Due to the high volume of traffic following the release of the 2010 figures, the website of the Academic Ranking of World Universities 2010 (Shanghai Ranking) is difficult to access at times. Data relating to the Irish universities featuring in the Ranking and an overview of the methodology is provided to inform the discussion on these results. A few comments on the methodology and data sources are included... See also: Michaela Saisana (2008) European Commission JRC Report: Higher Education Rankings: Robustness Issues and Critical Assessment (http://crell.jrc.ec.europa.eu/Publications/CRELL%20Research%20Papers/EUR23487.pdf Shanghai rankings rattle European universities - http://news.xin.msn.com/en/world/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4271716 GLOBAL: US lead slips in world's top 100 universities David Jobbins and Karen MacGregor (http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20100813204958643)