title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: An iOS mobile application for iPhone and iPod Touch includes two built-in games: the free "Woody's Wild Ride", in which the player controls Woody while riding his horse Bullseye across 10 levels; and "Toy Story Mania", which includes a set of minigames. The application also allows the player to use their iPhone or iPod Touch as a controller for the Macintosh version.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: If the Nintendo DS version is played on a system with a camera (such as a Nintendo DSi), the player can use the audio modulator to alter their recorded voices.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: "Toy Story 3: The Video Game" is based on the film. Sheriff Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, and others are among toys who previously belonged to a boy named Andy. Now 17 years old, Andy has donated his toys to a girl named Bonnie before leaving for college. Three of Andy's toys – Hamm, Rex and Slinky Dog – tell Bonnie's original toys about an adventure they had prior to being donated to Bonnie. Andy's toys explain that they were donated to the Sunnyside Daycare center, run by a friendly stuffed bear named Lotso. The toys later learn that Sunnyside is a toy prison run by Lotso, who turns out to be a disgruntled ruler of the daycare toys. Andy's toys escape through a trash chute and wind up in a garbage truck, which takes them to a landfill, where they are about to be destroyed by a trash shredder. In the PlayStation 2 (PS2) and PlayStation Portable (PSP) versions, the toys are saved by Andy's Alien toys (like in the film). In the other versions, it is Woody, Buzz and Jessie who save the other toys. In addition, the PS2 and PSP versions feature only Rex telling the story, through drawings that he has created.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: By February 2008, Disney and Pixar had rejected THQ's pitch to develop the video game adaptation of "Toy Story 3", choosing instead to have it developed by Disney's Avalanche Software. THQ had been a long-time developer of Disney games. Avalanche Software presented two ideas to Pixar: a traditional story mode that retells the film's story, and the free-roaming Toy Box mode. Pixar liked the ideas and suggested they both be developed.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Jonathan Warner, a senior producer on the game for Avalanche, said: "We knew we couldn't just do a 'see the movie, play the game' kind of treatment. This movie is so powerful. It's about the characters and the situations they find themselves in. We had to honour that". Among Avalanche's primary challenges was creating a game that would appeal to various age groups. The game was later tested by more than 60 groups of children aged 6 to 14, and the developers found that it appealed across the demographic.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Pixar was heavily involved in the game's development, with a 10-person team from the company aiding Avalanche. The Pixar team reviewed game sequences every other week. Avalanche art director Jeff Bunker said: "Something could be off by a pixel and Pixar would call us out. I didn't find that annoying, I found it exhilarating. The message was, 'We're going for perfection here'". "Toy Story" co-creator John Lasseter and "Toy Story 3" director Lee Unkrich were involved in the game's development as well, and provided input on how to make the Toy Box mode feel more like a "Toy Story" video game. Avalanche developed the Toy Box mode as the game's centerpiece, with the story mode added primarily as a companion.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Describing the Toy Box mode, Warner said the development team "wanted to take that experience where kids combine different sets of toys from their toy box but it totally makes sense to them, it all flows out of their imagination". Warner further explained that the Toy Box mode begins in a typical western town setting "but soon you're able to start bringing in toys that make no sense to the Western setting and context, like a haunted house toy - and these change the way the town looks, the sort of enemies and toys it brings to the environment, pushing things in a completely different direction". The Toy Box mode went through approximately 10 different versions before Avalanche finalized it. The original version of Toy Box mode would involve bandits invading the player's town, and Warner said the player would then have to "keep performing tasks to make sure everything was still going. We thought it would be a fun and interesting idea, but it turned out to be more like hard work!"


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Avalanche wanted the game to have a cinematic quality like the films. The development team chose to make the characters look identical to their film counterparts, and worked closely with Pixar to achieve this goal. Renders and models of the characters were passed to the development team from the film's animators, and the game's characters were hand-drawn rather than using the traditional method of motion capture that is typically utilized in games. Most of the film's voice cast reprised their roles for the game, including Joan Cusack (Jessie), John Ratzenberger (Hamm), Wallace Shawn (Rex), and R. Lee Ermey (Sarge). In the home console versions, Jeff Garlin and Kristen Schaal also reprised their roles from the film as Buttercup and Trixie. Tom Hanks, who voiced Woody in the films, was unavailable to voice him for the game because of a busy schedule, so his brother Jim Hanks provided Woody's voice in the game.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: "Toy Story 3: The Video Game" was announced on February 16, 2010, at the American International Toy Fair, along with the "Toy Story 3" mobile application. In April, Disney Interactive Studios announced the exclusive content for the PlayStation 3 version, including the ability to play as Emperor Zurg or unlock additional mini-games designed specifically for PlayStation Move motion controller. The PS2 and PSP versions were developed by Asobo Studio, while the iOS game was developed by Disney Mobile Studios.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: "Toy Story 3: The Video Game" was published by Disney, and was the first Pixar game in years to not be published by THQ. In the United States, "Toy Story 3: The Video Game" was released on June 15, 2010, three days prior to the film's theatrical release. It was released for computer, PS3, PSP, Nintendo DS, Wii, and Xbox 360. The game was released for the same platforms in the U.K. on July 16. The iOS application was released in the U.S. on June 15, with Disney Mobile Studios as the publisher.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: The PS2 version was initially released in the U.S. on October 31, as part of a system bundle celebrating the tenth anniversary of the console's North American launch. The PS2 version was also released in the U.S. as a standalone copy on November 2, coinciding with the film's home video release.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: According to Metacritic, the home console versions of "Toy Story 3" received generally positive reviews, while the computer version received "mixed or average reviews". Critics praised the Toy Box mode and generally considered it superior to the main story mode, although Louis Bedigian of GameZone considered the Toy Box mode to be "overhyped". Dan Whitehead of "Eurogamer" stated that the story mode "feels obligatory and rushed". Several reviewers considered "Toy Story 3" an improvement over previous Pixar-based games. Some criticized the camera and controls, and the voice acting, including the lack of Tim Allen (as Buzz Lightyear) and Tom Hanks. However, Anthony Gallegos of IGN considered the voice acting to be "generally superb".


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Tom Hoggins of "The Daily Telegraph" reviewed the Xbox 360 version and called it "a world with a sense of humour and fun that will appeal to children and adults alike. A bit like a Pixar film, then. How about that?" Chad Concelmo of "Destructoid" praised the graphics of the Xbox 360 version but wished the game included more playable characters, such as Slinky Dog or Mr. Potato Head. Meghan Watt of "Official Xbox Magazine" criticized the platform gameplay and stated that the diverse and random levels leave the player feeling "bored and confused, wondering what the heck you just played". Jeff Cork of "Game Informer" stated that the characters were faithfully animated like their film counterparts. Tom McShea of GameSpot praised the game's variety and colorful graphics.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: "Official Nintendo Magazine", reviewing the Wii version, wrote that it was one of its kind, and praised its varied levels during the story mode. "Nintendo Power" called the Wii version "surprisingly fun", while Cork criticized its "visual downgrade" (which "isn't a big deal") and "neutered Toy Box" (vs. PS3 and Xbox 360 versions) where in this version "only one person can play in this mode, and nearly all of the deeper town customization has been stripped away. What's left is a linear slog through a series of similar missions".


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Gallegos criticized the computer version's decreased Toy Box options and believed that the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions had superior graphics. Daniel Knowles of "Inside Mac Games" reviewed the Macintosh version and criticized the camera, controls, and stated that the game was "uninspiring, badly put together and frequently dull". Knowles said that the characters were well animated, but that the two game modes "feel slightly tacked on". He also believed that the concept of the Toy Box mode was not pushed far enough. Marco Tabini of "Macworld" praised the graphics and the ability to play the game using an iPhone or iPod as a controller.


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: Within a month of its release, the free iOS version had been downloaded 1.7 million times. Lex Friedman of "Macworld" called the iOS game "painfully un-fun" and stated that it played "mostly like a barely-interactive advertisement". Keith Andrew of "Pocket Gamer" considered the game too easy and uninspired. Tim Rattray of "Slide to Play" called it short but "quite fun", although he considered the graphics "sub-par and boring".


title: Toy Story 3 (video game)

text: "Toy Story 3: The Video Game" was a top-seller in the United Kingdom, retaining its number one spot on the UK full-price software charts for three weeks, whilst its big-screen counterpart also held onto the box office top spot. The game remained a top-10 seller in the UK as of September 2010. The Nintendo DS version sold 164,000 copies in the U.S. during June 2010; it and the Wii version were among the top 20 best-selling U.S. games that month.


title: Mitsubishi Pajero iO

text: The Mitsubishi Pajero iO is a mini sport utility vehicle produced by the Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi between 1999 (since June 15, 1998, in three-door form, and August 24, 1998, as a five-door) and 2007. The "iO" name is derived from the Italian for "I" which, according to Mitsubishi, "generates an image of being easy to get to know, easy to drive, and of being one's very own Pajero".


title: Mitsubishi Pajero iO

text: It was exported as the Montero iO, and to Europe as the Pajero Pinin, Shogun Pinin or simply Pinin to honour Pininfarina, which built the local market versions of the car at their factory near Turin, Italy. It was also produced in Brazil as the Pajero TR4 from 2002 to 2015 under license. The name was changed after imported versions were referred to as "1.0" instead of "iO", which could lead to confusion about the engine sizes. The Brazilian TR4 was Mitsubishi's first four-wheel drive flexible-fuel vehicle - running on gasoline, ethanol or a combination of the two - when it was introduced in July 2007. The car is also produced in China by Changfeng Automobile under the Liebao (Leopaard) brand as the Changfeng Liebao Feiteng CFA 6400.


