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An estimated 400–800 million tons of prey are annually killed by the global spider community
Spiders have been suspected to be one of the most important groups of natural enemies of insects worldwide. To document the impact of the global spider community as insect predators, we present estimates of the biomass of annually killed insect prey. Our estimates assessed with two different methods suggest that the annual prey kill of the global spider community is in the range of 400–800 million metric tons (fresh weight), with insects and collembolans composing >90% of the captured prey. This equals approximately 1‰ of the global terrestrial net primary production. Spiders associated with forests and grasslands account for >95% of the annual prey kill of the global spider community, whereas spiders in other habitats are rather insignificant contributors over a full year. The spider communities associated with annual crops contribute less than 2% to the global annual prey kill. This, however, can be partly explained by the fact that annual crop fields are "disturbed habitats" with a low buildup of spider biomass and that agrobiont spiders often only kill prey over short time periods in a year. Our estimates are supported by the published results of exclusion experiments, showing that the number of herbivorous/detritivorous insects and collembolans increased significantly after spider removal from experimental plots. The presented estimates of the global annual prey kill and the relative contribution of spider predation in different biomes improve the general understanding of spider ecology and provide a first assessment of the global impact of this very important predator group.
KeywordsAraneae Collembola Insects Global impact Predation
Spiders, which evolved from an arachnid ancestor during the Devonian period around 400 million years ago, are among the most common and abundant predators in terrestrial ecosystems (Turnbull 1973; Coddington and Levi 1991; Selden et al. 1991). For instance, Turnbull (1973) calculated an overall mean density of 131 spiders m−2 based on assessments from many different areas of the globe, and Nyffeler (2000) found an overall mean density of 152 spiders m−2 for a large variety of grassland habitats. Under favorable conditions, spiders can reach peak densities of up to 1000 individuals m−2 (Ellenberg et al. 1986). At the present time, >45,000 species of spiders are described and those exhibit a very diverse range of lifestyles and foraging behaviors (Wise 1993; Platnick 2014). Barth (1997) partially attributes the evolutionary success of spiders to the fact that they are equipped with highly developed sensory systems providing individuals with detailed information about potential predators and prey in their surroundings. All spiders are carnivores, feeding predominantly on insects/collembolans and to a lesser extent on other spiders (Nyffeler 1999; Birkhofer and Wolters 2012; Pekár and Toft 2015). Very rarely nonarthropod prey and sometimes even plant materials are consumed as a supplement to the arthropod diet (Symondson et al. 2002; Foelix 2011; Nyffeler et al. 2016). Spiders have efficient survival mechanisms given that they are so numerous and widespread. Their capability to survive under extreme conditions and to disperse by ballooning through the atmosphere from place to place on silken threads allowed spiders to colonize a wide variety of different terrestrial habitats. Some spiders can travel distances of up to 30 km in a single day (Thomas et al. 2003). There is hardly any terrestrial area on this globe where spiders would be missing. "….Spiders exist in the most northern islands of the Arctic, the hottest and most arid of deserts, at the highest altitudes of any living organisms, in the depths of caves, in the intertidal zone of ocean shores, in bogs and ponds, on high, arid moorlands, sand dunes, and flood plains" (Turnbull 1973). Because of their high abundance and predominantly insectivorous feeding habits, spiders are suspected to be the main predators of insects (Selden 2016).
Due to their secretive lifestyle—some species are for example nocturnal or hunt in litter and soil habitats—the predatory activities of the spiders remain largely unnoticed and it is therefore difficult to estimate their impact on prey. To illustrate the impact of spiders as insect predators, two arachnologists—W. S. Bristowe from England and A. L. Turnbull from Canada—previously tried to quantify the food consumption of spiders by means of extrapolations. In his work "A Book of Spiders," Bristowe (1947) estimated that England and Wales are populated by roughly 2.2 × 1012 spiders and that these spiders may kill ≈2.2 × 1014 insects annually. Bristowe (1958) went one step further claiming that the weight of insects consumed by the entire British spider fauna would exceed the combined weight of all the humans in Great Britain. Nyffeler (2000) conducted a recalculation of Bristowe's estimate and came to the conclusion that Bristowe probably overestimated the overall prey kill of the spiders since Great Britain consists predominantly of agricultural land characterized by reduced annual prey consumption. Turnbull (1973), on the other hand, estimated that the average total weight of food annually consumed by spiders would amount to 4.25 × 103 metric tons km−2 land area. This latter value is of the same magnitude as the net primary production in terrestrial ecosystems, which is irreconcilable with ecological theory (Nyffeler 2000).
Here, we provide estimates for the standing biomass of the global spider community and the annual biomass of prey that is killed by the global spider community in individual biome types and worldwide based on literature data.
Estimate of the standing biomass of the global spider community
Estimated standing biomass of the global spider community based on grams per square meter values (\( \overline{\mathrm{x}} \) ± SE, all values expressed as fresh weight)
Biome type
Number of assessments
\( \overline{\mathrm{x}} \) Biomass (g m-2)
Area in m2
Biomass subtotal (g)
Tropical forestsa
0.38 ± 0.147
17.5 × 1012
6.65 × 1012
Temperate and boreal forestsb
0.40 ± 0.054
24.1 × 1012
9.64 × 1012
Tropical grasslands and savannasc
0.18 ± 0.046
27.6 × 1012
4.97 × 1012
Temperate grasslands and Mediterranean shrublandsd
0.16 ± 0.013
17.8 × 1012
2.85 × 1012
Annual croplande
0.017 ± 0.004
13.5 × 1012
0.23 × 1012
0.020 ± 0.006
27.7 × 1012
0.55 × 1012
Arctic tundrag
0.035 ± 0.009
5.6 × 1012
0.20 × 1012
Global total (without ice-covered area)
133.8 × 1012
25.09 × 1012
Estimate of the annual prey kill by the global spider community
We used simple models involving few assumptions as is advised in cases where a field of study is still largely undeveloped (Weathers and Weathers 1983). Two different approaches were taken to estimate the annual prey kill of the global spider community. In the case of method I, the estimate is based on the spiders' food requirements per unit body weight known from the literature in combination with spider biomass m−2 values (data for various biome types being taken from the literature), whereas method II is based on complete assessments of the spiders' annual prey kill (e.g., prey censuses in the field combined with web density estimates) in selected biome types published in the literature. The two estimation methods are based on different sets of studies (with zero overlap of data between the two methods).
Prey items that are killed in webs but remain uneaten are considered prey as well (Nentwig 1987). This issue is playing a role when dealing with spider communities dominated by large-sized orb-weaving spiders known to often kill prey in excess ("wasteful killing"). Accordingly, authors who conducted prey censuses of large-sized orb weavers usually have taken into account the "prey killed in webs but uneaten" in their assessments (see Robinson and Robinson 1974; Kajak et al. 1971; Nyffeler 1976, 1982; Nyffeler and Benz 1978, 1979, 1989; Malt 1996). In other studies dealing predominantly with cursorial hunters and/or small-sized web-building spiders which rarely catch prey in excess under natural conditions (Nyffeler, pers. obs.), this issue was disregarded.
Estimated annual prey kill (fresh weight) of the global spider community assessed with method I
Biome type
Number of assessments
Prey kill (g m−2 year−1)
Area in m2
Prey kill of entire area (g year−1)
Tropical forests
17.5 × 1012
303 × 1012
Temperate and boreal forests
24.1 × 1012
217 × 1012
Tropical grasslands and savannas
27.6 × 1012
113 × 1012
Temperate grasslands and Mediterranean shrublands
17.8 × 1012
64 × 1012
Annual cropland
13.5 × 1012
3.4 × 1012
27.7 × 1012
16.6 × 1012
Arctic tundra
5.6 × 1012
3.9 × 1012
Global total (without ice-covered area)
133.8 × 1012
721 × 1012
- Assumption 1: Spiders have pulsed feeding patterns, with periods of excessive feeding (when food is very abundant) alternating with episodes of starvation (when prey gets scarce or spiders are inactive) (Turnbull 1973; Anderson 1974). During periods of high feeding activity, the spiders store surplus energy in their body's interstitial tissue as lipid or glycogen (Foelix 2011). The spiders depend on these stored energy reserves during periods of starvation (e.g., on rainy days). To estimate the annual prey kill of the global spider community, we proceed from an overall mean food intake which is intermediate between pronounced high or low daily food consumption. After an extensive literature survey on spider feeding, we propose an average daily food ingestion rate of ≈0.1 mg per milligram spider body mass which is the equivalent to ≈10% of a spider's body weight (all values expressed as fresh weight). A daily food intake in this order of magnitude appears to be typical of most species of free-living araneomorph spiders in forests, grasslands, and agroecosystems (see Edgar 1970; Robinson and Robinson 1970; Van Hook 1971; Foelix 2011; Nyffeler, pers. obs.) except a few rare cases of extraordinarily low food intake (e.g., Santana et al. 1990; Henschel 1997). In the case of desert spiders, a daily food ingestion rate of 0.01–0.04 mg per milligram spider body mass was used (see Lubin and Henschel 1996; Henschel 1997). Incidents of wasteful killing (and coupled with it "partial consumption") in cursorial spiders apparently occur very rarely under natural conditions (Nyffeler, pers. obs.), and this issue has therefore not been taken into account in this study.
- Assumption 2: Spiders ingest, on average, ≈80% of the biomass of a killed prey (Edgar 1971; Moulder and Reichle 1972). Hence, we proceed with the assumption that the daily prey kill equals the daily amount of food ingested multiplied by the factor 1.25.
