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The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) issued a negative economic outlook for the major industrialized economies, but noted that growth in emerging economies remains strong. Separately, emerging markets guru Mark Mobius told investors where specifically they could grab on to that growth.
Chief economist Pier Carlo Padoan likely surprised no one with the OECD's assessment that "growth is turning out to be much slower than we thought three months ago, and the risk of hitting patches of negative growth going forward has gone up." The Paris-based forum of democratic, market economies says that economic growth among G7 economies excluding Japan should remain at less than 1% in the second half of the year. On the bright side, "inflation may have peaked in emerging markets," where the OECD suggests monetary authorities might usefully lower interest rates.
Meanwhile, Franklin-Templeton Chairman Mark Mobius, in an interview on Yahoo Finance's Breakout, explained why the disparate growth trajectories of world economies matter. "There is a direct relationship between economic growth and the profitability of companies. The economic growth will be reflected in earnings of companies and then in turn reflected in the price of stocks."
Mobius specified the countries he views as having the most favorable prospects currently. In Asia, he favors Thailand and Indonesia, two countries seeing expanded consumer markets. "The money that was concentrated in Bangkok and concentrated among the elite of that society is now being spread into the countryside," he said. He added that authorities in Indonesia "are working very hard to wipe out the corruption throughout the countryside. That of course puts a lot more power into the hands of the lower-income population."
In Europe, Mobius sees opportunity in Poland, Romania, Russia and Turkey. In contrast to the stagnation in Western Europe, Mobius says that Romania and Russia are accelerating reforms that should pay off over the next two to four years. In Latin America, Colombia and Chile are the most interesting countries today. Mobius is heavily in Brazil, which he says "has everything going for it" except for an overly valued real right now.
While he views the two emerging market powerhouses, China and India, as overvalued right now, Mobius remains heavily invested and expects good five-year results, explaining the emerging markets value proposition with simple math. These economies are growing at 7% to 9% annual growth rates while their populations are increasing at 1% annually. This means their per capita growth is increasingly rapidly.
The OECD, in its most recent forecast, expects 9.2% annual growth for China and 8.6% growth for India in 2012, both slightly up from their 2011 growth rates.
While the OECD believes inflation may have peaked in emerging markets, Mobius believes peak inflation is within view but not yet achieved in the world's largest emerging market. A key policy tool besides interest rates is … pork. Writing on his blog Wednesday, Mobius explains:
"We believe that inflation in China could reach a peak in the near future as a result of the Chinese government's decision in July to increase pork supply by releasing a portion of their strategic pork reserves. By releasing more pork supply into the market, the government hopes to combat rising pork prices. That move, combined with an easing growth rate, could subsequently lead to the end of the central bank's current tightening monetary policy cycle in the near term."
In agreement with the OECD, Mobius adds: "Other emerging markets such as South Korea and Turkey have either stopped raising interest rates or even cut rates as a result of the global turmoil despite inflationary pressures. We may see this trend in China going forward."


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- Drama, History, Mystery
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As a war looms and home-grown fascists march in the streets of New York, a naive, orphaned teenager moves into her cousin's rooming house, whose tenants include a mysterious man in the German American Bund.
Penny Gallagher, a farm girl scarred by a horrible personal tragedy, arrives in Manhattan just as America's Melting Pot and freedom of expression laws go into convulsion. While overheated patriotism and ethnic pride tear at the national fabric, she must choose between following her simple, youthful trust in people versus acting on the ominous threat growing all around her.
If you'd like to view the script/synopsis for this sequel-spawner (Penny becomes a sort of Nancy Drew character by the end), which is only a slightly fictionalized account of this dark, under-reported era in history and even has surprising analogies to our contemporary world, I look forward to sending the PDF(s) to your attention. (Also available as Pilot + Episode One)
Producers: Please contact the author for the PDFs, or preview at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008AD4QT0
Want to read this script? You must join the revolution first. Don't worry, it's free, easy, everyone's welcome, and you can start reading right away.
The Writer: Steve Garry
I wrote my first screenplay in 2008, at the age of 52. It was a surprise, yet predicable too, for composition was my favorite subject in my earliest years of elementary school. But somewhere between the ages of 10 and 52, I must have felt that writing wasn't a serious or possibly an attainable career. My writing methodology is unique because I use many of the same skills I used for decades as a software programmer. The stories must be both "logical" and "bug free". Oh, and hopefully, thought-provoking, entertaining, suspenseful, or humorous, often in the same script, with captivating characters and story lines, especially given the complex themes I often take on in my work. From satire to... Go to bio
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Lawyer: William Archer
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Career Pharmaceutical Pharmaceutical And Medicine Manufacturing Microbiologist
Microbiologist Jobs
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Employment | Training | Other Qualifications
Advancement | Job Outlook | Earnings | Related Occupations
Sources of Additional Information
- This industry ranks among the fastest growing manufacturing industries.
- More than 6 out of 10 workers have a bachelor's, master's, professional, or Ph.D. degree—twice the proportion for all industries combined.
- Fifty-nine percent of all jobs are in large establishments employing more than 500 workers.
- Earnings are much higher than in other manufacturing industries.
Nature of the Work
The pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry has produced a variety of medicinal and other health-related products undreamed of by even the most imaginative apothecaries of the past. These drugs save the lives of millions of people from various diseases and permit many ill people to lead normal lives.
Thousands of medications are available today for diagnostic, preventive, and therapeutic uses. In addition to aiding in the treatment of infectious diseases such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, malaria, influenza, and sexually transmitted diseases, these medicines also help prevent and treat cardiovascular disease, asthma, diabetes, hepatitis, cystic fibrosis, and cancer. For example, antinausea drugs help cancer patients endure chemotherapy; clot-buster drugs help stroke patients avoid brain damage; and psychoactive drugs reduce the severity of mental illness for many people. Antibiotics and vaccines have virtually wiped out such diseases as diphtheria, syphilis, and whooping cough. Discoveries in veterinary drugs have controlled various diseases, some of which are transmissible to humans.
Advances in biotechnology and information technology are transforming drug discovery and development. Within biotechnology, scientists have learned a great deal about human genes, but the real work—translating that knowledge into viable new drugs—has only recently begun. So far, millions of people have benefited from medicines and vaccines developed through biotechnology, and several hundred new biotechnologically-derived medicines are currently in the pipeline. These new medicines, all of which are in human clinical trials or awaiting FDA approval, include drugs for cancer, infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, neurologic disorders, and HIV/AIDS and related conditions.