title: Mitsubishi Pajero iO

text: "(sources: Facts & Figures 2000, Facts & Figures 2005, Facts & Figures 2008, Mitsubishi Motors website)"


title: Soda lime

text: Soda lime is a mixture of NaOH and CaO chemicals, used in granular form in closed breathing environments, such as general anaesthesia, submarines, rebreathers and recompression chambers, to remove carbon dioxide from breathing gases to prevent CO retention and carbon dioxide poisoning.


title: Soda lime

text: During the administration of general anaesthesia, the gases expired by a patient, which contain carbon dioxide, are passed through an anaesthetic machine breathing circuit filled with soda lime granules. Medical-grade soda lime includes an indicating dye that changes color when the soda lime reaches its carbon dioxide absorbing capacity.


title: Soda lime

text: To ensure that a soda lime canister (CO absorber) is functioning properly, it should not be used if the indicating dye is activated. Standard anaesthesia machines typically contain up to 2 kg of soda lime granules.


title: Soda lime

text: Lithium hydroxide (LiOH) is the alkali hydroxide with the lowest molecular weight (Na: 23 g/mol; Li: 7 g/mol) and is therefore used as CO absorbent in space flights since the Apollo program to spare weight at launch. During Apollo 13 flight, the crew sheltered in the lunar module started suffering from high CO levels and had to adapt spare absorbent cartridges from the Apollo capsule to the LEM system.


title: Soda lime

text: Recent generation of CO absorbents have been developed to reduce the risk of formation of toxic by-products as a result of the interaction between the absorbent and inhaled anesthetics (halothane). Some absorbents made from lithium hydroxide (LiOH) are also available for this purpose.


title: Soda lime

text: Exhaled gas must be passed through a carbon dioxide scrubber where the carbon dioxide is absorbed before the gas is made available to be breathed again. In rebreathers the scrubber is a part of the breathing loop. Color indicating dye was removed from US Navy fleet use in 1996 when it was suspected of releasing chemicals into the circuit. In larger environments, such as recompression chambers or submarines, a fan is used to maintain the flow of gas through the scrubbing canister.


title: Soda lime

text: Each mole of CO (44 g) reacting with one mole of calcium hydroxide (74g) and produces one mole of water (18 g).


title: Soda lime

text: This sequence of reactions explains the catalytic role played by sodium hydroxide in the system and why soda lime is faster in chemical reactivity than calcium hydroxide alone. The moist NaOH impregnates the surface and the porosity of calcium hydroxide grains with a high specific surface area. It reacts much more quickly and so contributes to a faster elimination of the CO from the rebreathing circuit. The formation of water by the reaction and the moisture from the respiration also act as a solvent for the reaction. Reactions in aqueous phase are generally faster than between a dry gas and a dry solid. Soda lime is commonly used in closed-circuit diving rebreathers and in anesthesia systems.


title: Soda lime

text: The same catalytic effect by the alkali hydroxides (function of the NaO content of cement) also contributes to the carbonation of portlandite by atmospheric CO in concrete although the rate of propagation of the reaction front is there essentially limited by the CO diffusion within the concrete matrix less porous.


title: Soda lime

text: A similar reaction to above, also catalysed by sodium hydroxide, is the alkali-silica reaction, a slow degradation process causing the swelling and the cracking of concrete containing aggregates rich in reactive amorphous silica. In a very similar way, NaOH greatly facilitates the dissolution of the amorphous silica. The produced sodium silicate then reacts with the calcium hydroxide (portlandite) present in the hardened cement paste to form calcium silicate hydrate (abbreviated as C-S-H in the cement chemist notation). This silicification reaction of Ca(OH) on its turn continuously releases again sodium hydroxide in solution, maintaining a high pH, and the cycle continues up to the total disappearance of portlandite or reactive silica in the exposed concrete. Without the catalysis of this reaction by sodium or potassium soluble hydroxides the alkali-silica reaction would not proceed or would be limited to a very slow pozzolanic reaction. The alkali silica reaction can be written like the soda lime reaction, by simply substituting CO by SiO in the reactions mentioned here above as follows:


title: Slavic name suffixes

text: A Slavic name suffix is a common way of forming patronymics, family names, and pet names in the Slavic languages. Many, if not most, Slavic last names are formed by adding possessive and other suffixes to given names and other words. Most Slavic surnames have suffixes which are found in varying degrees over the different nations. Some surnames are not formed in this way, including names of non-Slavic origin. They are also seen in North America, Argentina, and Australia.


title: Slavic name suffixes

text: An example using an occupation is "kovač", "koval" or "kowal", which means blacksmith. It is the root of the names Kovačević, Kovačić, Kowalski, Kowalchuk, Kowalczyk, Kovachev, Kovalenko, Kovalyov, and Kovalev. All mean "descendant of a blacksmith".


title: Slavic name suffixes

text: The given name Petr, Petro or Petar (equivalent to Peter) can become Petrov, Petriv, Petriw, Petrenko, Petrovsky, Petrović, Petrić, Petrič, Petrich, etc. All mean "descendant of Peter". This is similar to the use of "-son" or "-sen" in Germanic languages.


title: Slavic name suffixes

text: In East Slavic languages (Belarusian, Russian, Rusyn, and Ukrainian) the same system of name suffixes can be used to express several meanings. One of the most common is the patronymic. Instead of a secondary "middle" given name, people identify themselves with their given and family name and patronymic, a name based on their father's given name. If a man gives his full name as Boris "Vladimirovich" Kuznetsov, then his father's name must have been Vladimir. Vladimirovich literally means "Vladimir's [son]".


title: Slavic name suffixes

text: Similarly, many suffixes can be attached to express affection or informality (in linguistics, called a diminutive). For example, calling a boy named Ivan "Ivanko", "Ivo", "Ivica" etc, or Yuri "Yurko", expresses that he is familiar to you. This is the same as referring to Robert as "Rob," "Bob" and "Bobby"; or William as "Bill", "Will" and "Willy".


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: "A rising tide lifts all boats" is an aphorism associated with the idea that an improved economy will benefit all participants and that economic policy, particularly government economic policy, should therefore focus on broad economic efforts.


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: The phrase is commonly attributed to John F. Kennedy, who used it in a 1963 speech to combat criticisms that a dam project he was inaugurating was a pork barrel project. However, in his 2009 memoir "Counselor: A Life At The Edge Of History", Kennedy's speechwriter, Ted Sorensen, revealed that the phrase was not one of his or the President's own fashioning. It was in Sorensen's first year working for him, during Kennedy's tenure in the Senate, while Sorensen was trying to tackle economic problems in New England, that he happened upon the phrase. He wrote that he noticed that "the regional chamber of commerce, the New England Council, had a thoughtful slogan: 'A rising tide lifts all the boats.'" From then on, Kennedy would borrow the slogan often. Sorensen highlighted that as an example of quotes mistakenly attributed to Kennedy.


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: In subsequent decades, the phrase has been used to defend tax cuts and other policies in which the initial beneficiaries are high-income earners.


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: In addition, the phrase (水涨船高) has been used in the Chinese language for centuries and first appeared in "The Gallant Maid" (兒女英雄傳), a novel by Wen Kang, a Manchu-born Qing dynasty author.


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: The expression also applies to free-market policies, in that comparative-advantage production and subsequent trade would theoretically increase incomes for all participating entities. It is said to be a favorite proverb of former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin.


title: A rising tide lifts all boats

text: However, the term has also been used in recent years to highlight economic inequality. Gene Sperling, Bill Clinton's former economic advisor, has opined that, in the absence of appropriate policies, "the rising tide will lift some boats, but others will run aground." British Labour MP Ed Miliband said at a party conference that “they used to say a rising tide lifted all boats. Now the rising tide just seems to lift the yachts.” New Zealand Labour MP David Parker has stated that "We believe that a rising tide of economic growth should lift all boats, not just the super yachts."


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: A low-noise block downconverter (LNB) is the receiving device mounted on satellite dishes used for satellite TV reception, which collects the radio waves from the dish and converts them to a signal which is sent through a cable to the receiver inside the building. Also called a low-noise block, low-noise converter (LNC), or even low-noise downconverter (LND), the device is sometimes inaccurately called a "low-noise amplifier" ("LNA").


