archie instead of Archibold, Freddie instead of Frederick. Third, in the case of boys, five of the top 20 names begin with the letter ‘J’ while, in the case of girls, 10 of the top 20 names end with the letter ‘a’, seven of the top 20 names end with the sound ‘ee’, and ten of the top 20 names contain the letter ‘l’ (in four cases, twice).
On the other hand, the name John, which is the most common male name in the Britain, is nowhere in the top 100 names in the 2014 listings, while David – which is the second most common name in Britain – slipped out of the top 50 of names chosen for baby boys born in 2004 and has only just come back (it is currently 50th). Similarly Margaret – the most common female name in the population as a whole – does not even appear in the top 100 names chosen for girls these days, while Susan – the second most common name in Britain – is not even in the top 100.
These observations underline how much fashion shapes the popularity of different names. Fashion is a stronger influence with girls’ names than those of boys. So, for example, in the last 10 years (2004-2014) Lexi is up 724 places to 64, Ivy is up 704 places to number 54, Violet is up 538 places to 71, Bella is up 462 places to 52, and Elsie is up 387 places to 32.
It should be noted that the Office of National Statistics (ONS) produces its ranking of the popularity of names using the exact spelling of the name given at birth registration. If one combines the numbers for names with very similar spellings, a very different picture is revealed. For boys, combining the occurrence of Mohammed, Muhammad, Mohammad & Muhammed plus eight other spellings of the names would put it in first place – a reflection of the changing ethnicity of the British population and the powerful trend for Muslim families to name their son after the Prophet. Similarly, if one combines the occurrence of Isabella, Isabelle, Isabel and Isobel, one would find the name top of the girls’ list and, if one took Lily and Lilly together, the name would come third.
You can find the top 100 boys and girls names in 2014 click here
You can find my comprehensive guide to naming practices around the world here.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)
Ever wondered just how far can one drive the predestination paradox?
August 23rd, 2015 by Roger Darlington
No – neither had I. Until I watched a 2014 Australian science fiction thriller called “Predestination” which I’ve reviewed here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
“Lonely Planet”‘s ultimate travellers’ bucket list – how many of them have you visited?
August 22nd, 2015 by Roger Darlington
This week, the “Lonely Planet” organisation issued a list of its top tourist destinations around the world. The top 20 were as follows:
- Temples of Angkor, Cambodia
- Great Barrier Reef, Australia
- Machu Picchu, Peru
- Great Wall of China, China
- Taj Mahal, India
- Grand Canyon National Park, USA
- Colosseum, Italy
- Iguazu Falls, Brazil-Argentina
- Alhambra, Spain
- Aya Sofya, Turkey
- Fez Medina, Morocco
- Twelve Apostles, Australia
- Petra, Jordan
- Tikal, Guatemala
- British Museum, England
- Sagrada Familia, Spain
- Fiordland National Park, New Zealand
- Santorini, Greece
- Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
- Museum of Old & New Art, Australia
I have been so fortunate in my opportunities to travel, so I have been to every location in the top 10 and to 16 of the top 20. You can find a guide to these 20 destinations here and read some of my travel reports here.
What has really saddened me recently is how many tourist locations are now targeted by terrorists or the scene of insurgences. As we have broadened our travel destinations over the last decade and a half, we have visited a number of countries where there has been violence before (Egypt), during (Nepal) or after (Syria) our time there.
This week, we have seen the murderous explosion in Bangkok (Thailand) which we visited just two years ago and the brutal beheading of an antiquities curator in Palmyra (Syria) which we visited four years ago.
It seems that nowhere in the world is truly safe, but many of the poorest countries on earth rely very much on earnings from tourism, so we have to keep travelling and hope that engagement will be good for us and for those we meet.
Posted in Miscellaneous, My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
My 24th short story: “A Question Of Life”
August 21st, 2015 by Roger Darlington
Having written more than 20 short stories some five years ago, I was emboldened to try one with a Holocaust theme. You can check it out here.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
Word of the day: myrmidon
August 20th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
The word means ‘a person who executes without question or scruple a master’s commands’. It comes from the name of a character in Greek mythology.
It’s a new word for me and I came across it in the book I’m reading at the moment: “The Storm Of War”, an account of the Second World War by Andrew Roberts. In this context, Roberts uses to word to describe those who blindly followed the orders and wishes of the Fuhrer Adolf Hitler.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
The bloodiest siege in history: Leningrad 1941-1944
August 20th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
I am currently reading the 600-page book “The Storm Of War”, an account of the Second World War by Andrew Roberts. Even though I am familiar with all the major events of the war, it is still shocking to be reminded of the utter devastation of the conflict.
Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa, the city of Leningrad suffered the most horrific siege in history. There are various estimates of the death toll, but Roberts writes:
” … somehow Leningrad surveyed its gruelling 900-day ordeal, despite suffering over one million deaths, or an average of more than 1,100 people a day for nearly three years. It was by far the bloodiest siege in history, and more Russians died in Leningrad alone than British and American soldiers and civilians during the whole of the Second World War.”
You can read more about the siege here.
An excellent novel set in the siege is “City Of Thieves” by David Benioff which I have reviewed here.
Posted in History | Comments (0)
A review of the new Pixar animation movie “Inside Out”
August 18th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
Summer’s here and school’s out, so thank goodness for a great new movie from Pixar. “Inside Out” manages to be a delight for both kids and adults. You can read my review here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
How I have voted in the Labour Party elections
August 17th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
Today I received my ballot paper as a fully paid up member of the Labour Party for 46 years. Since I know some of you will be interested, this is how I voted (online) in the three most important elections (I’m assuming you’re not so interested in the elections for the Conference Arrangements Committee and Regional Representatives on the National Policy Forum):
Leader of the Labour Party
- Andy Burnham
- Yvette Cooper
- Liz Kendall
- Jeremy Corbyn
Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
- Stella Creasy
- Tom Watson
- Caroline Flint
- Ben Bradshaw
- Angela Eagle
Labour candidate for London Mayor
- Tessa Jowell
- Sadiq Khan
- David Lammy
- Gareth Thomas
- Christian Wolmar
- Diane Abbott
Obviously policy matters, but all the candidates have a lot more work to do to flesh out a comprehensive range of policies that will be relevant at the time of the General Election and anyway I believe that policy should emanate from the National Policy Forum and not simply from an individual.
For me, at least as important as policy is experience of running a government department, demonstration of political leadership, and credibility with the wider electorate. You see, to reshape our society into one that is fairer and more prosperous, Labour has to win power first and I am backing those who I think are most likely to do that.
As it happens, I think that Andy Burnham and Stella Creasy would make a great team with complementary skills and appeal: man and woman, middle-aged and younger, Northern MP and London MP, experienced Minister and new campaigner. Both are exceptionally bright and thoughtful, both are open to new ideas, both speak ‘normal’ and connect with voters.
I’m not at all sure that Andy Burnham and Stella Creasy will actually win the internal elections (I think Tessa Jowell will), but they have my votes.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (1)
Word of the day: littoral
August 17th, 2015 by Roger Darlington
Littoral can be a noun or an adjective and refers to the shore of a lake, sea or ocean.
It’s a new word for me and I came across it in a chapter title of the book I’m reading at the moment: “The Storm Of War”, an account of the Second World War by Andrew Roberts. The relevant chapter is about the efforts by the British, Italians and Germans in 1939-1942 to occupy the North African coastline in Libya and Egypt.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)