SA-linked military firm loses anti-piracy contract

Somalia - Controversial SA-linked private military operator Sterling Corporate Services, aka Saracen International, has lost its anti-piracy contract in the semi-autonomous Somali region of Puntland.

The termination comes in the midst of strenuous criticism by the UN?s Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group (SEMG) of SCS?s handling of its United Arab Emirates-funded contract to train a paramilitary Puntland Maritime Police Force of about 1 000 to tackle piracy on the Horn of Africa.

While no final announcement has yet been made, Weekend Argus is reliably informed that US-based private military company Bancroft Global Development will inherit control of the maritime police force. There have been discussions with the UAE sponsors of the project ? who will continue to fund it ? to iron out the details.

Bancroft is under contract to the UN?s Amisom mission in Somalia, and has been training and advising UN forces in the region. Several South Africans are employed by Bancroft in its Somali operations.

Confirming the cancellation of the SCS contract, lawyer Wilna Lubbe, acting for Sterling and Saracen kingpin Lafras Luitingh, said the ?contract was terminated by agreement as the Government of Puntland now has the capacity to proceed with its antipiracy programme?.

Lubbe also confirmed that ?Bancroft as subcontractor to the Amisom, will assist where necessary?.

But it appears the decision was taken after what the authoritative Somalia Report?s Robert Young Pelton described as a ?behind closed door deal? brokered between the UAE and the UN ?to avoid? sanctions?.

This, Weekend Argus has learnt, led to a meeting with Sterling senior executives in the UAE in early June where the plug was pulled on the project. Sterling was also told that all foreign operatives would have to leave Somalia by the end of that month.

Then, in July, the SEMG published a 350-page report on the security situation in Somalia, sharply critical of the actions of Sterling and the maritime police under its control.

Describing the force as functioning as the private army of self-styled Puntland president Abdirahman Mohamud Faroole, the SEMG painted Sterling as a problem to security in the region.

It accused Sterling and a network of covertly associated offshore companies of systematic and large-scale violations of UN arms embargoes designed to reduce tensions and volatility in the east African zone.

The report highlighted several incidents where Sterling operators ? whose nominal brief was confined to training and advising the maritime police force ? were involved in military actions against Faroole?s enemies.

Also noted were documented tortures and other incidents of human rights abuse allegedly perpetrated under the command of the mainly South African Sterling corps.

On this basis, the monitoring group called for strong action by the UN Security Council.

Notably, it wanted Sterling/Saracen ?designated? along with other companies and individuals in the opaque network connected to the Puntland operation, and subjected to ?targeted measures?.

Such measures could include the freezing of assets, travel and trading bans, as well as the exertion of pressure on member governments to frame prosecutions under antimercenary laws such as SA?s Foreign Military Assistance legislation.

While the report stopped short of naming individuals, Weekend Argus has been informed by intelligence sources the moves were aimed not only against top management ? notably Luitingh, a one-time partner in the now disbanded Executive Outcomes ? but also against US national Erik Dean Prince, the former boss of the notorious US private military contractor Blackwater who is now resident in the UAE. Prince has been tracked as a major player in the Puntland military adventure.

A subsequent meeting of the UN Security Council on July 25, however ? while noting the submission of the SEMG report ? did not immediately make any formal resolution around the SEMG?s recommendations. Neither have any individuals or organisations thus far been designated for further action.

Though controversial throughout its contract in Puntland, the Sterling-controlled maritime police force achieved some notable successes in recent times in the fight against piracy in Somalia, notably hunting down the Isse Yulux pirate group in an on-land operation earlier this year, and an estimated reduction of successful pirate attacks by as much as 50 percent this year.

Saturday Star

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/sa-linked-military-firm-loses-anti-piracy-contract-1.1392640

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California voters leaning against campaign finance initiative

SACRAMENTO ? California voters appear poised to reject a November ballot measure that would ban political contributions by payroll deduction, according to a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll.

Forty-four percent of those surveyed said they opposed Proposition 32, which would eliminate the main fundraising tool of unions. Just 36% said they supported the measure, which would also bar corporations and unions from contributing directly to candidates.