- Assumption 3: We assume that spiders forage on 365 days year−1 in tropical forests, on 240 days year−1 in deserts, on 180 days year−1 in temperate forests as well as tropical and temperate grasslands, on 120 days year−1 in the arctic tundra, and on 60–130 days year−1 in annual cropland (Kajak et al. 1971; Robinson and Robinson 1970, 1973, 1974; Breymeyer 1978; Shook 1978; Nyffeler 1982; Byzova et al. 1995). The contribution of winter-active spiders in terms of prey kill in temperate and cold climates (see Aitchison 1984) is considered to be very low and has therefore been neglected.
- Assumption 4: Spider biomass in forests has in most cases been assessed with the Berlese-Tullgren funnel method. This technique is limited to the investigation of spiders on the forest floor, and the calculated biomass values underestimate true biomasses. In temperate forests, at least 20% of the spider biomass are found in the canopy and understory (see Turnbull 1960; Reichle and Crossley 1967; Moulder and Reichle 1972; Zitnanska 1981). This pattern seems to hold for tropical forests (see Basset et al. 1992; Silva 1996; Yanoviak et al. 2003; Ellwood and Foster 2004; Dial et al. 2006). By multiplying the litter spider biomass values with a correction factor of 1.25, estimates for the total spider biomass in temperate, boreal, and tropical forests were obtained (Table 1).
- Assumption 5: For biomass m−2 of spiders associated with Mediterranean shrublands, no data are available. We arbitrarily placed this biome type in the category "Temperate grasslands (old fields, permanent pastures, mown meadows)". The area size of Mediterranean shrublands is small (2.8 × 1012 m2) relative to the global terrestrial area, and a possible error resulting from insufficient data can be considered to be negligible.
Method II: The second approach is based on published studies of the annual prey kill of spider communities in various biome types (see Kirchner 1964; Reichle and Crossley 1967; Kajak et al. 1971; Van Hook 1971; Moulder and Reichle 1972; Robinson and Robinson 1974; Luczak 1975; Nyffeler 1976, 1982; Nyffeler and Benz 1978, 1979, 1988a,b, 1989; Schaefer 1990; Ysnel 1993; Jmhasly and Nentwig 1995; Malt 1996). For purposes of comparison, all prey kill values (including those expressed in terms of energy flow) were converted to grams of fresh weight m−2 year−1. Values were converted taking into account a prey water content of ≈75% (see Hagstrum 1970; Edgar 1971) and a caloric equivalent of prey of ≈23.5 kJ g−1 dry weight (mean value from literature data, see Hagstrum 1970; Moulder and Reichle 1972). Thus, 1 g fresh weight prey biomass equals ≈5.875 kJ. By means of extrapolation, the annual prey kill of the global spider community was computed, taking into account the global coverage of the different biome types. The global annual prey kill assessment with method II was based on the following assumptions:
- Assumption 1: Assessments of the annual prey kill of spider communities in tropical forests are currently unavailable. In lieu thereof, a study by Robinson and Robinson (1974) on the prey kill by the web-building spider community of an insecticide-free coffee plantation in New Guinea was used as a surrogate. We were operating on the assumption that the spider communities of tropical insecticide-free coffee plantations are to some degree comparable to those of tropical forests, given that coffee plantations are inhabited to a large extent by tropical woodland spiders (e.g., Nephila maculata) (Robinson and Robinson 1973, 1974; Robinson et al. 1974; Lubin 1978). Robinson and Robinson (1974) came to the conclusion that the web-building spider community in their study killed 16 g insect prey m−2 year−1. These authors suggested that the annual prey kill may even have been twice as high (≈32 g insect prey m−2 year−1) if hunting spiders would have been considered. The spider density in this coffee plantation (5.8 individuals m−2) was higher than the reported densities in the understory of tropical rain forests (3.3–3.6 individuals m−2; Rypstra 1986; Reagan and Waide 1996). However, we have to take into account that coffee plants reach a height of only 3–3.5 m, whereas tropical forest trees grow to a height of up to 55 m (Silva 1996). The canopy of tropical forests is inhabited by an abundant spider fauna (Basset et al. 1992; Russell-Smith and Stork 1994; Silva 1996; Ellwood and Foster 2004), and it is to be expected that those spiders kill considerable numbers of insects in addition to the insects killed by the spiders of the understory. Thus, it is well possible that the annual prey kill by spiders in tropical forests does exceed the conservative estimate of 16 g insect prey m−2 year−1.
- Assumption 2: Annual prey kill values for temperate forests appear to vary widely. Kirchner (1964) estimated an annual prey kill of ≈10 g m−2 year−1 for a semi-natural temperate forest in Central Europe, whereas lower values were reported for managed temperate forests. The annual prey kill in managed temperate deciduous forests in North America and Central Europe was estimated at ≈2 g m−2 year−1 (calculated by combining data for the spiders of the forest floor, understory, and canopy [Reichle and Crossley 1967; Moulder and Reichle 1972; Schaefer 1990]).
Estimated annual prey kill by the global spider community (expressed as fresh weight g year−1) assessed with method II
Biome type
Number of assessments
Prey kill (g m−2 year−1)
Area in m2
Prey kill of entire area (g year−1)
Tropical forestsa
17.5 × 1012
280 × 1012
Temperate and boreal forestsb
24.1 × 1012
48–240 × 1012
Unmanaged grasslands and savannasc
13.7 × 1012
27–137 × 1012
Permanent pastures and mown meadows/Mediterranean shrublandsd
31.7 × 1012
32–127 × 1012
Annual croplande
13.5 × 1012
1–14 × 1012
Others (urban areas, deserts, arctic tundra, etc.)f
33.3 × 1012
7 × 1012
Global total (without ice-covered area)
133.8 × 1012
395–805 × 1012
- Assumption 4: Published prey kill records for desert spider or arctic tundra communities are not available. Nevertheless, based on published natural history data (Polis 1991; Henschel 1997), we conclude that the annual prey kill in deserts is most likely very low. One might compare deserts to some degree to urban environments where the annual prey kill by spiders is also very low (0.2 g m−2 year−1; Nyffeler 1976). Supposing that the annual prey kill in deserts might be equally low as in urban areas, we arbitrarily assigned an assumptive value of ≈0.2 g m−2 year−1 to the spider communities in desert areas in order to be able to compute the global annual prey kill with method II. Due to many similarities between tundra and agricultural habitats (regarding population densities, body size composition and faunistic composition), we assume that the annual prey kill in arctic tundra sites might be comparable in magnitude to field crops in Europe (≈0.1–1 g m−2 year−1; Table 3).
Summing up the estimated prey kill subtotals for the seven biome types produced a second estimate of the annual prey kill of the global spider community.
Based on estimates of the average spider biomass m−2 in various terrestrial biomes, extrapolation suggests that the total standing biomass of the global spider community equals 25.09 × 1012 g (= 25 million metric tons fresh weight; Table 1). Biomass estimates m−2 follow the order forests > grasslands/shrublands > croplands, deserts, and tundra, which also reflects the order of total spider biomass per biome type worldwide.
The calculation of the annual prey kill by the global spider community with method I resulted in an estimate of 721 × 1012 g year−1 (= roughly 700 million tons year−1; Table 2). To derive an estimate to which degree reduced feeding activity during rainy days would affect the global annual prey kill, we recalculated this estimate assuming that it rained during one third of the feeding season with no prey being captured on rainy days. This simple scenario still leads to a global annual prey kill of 460 million tons year−1. Estimates derived from method I therefore suggest that the annual prey kill of the global spider community may be in the range of 460–700 million tons year−1. Our assessment with method II produced an estimate of the global annual prey kill of 395–805 × 1012 g year−1 (= roughly 400–800 million tons year−1; Table 3). The estimates computed with the two methods are highly comparable in magnitude (Tables 2 and 3). Together, the two different methods suggest that the global annual prey kill is presumably in the range of 400–800 million tons year−1.
Our extrapolations resulted in an estimated annual prey kill by the global spider community in the range of 400–800 million tons year−1 (Tables 2 and 3), which equals ≈1‰ of the global terrestrial net primary production (see Vitousek et al. 1986). For comparison, the human world population does consume an estimated 400 million tons of meat and fish annually (Bruinsma 2003; Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2014). Furthermore, our estimates for spiders appear to be of the same order of magnitude as the prey kill by whales (Cetacea) in the world's oceans which has been estimated to be in the range of 280–500 million tons annually (Yodzis 2001). By contrast, the annual food consumption of all the world's seabirds is estimated at 70 million tons (Brooke 2004).
Which prey groups are killed by the spider global community?
Overall, fewer than 10 arthropod orders (Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Collembola, Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Orthoptera, and Araneae) make up the majority of the prey of spiders (e.g., Turnbull 1960; Kajak et al. 1968, 1971; Robinson and Robinson 1970, 1973, 1974; Nyffeler 1982, 1999). Apart from insects and collembolans, spiders are another important component in spider diets ("intraguild predation" sensu Polis et al. 1989). Spider communities in the warmer areas (often dominated by cursorial hunters) have a higher percentage of spiders in their diets than spider communities in the colder climates (see Nyffeler 1999; Nyffeler and Sunderland 2003) and cursorial spiders feed more frequently on other spiders than web-builders (Birkhofer and Wolters 2012). Spiders feed on all stages (eggs, immatures, and adults) of their arthropod prey (Nyffeler et al. 1990). In addition to this, some larger spiders occasionally prey on earthworms, slugs, snails, and small vertebrates (Foelix 2011). Also, spiders have been reported supplementing their animal diet by feeding on plant materials (Nyffeler et al. 2016).
