One of his most striking designs combines different pieces of wood in a pattern of alternating and interlocking strips.

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Dr Wood said the same pattern had historically been seen in natural human reproduction, but it was less obvious now because people had more control over deciding when they tried for a baby, and could use contraception to prevent conception.

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The shelves were painted a shade lighter than the planks, and a tall stack of wood by the fireplace yielded another pattern.

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"Output looks to be flatlining while employment is still rising, continuing the pattern of the past year, " said Rob Wood at Berenberg Bank.

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That might appear one unlikely new development, but the pattern of mobile phone growth has always bucked the prevailing trends, analyst Ben Wood said.

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Normally, it would be easy to dismiss all this as an early-season fluke, but there is a pattern here: trading for Nick Swisher in late 2008, trading for Kerry Wood in mid-2010, signing Russell Martin and Freddy Garcia before 2011, signing Raul Ibanez and re-signing Eric Chavez in early 2012, trading for Ichiro Suzuki in mid-2012.

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