Many new drugs are expected to be developed in the coming years. Advances in technology and the knowledge of how cells work will allow pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing makers to become more efficient in the drug discovery process. New technology allows life scientists to test millions of drug candidates far more rapidly than in the past. Other new technology, such as regenerative therapy using stem cell research, also will allow the natural healing process to work faster, or to enable the regrowth of missing or damaged tissue.
There is a direct relationship between gene discovery and identification of new drugs—the more genes identified, the more paths available for drug discovery. Discovery of new genes also can lead to new diagnostics for the early detection of disease. Among other uses, new genetic technology is being explored to develop vaccines to prevent or treat diseases that have eluded traditional vaccines, such as AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and cervical cancer.
The pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry consists of about 2,500 places of employment, located throughout the country. These include establishments that make pharmaceutical preparations or finished drugs; biological products, such as serums and vaccines; bulk chemicals and botanicals used in making finished drugs; and diagnostic substances such as pregnancy and blood glucose kits.
The U.S. pharmaceutical industry has achieved worldwide prominence through research and development (R&D) work on new drugs, and spends a relatively high proportion of its funds on R&D compared with other industries. Each year, pharmaceutical industry testing involves tens of thousands of new substances, yet may eventually yield fewer than 100 new prescription medicines.
For the majority of firms in this industry, the actual manufacture of drugs is the last stage in a lengthy process that begins with scientific research to discover new products and to improve or modify existing ones. The R&D departments in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing firms start this process by seeking and rapidly testing libraries of thousands to millions of new chemical compounds with the potential to prevent, combat, or alleviate symptoms of diseases or other health problems. Scientists use sophisticated techniques, including computer simulation, combinatorial chemistry, and high-through-put screening (HTS), to hasten and simplify the discovery of potentially useful new compounds.
Most firms devote a substantial portion of their R&D budgets to applied research, using scientific knowledge to develop a drug targeted to a specific use. For example, an R&D unit may focus on developing a compound that will effectively slow the advance of breast cancer. If the discovery phase yields promising compounds, technical teams then attempt to develop a safe and effective product based on the discoveries.
To test new products in development, a research method called "screening" is used. To screen an antibiotic, for example, a sample is first placed in a bacterial culture. If the antibiotic is effective, it is next tested on infected laboratory animals. Laboratory animals also are used to study the safety and efficacy of the new drug. A new drug is selected for testing on humans only if it promises to have therapeutic advantages over drugs already in use, or is safer. Drug screening is an incredibly risky, laborious, and costly process—only 1 in every 5,000 to 10,000 compounds screened eventually becomes an approved drug.
After laboratory screening, firms conduct clinical investigations, or "trials," of the drug on human patients. Human clinical trials normally take place in three phases. First, medical scientists administer the drug to a small group of healthy volunteers to determine and adjust dosage levels, and monitor for side effects. If a drug appears useful and safe, additional tests are conducted in two more phases, each phase using a successively larger group of volunteers or carefully selected patients, sometimes upwards of 10,000 individuals.
After a drug successfully passes animal and clinical tests, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) must review the drug's performance on human patients before approving the substance for commercial use. The entire process, from the first discovery of a promising new compound to FDA approval, can take over a decade and cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
After FDA approval, problems of production methods and costs must be worked out before manufacturing begins. If the original laboratory process of preparing and compounding the ingredients is complex and too expensive, pharmacists, chemists, chemical engineers, packaging engineers, and production specialists are assigned to develop a manufacturing process economically adaptable to mass production. After the drug is marketed, new production methods may be developed to incorporate new technology or to transfer the manufacturing operation to a new production site.
In many production operations, pharmaceutical manufacturers have developed a high degree of automation. Milling and micronizing machines, which pulverize substances into extremely fine particles, are used to reduce bulk chemicals to the required size. These finished chemicals are combined and processed further in mixing machines. The mixed ingredients may then be mechanically capsulated, pressed into tablets, or made into solutions. One type of machine, for example, automatically fills, seals, and stamps capsules. Other machines fill bottles with capsules, tablets, or liquids, and seal, label, and package the bottles.
Quality control and quality assurance are vital in this industry. Many production workers are assigned full time to quality control and quality assurance functions, whereas other employees may devote part of their time to these functions. For example, although pharmaceutical company sales representatives, often called detailers, work primarily in marketing, they engage in quality control when they assist pharmacists in checking for outdated products.
Working Conditions
Working conditions in pharmaceutical plants are better than those in most other manufacturing plants. Much emphasis is placed on keeping equipment and work areas clean because of the danger of contamination. Plants usually are air-conditioned, well lighted, and quiet. Ventilation systems protect workers from dust, fumes, and disagreeable odors. Special precautions are taken to protect the relatively small number of employees who work with infectious cultures and poisonous chemicals. With the exception of work performed by material handlers and maintenance workers, most jobs require little physical effort. In 2003, the incidence of work-related injury and illness was 2.8 cases per 100 full-time workers, compared with 6.8 per 100 for all manufacturing industries and 5.0 per 100 for the entire private sector.
Only about 3 percent of the workers in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry are union members or are covered by a union contract, compared with about 14 percent of workers throughout private industry.
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing provided 291,000 wage and salary jobs in 2004. Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing establishments typically employ many workers. Nearly 60 percent of this industry's jobs in 2004 were in establishments that employed more than 500 workers (Chart 1). Most jobs are in California, Illinois, Texas, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.
Under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), workers in research and development (R&D) establishments that are not part of a manufacturing facility are included in a separate industry—research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences. However, due to the importance of R&D work to the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry, drug-related R&D is discussed in this statement even though a large proportion of pharmaceutical industry-related R&D workers are not included in the employment data.
Training requirements for jobs in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry range from a few hours of on-the-job training to years of formal education plus job experience. More than 6 out of 10 of all workers have a bachelor's, master's, professional, or Ph.D. degree—more than twice the proportion for all industries combined. The industry places a heavy emphasis on continuing education for employees, and many firms provide classroom training in safety, environmental and quality control, and technological advances.
For production occupations, manufacturers usually hire inexperienced workers and train them on the job; high school graduates generally are preferred. Beginners in production jobs assist experienced workers and learn to operate processing equipment. With experience, employees may advance to more skilled jobs in their departments.
Many companies encourage production workers to take courses related to their jobs at local schools and technical institutes or to enroll in correspondence courses. College courses in chemistry and related areas are particularly encouraged for highly skilled production workers who operate sophisticated equipment. Some companies reimburse workers for part, or all, of their tuition. Skilled production workers with leadership ability may advance to supervisory positions.