Relative contribution of different biome categories to the global annual prey kill
Spiders in forests and grasslands accounted for more than 95% of the annual prey kill of the global spider community (i.e., 697 million tons year−1 estimated with method I and 387–784 million tons year−1 with method II), whereas spiders in other biomes (i.e., annual crop fields, urban areas, deserts, arctic tundra) were less significant contributors to the global prey kill (24 million tons year−1 estimated with method I and 8–21 million tons year−1 with method II, Tables 2 and 3). Forests, grasslands, and savannas cover an area of 87 million km2, which is about two thirds of the global terrestrial surface area (Saugier et al. 2001). Forests, grasslands, and savannas are less frequently disturbed than, e.g., agricultural or urban areas and allow spider populations to build up a higher biomass (Table 1). Both these differences explain the high prey kill in these biomes (Tables 2 and 3). These spiders further feed on many forest and grassland pest species underlining the important role of spiders as providers of biological control services (e.g., Juillet 1961; Kirchner 1964, 1967; Pointing 1966; Kajak et al. 1968, 1971; Van Hook 1971; Jennings and Pase 1975; Furuta 1977; Schmitz 1993; Oedekoven and Joern 1998). However, spiders do not only kill pest prey but also consume other beneficial arthropods (including large numbers of honey bees) in forest and grassland habitats (Nyffeler and Benz 1978; Malt 1996).
In relation to pest control, it is noteworthy that the spiders associated with annual crops only contribute less than 2% to the global annual prey kill. This can be explained by the fact that annual crop fields are "disturbed habitats" characterized by low spider biomass and a relatively short feeding season (Luczak 1979; Nyffeler and Benz 1979; Nyffeler et al. 1994a). Nevertheless, in wheat-, rice-, and cotton-growing areas with no or very low pesticide usage, the presence of spiders (in combination with other predators) may at times have a beneficial effect in slowing down the population growth of hemipteran pests (Kiritani et al. 1972; Sunderland et al. 1986; Nyffeler and Benz 1987, 1988a,b; Nyffeler et al. 1992, 1994a,b; Jmhasly and Nentwig 1995; Birkhofer et al. 2008, 2016).
Desert spiders only account for a small percentage (≤2%) of the global annual prey kill, but deserts cover a vast area (27.7 million km2) of the globe (Saugier et al. 2001). Due to adverse environmental conditions, prey availability in deserts is very low and these biomes are often populated by spiders in very low densities (Shook 1978; Polis 1991; Lubin and Henschel 1996; Henschel 1997). There are exceptions to this trend. Polis and Hurd (1995) described small desert islands in the Gulf of California, Mexico, where spiders occur in extraordinarily high numbers as a consequence of allochthonous energy input from the ocean. But the area of such island deserts is so small compared to the globe's total desert area that its contribution to the global spider prey kill must be considered as negligible. Despite the fact that prey biomass killed m−2 by desert spiders appears to be relatively low compared to spider communities in other biomes, these arachnids are noticeable top predators in desert food webs (Polis and McCormick 1986; Polis 1991; Polis and Yamashita 1991). The relative contribution of spiders of the Arctic tundra to the global annual prey kill is equally low as for desert-living spider communities (<1%). The climatic seasonality and short foraging periods in this biome certainly contribute to those low estimates. However, spiders in the Arctic tundra (dominated by individuals from the family Linyphiidae) play an important ecological role by entrapping in their webs nutrients that originated from wind-blown allochthonous inputs (mostly chironomid midges). These nutrients are thereafter retained within the system and contribute to early stages of ecosystem development (Hodkinson et al. 2001).
Experimental evidence supporting our estimates of the global annual prey kill
Our estimates of the global annual prey kill (Tables 2 and 3) imply that spiders exert considerable predation pressure on insect populations, especially in forests and grasslands. These estimates are supported by exclusion studies in forest and grassland habitats in different parts of the world (Clarke and Grant 1968; Kajak et al. 1968; Schmitz 1993; Oedekoven and Joern 1998; Lawrence and Wise 2000; Tanhuanpää et al. 2001). After spiders had been manually removed from experimental exclosure plots, a significant increase of the number of insects and collembolans was noticed compared to control plots with spiders. Greenstone (1978), however, stated that even though spiders can achieve very high densities and consume large quantities of insect prey, they may not necessarily have a significant role in the regulation of insect populations. Spiders depress herbivorous insect populations by 1–20% (Juillet 1961; Pointing 1966; Kirchner 1967; Furuta 1977; Nakamura and Nakamura 1977; Oedekoven and Joern 1998; Tanhuanpää et al. 2001). Acting in concert with other natural enemies (ants, ground beetles, predaceous bugs, birds, etc.), spider communities certainly exert significant predation pressure on herbivorous insect populations (e.g., Kajak et al. 1971).
Further evidence in support of our theory of high global prey kill by spiders
There is also indirect support for the significance of spider predation in terrestrial biomes: a large number of insect species have evolved morphological and/or behavioral adaptations to reduce the risk of predation by spiders (see Eisner et al. 1964; Wise 1993). This concerns in particular the adults of ten thousands of species of moths, butterflies, and skippers (Lepidoptera) which evolved an escape mechanism allowing them to disentangle themselves from the webs of ecribellate spiders (see Eisner et al. 1964). Eisner et al. (1964) stated "….Moths, by virtue of the loose scales that cover their wings and bodies, are admirably adapted to elude capture by orb-weaving spiders. Rather than sticking to the web, these may simply lose some of their scales to the viscid threads, and then fly on."
Estimated global number of species of highly specialized predators, parasitoids, and parasites of spiders/spider eggs
Estimated number of species
Hunting strategy
≈5000 described; possibly ≥500 undescribed
Predator of spiders
Pitts et al. 2006; James Pitts, pers. comm.
Crabronidae (Miscophus, Pison, Pisonopsis, Trypoxylon)
Predator of spiders
Pulawski 2016
Sphecidae (Chalybion, Sceliphron)
Predator of spiders
Pulawski 2016
Ichneumonidae (Polysphincta)
Spider ectoparasitoid
Gauld and Dubois 2006
Ichneumonidae (excluding Polysphincta)
Egg sac parasitoid
Scelionidae (Baeines)
≈440 described; possibly ≈2500 undescribed
Egg parasitoid
Iqbal and Austin 2000; Johnson 2016; Lubomir Masner, pers. comm.
Encyrtidae (Amira)
Egg parasite
Noyes 1977
Eulophidae (Aranobroter, Aprostocetus, Baryscapus, Pediobius, and others)
≈20 described; possibly ≈80 undescribed
Egg predator
LaSalle 1990; John LaSalle, pers. comm.
Eupelmidae (Arachnophaga)
Egg predator
Muma and Stone 1971
Formicidae (Proceratium, Discothyrea)
Egg predator
Pteromalidae (Arachnopteromalus)
Egg predator
Acroceridae (Acrocera, Ogcodes, and others)
Spider endoparasitoid
Borkent and Schlinger 2008
Spider endoparasitoid
Vincent 1985
External parasite
Ramírez 1995
Chloropidae (Pseudogaurax)
Egg predator
Wheeler 2003
Drosophilidae (Titanochaeta)
Egg predator
O'Grady et al. 2003
Ephydridae (Trimerina)
Egg predator
Foote 1984
Phoridae (Megaselia)
Egg predator/spider endoparasitoid
Sarcophagidae (Baranovisca, Mehria)
Egg predator/parasitoid
Pape 1996; Thomas Pape, pers. comm.
Cosmopterigidae (Anatrachyntis)
Egg predator
Austin 1985
Stathmopodidae (Stathmopoda)
Egg predator
Austin 1985
Egg predator
Ohl 2004
Predator of spiders
Ingley et al. 2012
Reduviidae (Stenolemus)
Predator of spiders
Soley et al. 2011
Erythraeidae / Laelapidae
Parasite of spiders
Welbourn and Young 1988
Buthidae (Isometroides)
Predator of spiders
Main 1956
Possibly hundreds
Parasite of spiders
Poinar 1987; George Poinar, pers. comm.
Cordycipitaceae (Akanthomyces, Cordyceps, Gibellula, Torrubiella) and others
Parasite of spiders
Nonlethal effects of spiders on prey additionally increase their global impact
In recent years, researchers have shown experimentally that spiders not only affect insects by inflicting mortality on them, they additionally have indirect (nonlethal) effects by intimidating them to the point where insects reduce their feeding activity in the presence of spiders in order to decrease predation risk (Schmitz et al. 1997; Schmitz 1998; Snyder and Wise 2000; Hlivko and Rypstra 2003). Such nonlethal effects of spiders can result in reduced herbivore damage. Hlivko and Rypstra (2003) noted "….the potential impact of spiders may be underestimated in food web studies that only consider predation rates…." Thus, the spiders' huge predation impact documented in our study (Tables 2 and 3) is even further enhanced due to additional nonlethal effects.
Concluding remarks
The estimated standing biomass of the global spider community is impressive (≈25 million tons, Table 1). There are few groups of terrestrial predaceous arthropods that can compare with spiders in terms of abundance and biomass. An exception are ants (Formicidae estimated at approx. 280 million tons, Hölldobler and Wilson 1994), but most species of ants are omnivorous and utilize a much broader range of food resources including considerable amounts of plant materials (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990). Here, we suggest that the predation impact of spider communities is particularly high in forest and grassland biomes, with considerably lower impact in desert, urban, and tundra biomes. These estimates emphasize the important role that spider predation plays in semi-natural and natural habitats, as many economically important pests and disease vectors breed in those forest and grassland biomes. We hope that these estimates and their significant magnitude raise public awareness and increase the level of appreciation for the important global role of spiders in terrestrial food webs.
