Midland Great Western Railway

The Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) was the third largest Irish gauge (1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)) railway company in Ireland. It was incorporated in 1845 and absorbed into the Great Southern Railways in 1924. At its peak the MGWR had a network of 538 miles (866 km), making it Ireland's third largest network after the Great Southern and Western Railway and the Great Northern Railway of Ireland.

The MGWR served part of Leinster, County Cavan in Ulster and much of Connaught. Its network was entirely within what in 1922 became the Irish Free State.

Early development

The Midland Great Western Railway Act received the Royal Assent in July 1845, authorising it to railse £1,000,000 capital and to build a railway from Dublin to Mullingar and Longford and to buy the Royal Canal. Construction of the main line began from Dublin in January 1846 and proceeded westwards in stages. It opened from Dublin Broadstone as far as Enfield in May 1847, to Hill of Down in December 1847 and to Mullingar in October 1848.

Class (education)

A class in education has a variety of related meanings.

It can be the group of students which attends a specific course or lesson at a university, school, or other educational institution, see Form (education).

It can refer to a course itself, e.g., a class in Shakespearean drama.

It can be the group of students at the same level in an institution: the freshman class; or the group of students which graduates from the institution at the same time: the Class of 2005 (cf. alumnus/a). The term can be used in a slightly more general context, such as "the graduating class."

It can also refer to the classroom, in the building or venue where such a lesson is conducted.

In some countries' educational systems (such as Taiwan's), it can refer to a subdivision of the students in an academic department, consisting of a cohort of students of the same academic level. For example, a department's sophomores may be divided into three classes.

In countries such as the Republic of Ireland, India, Germany, and in the past Sweden, the word can mean a grade: 1st class is ages 4–5, 2nd class is ages 6–7, 3rd class is ages 8–9, 4th class is ages 9–10, 5th class is ages 10–11, 6th class is ages 11–12, and 9th class is ages 14–15.

Social class

Social class (or simply "class"), as in a class society, is a set of concepts in the social sciences and political theory centered on models of social stratification in which people are grouped into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the upper, middle, and lower classes.

Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, anthropologists, and social historians. However, there is not a consensus on the best definition of the "class," and the term has different contextual meanings. In common parlance, the term "social class" is usually synonymous with "socio-economic class," defined as "people having the same social, economic, or educational status," e.g., "the working class"; "an emerging professional class." However, academics distinguish social class and socioeconomic status, with the former referring to one’s relatively stable sociocultural background and the latter referring to one’s current social and economic situation and, consequently, being more changeable over time.

New South Wales 85 class locomotive

The New South Wales 85 class were a class of 10 electric locomotives built by Comeng, Granville between May 1979 and July 1980 for the Public Transport Commission.

When introduced they were the most powerful locomotives in Australia with a rating of 2,880 kW. Based at Lithgow depot they were purchased principally to haul coal trains over the Blue Mountains line. They also hauled other freight trains and on occasions passenger services including the Indian Pacific.

Following the Illawarra line being electrified in 1986, 85s began to operate coal trains from Lithgow through to Port Kembla. They also occasionally hauled coal services from Glenlee Colliery on the Main South line to Port Kembla and Rozelle. They did not operate on the Main North line although in 1993 all were hauled to Taree for repainting at Landsdowne Engineering.

A combination of National Rail electing to use diesel locomotives on electrified lines and a move to an open access model in New South Wales resulting in electric traction being priced out of the market saw the need for electric traction drop. In April 1998, the 85 class were withdrawn and stored at Lithgow.