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The LNB is a combination of low-noise amplifier, frequency mixer, local oscillator and intermediate frequency (IF) amplifier. It serves as the RF front end of the satellite receiver, receiving the microwave signal from the satellite collected by the dish, amplifying it, and downconverting the block of frequencies to a lower block of intermediate frequencies (IF). This downconversion allows the signal to be carried to the indoor satellite TV receiver using relatively cheap coaxial cable; if the signal remained at its original microwave frequency it would require an expensive and impractical waveguide line.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The LNB is usually a small box suspended on one or more short booms, or feed arms, in front of the dish reflector, at its focus (although some dish designs have the LNB on or behind the reflector). The microwave signal from the dish is picked up by a feedhorn on the LNB and is fed to a section of waveguide. One or more metal pins, or probes, protrude into the waveguide at right angles to the axis and act as antennas, feeding the signal to a printed circuit board inside the LNB's shielded box for processing. The lower frequency IF output signal emerges from a socket on the box to which the coaxial cable connects.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The LNB gets its power from the receiver or set-top box, using the same coaxial cable that carries signals from the LNB to the receiver. This "phantom power" travels to the LNB; opposite to the signals from the LNB.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: A corresponding component, called a block upconverter (BUC), is used at the satellite earth station (uplink) dish to convert the band of television channels to the microwave uplink frequency.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The signal received by the LNB is extremely weak and it has to be amplified before downconversion. The low noise amplifier section of the LNB amplifies this weak signal while adding the minimum possible amount of noise to the signal.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The low-noise quality of an LNB is expressed as the noise figure (or sometimes noise temperature). This is the signal to noise ratio at the input divided by the signal to noise ratio at the output. It is typically expressed as a decibels (dB) value. The ideal LNB, effectively a perfect amplifier, would have a noise figure of 0 dB and would not add any noise to the signal. Every LNB introduces some noise but clever design techniques, expensive high performance low-noise components such as HEMTs and even individual tweaking of the LNB after manufacture, can reduce some of the noise contributed by the LNB's components. Active cooling to very low temperatures can help reduce noise too, and is often used in scientific research applications.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Every LNB off the production line has a different noise figure because of manufacturing tolerances. The noise figure quoted in the specifications, important for determining the LNB's suitability, is usually representative of neither that particular LNB nor the performance across the whole frequency range, since the noise figure most often quoted is the "typical" figure averaged over the production batch.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Satellites use comparatively high radio frequencies (microwaves) to transmit their TV signals. As microwave satellite signals do not easily pass through walls, roofs, or even glass windows, it is preferable for satellite antennas to be mounted outdoors. However, plastic glazing is transparent to microwaves and residential satellite dishes have successfully been hidden indoors looking through acrylic or polycarbonate windows to preserve the external aesthetics of the home.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The purpose of the LNB is to use the superheterodyne principle to take a block (or band) of relatively high frequencies and convert them to similar signals carried at a much lower frequency (called the intermediate frequency or IF). These lower frequencies travel through cables with much less attenuation, so there is much more signal left at the satellite receiver end of the cable. It is also much easier and cheaper to design electronic circuits to operate at these lower frequencies, rather than the very high frequencies of satellite transmission.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The frequency conversion is performed by mixing a fixed frequency produced by a local oscillator inside the LNB with the incoming signal, to generate two signals equal to the sum of their frequencies and the difference. The frequency sum signal is filtered out and the frequency difference signal (the IF) is amplified and sent down the cable to the receiver:


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The local oscillator frequency determines what block of incoming frequencies is downconverted to the frequencies expected by the receiver. For example, to downconvert the incoming signals from Astra 1KR, which transmits in a frequency block of 10.70–11.70 GHz, to within a standard European receiver's IF tuning range of 950–2,150 MHz, a 9.75 GHz local oscillator frequency is used, producing a block of signals in the band 950–1,950 MHz.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: For the block of higher transmission frequencies used by Astra 2A and 2B (11.70–12.75 GHz), a different local oscillator frequency converts the block of incoming frequencies. Typically, a local oscillator frequency of 10.60 GHz is used to downconvert the block to 1,100–2,150 MHz, which is still within the receiver's 950–2,150 MHz IF tuning range.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: In a C-band antenna setup, the transmission frequencies are typically 3.7–4.2 GHz. By using a local oscillator frequency of 5.150 GHz the IF will be 950–1,450 MHz which is, again, in the receiver's IF tuning range.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: For the reception of wideband satellite television carriers, typically 27 MHz wide, the accuracy of the frequency of the LNB local oscillator need only be in the order of ±500 kHz, so low cost dielectric oscillators (DRO) may be used. For the reception of narrow bandwidth carriers or ones using advanced modulation techniques, such as 16-QAM, highly stable and low phase noise LNB local oscillators are required. These use an internal crystal oscillator or an external 10 MHz reference from the indoor unit and a phase-locked loop (PLL) oscillator.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: With the launch of the first DTH broadcast satellite in Europe (Astra 1A) by SES in 1988, antenna design was simplified for the anticipated mass-market. In particular, the feedhorn (which gathers the signal and directs it to the LNB) and the polarizer (which selects between differently polarized signals) were combined with the LNB itself into a single unit, called an LNB-feed or LNB-feedhorn (LNBF), or even an "Astra type" LNB. The prevalence of these combined units has meant that today the term LNB is commonly used to refer to all antenna units that provide the block-downconversion function, with or without a feedhorn.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The Astra type LNBF that includes a feedhorn and polarizer is the most common variety, and this is fitted to a dish using a bracket that clamps a collar around the waveguide neck of the LNB between the feedhorn and the electronics package. The diameter of the LNB neck and collar is usually 40mm although other sizes are also produced. In the UK, the "minidish" sold for use with Sky Digital and Freesat uses an LNBF with an integrated clip-in mount.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: LNBs without a feedhorn built-in are usually provided with a (C120) flange around the input waveguide mouth which is bolted to a matching flange around the output of the feedhorn or polarizer unit.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: It is common to polarize satellite TV signals because it provides a way of transmitting more TV channels using a given block of frequencies. This approach requires the use of receiving equipment that can filter incoming signals based on their polarization. Two satellite TV signals can then be transmitted on the same frequency (or, more usually, closely spaced frequencies) and provided that they are polarized differently, the receiving equipment can still separate them and display whichever one is currently required.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Throughout the world, most satellite TV transmissions use vertical and horizontal linear polarization but in North America, DBS transmissions use left and right hand circular polarization. Within the waveguide of a North American DBS LNB a slab of dielectric material is used to convert left and right circular polarized signals to vertical and horizontal linear polarized signals so the converted signals can be treated the same.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The probe inside the LNB waveguide collects signals that are polarized in the same plane as the probe. To maximise the strength of the wanted signals (and to minimise reception of unwanted signals of the opposite polarization), the probe is aligned with the polarization of the incoming signals. This is most simply achieved by adjusting the LNB's "skew"; its rotation about the waveguide axis. To remotely select between the two polarizations, and to compensate for inaccuracies of the skew angle, it used to be common to fit a "polarizer" in front of the LNB's waveguide mouth. This either rotates the incoming signal with an electromagnet around the waveguide (a magnetic polarizer) or rotates an intermediate probe within the waveguide using a servo motor (a mechanical polarizer) but such adjustable skew polarizers are rarely used today.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The simplification of antenna design that accompanied the first Astra DTH broadcast satellites in Europe to produce the LNBF extended to a simpler approach to the selection between vertical and horizontal polarized signals too. Astra type LNBFs incorporate two probes in the waveguide, at right angles to one another so that, once the LNB has been skewed in its mount to match the local polarization angle, one probe collects horizontal signals and the other vertical, and an electronic switch (controlled by the voltage of the LNB's power supply from the receiver: 13 V for vertical and 18 V for horizontal) determines which polarization is passed on through the LNB for amplification and block-downconversion.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Such LNBs can receive all the transmissions from a satellite with no moving parts and with just one cable connected to the receiver, and have since become the most common type of LNB produced.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: In Europe, as SES launched more Astra satellites to the 19.2°E orbital position in the 1990s, the range of downlink frequencies used in the FSS band (10.70–11.70 GHz) grew beyond that catered for by the standard LNBs and receivers of the time. Reception of signals from Astra 1D required an extension of receivers' IF tuning range from 950 to 1,950 MHz to 950–2,150 MHz and a change of LNBs' local oscillator frequency from the usual 10 GHz to 9.75 GHz (so-called "Enhanced" LNBs).


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: The launch of Astra 1E and subsequent satellites saw the first use by Astra of the BSS band of frequencies (11.70–12.75 GHz) for new digital services and required the introduction of an LNB that would receive the whole frequency range 10.70–12.75 GHz, the "Universal" LNB.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: A Universal LNB has a switchable local oscillator frequency of 9.75/10.60 GHz to provide two modes of operation: low band reception (10.70–11.70 GHz) and high band reception (11.70–12.75 GHz). The local oscillator frequency is switched in response to a 22 kHz signal superimposed on the supply voltage from the connected receiver. Along with the supply voltage level used to switch between polarizations, this enables a Universal LNB to receive both polarizations (Vertical and Horizontal) and the full range of frequencies in the satellite under the control of the receiver, in four sub-bands:


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: An LNB with a single feedhorn but multiple outputs for connection to multiple tuners (in separate receivers or within the same receiver in the case of a twin-tuner PVR receiver). Typically, two, four or eight outputs are provided. Each output responds to the tuner's band and polarization selection signals independently of the other outputs and "appears" to the tuner to be a separate LNB. Such an LNB usually may derive its power from a receiver connected to any of the outputs. Unused outputs may be left unconnected (but waterproofed for the protection of the whole LNB).


