It was barely a year ago that they were scheduled to perform in an old industrial town.

NPR: 'Heartless Bastards' Take Cautious Steps Into Limelight

But overall, the announcement is the latest ramping up of higher education's MOOC experiment, which launched in earnest barely a year ago as a way to sample elite college courses.

WSJ: Higher ed systems in 10 states turn to Coursera

This has come as a huge relief to chief financial officers, who barely a year ago were having to make do without a fully functioning market for commercial paper (short-term loans to finance operating expenses).

ECONOMIST: Corporate finance

The sniper who scored a career-high 40 goals a year ago is barely three weeks removed from a concussion.

WSJ: Confident Penguins ready for surging Islanders

The stockmarket is still at only half its 2007 peak and, although house prices have risen sharply this year in Shanghai and Shenzhen, the nationwide average is barely higher than it was a year ago.

ECONOMIST: Is the economic stimulus too much of a good thing?

Congress authorized the new auctions over a year ago, but auction design has barely moved from the preliminary stages.

FORBES: DISH Offer for Sprint: The Wireless Wild West Lives on

Sandoz recently reported that its sales in the six biggest such markets were 14% higher in the first half than they were a year ago, while sales in Europe edged up by barely 3%.

ECONOMIST: Big drug firms embrace generics

America's total saving rate fell in the third quarter of last year to only 10% of GDP, barely half its level a decade ago.

ECONOMIST: China's export prospects