Proponents of the measure, having focused squarely on unions in two past attempts to end paycheck deductions for political purposes, adopted the language of the Occupy Wall Street movement this time around and rebranded their campaign as an effort to curb the power of special interests.

An ad touting the measure says it would "cut the money tie between special interests, lobbyists and career politicians" and "put people back in charge." The supporters' core argument is that the initiative would apply "evenhandedly, without exception," to corporations and unions.

Campaign finance experts disagree, saying the measure would disproportionately hobble organized labor by prohibiting payroll deductions to collect campaign cash. Corporations, they say, rarely use such a method to raise political money, instead tapping executive checkbooks and company treasuries.

The labor-backed opposition campaign has hit on that theme, airing radio and TV ads for more than a month that paint the measure as a deceptive corporate power grab, complete with exemptions for business. So far, unions have raised more than $43.4 million to defeat Proposition 32, which is being bankrolled by Republican donors, conservative activists and business executives.

As a result, proponents "aren't able to convince voters this is a clean-government, stop-special-interests initiative," said Dave Kanevsky of the Republican polling firm American Viewpoint, which conducted the survey in conjunction with the Democratic company Greenberg Quinlan Rosner.

Indeed, when respondents heard arguments for and against the measure ? supporters saying it would end influence peddling and opponents calling it phony campaign finance reform ? opposition grew, with 48% saying they would vote against the initiative. Only 36% said they would vote for it.

"People are ready to believe that ? corporations are spending this money to rig the system more for them," said Stan Greenberg, the Democratic pollster.

In addition to the payroll provision, Proposition 32 would bar government contractors from contributing to elected officials, something that Los Angeles voters approved overwhelmingly in last year's local elections.

Proponents shouldn't "go too far in trying to suggest it does the same thing to businesses as it does to unions," said Rob Stutzman, a GOP consultant who helped run a campaign against paycheck deduction in 2005 for then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "Voters will resent you for trying to trick them."

One of those voters is Jeremy Ziegler, a 41-year-old Democrat from Oakland. An initial supporter of Proposition 32, he said he changed his mind when he heard arguments that certain businesses, including limited liability companies, or LLCs, and business trusts, could be exempted.

"I just don't think the little guy should get money taken out of his check for a candidate that his company or union supports," Ziegler said. "But if you're a big corporation or a big bank on Wall Street making billions of dollars and you're completely exempted, I don't think that's right either."

Proponents deny that their measure contains business exemptions. The state's nonpartisan legislative analyst's office said the initiative's language is unclear on that point.

Although the measure would block the direct flow of money from corporations and unions to candidates, experts said businesses would be free to spend unlimited amounts on independent committees to boost or challenge candidates and ballot measures. Labor would be free to do likewise, but its fundraising mechanism would have been cut off.

"You can't keep big money out of politics," said Gary Jacobson, a political scientist at UC San Diego. "But you can make it harder for your opponent to raise money."

The initiative's backers acknowledge the measure's limitations, saying they went as far as existing law allows. The U.S. Supreme Court ended limits on political spending through independent organizations in 2010. The court ruled such contributions to be free speech, protected by the Constitution.

"Anybody who wants to get serious about campaign finance reform runs right into all of the cases under the 1st Amendment," said Michael Capaldi, a Republican attorney who helped draft Proposition 32.

Trevor Bivins, a 30-year-old Republican from Lompoc, said special interests need to be curbed in blue California. In his view, recent changes in the state's overburdened public pension system fell short and failed to touch current workers because lawmakers are beholden to public employee unions.

Even though the state is in financial trouble, "people are living off these fat, huge pensions," said Bivins, a master sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. "I don't like the way they use lobbyists to get politicians to do their bidding."

The USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences/Los Angeles Times poll surveyed 1,504 registered California voters Sept. 17-23. The sampling error is 2.9 percentage points.

michael.mishak@latimes.com

Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-poll-prop32-20120929,0,4859693.story?track=rss

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Computer Technology Today: How does data recovery software ...

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE

Data recovery software is one kind of gift for the computer users. Data recovery that means getting back data that has been lost somehow was a dreamlike to the computer users but now the dream has come to truth. Data loss is not only the loss of the particular data but also it can damage other important data of the computer. ?