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Note: In the US an LNB with two outputs is termed a "dual LNB", but in the UK the term "dual LNB" historically described an LNB with two outputs, each producing only one polarisation, for connection to a multiswitch (the term and the LNBs fell out of use with the introduction of the Universal LNB and the multiswitch equivalent, the quattro LNB – see below). Today "dual LNB" (and "dual feed") describes antennas for reception from two satellite positions, using either two separate LNBs or a single Monoblock LNB with two feedhorns. In the UK, the term "twin-output LNB", or simply "twin LNB", is usually used for an LNB with a single feedhorn but two independent outputs.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: A special type of LNB (not to be confused with Quad LNB) intended for use in a shared dish installation to deliver signals to any number of tuners. A quattro LNB has a single feedhorn and four outputs, which each supply just one of the K sub-bands (low band/horizontal polarization, high band/vertical polarization, low/vertical and high/horizontal) to a multiswitch or an array of multiswitches, which then delivers to each connected tuner whichever sub-band is required by that tuner.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Although a quattro LNB typically looks similar to a quad LNB, it cannot (sensibly) be connected to receivers directly. Note again the difference between a quad and a quattro LNB: A quad LNB can drive four tuners directly, with each output providing signals from the entire K band. A quattro LNB is for connection to a multiswitch in a shared dish distribution system and each output provides only a quarter of the K band signals.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Multiple tuners may also be fed from a satellite channel router (SCR) or unicable LNB in a single cable distribution system. A Unicable LNB has one output connector but operates in a different way to standard LNBs so it can feed multiple tuners daisy-chained along a single coax cable.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Instead of block-downconverting the whole received spectrum, an SCR LNB downconverts a small section of the received signal (equivalent to the bandwidth of a single transponder on the satellite) selected according to a DiSEqC-compliant command from the receiver, to output at a fixed frequency in the IF. Up to 32 tuners can be allocated a different frequency in the IF range and for each, the SCR LNB downconverts the corresponding individually requested transponder.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Most SCR LNBs also include either a legacy mode of operation or a separate legacy output which provides the received spectrum block-downconverted to the whole IF range in the conventional way.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: ASTRA Universal Wideband LNBs with an oscillator frequency of 10.40 or 10.41 GHz are entering the market. The intermediate frequency band is much wider than in a conventional LNB, as the high and low band are not split up.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Wideband LNB signals can be accepted by new wideband tuners, and by new SCR systems (e.g., Inverto/Fuba, Unitron, Optel, GT-Sat/Astro), with or without optical transmission. Wideband signals can be converted to conventional quattro signals and vice versa.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: In February 2016, Sky (UK) launched a new LNB only compatible with their new wideband tuner. This LNB has one port for all vertical polarised channels both low and high band, and another port for all low and high band horizontal channels. The basic model has only 2 connections and presumably has a local oscillator of 10.41 GHz with an intermediate frequency of 290–2340 MHz from an input of 10.7–12.75 GHz. This LNB seems to be the same as Unitron's ASTRA Universal Wideband LNB. Two cables minimum are needed to access all channels. In the Sky Q box, multiple tuners can select multiple channels, more than the usual two for dual coax systems. This type of LNB is incompatible with the more common Astra Universal LNB used in the UK meaning the LNB is changed during upgrade. There is a model of the LNB with 6 connections, 2 for Sky Q and 4 Astra Universal LNB for users with multiple legacy systems such as Freesat in addition to Sky Q. In cases where only a single cable is possible, such as apartment blocks, Sky Q compatible multiswitches can be used, which instead use BSkyB SCR.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: LNBs for fibre satellite distribution systems operate in a similar way to conventional electrical LNBs, except that all four of the sub-bands in the entire K band spectrum of 10.70–12.75 GHz across two signal polarisations are simultaneously block-downconverted (as in a quattro LNB). The four sub-bands’ IFs are stacked to create one IF with a range of 0.95–5.45 GHz (a bandwidth of 4.5 GHz), which is modulated on an optical signal using a semiconductor laser, to send down the fibre cable.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: At the receiver, the optical signal is converted back to the traditional electrical signal to "appear" to the receiver as a conventional LNB.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: A monoblock (or monobloc) LNB is a single unit comprising two, three or four LNBs and a DiSEqC switch, designed to receive signals from two, three or four satellites spaced close together and to feed the selected signal to the receiver. The feedhorns of the two LNBs are at a fixed distance apart for reception of satellites of a particular orbital separation (often 6°, but also 4°). Although the same functionality can be achieved with separate LNBs and a switch, a monoblock LNB, constructed in one unit, is more convenient to install and enables the two feedhorns to be closer together than individually cased LNBs (typically 60mm diameter). The distance between the feedhorns depends on the orbital separation of the satellites to be received, the diameter and focal length of the dish used, and the position of the reception site relative to the satellites. So monoblock LNBs are usually a compromise solution designed to operate with standard dishes in a particular region. For example, in parts of Europe, monoblocks designed to receive the Hot Bird and Astra 19.2°E satellites are popular because they enable reception of both satellites on a single dish without requiring an expensive, slow and noisy motorised dish. A similar advantage is provided by the duo LNB for simultaneous reception of signals from both the Astra 23.5°E and Astra 19.2°E positions.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: or the same can be used for positions: Eutelsat 7°E, Eutelsat 10°E and Hotbird 13°E. This monoblock can be used for other positions with the same spacing (3°+3°=6°spacing).


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Other very popular example for different spacing is: Astra 1: 19.2°E, Astra 3: 23.5°E and Astra 2: 28.2°E (4.3°+4.7°=9°spacing).


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: And there are also available four feed monoblock LNB units, which enable users to receive signals from four satellites, for example Eurobird 9°E, Hotbird 13°E, Astra 19.2°E and Astra 23.5°E (4°+6.2°+4.3°=14.5°spacing).


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: Most receivers sold nowadays are compatible with at least DiSeqC 1.0 which allows to switch automatically between 4 satellites (all of contemporary Monoblock LNBs), as user changes channel on remote control.


title: Low-noise block downconverter

text: It is possible for moisture in an LNB to freeze, causing ice to build-up at very low temperatures. This is only likely to occur when the LNB is not receiving power from the satellite receiver (i.e., no programmes are being watched). To combat this, many satellite receivers provide an option to keep the LNB powered while the receiver is on standby. In fact, most LNBs are kept powered because this helps to stabilise the temperature and, thereby, the local oscillator frequency by the dissipated heat from the circuitry of LNB. In the case of UK BSkyB receivers, the LNB remains powered while in standby so that the receiver can receive firmware updates and Electronic Programme Guide updates. In the United States, the LNB connected to a Dish Network receiver remains powered so the system can receive software and firmware updates and guide information over the air at night. In Turkey, another LNB type Digiturk MDUs are kept powered to receive VOD content, STB firmware, EPG data, and pay-TV keys in order to watch encrypted content.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: Picnic is a 1955 American Technicolor romantic comedy-drama film filmed in Cinemascope. It was adapted for the screen by Daniel Taradash from William Inge's 1953 Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name. Joshua Logan, director of the original Broadway stage production, directed the film version, which stars William Holden, Kim Novak, and Rosalind Russell, with Susan Strasberg and Cliff Robertson in supporting roles. "Picnic" was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won two.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: The film dramatizes 24 hours in the life of a small Kansas town in the mid-20th century during the Labor Day holiday. It is the story of an outsider whose appearance disrupts and rearranges the lives of those with whom he comes into contact.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: In the morning of Labor Day 1955, vagrant Hal Carter arrives by freight train in a Kansas town to visit his fraternity friend Alan Benson. While staying with kindly Helen Potts, Hal also meets Alan's girlfriend, Madge Owens, Madge's sister Millie, and their mother. Alan is happy to see the "same old Hal" and shows Hal his family's sprawling grain elevator operations. Alan promises Hal a steady job as a "wheat scooper" and invites him to attend the town's Labor Day picnic.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: At the picnic, Hal divides his attention between Madge, Millie, and middle-aged schoolteacher Rosemary, who has been brought to the picnic by store owner Howard Bevens. All three women end up fighting over Hal. Alan blames Hal for the mess and says he is ashamed that he brought Hal in the first place. By now a crowd is watching, and Hal flees into the darkness.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: Madge follows Hal to Alan's car and gets in with him. By the river, he tells her he was sent to reform school as a boy for stealing a motorcycle and that his whole life is a failure. They kiss. Outside Madge's house, they promise to meet after she finishes work the next evening. Hal drives back to Alan's house to return the car, but Alan has called the police and wants Hal arrested. Hal flees the house in Alan's car with the police following close behind. Hal shows up at Howard's apartment, asking to spend the night there. Howard is very understanding and now has his own worries: Rosemary has begged him to marry her. Back at the Owens house, Madge and Millie cry themselves to sleep in their shared room.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: The next morning, Howard comes to the Owens house, intending to tell Rosemary he wants to wait, but at the sight of him she is overjoyed, thinking he has come to take her away. Howard wordlessly goes along with the misunderstanding. As he passes Madge on the stairs, he tells her Hal is hiding in the back seat of his car. Hal is able to slip away before the other women gleefully decorate Howard's car. While Howard and Rosemary happily drive off to the Ozarks, Hal and Madge meet by a shed behind the house. He tells her that he loves her and asks her to meet him in Tulsa, where they can marry and he can get a job at a hotel as a bellhop and elevator operator. Mrs. Owens finds them by the shed and threatens to call the police. Madge and Hal embrace and kiss. Hal runs to catch a passing freight train, crying out to Madge, "You love me! You love me!" Upstairs in their room, Millie tells Madge to "do something bright" for once in her life and go to Hal. Madge packs a small suitcase and, despite her mother's tears, boards a bus for Tulsa.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: When "Picnic" was cast, William Holden was already 37—too old according to some to play the role of Hal Carter. Regardless, Holden was "happy to finish his Columbia Pictures contract with such a prestigious project" despite the film paying him $30,000 instead of the $250,000 he would have otherwise earned. "Picnic" was one of Kim Novak's early film roles, and this movie made her a star. In the film, Holden keeps his hair combed in an untidy fringe over his forehead and has the sleeves of his shirt rolled up throughout. He shaved his chest for the shirtless shots and was reportedly nervous about his dancing for the "Moonglow" scene. Logan took him to Kansas roadhouses where he practiced steps in front of jukeboxes with choreographer Miriam Nelson. Heavy thunderstorms with tornado warnings repeatedly interrupted shooting of the scene on location, and it was completed on a backlot in Burbank, where Holden (according to some sources) was "dead drunk" to calm his nerves.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: Millie, the independently minded girl who memorizes Shakespeare sonnets and rebels against her older sister, was an early role for Susan Strasberg, the daughter of prominent Method drama teacher Lee Strasberg. Elizabeth Wilson had a bit part as one of the smirking schoolteachers. Verna Felton, a longtime radio and TV character actor who was well-known to audiences in the 1950s, had a strong supporting role as neighbor Helen Potts. Bomber, the paperboy, was played by Nick Adams, an actor who dated Natalie Wood and was a friend of both James Dean and Elvis Presley. Mr. Benson was played by Raymond Bailey (without his toupee), later known on television as "Beverly Hillbillies" banker Milburn Drysdale. Reta Shaw, Elizabeth Wilson, and Arthur O'Connell recreated their roles from the original Broadway production. This was Rosalind Russell's first Hollywood movie after a big success on Broadway with her Tony Award-winning performance in "Wonderful Town" (1953).