For science technician jobs in this industry, most companies prefer to hire graduates of technical institutes or junior colleges or those who have completed college courses in chemistry, biology, mathematics, or engineering. Some companies, however, require science technicians to hold a bachelor's degree in a biological or chemical science. In many firms, newly hired workers begin as laboratory helpers or aides, performing routine jobs such as cleaning and arranging bottles, test tubes, and other equipment.
The experience required for higher level technician jobs varies from company to company. Usually, employees advance over a number of years from assistant technician, to technician, to senior technician, and then to technical associate, or supervisory technician.
For most scientific and engineering jobs, a bachelor of science degree is the minimum requirement. Scientists involved in research and development usually have a master's or doctoral degree. A doctoral degree is generally the minimum requirement for medical scientists, and those who administer drug or gene therapy to patients in clinical trials must have a medical degree. Because biotechnology is not one discipline, but the interaction of several disciplines, the best preparation for work in biotechnology is training in a traditional biological science, such as genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, virology, or biochemical engineering. Individuals with a scientific background and several years of industrial experience may eventually advance to managerial positions. Some companies offer training programs to help scientists and engineers keep abreast of new developments in their fields and to develop administrative skills. These programs may include meetings and seminars with consultants from various fields. Many companies encourage scientists and engineers to further their education; some companies provide financial assistance or full reimbursement of expenses for this purpose. Publication of scientific papers also is encouraged.
Pharmaceutical manufacturing companies prefer to hire college graduates, particularly those with strong scientific backgrounds. In addition to a 4-year degree, most newly employed pharmaceutical sales representatives complete rigorous formal training programs revolving around their company's product lines.
Job Outlook
The number of wage and salary jobs in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing is expected to increase by about 26 percent over the 2004-14 period, compared with 14 percent for all industries combined. Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing ranks among the fastest growing manufacturing industries. Demand for this industry's products is expected to remain strong. Even during fluctuating economic conditions, there will be a market for over-the-counter and prescription drugs, including the diagnostics used in hospitals, laboratories, and homes; the vaccines used routinely on infants and children; analgesics and other symptom-easing drugs; antibiotics and other drugs for life-threatening diseases; and "lifestyle" drugs for the treatment of nonlife-threatening conditions.
Although the use of drugs, particularly antibiotics and vaccines, has helped to eradicate or limit a number of deadly diseases, many others, such as cancer, Alzheimer's, and heart disease, continue to elude cures. Ongoing research and the manufacture of new products to combat these diseases will continue to contribute to employment growth.
Because so many of the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry's products are related to preventive or routine healthcare, rather than just illness, demand is expected to increase as the population expands. The growing number of older people who will require more healthcare services will further stimulate demand—along with the growth of both public and private health insurance programs, which increasingly cover the cost of drugs and medicines.
Another factor propelling demand is the increasing popularity of "lifestyle" drugs that treat symptoms of chronic nonlife-threatening conditions resulting from aging or genetic predisposition, and can enhance one's self-confidence or physical appearance. Other factors expected to increase the demand for drugs include greater personal income and the rising health consciousness and expectations of the general public.
Despite the increasing demand for drugs, drug producers and buyers are expected to place more emphasis on cost effectiveness, due to concerns about the cost of healthcare, including prescription drugs. Growing competition from the producers of generic drugs also may exert cost pressures on many firms in this industry, particularly as brand-name drug patents expire. In addition, the average time for the FDA to review "nonpriority" drug applications is becoming longer, further delaying the time a drug comes to market. These factors, combined with continuing improvements in manufacturing processes, are expected to result in slower employment growth over the 2004-14 period than occurred during the previous 10-year period.
Strong demand is anticipated for professional occupations—especially for life and physical scientists engaged in R&D, the backbone of the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry. Much of the basic biological research done in recent years has resulted in new knowledge, including the successful identification of genes. Life and physical scientists will be needed to take this knowledge to the next stage, which is to understand how certain genes function so that gene therapies can be developed to treat diseases. Computer specialists such as systems analysts, biostatisticians, and computer support specialists also will be in demand as disciplines such as biology, chemistry, and electronics continue to converge and become more interdisciplinary, creating demand in rapidly emerging fields such as bioinformatics and nanotechnology. Strong demand also is projected for production occupations. Employment of office and administrative support workers is expected to grow more slowly than the industry as a whole, as companies streamline operations and increasingly rely on computers. In an effort to curb research and technological development costs, many companies have merged. As companies consolidate and grow in size, so do their marketing and sales departments. Despite substantial increases over the past decade, sales forces at pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing firms should continue to experience strong growth as companies promote and sell their products to doctors at hospitals and private clinics.
Unlike many other manufacturing industries, the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry is not highly sensitive to changes in economic conditions. Even during periods of high unemployment, work is likely to be relatively stable in this industry.
Earnings of workers in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry are higher than the average for all manufacturing industries. In May 2004, production or nonsupervisory workers in this industry averaged $892 a week, while those in all manufacturing industries averaged $659 a week. Earnings in selected occupations in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing appear in Table 2.
Some employees work in plants that operate around the clock—three shifts a day, 7 days a week. In most plants, workers receive extra pay when assigned to the second or third shift. Because drug production is subject to little seasonal variation, work is steady.
Related Occupations
About 29 percent of all jobs in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry are in professional and related occupations, mostly scientists and science technicians, about 18 percent are in management occupations, another 12 percent are in office and administrative support, and 3 percent are in sales and related occupations. About 1 out of 4 jobs in the industry are in production occupations, including both low skilled and high skilled jobs (Table 1).
Scientists, engineers, and technicians conduct research to develop new drugs. Others work to streamline production methods and improve environmental and quality control. Life scientists are among the largest scientific occupations in this industry. Most of these scientists are biological and medical scientists who produce new drugs using biotechnology to recombine the genetic material of animals or plants. Biological scientists normally specialize in a particular area. Biologists and bacteriologists study the effect of chemical agents on infected animals. Biochemists study the action of drugs on body processes by analyzing the chemical combination and reactions involved in metabolism, reproduction, and heredity. Microbiologists grow strains of microorganisms that produce antibiotics. Physiologists investigate the effect of drugs on body functions and vital processes. Pharmacologists and zoologists study the effects of drugs on animals. Virologists grow viruses, and develop vaccines and test them in animals. Botanists, with their special knowledge of plant life, contribute to the discovery of botanical ingredients for drugs. Other Biological scientistsinclude pathologists, who study normal and abnormal cells or tissues, and toxicologists, who are concerned with safety, dosage levels, and the compatibility of different drugs. medical scientists, who also may be physicians, conduct clinical research, test products, and oversee human clinical trials.