The following scientists provided us with information on current total numbers of species of particular taxonomic groups of predators, parasitoids, and parasites of spiders/spider eggs: Andrew Austin (University of Adelaide), Henry Disney (Museum of Zoology, Cambridge University), Ian David Gauld (formerly Natural History Museum London), Norman Johnson (Ohio State University), John LaSalle (Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO, Canberra), Lubomir Masner (Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids and Nematodes, Ottawa), Michael Ohl (Natural History Museum, Humboldt University of Berlin), Thomas Pape (Natural History Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen), James Pitts (Utah State University), George Poinar (Oregon State University), and Wojciech Pulawski (California Academy of Sciences). All these people are greatly acknowledged. Furthermore, we wish to thank Bill Symondson (Cardiff University) and two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments on an earlier draft.
Copyright information
Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
The former boss of Asda has urged retailers to rely on themselves to prosper, rather than on initiatives from High Street experts Mary Portas and Bill Grimsey.
Allan Leighton, now chief executive of jewellery retailer Pandora, made his comments ahead of the official opening of the chain's London flagship store in Oxford Street today.
Leighton said: "There are always many reviews and many initiatives. The problem is what happens to them. If I had been hanging on for a review that was the silver bullet, I would have been long dead."
Pandora, which now has 106 British shops, posted an 11.6% spike in underlying UK sales in its second quarter.
- More about:
- Jewellery
- London
- Oxford Street (London)
- Retail


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Yoko Ono in legal feud over rare Lennon footage
By Jason Szep
BOSTON (Reuters) - Footage of John Lennon smoking pot, writing songs and discussing putting the hallucinogenic drug LSD in President Richard Nixon's tea is the focus of a court case starting in Boston next week over whether the video should be made public.
The case pits Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, against Lawrence, Massachusetts-based World Wide Video, which claims ownership of nine hours of raw footage of the former Beatle and Ono that was filmed just weeks before the "Fab Four" broke up in 1970.
World Wide, a New England consortium of Beatles collectors, wants to release the black-and-white footage as a two-hour film titled "3 days in the life" about Lennon during a pivotal and turbulent time for the most celebrated band of the 1960s.
Rolling Stone magazine dubs it "awesome John Lennon footage you might never see."
The company, which paid more than $1 million for the footage after legal costs and other expenses, nearly premiered it last year at the private Berwick Academy in Maine but abruptly scrapped the screening after the school received a stop order from Ono's lawyers, who assert copyright ownership of the videotapes.
World Wide has filed a suit in U.S. District Court in Boston against Ono for copyright infringement. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 30.
According to court documents, World Wide said it bought 24 original videotapes and their copyrights in 2000 from Anthony Cox, Ono's husband before her marriage to Lennon in 1969.
Cox shot the footage at Lennon's estate in England for a documentary he planned titled "Portrait." Continued...


text:
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text:
Ah, don't forget that they make you look like a tacticool operator. Even if you are 60 with a beer gut everyone will mistake you for a DEVGRU guy
This is a discussion on Why is everyone wanting suppressors these days? within the General Firearm Discussion forums, part of the Related Topics category; Less noise for the neighbor and finally legal in my state. I might own a SBR or similar item if legal in my state as ...
Less noise for the neighbor and finally legal in my state. I might own a SBR or similar item if legal in my state as well.
"In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." Thomas Jefferson
Nemo Me Impune Lacesset
Ah, don't forget that they make you look like a tacticool operator. Even if you are 60 with a beer gut everyone will mistake you for a DEVGRU guy
I'd love one but have no use for one. if I could afford cool factor alone, I'd have a drawer full of them.
Living in this state, I would assume that eventually they will try to make them illegal and get em while you can
"Better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt" ~ Mark Twain
My hearing is shot from military service but then again I was artillery.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
"I've noticed that everyone that is pro-abortion has already been born." - Ronald Reagan
"When governments fear the people there is liberty. When the people fear the government there is tyranny." Thomas Jefferson
You are only paranoid until you are right - then you are a visionary.
First it was red plastic front sight inserts, then 3 dots, then night sights, then WML, the lasers, , then red dot sights,then combo light/ laser, and now you can even make the quiet while you blaze away with the illumination, disregarding your night sights glowing and finding the red dot in the center of 20,000 Lumens.
Now we are looking for holsters to put all that crap into. When we are finally finished, a pistol holster will look like a cross between a suit case, and a rifle scabbard.
" Blessed is that man, who when facing death, thinks only of his front sight"
-Jeff Cooper
I know folks here don't want to let the cat out of the bag, but the reason for a suppressor (can) is to give you time to bury the bodies before the police come. If you make a lot of loud bang noises, some liberal will call the cops right away and you will get in trouble. There are some additional secrets. Never bury them under the slab, it's the first place they look. Never use a rented wood shredder as they can get DNA from it no matter how you steam clean it. You need to know these things, but folks just won't tell them to you. Oh! Also, the can makes you look cool, cause you have the latest new thingy.
Hearing loss is cumulative, just b/c you didn't notice the loss from one day of shooting or one shot doesn't mean it's not there. Then you get used to it. Then you lose some more. Rinse, repeat. I know a long time shooter (48 yrs old) who, as a curiosity, stopped at the hearing aid display at Cabela's. They fitted him with a temp aid and as he walked around the store he couldn't believe how much he wasn't hearing - was actually startled a couple of times. How's that for situational awareness? We were fixing a flat tire on a mower and he couldn't hear the loud hissing coming from the tire and asked me "can you really hear that?"
Recoil is reduced as much as a muzzle brake, other animals in a hunting area aren't alarmed as the shooting starts, multiple home invaders may not figure out exactly where you are as fast, predators won't associate gunshots with dinner bells, one suppressor can be used on multiple guns of multiple calibers so your .30 caliber can can be used on your 30-06, 308, 6.5, 243, 270, 223. It's a much more efficient accessory than putting a scope on every rifle you own.
I'm more with the group that education about stuff is just much faster these days and benefits are shared faster, more so than a phase. I'm thinking they're here to stay. Also, since the "tax" isn't indexed for inflation, that $200 is less and less valuable/expensive as time goes on. In the past there were a lot of assumptions made about them and those assumptions are now being quashed. Now, if we can get people like the presidential candidates to understand that full auto weapons are not illegal everywhere - wait, scratch that, sometimes information in the wrong hands is a bad thing.
In short? If you are involved in a home invasion, and you have to shoot someone in your home, if you can do it with a suppressor, your ears won't be ringing from the blast, which means if there are a few more guys in your house behind him and not visible, you have a much better chance of hearing them approach.
Additionally, the weight of the suppressor will help to counter recoil, which means faster, more accurate shots when you need to fire multiple rounds, with the added weight being at the end of the barrel. The suppressor also hides all muzzle flash, which keeps from blinding you in low light.
These are a few of the advantages of having a suppressor and also some of the reasons Police entry teams use them as well.
Heck, I've got permanent hearing loss in my right ear from spending my teenage weekends plinking in the woods with a .45 and a .223. They did a test where they smack a piece of metal together and hold it by your ears to see if you can hear it. Left side is good, right side can only hear it when it's pressed against my skull behind my ear. I can see the advantages of a suppressor if you shoot regularly.
I've been looking into one for my AR lately. Might make those prairie dog trips more productive if they don't all hear a shot and run for their holes. I don't think I'd go as far as putting one on my home defense gun, but to each his own.
GlassWolf, what you said is the exact situation I am trying to address. I don't know if you've ever been in a situation where you had to shoot while in a building, but I have done it a handful of times. This ringing in the ears is something I only experienced after a flashbang, not after shooting or having others shoot. I am trying to track down where this line of thinking is coming from, because I am clearly missing something. As far as recoil is concerned, that's a matter or learning to shoot. By that logic I should put a 10 pound weight on the end of my pistol because that too would reduce felt recoil.
I am not discounting that there could be a cumulative loss of hearing due to shooting indoors. When I left the Marine Corps my hearing was slightly worse than when I entered but was only noticeable in a hearing test. But that was after going through several situations where hearing suffers. Maybe I was just lucky, but I can't believe I was so lucky that I managed to avoid a major problem that the vast majority of people would have after shooting indoors in the unlikely home invasion scenario.
I am not at all discounting the cool factor. Heck, I'm not saying they aren't great safety devices. In my mind they should be considered something that makes guns safer, not more dangerous. If everyone had suppressors and used them at the range we'd all be safer since hearing protection isn't perfect. But that doesn't address my specific question right now, and that's where the fascination with a can for the home invasion scenario started and why.
"The only people I like besides my wife and children are Marines."