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: During filming of the actual picnic scenes in Halstead, Kansas, a tornado swept through the area, forcing the cast and crew to take cover. While the storm spared the set, it devastated the nearby town of Udall, Kansas, and the film crew drove their trucks and equipment there to help clean up the damage.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: The extensive use of Kansas locations highlighted the naturalistic, small-town drama. "Picnic" was shot mostly around Hutchinson, Kansas. Other Kansas locations include:


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: The film was restored in the mid-1990s and brought many art-house bookings. Stephen Holden, in a 1996 review of the restored film, began by noting:


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: Today it probably wouldn't be worth more than a PG-13 rating (if even that), but in 1955, the "Moonglow" dance and the "torn shirt" sequences from the movie "Picnic" were about as steamy as Hollywood could get in evoking explosive sex.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: According to Holden, "Rosalind Russell is vividly scary as an older schoolteacher who foolishly lunges after Hal. Betty Field is just right as Madge's wistful, once-beautiful mother, who years earlier ran away with a man like Hal, and Susan Strasberg does well in the role of Madge's tomboyish younger sister. George Duning's wistful, Copland-influenced score captures the mood of heated yearning that not only engulfed the movie, but also defined the country's romantic ethos in the mid-'50s."


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: "Theme from Picnic" was a hit song which reached number one on the 1956 "Billboard" charts and was number 14 overall that year. Composed by George Duning and Steve Allen (although Allen's lyrics were not used in the film), the song is featured in the famous dance scene between Holden and Novak, wherein Columbia's musical director Morris Stoloff blended "Theme from Picnic" with the 1930s standard "Moonglow". The two songs often were paired in later recordings by other artists. The soundtrack album reached number 23 on the "Billboard" charts. The "Theme from Picnic" was also a popular song recorded by the McGuire Sisters, and was a top 10 hit in 1956.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: In 1957, marketing researcher James Vicary said he had included subliminal messages such as "eat popcorn" and "drink Coca-Cola" in public screenings of "Picnic" for six weeks, claiming sales of Coca-Cola and popcorn increased 18.1% and 57.8% respectively. However, after being unable to replicate the results, Vicary later admitted that he had falsified the data.


title: Picnic (1955 film)

text: "Picnic" was remade for television twice. The first was in 1986, directed by Marshall W. Mason and starring Gregory Harrison, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Learned, Rue McClanahan, and Dick Van Patten. The second remake was in 2000, starring Josh Brolin, Gretchen Mol, Bonnie Bedelia, Jay O. Sanders, and Mary Steenburgen. The screenplay adaptation by Shelley Evans was directed by Ivan Passer.


title: Food Network Star

text: Food Network Star is a reality television series that premiered June 5, 2005. It was produced by CBS EYEtoo Productions for seasons 1–8 and by Triage Entertainment for subsequent seasons. It airs on the Food Network in the United States. Prior to season seven, the series was known as The Next Food Network Star.


title: Food Network Star

text: The first season of "The Next Food Network Star" series was taped in February 2005, and was composed of five episodes in June 2005. Chicago area caterers Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh emerged as the winners, and went on to host a show called "Party Line with Dan & Steve", now titled "Party Line with The Hearty Boys", which premiered on September 18, 2005.


title: Food Network Star

text: The runner-up, Deborah Fewell, was chosen to host a special on food at beaches, "Surf N Turf", which aired in June 2006. Michael Thomas was the recurring chef on "The Tyra Banks Show". Susannah Locketti made an appearance on "The Tony Danza Show", and is also an on-air chef for Publix grocery stores in the southern United States.


title: Food Network Star

text: The second season of "The Next Food Network Star" series was taped in December 2005 and began airing in March 2006. Guy Fieri was announced as the winner on April 23, 2006, beating Reggie Southerland.


title: Food Network Star

text: Fieri has achieved considerable success and a Daytime Emmy at Food Network since his victory, and is still regularly on air as of November 2021. "Guy's Big Bite" premiered in June 2006 and aired for 13 seasons until December 2016. Fieri's second series, "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives", premiered in April 2007 and has aired for 33 seasons, being the recipient of several Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He went on to the series, "Ultimate Recipe Showdown", premiering February 17, 2008, and "Guy Off The Hook" on September 14, 2008. His reality competition "Guy's Grocery Games" debuted in October 2013 and has aired for 27 seasons.


title: Food Network Star

text: Fourth-place contestant Nathan Lyon began hosting his own series, "A Lyon In the Kitchen", on the Discovery Health Channel in March 2007.


title: Food Network Star

text: Four of the seasons cast members along with Fieri reunited on Season 10 episode 4 of Guy’s Grocery Games which aired on July 24, 2016.


title: Food Network Star

text: The third season began on June 3, 2007, and the winner was announced on Sunday, July 22. In season 3, judges sent 1 or 2 contestants home weekly. Once the field was down to 2 final contestants, the viewers picked the winner. Marc Summers (host of the first 2 seasons) only returned for this season's finale. Bobby Flay would host subsequent season finales.


title: Food Network Star

text: During the season, the contestants lived in a shared house in New York City. The contestants' challenges included cooking concession food for an NBA game (with guest Darryl Dawkins) to a mini version of Food Network's "Iron Chef America" (with guest judges Bobby Flay and Cat Cora). The Selection Committee consisted of Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson along with one guest. Guest judges included Alton Brown, Giada De Laurentiis, Duff Goldman, season two winner Guy Fieri, and Robert Irvine.


title: Food Network Star

text: Paula Deen and Rachael Ray participated in contestant challenges, and Bobby Flay also played a role in the guidance and selection process. Amy Finley was chosen by America as "The Next Food Network Star" on July 22, 2007. Her new show "The Gourmet Next Door" premiered on October 14, 2007 and ran for six episodes. Finley later declined to continue with the series, citing relocation to France for family reasons.


title: Food Network Star

text: Among the contestants this season was former child actress Colombe Jacobsen-Derstine, best known for her appearances in the Mighty Ducks film franchise.


title: Food Network Star

text: Season four of "The Next Food Network Star" premiered on Sunday, June 1, 2008. Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson are joined by Bobby Flay as the selection committee for this season. Each new episode aired on Sundays at 10:00 PM EDT. For this season, the viewers no longer received the chance to vote for the winner; producers instead made the final decision. This led to an error by FoodNetwork.com, which briefly posted the winning moment video on their website three days before the finale aired. The winner for the fourth season was Aaron McCargo Jr. His winning show idea, "Big Daddy's House", first aired August 3, 2008.


title: Food Network Star

text: Finalist Adam Gertler was hired to host a Food Network show called "Will Work for Food", which debuted on January 19, 2009 and was cancelled after one season. He hosted the Food Network show "Kid in a Candy Store," which aired two seasons.


title: Food Network Star

text: Kelsey Nixon co-hosted a web show on food2.com (a Food Network sister site aka Cooking Channel) and also appeared in the premiere of "Chefs vs. City" in 2009. In 2010, Gertler and Nixon became co-hosts of "The Next Food Network Star After Party", a half-hour recap/interview show following that night's episode of "Star", on Cooking Channel. Nixon stars in "Kelsey's Essentials", a program on kitchen and cooking basics for The Cooking Channel that ran November, 2010–2013.


title: Food Network Star

text: Season five of "The Next Food Network Star" premiered on June 7, 2009. Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson were joined by Bobby Flay as the Selection Committee for this season, which was filmed early 2009 in New York, New York and Miami, Florida. Melissa D'Arabian was declared the winner on August 2, 2009 with the title for her show being "Ten Dollar Dinners". Her show premiered on August 9, 2009.


title: Food Network Star

text: On August 17, 2009, Food Network announced Jeffrey Saad would return in a series of online videos based on his pilot, now called "The Spice Smuggler." The program premiered with four -minute videos featuring one spice and a recipe incorporating it. Saad was named the national representative for the American Egg Board. In November, 2010, Saad debuted in a new show for The Cooking Channel titled "United Tastes of America", which explores multiple aspects of traditional American food.


title: Food Network Star

text: Finalist Debbie Lee has carried her "Seoul to Soul" concept to the streets of L.A., opening a lunch truck, Ahn-Joo, featuring a range of Korean food.


title: Food Network Star

text: The sixth season of the series premiered on Sunday, June 6, 2010. Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson were again joined by Bobby Flay as judges; in addition, Giada De Laurentiis served as an on-set mentor. On July 17, 2010, a post-competition recap and discussion show premiered on The Cooking Channel. Shows were filmed in Los Angeles, California and New York, New York.


title: Food Network Star

text: On August 15, 2010, Aarti Sequeira was declared the winner, and her new show "Aarti Party" premiered on Sunday, August 22, 2010 and features American style cuisine with unique Indian flair. Season 2 of "Aarti Party" premiered that December.


title: Food Network Star

text: The Food Network also signed runner-up Tom Pizzica to host a new show called "Outrageous Food", which premiered in November 2010. The last new episodes of "Aarti Party" aired in mid-2013.


title: Food Network Star

text: For the seventh season, the reality television series was renamed, after the first episode, "Food Network Star", dropping the word "Next". It premiered Sunday, June 5, 2011. Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson were joined again by Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis as the judges for this season. The series was filmed in Los Angeles, California and New York, New York.


title: Food Network Star

text: Season seven winner Jeff Mauro's show "Sandwich King" premiered on Sunday, August 21, 2011. In spring 2013, Jeff hosted "$24 in 24", a show in which he went to several cities and ate an entire day's worth of meals on 24 dollars. Mauro is currently a co-host on "The Kitchen", airing Sunday mornings on Food Network with cohosts Sunny Anderson, Katie Lee and Geoffrey Zakarian.