The work of physical scientists, particularly chemists, also is important in the development of new drugs. Combinatorial and computational chemists create molecules and test them rapidly for desirable properties. Organic chemists, often using combinatorial chemistry, then combine new compounds for biological testing. Physical chemists separate and identify substances, determine molecular structure, help create new compounds, and improve manufacturing processes. Radiochemists trace the course of drugs through body organs and tissues. Pharmaceutical chemists set standards and specifications for the form of products and for storage conditions; they also see that drug labeling and literature meet the requirements of State and Federal laws. Analytical chemists test raw and intermediate materials and finished products for quality.
Science technicians, such as biological and chemical technicians, play an important part in research and development of new medicines. They set up, operate, and maintain laboratory equipment, monitor experiments, analyze data, and record and interpret results. science technicians usually work under the supervision of scientists or engineers.
Although engineers account for a small fraction of scientific and technical workers, they make significant contributions toward improving quality control and production efficiency. Chemical engineers design equipment and devise manufacturing processes. Bioprocess engineers, who are similar to chemical engineers, design fermentation vats and various bioreactors for microorganisms that will produce a given product. Industrial engineers plan equipment layout and workflow to maintain efficient use of plant facilities.
At the top of the managerial group are executives who make policy decisions concerning matters of finance, marketing, and research. Other managerial workers include natural sciences managers and industrial production managers.
Office and administrative support employees include secretaries and administrative assistants, general office clerks, and others who keep records on personnel, payroll, raw materials, sales, and shipments.
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, describe their company's products to physicians, pharmacists, dentists, and health services administrators. These sales representatives serve as lines of communication between their companies and clients.
Most plant workers fall into 1 of 2 occupational groups: Production workers who operate drug-producing equipment, inspect products, and install, maintain, and repair production equipment; and transportation and material moving workers who package and transport the drugs.
Workers among the larger of the production occupations, assemblers and fabricators, perform all of the assembly tasks assigned to their teams, rotating through the different tasks rather than specializing in a single task. They also may decide how the work is to be assigned and how different tasks are to be performed.
Other production workers specialize in one part of the production process. Chemical processing machine setters, operators, and tenders, such as pharmaceutical operators, control machines that produce tablets, capsules, ointments, and medical solutions. Included among these operators are mixing and blending machine setters, operators, and tenders, who tend milling and grinding machines that reduce mixtures to particles of designated sizes. Extruding, forming, pressing, and compacting machine setters, operators, and tenders tend tanks and kettles in which solutions are mixed and compounded to make up creams, ointments, liquid medications, and powders. Crushing, grinding, polishing, mixing, and blending workers operate machines that compress ingredients into tablets. Coating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders, often called capsule coaters, control a battery of machines that apply coatings that flavor, color, preserve, or add medication to tablets, or control disintegration time. Throughout the production process, inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers ensure consistency and quality. For example, ampoule examiners inspect ampoules for discoloration, foreign particles, and flaws in the glass.Tablet testers inspect tablets for hardness, chipping, and weight to assure conformity with specifications. After the drug is prepared and inspected, it is bottled or otherwise packaged by packaging and filling machine operators and tenders.
Plant workers who do not operate or maintain equipment perform a variety of other tasks. Some drive industrial trucks or tractors to move materials around the plant, load and unload trucks and railroad cars, or package products and materials by hand.
Sources of Additional Information
For additional information about careers in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing and the industry in general, write to the personnel departments of individual pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing companies.
For information about careers in biotechnology, contact:
Biotechnology Industry Organization, 1625 K St. NW., Suite 1100, Washington, DC 20006. Internet: http://www.bio.org
For information on careers in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing, contact:
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PHRMA), 1100 15th St. NW., Washington, DC 20005. Internet: http://www.phrma.org
Information on these key pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing occupations may be found in the 2006-07 edition of the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- Assemblers and fabricators
- Biological scientists
- Computer scientists and database administrators
- Computer support specialists and systems administrators
- Computer systems analysts
- Chemists and material scientists
- Engineers
- Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers
- Medical scientists
- Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing
- Science technicians
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Career Guide to Industries, 2006-07 Edition, Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs009.htm (visited July 20, 2006).
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CONCORD, N.C. – The National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel unanimously upheld the penalties Wednesday to the Penske Racing teams of Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano.
Team owner Roger Penske said he would appeal the ruling to National Stock Car Racing Chief Appellate Officer John Middlebrook.
"Obviously a disappointing outcome with the panel," Penske said. "It was a good process. We have a good case. I can't make any further comments. It's clear we have a process and I'm better off to wait to see that conclude. All I can say about the process is it's fair and equitable. We had an opportunity to explain our case in detail. We will move onto the next step."
NASCAR issued the penalties after the April 13 race at Texas Motor Speedway, where officials confiscated parts from the rear suspensions of the Fords of Logano and Keselowski after the cars failed a prerace inspection.
The appeals panel of Pocono Raceway president Brandon Igdalsky, former NASCAR senior vice president Paul Brooks and Bowman-Gray Stadium operator Dale Pinilis took about five hours to hear arguments from both sides and deliberate on the decision. The three-person panel was chosen from a list of 49 eligible members.
"We take our inspection process very seriously," NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said. "We believe we do a strong and credible job with it. The level playing field in the garage we believe is the best it's ever been. As the sanctioning body, we have to uphold the rules and regulations in the rulebook. The inspection process we believe in very strongly."
MORE DEFINITION: NASCAR needs to clarify cheating
DEBATE: Penske penalties stir accusations, denials
Tharp said the panel, which consisted of those with administrative and operational backgrounds in the NASCAR industry and included no garage experts, was chosen based on availability.
Sprint Cup director John Darby presented NASCAR's side.
Penske attended the hearing with chief lieutenants Walt Czarnecki (vice president of Penske Corp.) and Tim Cindric (Penske Racing president). Competition director Travis Geisler and crew chiefs Paul Wolfe (Keselowski) and Todd Gordon (Logano) also were present.
Geisler, Wolfe and Gordon are facing six-race suspensions along with car chiefs Jerry Kelley and Raymond Fox and engineers Brian Wilson and Samuel Stanley. In one of the harshest penalties doled out in NASCAR history, Wolfe and Gordon each were fined $100,000 and placed on probation, and Keselowski and Logano each lost 25 points.
Penske's final appeal with Middlebrook will be next Tuesday.
Last year, Middlebrook overturned six-week suspensions to crew chief Chad Knaus and car chief Ron Malec and a 25-point penalty to Jimmie Johnson after Hendrick Motorsports lost on its initial appeal of a Daytona 500 infraction on Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet.
Penske's seven suspended crewmembers will be allowed to work in the garage until the last appeal is exhausted.