Are really anxious about the data that has been lost due to attack of malicious virus or other accidental detection of life or wiped down about all the data from your computer? No think at all because a good news of data recovery software for you to get back you?re lost data easily. There is some powerful data recovery software able to recover your most valuable data but how is a question.?

Remember, the file or folder that you have deleted has just gone to recycle bin from where you can get the file back. Files recovery application fundamentally will save you via about to the recycling center and also sifting with the heaps of report to search for the internet pages of your guide. The software program can do so much in your case, and also rebind the guide in your case. The procedure has need of specific instruments and also requires time as well as funds.

The higher quality data restoration software program can very simply heal your own missing data offer cost-free test variations. The test variations permit you to view the volume of recoverable data to investigate the particular processes of software program.

The best file recovery software program is additionally wide-ranging within setting, set up to extract files through a variety of storage devices advertising, however many people hook up to your computer or maybe what file set ups many people employ. The majority of file or data recovery software wants usually are for files within the hard disk drive or a UNIVERSAL SERIES BUS leap generate, nevertheless also you can get back files through CDs, Digital video disks, video camera cards, MUSIC gamers, exterior hard disks and from many others.

Source: http://c-techtoday.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-does-data-recovery-software-works.html

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Source: http://ovumrike.posterous.com/computer-technology-today-how-does-data-recov

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ShortcutFoo Trains You to Become a Keyboard Shortcut Ninja in No Time [Shortcuts]

Master the keyboard shortcuts in your most-used programs and you'll reap significant time savings. ShortcutFoo is an online training program that teaches you the keyboard commands in many applications including Gmail, Photoshop, Microsoft Visual Studio, Vim, the command line, and more.

ShortcutFoo is similar to KeyRocket (formerly known as Efficiency), except ShortcutFoo is a dedicated training program whereas KeyRocket teaches you MS Office, Windows Explorer and Gmail shortcuts as you use those programs. ShortcutFoo is kind of like a school for learning shortcuts.

ShortcutFoo offers two learning modes, practice and drill. In the practice mode, the webapp prompts you for the shortcut and reveals the answer after a delay; it's great for learning new shortcuts and, well, practicing them. (Shortcuts are all about muscle memory.) Drill mode is similar, except there are no shortcut hints and your progress is recorded for each one-minute drill.

You can try ShortcutFoo out now under a guest account or register to save your progress. For a one-time fee of $8.95, you can upgrade your account to unlock unlimited shortcuts and bundles of shortcuts. (The free Gmail bundles, for example, include beginner actions, navigation, and selection shortcuts. Upgraded accounts get more actions and navigation bundles, as well as application shortcuts.)

Go get your ShortcutFoo on and start working faster.

ShortcutFoo | via PCWorld

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/3dHBoBsSAvg/shortcutfoo-trains-you-to-become-a-keyboard-shortcut-ninja

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Afghan forces also suffer from insider attacks

FILE - In this July 9, 2010 file photograph, an Afghan National Army soldier wears an ammunition belt around his neck during a joint patrol with United States Army soldiers from Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion of the 508 Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne, in the volatile Arghandab Valley, outside Kandahar City. U.S. military officials have noted that Afghan security forces are dying in insider attacks along with foreign troops, but so far, the Afghan government has not provided statistics on the number killed. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer, File)

FILE - In this July 9, 2010 file photograph, an Afghan National Army soldier wears an ammunition belt around his neck during a joint patrol with United States Army soldiers from Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion of the 508 Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne, in the volatile Arghandab Valley, outside Kandahar City. U.S. military officials have noted that Afghan security forces are dying in insider attacks along with foreign troops, but so far, the Afghan government has not provided statistics on the number killed. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2009 file photo, U.S. Marine squad leader Sgt. Matthew Duquette, left, of Warrenville, Ill., with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion 5th Marines walks with Afghan National Army Lt. Hussein, during in a joint patrol in Nawa district, Helmand province, southern Afghanistan. U.S. military officials have noted that Afghan security forces are dying in insider attacks along with foreign troops, but so far, the Afghan government has not provided statistics on the number killed. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, File)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? Afghan Army Sgt. Habibullah Hayar didn't know it, but he had been sleeping with his enemy for weeks.

