The earliest documented reference to New York being referred to as “The Big Apple” comes from a 1909 book by Edward Martin, called The Wayfarer. In it, he uses the moniker in a metaphorical sense, rather than a proper name for the city:

“Kansas is apt to see in New York a greedy city… It inclines to think that the big apple gets a disproportionate share of the national sap…”

The next known documented instance of New York being called “The Big Apple” comes from sportswriter John J. Fitz Gerald who began popularizing the name starting on May 3, 1921, where he stated in a column:

“J. P. Smith, with Tippity Witchet and others of the L. T. Bauer string, is scheduled to start for ‘the big apple’ to-morrow after a most prosperous Spring campaign at Bowie and Havre de Grace.”

In this case, he was referencing the early 1920s practice of calling certain race courses in the New York City region this particular fruity name; the New York City races tended to payout significant prizes to the winner compared to races in many other regions, hence “big apple.”

According to linguist Dr. Gerald Cohen, this wasn’t out of the ordinary, even outside of horse racing. As he states,

“Apples were important throughout history, but the big red delicious apples developed in Iowa in the 1870s came to be regarded as extra special. That led to ‘the big apple’ being applied to things and people who were extra special, or perhaps only thought they were…”

As to applying this to New York City, it’s thought that Fitz Gerald didn’t come up with this on his own but rather heard it from people from New Orleans in 1920 when he traveled down to that city to supposedly sell one of his horses, with the common tale being that it came from a couple of stable hands.

Fitz Gerald explicitly mentions this three years later in his 1924 column “Around the Big Apple,” though it’s possible he just made the story up:

“The Big Apple. The dream of every lad that ever threw a leg over a thoroughbred and the goal of all horsemen. There’s only one Big Apple. That’s New York. Two dusky stable hands were leading a pair of thoroughbred around the ‘cooling rings’ of adjoining stables at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans and engaging in desultory conversation. ‘Where y’all goin’ from here?’ queried one. ‘From here we’re headin’ for The Big Apple,’ proudly replied the other. ‘Well, you’d better fatten up them skinners or all you’ll get from the apple will be the core,’ was the quick rejoinder.”

This nickname for New York City gradually caught on and began being used in a non-sporting sense, including a popular song/dance coming out in the 1930s called “The Big Apple,” as well as numerous references in other songs, particularly in jazz music.

However, this nickname for the city died off by the 1960s and few outside of the city would have understood the reference had you used it then. That all changed in the 1970s when Charles Gillett and the New York Convention and Visitors Bureau decided to revive the nickname in a tourism campaign. In this campaign, they began aggressively advertising New York City as a tourist hotspot and referred to it as “The Big Apple,” using bright, clean looking red apples in their advertisements to attempt to contrast the popular notion of the day that New York City was a dirty place where you were as likely to be mugged as not if you visited there.

source: Today I found out

Berlin

13% of the Berliners use the bicycle to get around which is a healthy number for a city of its size. While it may not be the easiest city to get around in terms of infrastructure the fact that people of all ages are willing to cycle provides incentive for change to be made.

Malmö

Sweden’s third largest city scores high on the Copenhagenize Index thanks to numerous campaigns to get people thinking about how they get around the city. Neat touches like air pumps next to cycle ways and railing to hold onto at red light give people all the support they need to ditch the car completely. It’s these incentives that have driven the bicycle population of Malmö to 30%.

Eindhoven

The Netherlands as a nation has cycling firmly integrated into its daily life which is why three of its cities are in this top 10. Eindhoven’s most striking feature for cyclists is its revolutionary floating roundabout suspended above the original traffic circle to completely separate bikes and cars. This alone shows the rest of the world what can be done in terms of cycling friendly infrastructure.

Antwerp

Antwerp like many cities in Belgium is passionate about cycling. It’s the departing point for the spring classics Scheldeprijs, hosts numerous cyclocross races and even saw the Tour de France pass through in 2010. This is reflected by the number of Antwerp residents that go by bike 16%. The government is also backing cycling. Large investments have gone into separated highways and bike parking in recent years.

Nantes

Nantes has been the backdrop of its fair share of Tour de France history but for the other 49 weeks of the year Nantes takes cycling as a mode of transport very seriously. While the model’s share stands only at just over 5 % schemes like bike loop the city’s bicycle scheme, which is now in its sixth year, means the foundations are there to support the gradually increasing numbers of citizens that are making the switch to two wheels.