MORE: Kenseth, Gibbs will appeal next Wednesday
Logano said last week the team was preparing for a worst-case scenario if replacements were needed for several races but added the team was deep enough to fill holes without hiring stopgap employees.
Keselowski seemed to be espousing a similar philosophy Wednesday morning when he tweeted that "Inner peace is easily achievable once you realize that sometimes all you can do is hope for the best and prepare for the worst. #Appeal."
The Penske appeal is one of two major penalties assessed to powerhouse teams that currently are in the appeals pipeline. The National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel will hear another case next Wednesday as Joe Gibbs Racing appeals last week's penalties from Matt Kenseth's winning engine from Kansas Speedway failing inspection.
Since 1999 when NASCAR began keeping records, there have been 150 appeals, and the National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel has upheld 106.
Follow Nate Ryan on Twitter @nateryan


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"I have been with Brody Brothers for 5.5 years. Ari has been coming to my home for all this time. He does a great job. I hardly ever have an issue. He keeps us pest free which isn't easy living in the woods."
There are hundreds of species of bees throughout the United States, many of which can be found in the Morrell Park area. And while they can be quite beneficial, pollinating numerous crops that humans depend on, such as peaches and apples, they can also deliver a painful sting when threatened. Additionally, for those who are allergic, a bee sting can be quite dangerous.
If you have a bee problem in or around your Maryland home, our experts at Brody Brothers Pest Control can help. We have the training and experience to enact safe, effective pest control methods that will reduce or eliminate the problem quickly. For over 30 years, we have been providing bee removal in Morrell Park and successfully controlling a variety of pests for our customers, including rodents, snakes, insects, spiders, and more.
Are you or a family member allergic to bee stings? Call Brody Brothers today at (410) 653-2121 or contact us online to schedule safe and effective bee removal in Morrell Park!
Many bees, including honey bees and ground bees, are attracted to sweet smells, much like the flowers they pollinate. If you use sweet fragrances outdoors, such as perfumes or candles, or you allow sweet beverages like sodas or sweet foods to go unattended, bees may be attracted to your property. Once there, they can often find a convenient place to nest, such as a wood pile, your home's attic rafters, or a hole in the exterior leading to a wall cavity. Carpenter bees are especially attracted to wood and can cause significant damage to your home. In dry areas, bees are also drawn to sources of water.
When possible, it is best to avoid causing harm to bees by discouraging them from entering your home in the first place. Several diseases have greatly reduced the bee population, threatening their ability to pollinate our crops consistently. Some things you can do to prevent bee problems and infestations include:
Most bees will not sting unless threatened, but by discouraging them from loitering around your home, you can greatly reduce the chances of contact.
Bees can be difficult to control once they have started a nesting in or near your home or business. At Brody Brothers Pest Control, we can safely and effectively control bee populations, virtually eliminating the problem. With our bee removal in Morrell Park, our experts will:
For long-term control of bees and other pests, we recommend our convenient and affordable Home Protection Plan. It provides quarterly visits to control a variety of pests, including mice, ants, bees, spiders, and more.
Contact us today to learn more about our bee removal in Morrell Park.
Would you like to avoid bee stings and the suffering they bring? Contact our team at Brody Brothers Pest Control for bee removal in Morrell Park and the surrounding areas.
To schedule bee removal in Morrell Park or the surrounding areas, give us a call at (410) 653-2121 or contact us online!
"I have been with Brody Brothers for 5.5 years. Ari has been coming to my home for all this time. He does a great job. I hardly ever have an issue. He keeps us pest free which isn't easy living in the woods."
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"We have been using Brody Brothers for around 5 years and we love that they are personal and they will keep coming back until a problem is resolved."


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Step by step instructions on how to plant your bare root or potted perennials when they arrive.
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Thrives in areas with cold freezing winters and hot summers.
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To determine if a plant is sufficiently cold hardy, the USDA created numbered zones indicating winter low
temperatures; the lower the zone number the colder the winter.
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Now, make no mistake: no tulip is as dependably perennial as a daffodil. But the Darwin Hybrids are the ones most bulb growers call 'perennial.' This means they'll return for several years, especially if you remove the fading flowers each spring. While naturalized daffodils are 'forever', many homeowners report their Darwin Hybrid tulips are still faithfully returning after 6 to 10 seasons. For their inexpensive price, we think that's a beautiful bargain. Here's the story:
About Darwin Hybrid Tulips: Early in the 20th Century, a talented Dutch hybridizer named Lefeber worked long and hard with a wild tulip called 'Tulipa fosteriana' from Central Asia. It is red, and from it, he hybridized the group that became known as the Emperor Tulips. The world-famous Red Emperor was introduced in 1931, and is what we now call a member of the 'Fosteriana Tulip' group. In fact, Red Emperor's official variety name is 'Madame Lefeber' in honor of the original hybridizer's wife.
Even though the Red Emperor and other fosterianas were instant sensations, the hybridizers were not satisfied. They were fascinated by what were then called simply 'Darwin Tulips'. These were large-flowered tulips in clear colors on tall stems, but without any perennial qualities. The Emperors, being close to a wild species, were quite perennial, so they crossed the two groups. And voila! Darwin Hybrid Tulips were born, with the best qualities of both groups.
Ever since, the Darwin Hybrids have set the standards worldwide for tall graceful, large flowered perennial tulips. The famous Apeldoorn group was introduced in 1951 by D. W. Lefeber and Company. There are not many Darwin Hybrids, even today. But they are every good gardener's favorites and always
Flower bulbs come in a wide variety of sizes. It is important to get the largest, best quality bulbs you can find. Larger bulbs help to ensure success, producing larger and stronger plants with more flowers.
Several flower bulbs are part of the onion family, and because of this I like to use Onions as a representation of how important bulb size is. Which of the onions on your shelf go bad first? The smallest ones! Larger onions are more resilient, taking longer to dry out/rot and can withstand swings in temperature better. Flower bulbs are the same. Larger bulbs will withstand disease, draught, large amounts of moisture, and colder temperatures significantly better than the smaller ones.
Here at American Meadows we are committed to providing you with the highest quality bulbs. This means we do everything we can to source the largest bulbs possible. Below is a comparison of bulbs purchased from three different retail stores:
Each of the glass tubes contains 20 Dutch Master Daffodils. Starting from the left, the first tube is what is sold here at American Meadows, the middle tube was purchased at a local "Home Supply" box store, and the third is another online retailer. The difference is easily noticeable.
The next picture is the same comparison, but with Tulip Bulbs:
Again, our bulbs are quite a bit larger than other retailers.