title: Food Network Star

text: Season 8 started May 13, 2012. For season 8, the format changed, with the contestants divided into three five-member teams, each coached by a Food Network host, either Bobby Flay, Alton Brown, or Giada De Laurentiis. Coaches worked with the teams as they prepared for and completed their tasks. The winner's coach would also be the producer of the winner's show.


title: Food Network Star

text: Each week, a winning team was selected, and one member of the teams that did not win was up for elimination in a new feature called Producers' Challenge. Each challenge was hosted by current Food Network personalities.


title: Food Network Star

text: The final winner was decided by an audience vote cast on foodnetwork.com between July 15–17, 2012 and the winner was announced on July 22, 2012. The winner was Justin Warner, who hosted a one-hour special on The Food Network, but did not have a series produced. He has become a blogger on foodnetwork.com, makes appearances at Food Network events, and is an active Twitter presence.


title: Food Network Star

text: Season 9 started on June 2, 2013. For season 9, Alton Brown, Bobby Flay, and Giada De Laurentiis mentored and judged twelve "Food Network Star" competitors, although the contestants were not divided into teams as in season 8. Many of this season's contestants had previously appeared on other Food Network shows. The winner was Damaris Phillips, decided by an audience vote cast on foodnetwork.com and announced live on August 11, 2013. Phillips hosted the Food Network show Southern at Heart for five seasons from 2013 to 2016. In 2018, she began co-hosting The Bobby and Damaris Show on Food Network with Bobby Flay. Phillips also cohosted "Southern and Hungry" with auto racing analyst Rutledge Wood in 2017.


title: Food Network Star

text: The winner was Lenny McNab, decided by an audience vote cast on foodnetwork.com and announced live on August 10, 2014. It is the last season to date where the finale aired live—all subsequent season finales would be filmed months in advance prior to airing.


title: Food Network Star

text: Beginning with this season, Alton Brown no longer appeared as a judge. The winner was Eddie Jackson, an ex NFL player and MasterChef (American season 4) contestant.


title: Food Network Star

text: Martita Jara originally competed in the eighth season of the series; she returned after winning the pre-season competition "Comeback Kitchen".


title: Food Network Star

text: Matthew Grunwald originally competed in season 11. He returned for a second chance after winning the Comeback Kitchen competition.


title: Food Network Star

text: This season features Manny Washington and Katie Dixon from MasterChef (American season 7) and Palak Patel who beats Bobby Flay. Amy Pottinger originally competed in season 13. She returned for a second chance after winning the Comeback Kitchen competition, along with Adam Gertler, who originally competed in season four.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: Classmates is a 2006 Indian Malayalam-language coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film directed by Lal Jose and written by James Albert. The film stars Prithviraj Sukumaran, Narain, Jayasurya, Indrajith Sukumaran and Kavya Madhavan with Jagathy Sreekumar, Balachandra Menon and Radhika in supporting roles. Alex Paul composed film's music while Rajeev Ravi handled the cinematography. The story revolves around the college graduate class of 1991. In 2006, working in different corners of the world, the friends get together for a class reunion to revive the joy and laughter of their student days. On the night of the reunion, one of the classmates is almost murdered and goes into a coma.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: The film was released on 25 August 2006 to positive reviews from critics and became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of 2006. It is considered by many critics as one of the best campus based films in Malayalam. The film developed a cult following in the years after its release and is frequently referenced in popular Keralite culture. With the release of film, the concept of alumni meetings started trending in Kerala, and schools and colleges started organising such get togethers to help the ex-students keep in touch with each other. The film is now regarded as a classic in Malayalam cinema.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: The film went on to win the Kerala State Film Awards for Best Popular Film (Prakash Damodaran and P. K. Muralidharan) and Best Story (James Albert). It was later remade into Tamil as "Ninaithale Inikkum" starring Prithviraj himself, and in Telugu and Marathi as "Classmates" (2007) and "Classmates" (2015), respectively.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: The film centres on a group of classmates who attended the same Chemistry class in their final year of college. Among them, Murali (Narain) is a singer and P. Sukumaran alias Suku (Prithviraj) is a firebrand leader of the left-winged students union. Pius (Indrajith), a rich and spoiled brat of parents settled in Gulf, is the campus Romeo and Sukumaran's best friend. Suku's rival, Satheesan (Jayasurya), leads the opposite faction of student politics and is aided by his sidekick, Valu Vasu (Vijeesh). Thara Kurup (Kavya Madhavan) is the daughter of the Member of the state Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Muvattupuzha; she is a dancer who regularly wins awards for the college with her performances.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: It was Murali's dream to have a reunion, but he mysteriously dies before the reunion can be organised. His parents, Professor Iyer (Balachandra Menon) and Lakshmi Teacher (Shobha Mohan), both teachers at the college, decide to fulfil their deceased son's dream and bring his classmates together for a reunion. After 15 years, Sukumaran is now a diamond dealer based in Mumbai, a rich and successful businessman earning in crores and is a divorcee. Satheesan is now an MLA, following his dreams to become a minister, while Vasu continues to be his sidekick. Pious is now settled in the Middle East, while Thara, who is still unmarried running a dancing school and has become a dancer.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: The coming together of these classmates is the occasion for them to relive the past and to fulfil Murali's dream. When all are together, Raziya (Radhika) arrives. But during the occasion, Suku attempts suicide but later many of them suspects that it was not a suicide. Pious reveals Suku's flashback to Iyer in the hospital.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: When, Satheeshan finds out that Suku and Thara are in love, he plans everything best to separate them. He made her to stand against Suku on an election in their college. On the day of the voting for the election, Satheeshan steals a letter that Thara wrote for Suku with Vasu's help and he keeps it in the ballet box. Pious sees this. Angrily, Suku and his friends hits Satheeshan and his friends. Due to the fight, the vote counting gets postponed to the next day and the principal calls the police and tells them to stay there. That night, Pious and Suku plans to take Thara's letter from the principal's room. But the plan fails. The next day Thara's letter gets exposed. Satheeshan tells everyone including Thara that Suku misused her letter. Suku loses his mind and hits Satheeshan again and tries to kill him. When he was going to kill him, a girl tells him that Murali is dead in the generator room of the hostel. After Murali's funeral, Suku decides discontinue is studies as he couldn't face the way that Thara was insulted. He goes to Mumbai and meets his neighbour Hameed who introduces him to a diamond dealer named Shantharam. Suku becomes Shantharam's trusted men and he helps Suku to get his mother's illness treated and his sisters married. Shantharam got Suku married to his daughter Ratna who was in love with a criminal. After Shantharam's death, Suku and Ratna got divorced and she went with her boyfriend. Pious reveals that Thara had some motive when she came there. Iyer goes to Thara and tells that she might have met him and to reveal the rest. Thara tells that she came to apologise for her mistakes to Suku. Thara reveals that when her parents discontinued her studies and decided to join a dance institute in Madras, she realised that few of her certificates are with Suku. She goes to Suku's house with Satheeshan to take it. After she takes it and leaves, Suku's mother tells bad about him and curses him. Satheeshan gets emotional when he hears this as she told bad about him not about Suku. Thara gets angry when his mother tells him like that. She thinks he cheated her and his family. Satheeshan then tells her that Suku discontinued his studies because of him and he was the one who put Thara's letter in the ballot box. She gets shocked. Mani Nair who organised her first dance program was in Mumbai was Shantharam's family friend. He told Thara about Suku's marriage and divorce. During the get-together, Thara called Suku to the generator room and they both reconciled. Iyer finds out that Raziya was there in the generator room when there was Suku and Thara. He called Raziya without asking anything and he knew that she had few problems in the college. She took TC from the college and went which he didn't know, but now he realises that it had a link with Suku's and Thara's love. She tells him that she was in love with Murali. Her father finds about their love and discontinued her studies. But she tells Murali to come tonight to the generator room and to take her to their dreams in a letter and keeps it a book in the library. She waited a long time but she didn't see him and she thought that Murali cheated her. The next morning she found him dead in the generator room. She didn't know that he came before her and he died near her. Raziya gets shocked and becomes mad. Looking at her state, her father gets heartbroken and dies. Her relatives abandoned her as she got mad. She was alone in her home. When Iyer, called Raziya for the get-together she was too happy and she thought to recremise the place where she and Murali was. During that time when she saw Suku and Thara reconciling, she felt her lost love. She also hears Suku revealing to Thara that on the day when Suku and Pious went to take Thara's letter, he hides in the generator room and somebody was there. He attacked the person. He thought of making him unconscious with chloroform and he was Satheeshan's goon but later he realises that it was Murali. He felt bad when he killed his friend. Raziya didn't realise that that he killed Murali by accident and she strangles Suku with a string on Murali's guitar as a revenge for ruining her life. Pious calls Iyer and tells that Suku has gained consciousness. Iyer tells Pious that Raziya did it and Suku shouldn't say her name to the police. But the police has already came to Suku's statement. Suku tells that he tried to commit suicide to the police. Suku apologies to Iyer for killing Murali and tells Iyer to kill him as he don't want to live with Raziya's and their curses. Iyer forgives him and tells that the god has given a short life.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: The film was a box office success. It broke many box office records and spawned a whole new genre of college-based films in the Malayalam film industry. The film completed 150 days run in Thiruvananthapuram and 100 days in Kottayam and Ernakulam as well. The film went on to gross and became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time.


title: Classmates (2006 film)

text: "Classmates" has been remade in Tamil as "Ninaithale Inikkum", with Prithviraj playing the lead again. Narain is replaced by Shakthi Vasu and Kavya is replaced by Priyamani. A Telugu remake titled "Classmates", with Sumanth and Sadha playing the lead roles, released in 2007. In 2015 it was remade in Marathi as "Classmates".