Twenty days ago, one of his roommates was arrested for allegedly plotting an insider attack against their unit, which is partnered with NATO forces in eastern Paktia province.

Afghan soldiers and policemen ? or militants in their uniforms ? have gunned down more than 50 foreign troops so far this year, eroding the trust between coalition forces and their Afghan partners. An equal number of Afghan policemen and soldiers also died in these attacks, giving them reason as well to be suspicious of possible infiltrators within their ranks.

"It's not only foreigners. They are targeting Afghan security forces too," said the 21-year-old Hayar, who was in Kabul on leave. "Sometimes, I think what kind of situation is this that a Muslim cannot trust a Muslim ? even a brother cannot trust a brother. It's so confused. Nobody knows what's going on."

The attacks are taking a toll on the partnership, prompting the U.S. military to restrict operations with small-sized Afghan units earlier this month.

The close contact ? with coalition forces working side by side with Afghan troops as advisers, mentors and trainers ? is a key part of the U.S. strategy for putting the Afghans in the lead as the U.S. and other nations prepare to pull out their last combat troops at the end of 2014, just 27 months away.

The U.S. military also has shown increasing anger over the attacks.

"I'm mad as hell about them, to be honest with you," Gen. John Allen, the top commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, told CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview scheduled to be broadcast on Sunday. "It reverberates everywhere across the United States. You know, we're willing to sacrifice a lot for this campaign, but we're not willing to be murdered for it."

So far this year, 51 foreign troops ? at least half of them Americans ? have been killed in insider attacks. The Afghan government has not provided statistics on the number of its forces killed in insider attacks. However, U.S. military statistics obtained by The Associated Press show at least 53 members of the Afghan security forces had been killed as of the end of August.

A U.S. military official disclosed the numbers on condition of anonymity because he said it was up to Afghan officials to formally release the figures. An Afghan defense official who was shown the statistics said he had no reason to doubt their accuracy.

Overall, the statistics show that at least 135 Afghan policemen and soldiers have been killed in insider attacks since 2007. That's more than the 118 foreign service members ? mostly Americans ? killed in such attacks since then, according to NATO.

Typically, foreign troops are the main targets, but Afghan forces also have been killed by comrades angry over their collaboration with Westerners and many more get killed in the crossfire, Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi said. He said the ministry did not have a breakdown of how many had been targeted or killed in gunbattles during the attacks.

In at least one instance, an Afghan police officer with alleged ties to militants, killed 10 of his fellow officers on Aug. 11 at a checkpoint in southwestern Nimroz province. An Afghan soldier also was killed on April 25 when a fellow soldier opened fire on a U.S. service member and his translator in Kandahar province, the southern birthplace of the Taliban.

Last year, a suicide bomber in an Afghan police uniform blew himself up May 28 in Takhar province, killing two NATO service members and four Afghans, including a senior police commander. And just a week before that, four Taliban fighters wearing suicide vests under police uniforms attacked a government building in Khost province, triggering a gunbattle that left three Afghan policemen and two Afghan soldiers dead. On April 16, an Afghan soldier walked into a meeting of NATO trainers and Afghan troops in Laghman province, blew himself up, killing five U.S. troops, four Afghan soldiers and an interpreter.

"It's difficult to know an attacker from a non-attacker when everybody is wearing a uniform, Hayar said.

The attacker was one of seven people rounded up earlier this month from various units within the Afghan National Army Corps 203, Hayar said. The corps covers the eastern Afghan provinces of Paktia, Paktika, Ghazni, Wardak, Logar and Khost.

"He was together with me in my room with some of my other colleagues. He had a long beard. We didn't know anything about him. We were living together, sleeping together," said Hayar, who has been in the Afghan army for 2 1/2 years.

He said the suspected infiltrator was identified after a Taliban militant arrested in Logar told his Afghan interrogators that members of the fundamentalist Islamic movement had infiltrated the corps and were planning imminent attacks. That prompted Hayar's superiors to start questioning soldiers in various units.