Other things to be aware of when it comes to bulb quality is making sure they are firm and without signs of external damage or cracking. Do your best to avoid bulbs that are already growing and have shoots or freshly grown roots. This is difficult when purchasing online, but if you are ordering through a reputable company, they should be checking for these things regularly.
Next time you are looking to buy bulbs, think about how much time you put into planning and planting your garden and then anxiously waiting for your flowers to grow and bloom. Don't be disappointed after all that effort by planting sub-par bulbs. Buy the largest, firmest, disease free bulbs you can afford, and you will have the best possible results.
As soon as your order is placed you will receive a confirmation email. You will receive a second email the day your order ships telling you how it has been sent. Some perennials are shipped as potted plants, some as perennial roots packed in peat. The 'Plant Information' section describes how that item will ship. All perennials and spring-planted bulbs are packaged to withstand shipping and are fully-guaranteed. Please open upon receipt and follow the instructions included.
Perennials and spring-planted bulbs are shipped at the proper planting time for your hardiness zone. Perennial and spring-planted bulb orders will arrive separately from seeds. If your order requires more than one shipment, there is no additional shipping charge. See our shipping information page for approximate ship dates and more detailed information. If you need express shipping or have any questions, please call Customer Service toll-free at (877) 309-7333 or contact us by email.
Our shipping rates are calculated based on our actual average shipping costs. We do not seek to profit from shipping fees, so rest assured that our shipping rates reflect an average of what it costs to get our guaranteed products safely to your door.
We charge one low flat rate for shipping our products even if your order requires multiple shipments. If you have any questions, would like to purchase expedited shipping, or have quetions about shipping to Alaska or Hawaii, please call us at (877) 309-7333.


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Opinion: Retaliation for a Downgrade?
Assistant editorial page editor James Freeman on why credit-rating agency Standard and Poor's is fighting a Department of Justice lawsuit.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... I ... rating agency standard and Poor's cheer ... Justice Department yesterday ... of retaliating against the firm for its twenty eleven downgrade of U S government debt with a story ... system editorial page editor James Freeman is here with more deatails ... I James this lawsuit was filed a couple years ago is just ... refresh our memories what was the reason he added to the ears nose actually lest you knew where it is because we've been ... hearing about forever but basically January of this year twenty thirteen the Justice Department ... center Standard in porous ... for their pre crisis era ratings on various mortgage back securities said that the ... Standard Poors ... League Justice claims is guilty of fraud because ... it was simply putting out good ratings to get business from the issuers of the securities to make money in that they didn't really believe they were ... they were good security can ... explain a timeline to me because ephemerality ratings precrisis why it ... can be until January as well that this is why the SNP in its defense saying this looks pretty fishy in Adobe on that saying this is political payback to really have to wonder because a ... you go all the way back to the crisis two thousand ate into thousandeight the Securities Exchange Commission points out a document saying ... Essen P Moody's Fitch it doesn't name doesn't tie them to specific details but puts up a lot of e mails ... not good for the ratings agencies suggesting people inside the firms were doing exactly what select fear that they weren't ... getting their honest opinion ... and they were hyping the spa services two thousandeight ... there's no justice in the eye in a way Dorrow nine or twenty ten or twenty eleven twenty twelve ... only in twenty thirteen in the center to an earring the a complaint from last winter and it's a lot of the stuff that the SCC reported in no way ... why didn't excel will Essen P is saying what changed was in twenty eleven when the Standard Poors downgraded the United States of America we all remember this debt ceiling fight ... was a bigger blow for the president and his standing among gain independence of the time ... a ... isn't he says that's when the investigation ramped up and that's where they get sued what's the evidence of that ... what sport circumstantial but they may get a lot more because one thing that's happened recently is a federal judge has basically ... given Essen P pretty wide latitude in the discovery they can do in other words the documents e mails ... the records from the Justice Department they're they're leather pull out in making their defense I think it's gonna be ... interesting to see what can case they can build they've already said their lawyer Floyd Abrams has already said publicly ... that the the activity intensified after this downgrade which obviously did make big of a very happy ... and the other question I think that it brings this I would expect the trial is why is it just ups because you look at the movies for example which just happens to be partially owned by a warm Buffett obviously big fan of the president ... they're not in the city and the EU reasonably ask why not given that the ratings were identical on roughly ninety nine percent of the bonds of issues and lesson thirty seconds left is this part of the bigger trend of of government in the bureaucracy going after ... companies or individuals for their speech well it certainly happening at a time where is a citizen you have to be skeptical of these government the actions of obviously the Ira scandal very disturbing ago the heart of our democracy couldn't get more disturbing to ... them now we've also McCulley a sore bum Ari reading about the inventor of Buckyballs popular Office toys ... and in the way I he's been landed I'm really in a very Pursell vindictive way by the ... consumer products safety Commission saw it ... I think this is certainly happening at a time where in another context attack can't believe the government would do this but ... the context and then leave the timeline here which looks pretty fishy makes you wonder Boston via a fastening story fall assistant editorial page and James


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Yankees' Tanaka throws in simulated game
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Japanese star Masahiro Tanaka made his third start for the New York Yankees, this time in a simulated game.
Tanaka, who signed a $155 million, seven-year contract in January, struck out nine of 18 batters in four innings Tuesday. He gave up three hits, including a solo homer, to a pair of minor leaguers.
"I felt that I was able to do what I wanted to do today," Tanaka said through an interpreter. "Given that my split-finger wasn't that good my last outing, I worked a lot on that today."
Tanaka threw 16 consecutive strikes and finished with 49 strikes among 63 pitches.
Tanaka has allowed one run, four hits and struck out four over five innings in two spring training games. He is expected to start in the Yankees third or fourth regular-season game.
This marked the first time Tanaka pitched in the Yankees simulated-game format, which uses only a pitcher, catcher and hitter.
The right-hander was 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA last year while leading the Rakuten Golden Eagles to their first Japan Series title. He is scheduled to pitch Sunday against Atlanta.
Tanaka said the simulated games he pitched during spring training in Japan were during intrasquad matchups.
"Obviously, it's part of practicing," he said. "You're throwing against your own people. Some of the adjustments that I was able to make today, I just want to see if I can do that in a real game."
Jake Cave hit the homer off Tanaka, and Cito Culver had two singles.
"It was fun. It was cool," Cave said. "I guessed right on one of the pitches."


text: Get Free Email Updates!I'm glad you are here, let's get to know each other...SIGNUP now and receive an email once I publish new content; NO SPAM, it's a promise! I agree to have my personal information transfered to MailChimp ( more information ) I will never give away, trade or sell your email address. Do not worry, you can unsubscribe at any time.