- Lt. Col. Oliver North


text: Social 100 Must Follow Twitter Accounts To Improve Your Social Media Knowledge Written by Simply Zesty on 19 June 2011 Your Twitter timeline is the main source of information that many of us rely on. There are some great listing tools out there like Wefollow and even Twitter itself is getting better at listing people but to be honest the real gems are the people you know and follow yourself. Our own main way of discovering people has always been by following conversations but we always have that nagging feeling that you are missing lots of great information by simply not having enough time to filter through all the best people to follow. We thought with the new follow button that Twitter introduced a couple of weeks ago that it would be great to make a quality list of 100 people that you can easily add to your Twitter timeline and give it a real injection of social media. These are all the people we follow and are a huge source of the information we get so hopefully you'll find the list useful...Thought LeadersRobert ScobleWell known for being at the very cutting edge of tech and breaking news on start ups before anybody else has ever heard of them. You might not be able to keep up with all his tweets but a quick scan over them and you'll end up finding lots of cool new stuff. Scoble's tweets focus on latest tech news, new services and are (sometimes) disruptive but always forward-thinking.Follow @ScobleizerLatest Blog postGary VaynerchukGary Vaynerchuck is a great person to follow if you want to find out how someone is effectively using their personal social media following to build a personal brand that can launch products. Vaynerchcuk is always ahead of the curve and is full of good advice for individuals and businesses in how to apply effective social media marketing, from first-hand experience. Follow @garyveeLatest blog postJeremiah OwyangIf you're looking for industry perspective and stats on how social media is growing as a business, then Jeremiah Owyang is your man. Currently working as industry analyst at Altimeter Group, Owyang often tweets from conferences and seminars he's running or attending and is excellent for real business analysis on the social media industry, such as following new hires within social media.Follow @jowyangLatest blog postLouis GrayThe amount of content Louis Gray produces through Twitter and his blog is incredible and you can be sure he's always going to uncover a great new website or app before anyone else, with a comprehensive review of how it's going to perform. Louis is a true mover and shaker, and you can expect him to be tweeting from some well known social network HQ at least once a week, assuring his audience that he's got the inside track. He often gets into insightful debates or conversations on Twitter that provide new insight into topics. Follow @louisgrayLatest blog postMari SmithIf you're looking for great links and original thinking, then Mari Smith is the one you want. Working as a speaker in social media, Mari is incredibly active in the online community and you can be sure to discover other great people to follow through her account. Mari is also particularly good to follow if you're looking for tips or links to articles with the latest developments and advice to follow in social media marketing first hand.Follow @marismithLatest blog postDave PeckCurrently director of community at the Palo Alto research centre, Dave is a very busy tweeter so you might find it hard to keep up, but if you do you can expect to find great links to social media business articles and more. Peck's Twitter feed is excellent for finding links to articles you probably wouldn't find otherwise. Follow @davepeckLatest blog postSeth GodinNo social media list would be complete without him, though perhaps for Twitter it's slightly unusual. Seth isn't really active on Twitter himself, but you can follow his blog feed, which is a great way to keep up with articles which are always incredibly insightful and you pretty much always end up wishing you had thought of his blog posts yourself! I would still recommend following his account to be the first in the know about his posts, though you wouldn't get the conversation on Twitter you might expectFollow @thisissethsblogLatest Blog post Connie BensenWorking as social media strategist at Alterian, Connie Bensen is regularly named as a thought leader in social media strategy and the wider industry. Connie often links to great articles from others as well as posts from her own blog, which focuses on high-level marketing strategy and community management. Follow @cbensenLatest Blog PostBrian SolisBrian Solis is a forward thinker in the social media space and is also excellent at sharing links to articles, blog posts and research. This makes his Twitter feed a particularly good resource, as well as his own tweets being thought-provoking as well. He is currently with Altimeter and often publishes his own research into social technologies and has also authored books in PR and social media.Follow @briansolisLatest Blog PostDanny BrownDanny is the CEO at Bonsai interactive but it is his blog and through his twitter feed that he really shines. Shares lots of useful information and insightful thought provoking posts that always engage the readers in conversation. Not only is he forward thinking in terms of his ideas but he is always there to listen and to answer comments as well. Follow @dannybrownLatest Blog PostTech JournalistsJason KincaidOne of the best known writers on Techcrunch and also keeps his own blog which writes about trends within the industry. Always at events and on the cutting edge of social media and technology trends. Has especially good insights and sources on Facebook and his weekly show on Techcrunch TV is well worth watching for a summary of the week's tech events. Follow @jasonkincaidLatest blog postMG SeiglerAnother writer at Techcrunch who is passionate about Technology and well networked to break the big stories about the likes of Facebook and Twitter. He has been stirring up quite a lot of noise recently with an ongoing "battle" with Facebook PR about the release of their new app which Techcrunch leaded. Also has a great weekly show on Techcrunch TV which sums up the tech industry and all the latest trends that are happening. Follow @parislemonLatest blog postMichael ArringtonFounder of Techcrunch who started writing the site himself but who taken a more passive role since they sold it to AOL. He has always been outspoken since he started the blog by writing about start ups and that hasn't really changed since the sale to AOL. Seems to be more focused on the high level stories and happy to leave the day to day running to the Techcrunch team but does still break the odd big story because of his large network of contacts. Follow @arringtonLatest blog postJemima KissJemima writes for the Guardian and covers all things technology which includes a strong focus on start ups and social media. She has a large following on Twitter and often shares excellent content which is not just her own. Jemima also travels extensively with the Guardian to events and to meet start ups as well as featuring on an excellent weekly technology podcast on the Guardian. Follow @jemimakissLatest Blog postErin BibaErin Biba is a contributor to Wired Magazine and is often way ahead of the curve with the services and apps she tweets about, making this a great account to follow for emerging news in the tech industry. As well as following her writing for Wired, she also has a great blog where you can follow a wide range of topics and personal musings! Follow @erinbibaLatest blog postEmma BarnettAs digital media editor at the Daily Telegraph, Emma Barnett's Twitter account features frequent links to tech news from the Telegraph. This is a good account to follow for a mix of tech/digital news as well as being a fun personal Twitter account that you can get a lot out of. Follow @EmmabarnettLatest blog postNick BiltonNick Bilton blogs on the New York Times Bits blog and his Twitter account is excellent to follow for regular links to his writing as well as other interesting links in digital media, apps, sites and more. Nick Bilton is also a successful author, making this an authoritative account to follow. Follow @nickbiltonLatest blog postJay YarowJay Yarow is the editor of SAI - the tech section of Business Insider and his Twitter profile is incredibly entertaining and informative, with insightful comments into the tech industry. I thoroughly recommend you follow Jay not only to follow the latest news on Business Insider, but for his own analysis alone, often way ahead of others in his field. Follow @jyarowLatest blog postNatali MorrisNatali Morris is an excellent tech writer and one that should definitely be on your follow list. Having previously worked for Cnet, she now works as a freelancer contributing to Forbes and Consumer Reports.She's a very active tweeter and an expert in many tech and digital disciplines. If you follow this account, you will definitely stay well informed. Follow @natalimorrisLatest blog postMarshall KirkpatrickYou'll probably already know him from writing on Read Write Web but Marshall also writes his own blog that features technology mixed with some other subjects. Generally a good person to follow if you want to stay on top of the latest trends. Follow @marshallkLatest blog postAgenciesWe Are SocialThis social media and conversation agency maintain an active Twitter account that contains company news as well as links to their own blog posts that contain excellent stats and research in the social media industry that can be invaluable for businesses and social media practitioners looking for a little bit more to boost their social media knowledge. Their blog also ranks at number 74 (currently) in the Ad Age Power 150, which is testament to the content they produce. Follow @wearesocialLatest blog postForrester ResearchThis is really the daddy of agencies on Twitter. Forrester Research's Twitter account is incredibly active and keeps its followers informed of the latest posts on their blog, as well as regularly retreating other profiles and involving their followers in research itself. sourcing opinion and stats from within their Twitter community. There's a lot of content on there, due to the vast amount of writers they have, which means you can always find something new and interesting to click through to. Follow @forresterLatest blog postSWWhilst Edelman are really a traditional PR agency, they still have great insight into social media thinking and campaigns. They don't just link through to their own blogs, but recommend other people to follow and often engage in one on one conversations on Twitter, which can be more unusual for an agency. A great account for following the mix between traditional and new media Follow @Edelman_TrustLatest blog postThis is DareAs an agency Dare are known for being creative and sometimes a bit disruptive and this continues perfectly through their Twitter account. The tone is very quirky and personal and keeps followers up to date with latest news and projects from the agency, as well as links to other articles. A great account to follow if you're looking for informative and fun updates within the digital marketing space. Also particularly good for recruitment opportunities. Follow @thisisdareLatest blog postOgilvyOgilvey has built up an impressive 51,000 followers on Twitter, which you might expect from a super-sized agency such as theirs. Ogilvy are particularly good at sending links to creative social media campaigns and apps developed by brands, that allow you to see social media marketing done a little bit differently. They don't really engage with other users on Twitter, but the content alone makes up for that, making this a resourceful Twitter account, rather than one to engage with first hand. Follow @OgilvyLatest blog postMcCann Erickson PRThis is one of the best McCann accounts to follow, as they are particularly active with other Twitter users, as well as posting news and links from their own site. It's encouraging to see an agency that focuses more on conversation with individual users, which sees their account being a popular destination for many people. It also portrays the agency in an excellent way as it keeps people up to date with events that they're at and tongue in cheek updates, giving it a real personality. Follow @McCann_NYYoung & RubicamThis is a slightly different Twitter account to feature, as it's not as active as you might think, but it still deserves its place on the list. They're particularly good at keeping followers up to date with live campaigns, allowing you to see their work in action and also proving themselves as a good news source for bloggers. This is almost exclusively about news relating to the agency, but that just makes it informative, rather than engaging, which also has its merits. Follow @youngrubicam Latest blog postPorter NovelliThe Porter Novelli Twitter account (focused on New York) is incredibly active and is a great case study in business tweeting done well. As an agency they offer a wide range of services from brand marketing to social media consultancy and their tweets