This time every year, without fail, the temperature rises, the evenings lengthen and the UK Eurovision organisers force some poor unknown gonk to shriek out an abysmal mess of a career-ending almost-song to universal disdain.
The figures led the charity Alzheimer's Research UK to say that, with age the biggest risk factor for developing dementia and life expectancy set to continue to lengthen worldwide, "dementia is increasingly becoming our greatest medical challenge".
Arabs, on the other hand, have continued to make lots of babies as their lifespans lengthen.
Self-deprecating, free (so far) of the scandals that saw off some of his predecessors, and fairly hawkish on Japan's fiscal malaise, he has an opportunity to lift the country out of its 20-year funk, but a mountain of challenges and a dearth of popular support lengthen the odds.
"IF WE could only persuade every person in China to lengthen his shirttail by a foot, we could keep the mills of Lancashire working round the clock".
When the crisis first hit, Mr Bernanke's first step was to lower the interest rate and lengthen the term on direct loans to banks from the Fed's discount window.
He wants to employ more staff and lengthen the operating hours in the group's 100 biggest hypermarkets.
Mechanical actuators are used to shorten and lengthen the cables, so that the rovers change shape as they repeatedly tip over in the direction they want to go.
As the spaces get filled, the odds of opening a pack and finding a sticker you want lengthen.
The company also plans to lengthen the maturity of its debt.
As Europe's sovereign-debt crisis dominates headlines, many policymakers are looking back to the lessons of Latin America for guidance, be it Uruguay's decision to lengthen the maturity of its debts or the use of Brady bonds to reduce the region's debt burden.