text: Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs): What are they? Share this 22 JUN 2016 By: Natasha Luther-Jones Timothy Moran A Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is a long-term contract under which a business agrees to purchase electricity directly from an energy generator. This differs from the traditional approach of simply buying electricity from licensed electricity suppliers, often known as utility PPAs. Such structured agreements provide financial certainty for the utility companies and the developers, which removes a significant roadblock to financing and building new renewable facilities; PPAs are therefore helping to deliver more renewable energy on the grid. In a world where some countries are reducing or withdrawing subsidises for renewable energy, the Corporate PPA with a financially strong counterparty is seen by many developers, equity investors and funders as an essential component for achieving a "bankable" project. Power Purchase Agreement structures The corporate off-taker will enter into a long term PPA (commonly with a term in excess of 10 to 15 years) with renewable energy generator to take all of the energy generated by its plant (or portfolio of plants), commonly for a fixed price per kWh (subject to some form of indexation). The PPA will contain provisions for the sale and purchase of electricity and the benefit in any renewable energy subsidies, and all of the provisions governing that sale and purchase. The delivery of renewable energy is notional and not physical in most cases. In the UK and some other European countries, these provisions will also include obligations on the corporate off-taker to provide or procure certain metering and regulatory activities that can only be undertaken by licensed electricity suppliers. As such, the corporate off-taker will need to enter into a back-to-back agreement with a licensed supplier under which the licensed supplier commits to undertake these obligations. The licensed supplier will also commit to purchase the electricity and renewable energy benefits from the corporate off-taker on the same terms with some margin built in. In parallel to this arrangement, in the UK and some other European countries, the corporate off-taker will have an electricity supply agreement with that licensed supplier under which electricity will be supplied to the meet the corporate off-taker's energy demands from time to time. The terms of supply under this supply agreement will take into account the electricity purchased under the PPA and passed through to the licensed supplier under the licensed supplier agreement. This ensures that the corporate has the benefit of the fixed pricing for renewable energy under the PPA but the reliability of a supply agreement with a licensed electricity supplier to meet its day-to-day energy demands. Global Relevance of PPAs PPAs are not new. Although we can see an emerging trend, which we are sure will be emphasised by the outcomes of the Paris Agreement, in the increasing number of large corporates committing to PPAs of an unprecedented size. While PPAs are well accepted in the US, the European and Scandinavian markets are catching up and we expect to see a surge in Corporate PPAs over the next 12 to 18 months in the Asia Pacific region. The increasing frequency with which large, well-known corporates have entered into PPAs and invested in generation assets of their own, stems from both the economic and environmental benefits they provide. Although the original instigators of the Corporate PPAs were the high energy using data centres, the desire to enter into PPAs has not been limited to particular types of companies or geographical areas. Large banks, retailers, restaurant chains and IT and telco companies have all widely published details of their PPAs – all sorts of companies are concerned about their carbon footprints. At DLA Piper, we have first-hand experience of the win-win scenario these PPAs offer, having advised a number of organisations on their PPAs – from generators and their funders to the corporate end users and their licensed electricity suppliers. Read more in our report: 2016: The Year of PPAs and the Corporate Green Agenda


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We all know of Europe's economic troubles, with the eurozone falling back into recession.
While Germany will grow a small amount in 2012 and 2013 (0.8% a year), Spain's GDP will fall by 1.4% in each of those years and Greece's GDP by even more, The Economist reported. The southern rim of the eurozone, including Italy, is struggling big time.
Not surprisingly, European stocks have taken something of a hit. But when the stock market moves against a segment of the market, savvy investors start looking for opportunities. I am not trying to minimize Europe's challenges, but some companies seem to have been pummeled more than is justified and at their current prices are worth your consideration.
One example is Autoliv (ALV). To choose stocks, I use automated strategies I created modeled on the thinking of great Wall Street investors and my Ken Fisher-based strategy highly recommends Autoliv at this time. Headquartered in Sweden, Autoliv manufactures and markets airbags, seatbelts, passive safety electronics and active safety systems. It is the leading supplier of safety parts for the auto industry.
The Fisher strategy looks at the price-to-sales ratio, which is a measure of how well priced a stock is, and wants this ratio to be below 0.75. Autoliv easily gets over this hurdle with a P/S of 0.64. Also in the company's favor is an inflation-adjusted long-term EPS growth rate of 19.24% (15% is the minimum allowed), plenty of free cash flow per share and acceptable net profit margins of 5.34 (based on the average over a three-year period).
German-based Siemens (SI), a huge conglomerate, operates in a number of industries, such as energy, healthcare, infrastructure and what it calls "industry," which includes automation and motors and drivetrain systems. I use a strategy that mirrors what Peter Lynch has described in his books, and this strategy gives Siemens a strong recommendation. It uses the P/E/G ratio (P/E relative to growth) as a measure of how well priced is a stock. A P/E/G of 1.0 or less is acceptable and Siemens easily bests this benchmark with a P/E/G of 0.60. The company is also doing a good job managing its inventories.
French Big Pharma Sanofi (SNY) is another European company worth looking at. Its products include prescription medicines, consumer healthcare products, generic drugs, vaccines and animal health products. A strategy I created from the writings of James O'Shaughnessy likes this company. In its favor: a huge market cap ($114 billion), strong cash flow per share, a large number of outstanding shares and impressive annual sales ($46 billion). Companies with all of these attributes are ranked based on their dividend and only the top 50 earn the highest recommendation. With a dividend of 3.93%, Sanofi is in this elite cohort of 50.


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Follow RFF News on your cell phone. Text follow rff to 40404 you will receive txt messages with RFF News
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So, given no racers going to TES (and NYC), does that mean that TARCON 12 will be super boring? Won't the TWoP crowd be pissed, to say the least. Wow, imagine spending $75 and plane fare to watch the finale on a wide screen TV in a bar in NYC, without meeting the racers.
Peachdo we still use the email listed above for Shelley?
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i'm phoning tomorrow,also getting all family members currently visiting to do the same with rehearsed script(maybe she'll think that TES has a big fan base in england )
good job! Perhaps an upper crust British accent would do the trick! "Stand by for the Queen..."
Quote from: patlini on January 13, 2008, 10:51:39 PMi'm phoning tomorrow,also getting all family members currently visiting to do the same with rehearsed script(maybe she'll think that TES has a big fan base in england )they where in liverpool on friday with ringo star fwiw
Latest update:All the calls and emails are being heard. Someone thought that the racers were responsible for the drive! But so far the word remains --no racers on TES.... Now interestingly--Phil will be at TARcon!! Seems like a big check should be around somewhere...And the best news:Kynt and Vyxsin will be attending the NYC events, as will Jenn McCall (Jenn of Shana/Jenn) !! Thanks for all the support guys! keep it up!!