focus on agency news, interesting links and high level analysis of the digital marketing industry. Follow @PORTERNOVELLI Latest blog postNixon McInnesNixon McInnes are a creative social media agency who maintain an incredibly active Twitter profile that is particularly good at showing the great community the agency has with its staff. They regularly retweet colleague's own accounts and links to personal blog posts which shows the talent they have in-house, while also creating good content for followers. Excellent thinkers in social media for good marketing, definitely one to follow for a bit of fun as well as insightful thinking. Follow @nixonmcinnes Latest blog postUniversal McCannWhile Universal McCann maintain great Twitter profiles for individual regions where they have a business presence, their worldwide account is great for following the agency overall and what they get up to in different markets. It's particularly good for following their campaigns from around the world, as well as discovering interesting articles and content from other tweeters that they regularly rewet. Follow @umwwtweets Latest blog postRazorfishWith a huge community on Twitter, Razorfish are doing a great job of providing a useful service for their 42,000+ followers. As an enterprising design agency you would expect their Twitter account to be fun and engaging, and that's exactly what it is. What's particularly good is that they enable their followers to find their employees through other sites, regularly tweeting when an employee writes a guest post for example. Follow @razorfish Latest blog postLightmakerAs a digital agency Lightmaker have a relatively small following on Twitter, but that doesn't take away from the content they offer. They seem to be particularly good at spotting conversations on Twitter they can be part of, to attract new followers and business, which shows they're using Twitter as an effective marketing channel for themselves, as well as using it to share links and agency news. Follow @lightmaker Latest blog postThe Social AgencyAn online PR and social media agency that regularly retweets other users to bring their followers new content and people to follow. Their account is incredibly active and portrays a great personality for the agency. Far from using Twitter just to toot their own horn, they're all about maintaining their community as well. Follow @Social_Agency Latest blog postSynovateRepresenting one of the few research agencies using Twitter effectively, Synovate is a great account to follow to find links to stats and research that can prove to be invaluable resources. While not specific to digital, many of their posts and articles relate to digital marketing and social media trends, as well as the wider tech industry. Follow @synovate Latest blog postJennifer BersonThis is a great example of a personalized agency account, as the agency is and Twitter profile is run by Jennifer Berson, showing how a business Twitter account can also work for individuals. Jennifer mixes personal content with updates related to beauty and lifestyle PR, which she is a leading practitioner in. Follow @JenerationPR Latest blog postAgency RepublicAgency Republic are a digital agency that maintain a particularly fun Twitter account, featuring links to fun, creative campaigns and apps with a personalized approach and tone of voice. They also keep followers up to date with key news from the agency such as job opportunities and client work. Follow @agencyrepublic Latest blog post360i360i is an innovative digital agency that often tweet links to breaking news, as well as showing the great personality of their agency with personalized tweets, though they rarely send individual replies to other users. This is more of a great information resource for the digital marketing industry. Follow @360i Latest blog postBravo PRThis is an interesting one as it's the account of the in-house PR team at Bravo, though I think it still deserves its place on the list, as it has all the content and interaction you'd expect from a full PR agency, and indeed the size of their community would stand for this. They're an excellent example of a brand using a dedicated PR account well and they don't just restrict themselves to Bravo content, though this does make up the majority, as you would expect. Follow @bravopr Latest blog postTravel_PRRepresenting an agency within an industry specialim, Travel PR maintain an excellent Twitter account that shows you don't need to restrict yourself to tweeting about your agency practice alone to maintain a good account. They're excellent at finding entertaining content online that you might not discover yourself, with great apps and videos to pass the time online, which helps users to associate them with the kind of fun work they can carry out as an agency. Follow @Travel__PR Latest blog postAKQAThough their content features their own clients very heavily, they regularly post links to great apps and games online, with an emphasis more on engaging content than industry analysis or high-level articles, which makes the account engaging, which is certainly working well for their followers, as they've built up over 20,000 on their account. Follow @AKQA Latest Blog postSEO ExpertsAndrew GirdwoodWorking for Big Mouth Media, Andrew is an all-round digital marketing expert that is particularly skilled in SEO. Andrew often shares links to interesting SEO articles and is a great thinker in SEO and social media working together, often getting involved in good discussions in Twitter that alert followers to other profiles to follow as well as providing throught-provoking analysis. Follow @andrewgirdwood Latest blog postDanny SullivanAs editor of search engine land, you'd probably expect some good stuff from Danny in the SEO space, and his Twitter account doesn't disappoint. Danny shares excellent links to articles about the search industry, as well as very regular tweets that provide insight into various aspects of SEO, especially new developments or additions by Google, that can enable you to get an early handle on how you can benefit from them and how they might impact your SEO strategy. Follow @dannysullivan Latest blog postMatt CuttsThis is the account to follow if you want the inside track from Google. Matt Cutts is the head of the webspam team at Google and he regularly features links to his own articles and videos that provide easy to follow tips and insight into SEO at Google. As this is his personal account, there's plenty of updates outside of the Google / SEO space but it's still one of the most informative accounts to follow for SEO. Follow @mattcutts Latest blog postGerald WeberGerald is the founder of a search engine agency and is a leading thinker in both SEO and SEM. He tirelessly posts links to lesser known articles around SEO, often with top tips that people can follow for their own SEO strategy. Follow this account more for the content you can discover, than one on one interaction. Follow @the_gman Latest blog postRand FishkinRand is the co-founder of SEO software SEO Moz and as well as an active Twitter account, also maintains a great blog that you can follow through his account. He is an active member of the SEO community. He often generates good discussion on SEO through his account and keeps followers informed of the latest SEO news and events. Definitely one to follow! Follow @randfish Latest blog postAnn SmartyAnn is a leading SEO thinker, who also runs a community site for guest bloggers. As an SEO consultant, Ann's profile is full of good SEO links, as well as personal tweets that make this an interesting account to follow. Her content and blog posts come from first hand SEO experience and it's incredibly accessible content for individuals and small businesses that want to implement an effective SEO strategy. Follow @seosmarty Latest blog postSearch Engine LandThe official account for Search Engine Land, this features links to all the articles on the site but they also enter into conversations with other users, providing interesting disucssion into SEO topics. Some of the content is fairly advanced, but is a comprehensive overview of the SEO industry. Follow @sengineland Latest blog postLee OddenLee Odden is the CEO of Toprank blog and tweets about SEO meeting social media, which provides some interesting content and analysis. Social SEO is steadily emerging as a leading practice and both SEO experts and social media experts should follow this account for leading insight and tips on implementation. Follow @leeodden Latest blog postDave NaylorFrequently speaking on SEO and search marketing at conferences, Dave Naylor is active in the SEO scene and a great person to follow on Twitter. His account mainly focuses on SEO and digital news. Sometimes more focused on SEM as well as SEO, this is still a good account to follow for wider combined search strategy Follow @DaveNaylor Latest blog postAndy BeardAnother good account to follow for those interested in SEO and social media working together, Andy Beard is the product manager at uQast. The content isn't necessarily for beginners, but is a great account for those looking for advanced analysis and SEO discussion Follow @AndyBeard Latest blog postNews SitesTechcrunchOne of the biggest and most reputable technology blogs in the world that often cover news relating to the biggest social networks and the funding behind them. Often first to break news stories and feature updates. Recently acquired by AOL. Covers start ups and breaking brand new social technologies as they launch and is a must read for anybody in the space. Follow @techcrunch Latest blog postMashableThe original social media blog that covers practical examples, marketing case studies, guest posts and video content. Moving in to other channels as it gets bigger but still essentially a social media blog at heart. The blog was started by Pete Cashmore but with a team of over 40 writers now it is more of a media platform rather than a blog even if it does keep the traditional blog format. Follow @mashable Latest blog postAllFacebookEverything you ever wanted to know about the world's biggest social network. The blog is 100% dedicated to Facebook and will often break stories about new features or product launches happening on Facebook. The blog also features many of the common memes and breaking news stories from around the world that are breaking exclusively on Facebook. You'll also find a handy list of suppliers and agencies who provide Facebook services attached to the blog. Follow @allfacebook Latest blog postSocial TimesA partner site of All Facebook but focuses on all the social networks often having good video content and stories that are getting a lot of attention online for being quirky. Updated on a regular basis and could for light reading. The blog also has regular online conferences, training and other forms of social media knowledge that you can benefit from. Follow @socialtimes Latest blog postRead Write WebQuite a technical blog looking at all the latest apps, features and developments on social networks but often features content of a non technical nature as well. Good for people who want to start thinking about developing for social networks or the platforms that surround them. This blog will often be first to break some of the more technical stories from the social networks. Follow @rww Latest blog postThe Next WebOur favorite on the list (we write for them on occasion) and a great source of news from the world of tech, gadgets and social media. One of the few world class tech blogs in Europe with a global audience. The site has some great verticals and plenty of content meaning that every time you go back it feels different. Also well known for it's annual conference in Amsterdam and growing in to an international force. Follow @thenextweb Latest blog postGigaomWritten by Om Malik this blog provides great insight in to all of the biggest social networks and some of the bigger picture thinking that makes them work. Also has a great pro section with additional features including in depth research by a large team which is used by companies and professionals all over the world. Om is super well connected and often has great insights from VCs, companies, social networks and other people within the industry. Follow @gigaom Latest blog postInside FacebookAnother blog that is completely dedicated to Facebook but instead of having a consumer focus this is dedicated to developers and the people who make a living out of Facebook. Lots of information about the latest platform changes and updates to apps etc. The blog also has some really handy lists of the best performing pages, apps and features within Facebook. A must read for anybody developing on the Facebook platform. Follow @insidenetwork Latest blog postSocial Media ExaminerThis really is one of the best blogs around for keeping up with all the latest changes to the various social networks.They will often provide detailed lists and guides on all the latest features of various sites and the way that you can benefit from them. Maintained by a whole host of the best social media minds in the USA the content is always fresh and engaging. They also have some great video content from their conferences