Hayar said his roommate's uneasy reaction raised suspicion, and investigators found Taliban songs saved to the memory card of his cell phone. He was then detained by Afghan intelligence officials and confessed he was a member of the Taliban and planned to stage attacks.

Hayar says he assumes his former bunkmate was probably going after foreign forces, but it makes him uncomfortable nevertheless.

"It's very hard to trust anybody ? even a roommate," he said. "Whenever I'm not on duty, I lock my weapon and keep the key myself. I don't put my weapon under my pillow to sleep because maybe someone will grab it and shoot me with my own weapon."

To counter such attacks, the U.S. military earlier this year stopped training about 1,000 members of the Afghan Local Police, a controversial network of village-defense units. U.S. commanders have assigned some troops to be "guardian angels" who watch over their comrades even as they sleep. U.S. officials also recently ordered American troops to carry loaded weapons at all time, even when they are on their bases.

Then, after a string of insider attacks, Allen this month restricted operations carried out alongside with small-sized Afghan units. Coalition troops have routinely conducted patrols or manned outposts with small groups of Afghan counterparts, but Allen's directive said such operations would no longer be considered routine and required the approval of the regional commander.

For their part, Afghan authorities have detained or removed hundreds of soldiers as part of its effort to re-screen its security forces. The Ministry of Defense also released a 28-page training booklet this month that advises soldiers not to be personally offended when foreign troops do things Afghans view as deeply insulting.

The booklet urges them not to take revenge for foreign troops' social blunders, such as blowing their noses in public, stepping into a mosque with their shoes on, walking in front of a soldier who is praying or asking about their wives.

"Most of the coalition members are interested to share pictures of their families. It is not a big deal for them. If someone asks you about your family, especially the females in your family, don't think they are disrespecting you or trying to insult you," the booklet says.

"That is not the case. By asking such questions, they are trying to show that they want to learn more about you. You can very easily explain to them that nobody in Afghanistan would ask, especially about wives or females in the family."

___

Associated Press writers Amir Shah and Rahim Faiez in Kabul contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-09-29-Afghan-Insider%20Attacks/id-9a8ee2ae42804eb88c050df9c80aa502

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Graphics chips are for more than just eye candy

CHANCES are there is a graphics chip in your desktop computer, and it is fuelling a revolution. These chips, called GPUs, have of late been co-opted from their original use in giving video games their impressive visuals. Their talent for parallel processing is helping to speed up everything from medical imaging to studies of the cosmos. And they could be the key to future generations of ultrapowerful smartphones and tablet computers.

Introduced by chip-maker Nvidia in 1999, these graphics processing units took personal computing by storm. Augmenting a PC's central processing unit with a GPU allowed software designers to transform, say, video games, into the immersive virtual environments we now take for granted.

Software initiatives, such as Nvidia's CUDA, launched in 2007, and the Apple-led OpenCL project from 2008, opened up these chips for non-graphics applications.

Researchers have been reaping the benefits ever since. The chip's ability to calculate in parallel makes it ideal for tasks such as climate modelling. Here, virtual representations of the Earth are broken down into a three-dimensional grid, and mathematical equations can run simultaneously at millions of different points on the grid.

The same holds for medical imaging. A 5-minute functional MRI scan can accumulate tens of millions of three-dimensional units of data, each representing a tiny volume of the brain. This data has to be processed to compensate for, say, head movement, to create a more accurate scan. This can take days to process even with the multiple processing cores in the latest central processing units that allow for some, albeit limited, parallel processing.

Anders Eklund of Link?ping University, Sweden, and colleagues have shown that certain fMRI calculations, which used to take about 24 hours, are wrapped up in as little as 8 minutes using GPUs (Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine, doi.org/fsqz9m). Soon, people who come in for a scan will know the outcome almost instantly. "That's an enormous weight off anybody's mind," says John Owens, a computer scientist at the University of California, Davis.

The CPU is far from dead though: in the past few years, the rise of the multicore processor has given the nerve centre of every computer a new lease of life. The big manufacturers are now doubling up on chips, with designs for chipsets that put both GPU and CPU on the same piece of silicon. These include Intel's latest line, Ivy Bridge, Advanced Micro Devices' Fusion and Nvidia's Denver chips.