Bordeaux

The second French city in this list is leading the way in France when it comes to attitudes about cycling according to the Copenhagenize Index. The installation of a tramway system in recent years has made the prospect of cycling in the city more appealing. That, along with the good system of cycle lanes and the V-cut bicycle share scheme means that Bordeaux earns its right as the leader in French bicycle mobility.

Seville

Back in 2006 just no 0.5% of Seville used the bike to get around. The change since then has been meteoric with 80 kilometres of cycling infrastructure built in 12 months like these segregated bike lanes, plus the implementation of bike share scheme has seen a 6.5% increase in regular cyclists in the city.

Utrecht

Utrecht already has cycling culture deeply embedded in its roots and this has been recognised by the World Tour. It hosted the finish of the second stage of the 2010 Giro d’Italia and will be the location of the Tour de France Grand Depart in 2015. Separated Bike Parks combined with widespread public acceptance of cycling makes it easy to understand why one-third of all journeys in the city are made by bike.

Copenhagen

The Danish capital has been a great city to ride a bike in for several years thanks to sensible infrastructure to aid the movement of cyclists around the city. That, combined with ambitious government goals to make the city the greenest in the world makes Copenhagen an interesting case study in urban design.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam ticks all the boxes when it comes to making a city as bike friendly as possible. 57% of the people use their bike in Amsterdam on a daily basis, and the infrastructure is in place to transport them safely. There are about four times more bikes than cars in the city, and many of the roads are restricted to 30 km/h to produce a relaxed flow of traffic. Here at GCN, we’d love it if all cities were like this. 

– GCN – 

Conversation 1

1.1.Mike wants

a)    the leave the law profession.
b)    to have variety in his patent work.
c)    to explore other possibilities in law.
d)    to continue his current work.

1.2.The two men

a) work in similar professions.
b) find their work demanding.
c) have similar qualifications.
d) love their respective professions.

Conversation 2

2.1. The police officer thinks the woman

a)  drove dangerously.
b) ins a bad driver.
c) caused an accident.
d) distracted her husband.

2.2. The driver and the passenger are most anxious to

a) escape punishment.
b) accept responsibility.
c) blame the cyclist.
d) get to their destination.

Conversation 3

3.1. The man wants to show his wife

a) some art.
b) a shop.
c) a café.
d) his birthplace.

3.2. The local man says shops closed because

a) there are few customers.
b) their goods are too expensive.
c) owners want too much rent.
d) there are too many of them.

answers: C, C, A, D, B, C

Dealing with difficult people at work

No workplace comes without its share of difficult people. How difficult a person is for you to deal with depends on your self-esteem, self-confidence and professional courage. Dealing with difficult people is easier when the person is just generally obnoxious or when the behaviour affects more than one person. Dealing with difficult people is much tougher when they are attacking you or undermining your professional contribution.

Difficult people come in every conceivable variety.  1.  Others must always have the last word. Some co-workers fail to keep commitments. Others criticize anything that they did not create. Difficult co-workers compete with you for power, privilege and the spotlight; some go too far in courting the boss’s positive opinion – to your diminishment.

Some co-workers attempt to undermine you and you constantly feel as if you need to watch your back. Your boss plays favourite and the favoured party lords it over you; people form cliques and leave you out. Difficult people and situations exist in every work place. 2.  You must address them. No matter the type of difficult situation in which you find yourself, dealing with difficult people or situations is a must.

Initially, people go into shock when they are treated unprofessionally. Once you are fully aware of what is happening, deciding to live with the situation long term is not an option. You become so angry and feel so much pain that your efforts to address the situation become irrational. 3.

Constant complaining about the co-worker or situation can quickly earn you the title of whiner or complainer. Managers wonder why you are unable to solve your own problems – even if the manager’s tolerance or encouragement of the situation is part of the problem.

Most importantly, if you are embroiled in a constant conflict at work, you may not only get blamed for being ‘unable to handle the situation like a mature professional.’ You may even end up being branded as a ‘difficult’ person yourself. 4.

Finally, if the situation continues to deteriorate over time, the organization and your boss may tire of you. The boss may decide you are a ‘high maintenance’ employee, easily replaced with a more professional or cooperative person. 5. However unfair, this sometimes is the reality.

I’ve experienced workplaces in which all sorts of dysfunctional approaches to dealing with a difficult co-worker have been tried. Putting an anonymous note in the person’s mailbox is not an option. 6. So, it’s advisable to look at more productive ways to address your difficult co-worker. 

Answers: f, g, c, e, a, h