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The École Supérieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales (more commonly ESSEC Business School or ESSEC) is a major French business and management school, with non-profit association status (French association law of 1901) founded in 1907 and whose principal campus is located in Cergy. It also has locations in La Défense, Rabat and Singapore, which are used in particular for the ESSEC Global BBA and ESSEC Executive MBA programs.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Founded by Jesuits in response to the creation of HEC Paris, it remained independent of any chamber of commerce and industry for a long time before passing in 1981 under the control of that of Versailles, which became the CCI of Paris Île-de-France in 2013. She is a member of the CY Alliance, formerly Université Paris-Seine.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The ESSEC group delivers numerous training courses in administration and management, in particular through its post-preparatory class course called the “Grande École Program” conferring the master’s degree. It also delivers a "BBA" (Bachelor in Business Administration), specialized masters (SM), a master's degree in business administration (MBA) and doctorates.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Historical rival of HEC Paris and to a lesser extent of ESCP Business School, it forms with the latter the group of “three Parisians”, which designates the three most prestigious business schools in France. ESSEC is also regularly cited among the best business schools in France and in Europe.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The École Supérieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales (ESSEC) was founded in 1907 under the name of "Economic Institute" by Ferdinand Le Pelletier in Paris. Its creation followed the movement of other private business schools created under Catholic guardianship in the early twentieth century such as HEC Nord (which later became EDHEC) by the Catholic Institute of Lille or ESSCA by the Institute Catholic of Angers.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The establishment of Falloux Laws in 1854 allowed the development of religious secondary education. In a complex circumstances, marked by the Dreyfus affair (1895) and the law of separation of Church and State (1905), the Church sought to regain influence, in particular by disseminating its moral values in the economic world and by training a new generation of business leaders. ESSEC became the Catholic Church response to the creation of HEC in the context of struggle of religious congregations, especially between Jesuits against the secular and republican ideology of the state. The goal of the new institution was to "train leaders for a commercial and economic career, which requires competent men, imbued with Christian and human values". The school was located at the École Sainte Geneviève (created by Jesuits in 1854) in the Latin Quarter. The first class had seven students and studies lasted two years. In 1909, an optional third year was introduced.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The course did not stand out for its originality as it was structured around general subjects including law, accounting, languages and techniques. It was through the introduction of Christian moral values that ESSEC could stand out: students attended the apologetics conference every week in the chapel of the École Sainte Geneviève. Technical education (calligraphy, shorthand, drafting of commercial documents) was complemented with scientific education (physics, chemistry, factory visits).


title: ESSEC Business School

text: With the application of the law of separation of State and Church of 1905, the school premises were confiscated in 1913, obliging ESSEC to be absorbed by Catholic Institute of Paris or ICP. As a consequence, the school resources were significantly reduced. For instance, it only had one amphitheater borrowed from ICP and the elementary section was abolished. During this time, the disciplines taught, which remained almost the same until 1960, include: languages, history of trade, commercial geography, political economy, law and accounting. An emphasize was given to language teaching, with 10 hours per week length (4 hours of English and German, 1 hour of Italian and Spanish).


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The school experienced difficulty surviving during the First World War. In 1914, it had only four students in the first year and two in the second year. It temporarily closed doors and only reopened in 1915. The third optional year was dropped and the school did not regain financial stability until 1920 when it welcomed more than 50 students in the first year. In 1923 the students' association was created with a solidarity fund for war widows and orphans. In 1926, the first directory of graduates was published and three years later, the first courses in business ethics were given. By 1930, the number of students increased to 150 people.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Against the crisis of the 1930s, ESSEC had to reduce its tuition fees to attract students who have more preference toward public service or regular law studies. Due to gap year of 1914-1918 and the economic crisis, the situation became even more difficult. The school was forced to accept high school graduates, uncertified examiners, and even freelance auditors who took uncertified courses.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 1932, the Student Office was created and in 1937 the first scholarships were distributed, marking the start of a social assistance policy


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The reform was done under the effort of Camille Donjon from 1939 with the introduction of selection at the school entrance. A preparatory class for the exam was set up in 1941. During this time, ESSEC refused to join the unified system of "écoles de commerce" established by the decree of 3 December 1947 which mentioned that the State now supports the implementation of preparatory classes on the territory.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: As HEC and ESCP joined this system, ESSEC positioned itself as a challenger and kept its own preparatory classes. To level its competition, ESSEC altered its school tenure from two to three years starting from 1947. This situation lasted until 1951, when ESSEC closed its own preparatory classes and opened to candidates of the public preparatory classes. In 1950, the first compulsory internship was set up which last for a period of three months and took place at the end of studies.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 1960, Gilbert Olivier replaced Father Donjon as the dean of ESSEC. His arrival, coupled with developments linked to competition, would sway the Christian identity of the school. He began the transformation by launching a survey for students on the content of courses and the pedagogy. The result showed that only minority of students were satisfied with the teaching. Teaching was judged “Scholarly, serious and lacking in openness”.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Given the results of this survey, a gradual reform was put in place. Technical subjects such as chemistry and physics were abandoned, teaching content adapted to the company demand and the human factor was taken into account with the introduction of courses in sociology and human resources. In 1965, marketing classes was introduced. Method of teaching such as conferences were set up, similar to what HEC Paris and Sciences Po offered. During this time, the school adopted the teaching style of the United States schools. Furthermore, the recruitment was diversified with the introduction of the "Admis on Title" in 1966 which also marked the opening of the school to women. However, preparatory classes not yet being open to them.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Associative life also began in the early 1960s with the creation of the "ESSEC Mardis" in 1961 and the "Junior Enterprise" in 1967. The former is student forum of ESSEC which occasionally invite speakers from French art, sport, politics and economic space every year. It also hosts the debates which led by two students from the association.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The entrance exam was reformatted in 1969 with the elimination of the chemistry and physics test and remodeling of the oral exam which now aimed to test the logical reasoning of the candidates and not only their general knowledge. Psychometric tests and personality interviews were also introduced. Gilbert Olivier also tried to reform the program of preparatory classes to bring them closer to commercial education but gave up due to opposition from HEC and other business schools.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: With the reform in place, the number of students grew and the school was starting to run out of space. The school occupied three amphitheaters at the ICP and later, in 1971, administrative services would be moved to Boulevard Raspail. In 1965 a commission was set up to consider on the possibilities of moving the school location. Projects were planned in Bagneux or Gentilly, which ultimately abandoned. On July 5, 1967, a decision was taken by ESSEC to move to a new site in the town of Cergy-Pontoise where the current campus is located.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: During this time, ESSEC was able to breaking free from the ICP. In 1968, the latter recognized the financial and administrative independence of the school. In 1969, the ESSEC group was founded, consisting of the school, CERESSEC, a Research Center and ISSEC, an institute for executives. ICP, however, retained one third of the seats of the Board of Directors and the appointment of the director of the school must still be approved by the rector of the ICP.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The acceptance of the move to Cergy-Pontoise by the community was polarized. It was less well received by student due to lack of public transportation to the area. Some teachers fueled the controversy, aware that such a move necessarily entails a potential of replacement of faculty members. The new school extended over and included a large amphitheater of 300 seats, eight small amphitheatres with 80 seats equipped with closed circuit television, a computer center, a large language laboratory, a library, a sports hall, a restaurant university and 48 classrooms. Its reception areas (foyers, cafeterias, chapel) were to be available to the public in Cergy. In exchange, the students could lived in housing around the city.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Before 1971, ESSEC relied mainly on executives working in companies as its teaching staff. However, the school started to setting up its permanent faculty. The grants awarded by FNEGE to finance studies of young professors or executives in the United States, who wished to return to teaching to fill the French "management gap", allowed ESSEC to build a pool of qualified teachers. In 1972, out of 20 professors, there were 9 former ESSECs having completed their training in the United States. The arrival of FNEGE Fellows, who had come back from the United States, would stimulate the reform of the curriculum. A common core curriculum was set up in the first year based on fundamentals while a course "à la carte" was introduced from the second year. This format is still in effect today. A minimum duration of 12 months of internship was also introduced. Furthermore. the ESSEC selectivity increased significantly with application numbers grew from 700 candidates in 1960 to 2,800 in 1973.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The decision to move to Cergy without support of public funds resulted in heavy debt to the Caisse d'Epargne and ANFESP (National Association for the Financing of Private School Equipment), the Council General of Val d'Oise. This resulted in obligation to repay an amount up to 4-5 million francs a year. These financial expenses represented 11.7% of the ESSEC budget in 1975 (compared to 5% for INSEAD). The operating budget exploded from 6 million francs in 1972 to 28 million in 1979. Tuition fees increased to one point it doubled that of HEC. In 1979, the financial crisis erupted, exacerbated by an environment of high interest rates and an economic slowdown related to the oil shock. Ultimately, the school hit a deficit of 10.4 million francs during this year. The apprenticeship tax, introduction of continuing education and the donation of student's parents were used as sources of funding. The consideration of the nationalization of ESSEC and possible attachment to the larger university were put on the table, with those ideas coming within the field of possibilities with the election of François Mitterrand to the presidency of the Republic.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Gilbert Olivier strongly opposed to the plan, seeing it as a failure of the initial project of the school to emancipate itself from the higher education system. Financial condition ultimately improved permitting the school to operate without taking such decisions. The rescue was made possible by the Versailles Chamber of Commerce, which injected 10 million francs to cover the deficit of ESSEC, bought 51% of ESSEC's ownership for 12 million francs and committed to pay an annual subsidy of 6 millions of francs from 1982 to 1989. In exchange, ESSEC retained its legal autonomy (and did not become a service of the chamber like the case of HEC Paris and ESCP with the Paris Chamber of Commerce) but had a governance system with a management board and supervisory board. This intrusion of a supervision as well as the absence of representation of the students and the professors in the general assembly triggered strikes and the launching of petitions against the plan. The agreement was finally signed on April 6, 1981. The fear of control of the school and its pedagogy would ultimately prove to be unfounded.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 1999, the school decided to change the name of its Grande Ecole program to be an MBA (Master in Business Administration), an Anglo-Saxon standard normally reserved for executives who already have many years of experience. ESSEC intended to highlight its accreditation from the AACSB (American accreditation body) and the mandatory 18 months of internships of its students. The move was followed by other business schools, such as ICN Nancy and ESC Grenoble. ESSEC then reviewed its international agreements to bring the program to the MBA or Master level.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The repositioning of the program was heavily criticized by HEC Paris, EM Lyon and University Paris-Dauphine, so much so that Ali Laïdi in his book Secrets of the economic war (2004) said that HEC Paris would have mounted a destabilization operation toward ESSEC by attacking its MBA position. The case led to an opening of investigation and resolution by the Paris Chamber of Commerce.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 2005, ESSEC expanded its campus with the inauguration of the Nautile building and further, in 2007, with the multipurpose room, the Dome (of which has 2,700 people capacity) and the Galion. The buildings were designed by Marc Seifert, son of Ivan Seifert who designed the original campus in 1973. In 2008, the library was expanded. Renovation of the restaurant area followed the following year.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In March 2006, ESSEC Business School inaugurated its new campus in Singapore within the National Library, the ESSEC Asian Center.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 2010, ESSEC presented its strategic plan for 2010–2015. The program portfolio was repositioned: the EPSCI (post-baccalaureate program) became the bachelor of ESSEC, the name of MBA was abandoned and replaced with MSc in Management. The group's communication was unified under the name ESSEC Business School. A fundraising strategy of 150 million euros was announced. The school also aimed to be one of the 20 best Business Schools in the world, to join the 10 best schools in Asia and to make into top 5 in Europe. The abandonment of the name of MBA from its Grand Ecole program was a strategy pushback for the school. As the result, this program did not appear in the Financial Times ranking of Masters in Management since its creation in 2005 nor in the MBA because of its hybrid nature. The dean of the time, Pierre Tapie, however, did not regret this decision, because he believed that the school had gained reputation. In fact, in 2007, the Wall Street Journal ranked ESSEC Grande École program 7th in the world, ahead of HEC and INSEAD.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: During this time, the school expanded its double-degree agreements with Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad in 2006, Centrale Paris, University of Keio in 2009, École du Louvre, ENSAE and Saint-Cyr in 2010, ENS in 2011, University of Queensland, three South Korean institutions in 2014 and Bocconi University in 2015.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 2014, Jean-Michel Blanquer, the new dean of the school, announced the strategic plan "ESSEC 3I 2020" (Internationalisation, Innovation and Involvement). The internationalization went through, a new ESSEC Asia-Pacific campus was established, which opened in 2015, an ESSEC Africa campus was opened in 2017, collaboration through a strategic alliance with CentraleSupélec and involvement of students to create their own courses and mentorship program, among other things. The school also launched its first MOOCs, inaugurated its startup incubator, and established an experimental research laboratory, K-Lab.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC Business School is a "grande école", a French institution of higher education that is separate from, but parallel and often connected to, the main framework of the French public university system. "Grandes écoles" are elite academic institutions that admit students through an extremely competitive process, and a significant proportion of their graduates occupy the highest levels of French society. Similar to Ivy League schools in the United States, Oxbridge in the UK, and C9 League in China, graduation from a grande école is considered the prerequisite credential for any top government, administrative and corporate position in France.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The degrees are accredited by the "Conférence des Grandes Écoles" and awarded by the Ministry of National Education (France). Higher education business degrees in France are organized into three levels thus facilitating international mobility: the "Licence" / Bachelor's degrees, and the Master's and Doctorat degrees. The Bachelors and the Masters are organized in semesters: 6 for the Bachelors and 4 for the Masters. Those levels of study include various "parcours" or paths based on UE (Unités d'enseignement or Modules), each worth a defined number of European credits (ECTS). A student accumulates those credits, which are generally transferable between paths. A Bachelors is awarded once 180 ECTS have been obtained (bac + 3); a Masters is awarded once 120 additional credits have been obtained (bac +5). The highly coveted PGE (Grand Ecole Program) ends with the degree of Master's in Management (MiM)