GPU-computing can even extend to studying the cosmos. Debbie Bard of Stanford University in California and colleagues have shown that the chips can help crunch the torrents of data that come in from a range of next-generation astronomical instruments. "The larger the data set, the more advantageous it is to use the GPU," she says.

This is just the beginning, predicts Owens. The chips are already finding their way into smartphones and tablets, mostly to power high-resolution screens and applications like 3D mapping. But as GPUs become ubiquitous in mobile devices, they will pave the way for applications that no one has yet thought about. "The future has barely been scratched from this point of view," Owens says.

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Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/23ea19f1/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Carticle0Cmg215288450B0A0A0A0Egraphics0Echips0Eare0Efor0Emore0Ethan0Ejust0Eeye0Ecandy0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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Certificate of Tax Residency under DDTA (Withholding Tax) | Buyer's ...

To Avail Buyer?s / Supplier?s Credit:?E: sanjaymandavia@gmail.com, M: +919825560186

Sec 90 of Income Tax Act 1961 has been amended by inserting?Sec 90 (4). Details of the section has been given below. Sec 90 (4) have many implications, but this article is concentrating on its implication on Buyers Credit transaction.

Rule comes into force on 01-04-2013

From April 2013 onwards when buyers credit is taken from foreign bank, importer will also need to collect Certificate of Tax?Residency from these foreign banks to claim benefit of lesser Withholding Tax (WHT) rates under DDTA or else standard rate of 20% will be applicable.

Sec 90 of Income Tax Act 1961

In simple terms, Sec 90 is for claiming relief for Double Taxation under Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty (DDTA)

Sec 90?(2) Where the Central Government has entered into an agreement with the Government of any country outside India or specified territory outside India, as the case may be, under Sec 90 (1) for granting relief of tax, or as the case may be, avoidance of double taxation, then, in relation to the?assessee?to whom such agreement applies, the provisions of this Act shall apply to the extent they are more beneficial to that?assessee.

Amendment : Sec 90 (4) of Income Tax Act 1961

S. 90 (4) of the Act, as inserted by the Finance Act 2012 w.e.f 1.4.2013 provides that an assessee, not being a resident, to whom an agreement referred to in sub-section (1) of s. 90 applies, shall not be entitled to claim any relief under a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement unless a certificate, containing such particulars as may be prescribed, of his being a resident in any country outside India or specified territory outside India, as the case may be, is obtained by him from the Government of that country or specified territory. A similar provision has been inserted in sub-section (4) of s. 90A of the Act. Pursuant therto, the CBDT has issued Notification dated 17.09.2012 to insert Rule 21BA and Forms 10FA and 10FB specifying the manner in which the aforesaid Certificate of Tax Residency should be obtained.

Certificate of Tax Residency

Certificate of Tax Residency?should contain below minimum details

1. Name of the assessee;
2. Status (individual, company, firm etc.) of the assessee;
3. Nationality (in case of individual);
4. Country or specified territory of incorporation or registration (in?case of others);
5. Assessee?s tax identification number in the country or specified?territory of residence or in case no such number, then, a unique?number on the basis of which the person is identified by the?Government of the country or the specified territory;
6. Residential status for the purposes of tax;
7. Period for which the certificate is applicable; and
8. Address of the applicant for the period for which the certificate?is applicable;

Also, the certificate referred shall have to be duly verified by the?Government of the country or the specified territory of which the assessee?claims to be a resident for the purposes of tax.

Reference

1. Sec 90 of Income Tax Act 1961
2. Sec 90 A of Income Tax Act 1961
3. Sec 90 (4) of Income Tax Act 1961
4. Finance Bill, 2012?- Direct Taxes
5. CBDT Circular : Dated 27-09-2012
6. India Mauritius Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA)
7. Country-wise Double Taxation Summary Chart
8. Countrywise DDTA Agreements Copy
9. Ministry of Finance Notification?on 194LC (5% WHT ? Not Applicable to Buyers Credit):?Dated: 21-09-2012

18.436385 82.738182

Hi, I am Sanjay Mandavia, an Ex Banker and now a Consultant.

