2005 General Overview
The Atlantic hurricane season becomes the most active in 154 years of recorded history. For the first time since the current naming system was introduced in 1953, all 21 names on the year's list are used, forcing the National Hurricane Center to name five later storms after Greek letters. Katrina becomes the most devastating hurricane, destroying towns in Mississippi and Louisiana, killing more than 1,000 and displacing a million people when levees in New Orleans are breached. Soon over 80% of the city is submerged by the flooding.
Terrorists continue attacks when London becomes their next victim with Britain's worst attack since World War II. Four bombs exploded in three subway stations and on one double-decker bus during the morning rush hour, killing 52 and wounding more than 700.
In March, paleontologists discover the existence of soft tissue in a 68-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil – an unprecedented find in a prehistoric creature. Scientists assumed no such tissue could survive more than 100,000 years, but the soft tissue included cells and blood vessels.
Since 1978, Freedom House has published Freedom in the World, an annual comparative assessment of the state of political rights and civil liberties around the world. According to their latest survey, 44% of the world’s population is free (89 countries and 2.8 billion inhabitants), 19% are partly free (54 countries with 1.2 billion people) where political rights and civil liberties are more limited, and corruption and ethnic or religious strife is often the norm and 37% are not free (49 countries with some 2.4 billion inhabitants).
Real Estate Overview
Celebrating five generations, Illinois powerhouse Baird & Warner (founded in 1855), celebrates 150 years of continuous real estate business as the oldest real estate company in the country.
Longstanding RELO network, the organization that encompasses 650 of the foremost local and regional brands in residential real estate, collectively sells 1.4 million homes annually valued at $380 billion, and announces a name change to Leading Real Estate Companies of the World.