on occasion. Follow @smexaminer Latest blog postVenture BeatEssentially a technology blog that covers everything from social media to gadgets but does so with very much a business focus. Has a good mixture of the latest breaking news but also some good insights and analysis looking beyond just the headline. The site is expanding and starting to break down in to lots of different subsections including entrepreneurship, games. green tech and more. Follow @venturebeat Latest blog postTech Company FoundersKevin RoseKevin Rose is the original founder of Digg, who has since moved on from the site to become an angel investor. His latest venture is mobile app development with Milk Inc, where he is the CEO and co-founder. Kevin has been known to break some pretty interesting stories through covert tweets, such as announcing that Google were investing in a social platform, months ahead of the actual release. He's the one to follow to get the latest tips and information from the tech scene, as well as pointers to new services or apps in the early stages. Follow @kevinrose Latest blog postDave MorinDave Morin has a pretty impressive track record, where he was an early member of the Facebook team, where he also co-invented Facebook Connect. Since then he's gone on to found Path - which limits users to 50 connections to share content. Dave is incredibly active among the tech industry and often tweets about other big players in the scene that he's met, with links to new services as well. Dave is particularly good at sharing news of Path, most recently with their new product 'With Me' and it's a great way to see inside the world of apps and how they're actually run as companies. Follow @davemorin Latest blog postLoic Le MeurLoic is the founder of Seesmic and Le Web - one of the largest and most interesting tech conferences in Europe. Loic is incredibly active on Twitter, and as well as sharing interesting links and tips on new products, regularly engages in interesting debates that give interesting insights into the tech industry and new sites, issues and apps as they emerge. He is an incredibly influential thinker and is especially active in the Twitter community for someone with such a large following, tirelessly replying to people's comments and retweeting links and mentions. Follow @loic Latest blog postJack DorseyIf there's one founder you want to follow on Twitter, it's probably this one. Jack Dorsey is co-founder of Twitter and was responsible for the idea that started the site. Since co-founding Twitter he's also focused his attentions on the startup Square, which is a mobile product that allows users to process credit card transactions. His tweets are pretty enviable, as he's always sharing news of having been at meetings or partiess in Twitter HQ, Square, or pretty much any online company you'd love to meet. Follow for tips of what's coming up on Twitter & Square, and rumors of new services to launch, way ahead of public release. Follow @jack Latest blog postSeth GoldsteinSeth is the co-founder of the startup music site Turntable.fm , along with Billy Chasen. They're the same team behind the mobile barcodes Stickybits. Though Turntable is still incredibly new, Seth deserves his place on the list as this is one of the most interesting times to follow a founder of an exciting internet company. As you would expect, he's been incredibly active on Twitter in the past few weeks, busily tweeting about Turntable and answering people's queries. Definitely one to follow as Turntable develops and grows in popularity even more. Follow @seth Latest blog postJason FriedJason is the founder of 37 Signals, which has brought us apps such as Basecamp, Highrise and Campfire. While Jason always writes interesting tweets, most recently he's started tweeting about the process of selling Sortfolio - their product that contains a directory of web designers, being incredibly open and honest and showing a new approach to the acquisition process. His account is particularly entertaining and is great for discovering cool new apps you might not have heard about otherwise. A very interesting person to follow. Follow @jasonfried Latest blog postBrian CheskyBrian may have a fairly modest following on Twitter for such a high-profile founder, but he is a good one to follow as Airbnb is currently going through a fast rate of expansion. His Twitter account keeps users updated of the latest developments at the startup and his passion and excitement for the product is great to feel part of. He is incredibly active in responding to queries, problems, or praise people have with the site and this level of involvement is impressive to see and great to follow. Follow @bchesky Latest blog postArianna HuffingtonArianna is the founder and presidents of the Huffington media group. As one of the largest and most influential blogs (and one of the first involved in a high-proifle acquisition), the founder is well worth following to get breaking news, as well as insight into running a successful blog-based business. As the Huffington Post is launching a few new products, such as a baby boomers site and a rollout in France, Arianna is even more deserving of a follow now, as she provides the latest updates into company developments and the general life of a very busy founder. Follow @ariannahuff Latest blog postBurt HermanBurt Herman is the founder and CEO of Storify, which creates stories out of content shared through social media. His is an interesting account to follow as he has a journalistic background, and he tweets a lot on the development on Storify and the latest issues in the tech industry. His tweets on the role of journalism and how it's developing through social media are particularly interesting, making this a good account to follow. Follow @burtherman Latest blog postDenis CrowleyAs the founder of Foursquare, Denis Crowley is interesting to follow, particularly as they head for an interesting time with new developments and new competition to face. He has to be one of the busiest tweeters around, constantly sharing updates from Foursquare HQ and his general travels. Follow @dens Latest blog postSocial Networking ToolsFacebookThe biggest social network of them all keeps an active Twitter presence and will keep you up to date with their latest feature changes, new updates, blog posts and any changes to their privacy policy or terms and conditions. Often the first place that they will announce news so a good account to keep an eye on for those using Facebook every day. Follow @facebook YoutubeThe biggest video sharing site in the world has it's own twitter account with over 3 million followers and as you would expect they share some of the best videos from the site as well as breaking news and new features on the site. As you would expect with an account this size it is not very conversational but there are lots of great links being shared. Follow @youtubeLinkedinLinkedin is the professional network of choice for most but they also have a presence on Twitter where not only do they share links to their blog posts and other latest news but they also talk to users who have issues and get involved with solving problems. It's a great example of a big network using Twitter effectively. Follow @linkedin WordpressWordpress is the blogging platform of choice for many and they use their Twitter account to keep all publishers up to date with the latest changes on the platform, news and blog posts. They also help with any support issues and generally point people in the right direction. A good resource for security updates and changes in the platform. Follow @wordpressTumblrEven though some might say that Tumblr is a sort of competitor to Twitter they do have their very own Twitter account and it's a very good one. Not only do they help support the community but they also answer queries and highlight some of the best new Tumblrs that are out there to their 100k+ followers. Follow @tumblr Aggregators.DiggAlthough Digg has been falling in terms of traffic and the number of users using the site recently it is still a great source for finding the best stories online through their very active community. They only share a couple of the best stories per day via the Twitter account so you can be sure that what they do share is worth clicking through and viewing. Follow @diggRedditWith over 1.2 billion page views and a massively active community Reddit has taken over somewhat from Digg as one of the best places to find news stories online especially in the political space and quirky funny content. Their Twitter account only shares the stories that get a lot of points so it's a great way of accessing the very best of the site and making the most of the community without using the site itself. Follow @reddit AlltopThis is an account that is managed by Guy Kawasaki (he of Apple fame) that is tied in with his sites Alltop and Holykaw. It brings a mixture of some of the best stories from around the web that day with a mixture of funny videos, insightful articles and a bunch of other technology focused content from around the world. Follow @alltopnewsyc20This is an account that tweets all the news stories from Y combinator that make at least 20 points and it's a great source of tech news online where once again the community does the hard work of voting and you just read the best stuff via Twitter. it is pretty technical geeky news but you'll often find some gems in there that appeal to non programmers as well. Follow @newsyc20 Business InsiderThis blog or news site pulls tons of content in from other sites around the world across many different verticals but it always has a strong tech angle. Although there is a lot of noise from the Twitter account and a good chance that the content has been published elsewhere already you will find some gems in here. Follow @alleyinsiderAuthorsDon TapscottDon Tapscott is the author of Wikinomics, which looks at the way collaboration has changed as a result of social technologies. He has also authored Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is Changing the World and Macrowikinomics. He is one of the most influential thinkers and authorities on the evolution of social media today and his Twitter account makes for a fascinating read, through the links that he shares, and his viewpoint on emerging issues. Follow @dtapscott Latest blog postDoc SearlsCo-author of arguably one of the most influential books in the evolution of the internet and how it's changed the way companies communicate, Doc Searls is an incredibly interesting writer to follow. He maintains one of the most interesting Twitter accounts, regularly updating from conferences, posting interesting links and also updating on the progress from his latest book. Follow @dearls Latest blog postTim FerrissAs author of the 4-Hour Workweek,Tim Ferriss is one of the most innovative and original thinkers you'll come across, and is very active among the emerging tech scene. His Twitter account is full of high energy tweets and is also great for following his blog which has great advice for startups and entrepreneurs. If you follow his updates regularly you'll also find more unusual links to books and articles with a new way to approach your personal and work life, with invaluable advice. Follow @tferriss Latest blog postChris AndersonChris Anderson is the author Free, which looks at how businesses can monetise and change their revenue model in the digital era. He also maintains the blog The Long Tail, which you can follow through his Twitter updates. And as editor in chief of Wired, Twitter users don't get much more interesting than Chris Anderson, who defines the meaning of having your finger on the pulse. And all of this is available through his tweets, which share emerging news stories and an interesting stance on the evolution of the digital space. Follow @chr1sa Latest blog postJeff HoweFollowing with another author who's also involved with Wired Magazine - Jeff Howe wrote the seminal book 'Crowdsourcing' and is also a contributing editor at Wired. Crowdsourcing was an important book in showing how social technologies have opened up the possibilities for collaboration and knowledge sharing. And as he is set to join Crowdsourcing.org as a contributing editor, following his work at Wired, now is a particularly good time to start following him. His account is full of interesting tweets about journalism and crowdsourcing. Follow @crowdsourcing Latest blog postCarl ZimmerCovering some fascinating topics, Carl Zimmer is a science writer whose most recent book is A Life of Viruses. While his writings are completely different to the areas of social media and communications, we wanted to include him on the list, to help you discover completely different people to follow on Twitter. Following his account is a great way to get an education in different areas such as psychology, viruses and a myriad of other unusual topics! Fascinating tweets in between all the tecchy stuff we're used to. Follow @carlzimmer Latest blog postAnn HandleyGoing under the name 'MarketingProfs', Ann Handley is an incredibly interesting author, whose works focus on content creation and how it can be used by individuals and organizations in the digital era. Her book 