Source: http://buyerscredit.wordpress.com/2012/09/28/certificate-of-tax-residence-ddta-withholding-tax/

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The Positive Side of Negative Product Reviews

Marketers, sellers and retailers place high importance in social media. And when they talk about it, one of the most focused items is the occurrence of negative product reviews. It is because most of them fear these kinds of reviews. But they should overcome this fear and embrace the importance and value offered by reviews even if they don?t sound that pleasant. As a retailer, you must use the bad press to your advantage and focus on the good that comes out from it.

People Want To Read Negative Reviews Too

Buyers and the consumers as a whole don?t just look for purely positive reviews but also for negative ones. Based on a recent survey, almost 50% of all online consumers read reviews before making purchases. It is satisfying to learn that most buyers, more often than not, try to scout for something negative about a product. This way, they will find out if the product has some shortcomings that are just nothing but realistic in the real world. All in all, the negative stuffs said about the products are usually livable. This means that the product is still worth using despite its flaws. It is with this imperfection that shoppers are able to move away from the purchase paralysis and finally make a decision to buy the product.

Establishing Authenticity

No product is perfect! These blemishes help confirm the authenticity of the reviews made as most buyers consider products having purely positive feedbacks as either fake or written by the manufacturers themselves. If the user feedbacks are usually rated with five stars, there is a big possibility that these are just testimonials and not authentic reviews. A good example of how negative feedbacks help product sales is shown the smart phone market. Without a doubt, there is no single handset bearing all features. As a result, many users air their sentiments online and become displeased about the product. Ironically, these handsets continue to sell tens of millions worldwide, which proves that other consumers are still contented with the handset despite its known limitations. It doesn?t matter if your handset is still 3G and not LTE for as long as it can make calls and send SMS.

The Benefit to Retailers

Having a dozen negative feedbacks about your product doesn?t really place your business in an entirely bad light. For one, it serves to tell the public about what other consumers say about the product. In this connection, there will be fewer product returns because people buy the product already knowing about its aforementioned flaws. Secondly, the surfacing of negative product reviews can be used as a go signal to remove the product from the inventory and further improve it before selling it again. Lastly, retailers can leverage on the negative feedbacks and put another product beside it that is more appealing and reliable. This is a good opportunity for them to sell their other offerings if they discover that most of their customers are dissatisfied with one of their products. It?s actually a win-win situation for both the retailer and the buyers.

Know the good side of negative Product Reviews, and how retailers can use them to their advantage. Learn why online consumers want to read negative reviews other than purely positive ones.

Source: http://toddsblogs.com/shoppingandproductreviews/2012/09/27/the-positive-side-of-negative-product-reviews/

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Spotted: January Jones and Xander Get the Giggles

AKM-GSI What’s so funny? A cheerful January Jones shares a laugh with son Xander Dane, 1, during a trip to the store Wednesday in Glendale, Calif. The Mad Men actress is back to mommy duty after stepping out for the 2012 Emmys on Sunday in a stunning (and very dramatic!) Zac Posen gown. Last month, [...]

Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/xM5Uan3BRV0/

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ACS Careers: Research-Basic jobs, Cambridge jobs, Massachusetts ...

Temp. Contract 6+ months
As a member of the Analytical Development Release and Stability Laboratory, this individual will support the drug development programs at Vertex through analytical method validation, clinical supply release and clinical stability sample analysis for both drug substances and drug products, all in a GMP environment.
?
Key Responsibilities
- Analytical testing
- Analytical data review
- Instrument and method troubleshooting
- Logging and shipping samples

Vertex creates new possibilities in medicine. Our team discovers, develops and commercializes innovative therapies so people with serious diseases can lead better lives. Vertex scientists and our collaborators are working on new medicines to cure or significantly advance the treatment of hepatitis C, cystic fibrosis, epilepsy and other life-threatening diseases. Founded more than 20 years ago in Cambridge, MA, we now have ongoing worldwide research programs and sites in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. Vertex has consistently been recognized as one of the industry's top workplaces by leading publications such as Science Magazine, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal, San Diego Business Journal and The Scientist, and most recently was named the top employer in Science magazine's 2011 annual survey.

