The pattern of swift, uninterrupted decline is now taken as the norm: the UN uses it to project a worldwide convergence towards the replacement rate of fertility (2.1, the rate at which a population stabilises in the long term).

ECONOMIST: Africa��s population

Five years ago a student would never dream of creating a video and streaming it online as a class project--and now it's increasingly the norm.

FORBES: Magazine Article

At 1111 Lincoln Road, the gap between some of the floors is as much as 34 feet, more than three times the norm, says Tim Haahs, a parking consultant who worked on the project.

WSJ: A Sleek, Chic Hangout ... the Parking Garage

In the sense of project finance, and over standard time horizons, it is the norm rather than the exception that transport projects do not pay for themselves.

ECONOMIST: Letters