The errors primarily stem from looking at the percentage of students proficient in a given subject from one year to the next -- but it measures different groups of students from year to year, leading to false impressions of growth or loss.
All this creates an impression of economic growth (little of which comes from manufacturing and industry) and, if one ignores the simultaneous growth of slum housing (lacking water, electricity or adequate sewage), the promise of entry to a better life.
"Aggressive/premature reserves bookings provided impression of higher growth rate than realistically possible".
Beginning in 2000, A.I.G.'s earnings releases and annual reports have given the impression of greater growth and consistency than that which actually occurred.
While increased oil revenues give the impression of superficial growth, the sudden influx of cash distorts the economy and exchange rates, undermining alternative sectors, including agriculture and industry, that employ and feed far greater numbers.
No wonder US audiences ebbed away: as David Thomson pointed in a recent essay on Tinseltown malaise, 2010 saw 1.37bn ticket sales in the US, an 8% drop since 2002; only ticket-price increases created the impression of tepid growth.
However, the initial impression of healthy growth is deceptive, belying the chaos behind the scene.
As had been established in Agalega – and the point could still be demonstrated in Peros Banhos even in the thirties of this century – a survey on foot would show that impressions of luxuriant growth gained from shipboard could be unduly flattering.
This created a temporarily virtuous circle: a rising stockmarket boosted the profits of big tech firms, creating the impression of higher sustainable growth.
You still get an impression of fluidity and growth from the grand central courtyard, with its glass roof and seasonal plantings.