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Photo Challenge: The Odd Couple
Ever seen a pairing that just seems a little peculiar? There really are no rules to it all, but some do make you look twice. For this photo challenge make note of the things paired off in the world and photograph one of the couples that you find to be a little odd.
RSS for photos in Photo Challenge: The Odd Couple


text: Homestead Amber Ale is a full bodied beer made in the traditional German alt (old) style. It provides a sweet maltiness with subtle hop flavor and a floral finish. Homestead Amber is named for a small log cabin located on the Comanche Creek in Northern New Mexico and constructed by the great grandfather of Comanche Creek Brewing Company's founder.


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What is TDD?
From Wikipedia, quoting,
Test-driven development (TDD) is a software development processthat relies on the repetition of a very short development cycle: first the developer writes a failing automated test case that defines a desired improvement or new function, then produces code to pass that test and finallyrefactors the new code to acceptable standards. Kent Beck, who is credited with having developed or 'rediscovered' the technique, stated in 2003 that TDD encourages simple designs and inspires confidence.[1]
Test-driven development is related to the test-first programming concepts of extreme programming, begun in 1999,[2] but more recently has created more general interest in its own right.[3]
Programmers also apply the concept to improving and debugging legacy code developed with older techniques.
Although TDD doesn't mean you write your tests first, test-first development relies on the process of writing a requirement to add a feature, functionality in the form of short unit-test, watching it fail first, then implementing the classes, methods and properties defined in the test, bit-by-bit, and then watching it pass, which is why it's also sometimes termed as red-green (fail-then-pass) refactoring. Test-first or not, Test Driven Development makes Tests first class citizens of development process, rather than an after-thought.
Concerns and Benefits
There have been several cases against using TDD or Unit Tests in general, common concerns being,
- Oh, this means the developers have to spend extra time writing unit tests, which they could be spending on "actual" development adding "features".
- Well, it's going to either need more developers to make up for the time lost and increase project costs.
- So you are saying we don't need QA anymore, if Unit Tests are going to take care of all the testing?
- and so forth…
Some benefits of Unit Testing in general,
- The Project is going to gain a lot more time actually spent on quality, although more time might be required upfront to ensure unit tests are written for as many cases possible. However, the confidence in the quality of the code will be high for each developer. They will be able to know a defect they fixed is not going to break something else, very quickly. Immediate feedback, less QA cycles.
- Cost associated with adding more developers is going to pay back once you have lesser QA cycles, immediate feedback on buggy code, lower long term maintenance and QA costs. It's important not to conclude based just on the initial increase in development time and cost.
- Generally it's not a good idea to add more developers just to write unit tests for code that's being written by some other developer. Ideally each developer who implements a feature or functionality has to write his/her own unit tests, and then be peer reviewed for accuracy and design
- Unit tested and TDD code is likely to create and force automatic optimum design, also it's going to help discover bugs in existing/legacy code – this is why it's also sometimes called Design Driven Development. The API is going to evolve and emerge just enough to end up being optimum, on-demand design and avoid any upfront, grand ivory tower design that usually is a pattern in the Waterfall methodology.
- Unit tested code is more likely to create a sense of 'care for the code' from a developer's standpoint, and not writing code 'just to make things work'
- There could be more many more that I missed, please feel free to add.
Now, these benefits depend on how TDD is adopted and practiced and the results may vary on case by case basis. Also there are situations when writing unit tests for every part of the application is not feasible or possible. For example, UI testing, which is a whole another topic. For UI testing it is recommended to have Automated Coded UI tests, validating parts of the application that can not possibly be tested using Unit Tests.
Types of Testing
Generally there are 3 types of Testing areas. It's important to know their differences and purpose.
- Unit Tests – focus on testing classes, methods and API in general, interacting with APIs of the various modules of the application. Goal is test functionality at a micro level and make sure each unit of code is accurately functioning as expected.
- Integration Tests – focus on testing multiple coherent components/modules of the application. Goal is to validate if they work together as expected. This might include Presentation layer interacting with Business logic / Middleware and databases.
- Automated/Coded UI Tests – focus on UI and how the user interacts with the application – test cases generally not covered by the Unit Tests or Integration Tests.
All the above 3 types of tests are known to significantly reduce cost, maintainance and resources for the Project.
Research and Case Study
To that point, a research was conducted by folks at Microsoft which weigh in costs development time vs benefits.
Quoting from that research whitepaper,
Test driven development has recently re-emerged as a critical enabling practice of agile software development methodologies. However, little empirical evidence supports or refutes the utility of this practice in an industrial context. Case studies were conducted with three development teams at Microsoft and one at IBM that have adopted TDD. The results of the case studies indicate that the pre-release defect density of the four products decreased between 40% and 90% relative to similar projects that did not use the TDD practice. Subjectively, the teams experienced a 15–35% increase in initial development time after adopting TDD.
Link to the WhitePaper (thanks to @jslicer for the discovery of this whitepaper)
Great article on several terminologies related to Test practices (Test first, BDD, TDD, Executable Specs etc)


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Uniquely chic. Inviting and inspired. Open your eyes to the extraordinary at Westminster Hotel, a different kind of luxury hotel.
Situated right in the heart of Livingston, New Jersey, our AAA Four Diamond hotel caters to the distinct tastes of today's travelers. Make reservations for stylish hotel guest rooms and suites boasting a classic contemporary design. While you're here, you'll enjoy a refined mix of first-class amenities intended to please everyone from leisure travelers to corporate hotel guests in Westminster Rooms and Suites.
Elaborate or intimate. Elegant wedding receptions or Fortune 500 company executive conferences. Westminster Hotel provides premier meeting facilities, social event venues, banquet and catering rooms—even exquisite outdoor event space—for an array of special occasions.
Treat yourself to the hotel's state-of-the-art health and fitness center and indoor heated swimming pool and Jacuzzi.
In the neighborhood? Drop by and say "hi." We proudly serve our beautiful northern New Jersey community and beyond, hosting Livingston, NJ and Essex County neighbors and guests from surrounding cities, including Florham Park, Short Hills, East Hanover, Parsippany, Basking Ridge and Morristown. Westminster Hotel is located only 20 minutes from Newark Liberty International Airport and 20 miles west of New York City. Convenient train access is a short ride away and runs directly into Penn Station in midtown Manhattan.
Discover the Westminster Hotel—cruise through our site and explore the many ways we can accommodate you.