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The School is made up of eight research departments in different fields of human sciences: Accounting and Management Control; Business Law and Environment; Economy; Finance; Management; Operations management; Marketing; Information Systems, Decision Sciences and Statistics.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The ESSEC research center or "Centre de recherche ESSEC business school" (CERESSEC) was created in 1969. Supervised by AERES since 2013, the research focus is around a scientific area in partnership with the Ministry of Higher Education and Research.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: According to the HCERES report issued on May 13, 2019, CERESSEC is "a leading research laboratory at national and international level, it is a leading French center in the field of management and related disciplines." It supports the school's influence in national and international rankings. The research center brings together 165 professors, on two sites in Cergy and Singapore. The professors work on nine research themes: Accounting and management control; Economy; Finance; Information system ; Law, Negotiation and Consultation; Management; Marketing; Management of Operations; Statistics.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC Iréné is the Institute for Research and Education on Negotiation in Europe created in 1996. The research focus is in several topics related to negotiation, mediation, stakeholders dialogue, and conflict resolution. The stakeholder involved in the research include academics, senior civil servants, elected representatives, managers and employees of businesses, trade unionists, social mediators.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: This institute is an interdisciplinary research platform which focus on the study of human behavior in a controlled environment. The study is mainly conducted in the fields such as behavioral marketing, behavioral management, behavioral and experimental economics.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC is a nonprofit organization. Its management consists of a Director General (School Dean), assisted by its executive committee, made up in particular of the deans of programs, professors and research body. They reports to the board, which administers the association, and which is made up of two representatives of the Paris Ile-de-France CCI, a representative of the alumni association, and two qualified professionals.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The supervisory board is made up of twenty-eight members, six representatives of the Paris Ile-de-France CCI, two members of the Institut Catholique de Paris, five former students, one member of the Confederation of SMEs, four students, five professors including the dean of the professors, two members of the administrative staff of the school, and three qualified professionals.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The general assembly is the guarantor of the stability of the statutes of the association, and it is composed of the president of the CCI of Paris Île-de-France, a representative of the association of graduates, a representative of the Confederation of SMEs, the dean of professors, and the rector of the Catholic Institute of Paris (ICP).


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC has 4 campuses: Cergy, Singapore, La Défense and Rabat. An Africa-Indian Ocean campus project in Mauritius was announced in 2016 but was canceled in 2017.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The main ESSEC campus is located in Cergy. Inaugurated in 1973, the site is located in the city and open to the public, mixing students and inhabitants in the area.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: In 2007, two new buildings were constructed: the Dome and the Galion, both significantly increased area of the Cergy campus. The Dome, which acts as a multipurpose room, can accommodate up to 2,700 people. It is used for business forums (Career Fairs), conferences, exam site and cultural and social activities. The Galion is an administrative and educational building. It houses 54 offices and meeting rooms, 8 amphitheaters, and 12 classrooms as well as open work spaces.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: At the end of 2018, the Campus 2020 project was announced, which intends to modernize the Cergy campus by 2023, for a total cost of 35 million euros (private and public funding). Among the main lines of this project are the construction of a sports center of nearly 2,000 m2, the redevelopment of the old gymnasium and the existing administrative building into spaces intended for research activities.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC has had premises in the CNIT in La Défense since 1989, mainly used for continuing education and the MBA.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The ESSEC Asia-Pacific campus in Singapore was announced in October 2012 by Pierre Tapie shortly before his departure. The new campus was inaugurated in May 2015 by Jean-Michel Blanquer. ESSEC has already been present in Asia since 1980 with a permanent office in Japan and in Singapore since 2005 through the ESSEC Asian Centre located in the National Library Building. After considering among Tokyo, Shanghai and Singapore, the school finally chose the latter in 2005, in particular for its position as a gateway to Asia.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Located in Nepal Hill, the campus spans five levels, 6,500 m2, can accommodate 1,500 students per year and cost 24 million euros, fully funded by ESSEC. It was designed by Singaporean architect, Dr. Liu Thai Ker (former architect planning Singapore).


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The creation of this campus was announced in November 2015 by Jean-Michel Blanquer and was inaugurated in April 2017. Morocco was chosen for the already effective presence of ESSEC's partner CentraleSupélec, its proximity to France and the large number of Moroccan alumni.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: Located 15 km from Rabat, the campus covers 6,000 m2 and has a capacity of 480 students. The campus is located right in the Casablanca - Rabat - Kenitra axis.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The campus was built specifically for ESSEC by the Addoha real estate group to which the school pays rent (proportional to the number of students hosted during the first three years, then €360,000 / year beyond), with the possibility of to buy back the premises after nine years.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The undergraduate program was initially created in 1975 by ESSEC Group to prepare students to meet the needs of French firms launching operations on the international market. It was formerly known as EPSCI, ""École des Practiciens du Commerce International"", and is now referred to as "ESSEC Global BBA".


title: ESSEC Business School

text: The Global BBA lasts for four years and is designed for candidates graduated from high school (in France "Baccalauréat").


title: ESSEC Business School

text: At the end of the program, each student will have completed a minimum of 12 months of coursework abroad (each student will do two exchange programs abroad), a one-month humanitarian project and between 11 and 18 months of professional experience, which may also take place abroad.


title: ESSEC Business School

text: ESSEC's postgraduate programme is its Master of Science in management, designed for students with no professional experience (instead of managers with 3–5 years of experience like US MBA programs). It is the flagship program of the school.