'Content Rules' is a guide to how organizations can use content to entice and entertain their consumers. With an incredibly popular Twitter account, she is a very active tweeter and well worth following for updates from conferences and seminars, and her conversations with other people on Twitter into digital media and content creation. Follow @marketingprofs Latest blog postErik QualmanErik Qualman is the author of Socialnomics and a master of self-promotion through innovative methods. Socialnomics was one of the most important reads for social media practitioners, brands and digital marketers, and the content contained within the book is extended through his Twitter account. He is always engaging with other users on Twitter and is particularly generous at responding to the (many) people that mention his work. He also often has the first scoop on new social tools and apps. Follow @equalman Latest blog postChris BroganChris Brogan is known as one of the most passionate and dedicated bloggers on social media, and is also the co-author of Trust Agents with Julien Smith. You should follow his account for excellent advice and tips that cover marketing, social media, business, entrepreneurship and more. He is a regular speaker at events meaning you can also follow updates from tonnes of conferences through his account. Follow @chrisbrogan Latest blog postJeff JarvisJeff Jarvis is an established author, journalist and blogger, who wrote the book What Would Google Do? The book offered an insight into how the internet has changed the way we do business and interact with customers. You can find him over on his blog buzzmachine and follow his account for interesting insight into the news industry, how journalism is changing and tweets on breaking news stories, with a humorous, often dry slant that makes for great reading. juah`uY±@! Latest blog postInteresting Start UpsInstagramThe people behind Instagram run a very active account where they consistently reply to tweets with suggestions, problems or comments on the service. As you'd expect they share some great links to amazing Instagram pictures, as well as developments from within the company. It's great to see a service like this being so active, as with being just a team of 5 you can imagine there's not much spare time to give to Twitter, so it's great to see the dedication they've got here. It's also interesting to follow such a hot new startup from the early stages. Follow @instagram Milk IncThe Twitter bio for Milk reads 'we are building' and while the tweets might not give much away as to what's in development, it's great to follow this account from the start to see what releases are being announced and the latest developments, though these are often cryptic. As the app company is close to releasing its first mobile app in beta, now is a good time to follow them to be the first in the know about what's sure to be an exciting product.Follow @milkKloutKlout is certainly on the rise at the moment, with developments including an integration with about.me to make their influence measurement available to a whole new audience. Their Twitter account is particularly interesting, with a mix of customer service, product development and news about the company's growth overall. Follow @klout FoodspottingA slightly different one to follow here, as the startup Foodspotting contains no end of links and tweets to all things foody, as well as news about the company itself. They're steadily building up a foodie community through their app that allows you to simply share photos of food from restaurants, that others can discover. Their Twitter account has a good mix of the product news you want to see, and staying true to their core product by building up the food-loving community.Follow @foodspottingSquareThe mobile payment software and hardware solution has got everyone talking at the moment and while they don't update their Twitter account too often, they always post news of milestones within the company or the latest developments, making this a good source for news stories or blog posts as well. They're also pretty active on the exhibition and conference circuit at the moment, sharing news of where they're exhibiting next and also retreating follower's comments on the service Follow @square GrouponWhile Groupon may not exactly be a spare-bedroom type startup anymore, they're still a startup worth following to see how the company develops, particularly as they face competition from new services such as Facebook Deals. While there is a fair amount of customer service on their Twitter profile, they also share what's new at the company. Their Twitter account seems to have a particularl quirky personality, making you feel like you're actually following a real person, which is nice to see with a more established brand such as theirs.Follow @grouponQuoraQuora is an interesting one to follow, as unlike the others on this list, there are almost no tweets that relate to company news, but instead it's all focused on the service itself, as they reweet or feature links to some of the more unusual and interesting questions on Quora. This makes for interesting content among your other usual Twitter feed as it's a fun way to dip in and out of unusual topics and following great discussions. Follow @quora Empire AvenueAmong the tweets that focus on product development and company news, the Empire Ave account is actually a great resource for those generally interested in social media, as they share links to interesting posts, but also their own thoughts on how social media is evolving, and the part that Empire Avenue plays in that. They're very busy tweeting replies to people that are interested in the site, which is great to see.Follow @empireaveEarbitsOperating in a fairly hot area at the moment, Earbits is a young startup that offers a personalized online radio service. Having just raised a round of seed funding, now is a good time to start following this relatively small company on Twitter to follow the latest developments. Instead of just tweeting about their product, their tweets offer a really good, insightful analysis of the online music industry overall, as well as commenting on (slightly) competing services such as Turntable. A great account to educate yourself into the next hot development, as social media meets music more and more. Follow @earbits EvernoteThough it might not seem like the sexiest products, Evernote is one of the most exciting startups to follow right now. Their service basically lets you 'remember anything' , with an easy way of managing your lists, to dos, photos and more through an app that's accessible on desktops, online and mobile. They raised $20 million in funding last year and look close to completing another round, making them undoubtedly one to watch. Their Twitter account contains a lot of detail on their latest developments and important milestones within the company.Follow @evernote


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Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network is reporting that former Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith will be interviewed by the San Diego Chargers Friday. Last week, ESPN's Adam Schefter broke the story that San Diego would be pursuing Smith. They will also interview Cincinnati DC Mike Zimmer, Colts OC Bruce Arians, and 49ers OC Greg Roman. Smith is also scheduled to meet with Philadelphia as a replacement for Andy Reid.
Fantasy Analysis:
Smith put in some good and some not-so-good years with Chicago and a change was obviously needed. The same could be said about San Diego's head coaching vacancy and the recently departed Norv Turner. The Chargers have battled with mediocrity over the last three seasons, having records of 9-7, 8-8 and 7-9, respectively. The Bears only reached the postseason once since losing Super Bowl XLI back in the 2006-07 season and that appearance came back in 2010.


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The phrase "Washington Consensus" is today a very popular and often pilloried term in debates about trade and development. It is often seen as synonymous with "neoliberalism" and "globalization." As the phrase's originator, John Williamson, says: "Audiences the world over seem to believe that this signifies a set of neoliberal policies that have been imposed on hapless countries by the Washington-based international financial institutions and have led them to crisis and misery. There are people who cannot utter the term without foaming at the mouth." [1]
Williamson originally coined the phrase in 1990 "to refer to the lowest common denominator of policy advice being addressed by the Washington-based institutions to Latin American countries as of 1989." [2] These policies were:
Since then, the phrase "Washington Consensus" has become a lightning rod for dissatisfaction amongst anti-globalization protestors, developing country politicians and officials, trade negotiators, and numerous others. It is often used interchangeably with the phrase "neoliberal policies." But, as Williamson also states:
Some of the most vociferous of today's critics of what they call the Washington Consensus, most prominently Joe Stiglitz... do not object so much to the agenda laid out above as to the neoliberalism that they interpret the term as implying. I of course never intended my term to imply policies like capital account liberalization...monetarism, supply-side economics, or a minimal state (getting the state out of welfare provision and income redistribution), which I think of as the quintessentially neoliberal ideas. [1]
Clearly, the definition of the term has gone well beyond the control of Williamson and other economists. That is, if you believe it is useful to talk of a Washington Consensus. Moses Naim, the editor of Foreign Policy, has argued that no such consensus exists. Naim highlights the fact that economists are often divided over such issues as the East Asian crisis, the need for an international financial architecture, and the effectiveness of "open" trade policies. "If this sample represents the Washington Consensus, then just imagine what a Washington Confusion would be like," he says. [3]
Some of today's policy discussion, however, might still be understood by using the term as a reference point. For instance, Dani Rodrik argues that there now exists an "Augmented" Washington Consensus, which in addition to the items listed above, adds: [4]
Clearly, the debate continues about the Washington Consensus, its definition, its successes and failures, and whether it even exists. As many of the Washington Consensus' policy components – however it is defined – relate directly to trade policy, it is a debate worth following.
Last updated April 2003


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Hey guys, its been a while since been around here, but I am asking for some help locating a PDO file that, I know exists somewhere, but all the links I come across seem to be from necro threads, and all inactive, and other sites such as 405h, rpf, cospplay and others that have a compiled list by genre seem to be missing many Star wars files, or the particular one I'm searching for.
The object is the TWC trooper backpack, (with what seems like a canvas top.) any aid in helping me get this file would be greatly appreciated.
The only one I have come across, the creator is charging s fee for. The problem I have with this is they are charging for essentially a blueprint of someone elses IP. I could understand if this or any future items "have yet to be created" , then charging a fee to "create" it but then making it free to the public, essentially paying a commission for the time put into its creation. It just for me crosses a line. Anyway thanks in advance for any help you might be able to offer.


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Atlanta Falcons star conducts Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
by: Nelson Hicks Updated:
ATLANTA - It's not unusual for people to head downtown to check out Justin Blalock and his teammates. What is unusual is the Atlanta Falcons lineman's teammates Thursday night were members of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Blalock served as a guest conductor.
"It's wasn't too bad," Blalock told Nelson's News on wsbtv.com just after the performance. "I'm used to making a lot more mistakes in front of a lot more people, so this wasn't too bad today."
Blalock played the tuba growing up and still plays the drums and guitar on occasion. He said that he actually had a lot more accomplishments in the band compared to football until the 10th grade.
GALLERY: Falcons offensive lineman takes the ASO conductor's baton
The idea to take part in the concert arose out of a Justin Blalock Foundation board meeting. More than 150 kids from the foundation attended the ASO concert.
The concert itself was a side-by-side concert where members of the Atlanta Youth Symphony Orchestra played alongside members of the ASO.
Blalock guest conducted the theme from "Raiders of the Lost Ark." He noted the movie was him mom's favorite before grabbing the conductor's baton.
One of Blalock's teammates was in attendance for the performance. Check out the video to see who it was.