VERTEX is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, sex, national origin, color, religion, age, disability, veteran status or any other status protected by applicable law.
?

To Apply for this position, please CLICK HERE

Source: http://chemistryjobs.acs.org/jobs/4931343/temp-sr-scientific-associate

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O's blast Jays to keep pace in playoff chase

Associated Press Sports

updated 10:31 p.m. ET Sept. 26, 2012

BALTIMORE (AP) - After losing two straight games to Toronto, the Baltimore Orioles broke out the big bats.

The Orioles tied a team record by with seven home runs to rout the Blue Jays 12-2 and stay within 1 1/2 games of the AL East lead.

Chris Davis and Manny Machado each connected twice and the Orioles remained close to the division-leading New York Yankees, who won 8-2 in Minnesota.

Nate McLouth hit a leadoff shot in the first inning and Jim Thome and Mark Reynolds also homered. Baltimore has hit seven home runs three times, most recently on Aug. 26, 1985.

"Home runs are very unique, and when you do what we did tonight, it's something to be proud of. It's something that doesn't happen a whole lot in the game," Thome said.

Thome's home run was the 612th of his career and the first he's hit at home for the Orioles.

"Up and down the lineup, everyone swung the bat well. It's been fun," Thome said.

Davis finished with a career-high five RBIs to help the Orioles split a four-game series with the last-place Blue Jays.

"This was a tough series. It was one of those ones that you don't want to see at the end of the season coming in off a long road trip," Davis said.

"I think if you'd have told us a few months ago that we'd be a game-and-a-half out with six games left, I think you'd be pretty happy with that."

Beginning Friday, the Orioles have three games with Boston at home and three at Tampa Bay.

"We just got through playing Boston and we played them well. Obviously, the three in Tampa are going to be tough, but we're at a point where we still have a chance, so that's all you can ask for," Davis said.

The Orioles trailed 2-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth before hitting three home runs.

Thome led off with his third homer since joining the Orioles. With two outs, Machado hit his fifth of the year for a 3-2 Baltimore lead. All of Machado's home runs have come at home, and his drive was the Orioles' 200th homer of the year.

Davis' three-run drive gave the Orioles a five-run inning and finished Carlos Villanueva (7-7).

Villanueva equaled a career high by giving up four home runs.

"Those mistakes I made, they hit them with authority. They put the power stroke on them and made me pay for them," Villanueva said.

Machado and Thome are the first AL teammates to hit home runs in the same inning with an age difference of more than 20 years, according to home run historian David Vincent.

Thome is 42 and Machado is 20 - Thome's major league career began 10 months before Machado was born.

"That's crazy," Machado said. "It's a pretty good stat. I remember when I used to watch (Thome) play when I was a little kid. Now to hit a home run in the same inning he did, just feels great."

Davis hit his second home run in the seventh. On Aug. 24, he hit three home runs against the Blue Jays, also in a game started by Villanueva. He has 28 home runs.

Reynolds hit his 23rd homer in the sixth and Machado added a two-run shot in the eighth.

Miguel Gonzalez (8-4) allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings. He allowed Edwin Encarnacion's 42nd home run with two outs in the top of the first.

With one out in the fifth, J.P. Arencibia, who went 7 for 9 in the four-game series, doubled and scored on Anthony Gose's single.

NOTES: Orioles LHP Randy Wolf was put on the 60-day disabled list with a torn ligament in his left elbow. Baltimore purchased the contract of INF-OF Bill Hall from Triple-A Norfolk. Hall will provide outfield help while Lew Ford is out with a groin injury. ... Deion Sanders, in town for Thursday's NFL Network game between the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens, took batting practice with the Orioles before the game. Sanders, who played nine years in the majors, was an outfielder for Baltimore manager Buck Showalter in the minors while in the Yankees' organization. ... The Orioles are off Thursday and begin a three-game series with Boston on Friday. Baltimore RHP Chris Tillman (8-2, 3.08 ERA) faces Red Sox RHP Aaron Cook (4-10, 5.13). ... On Thursday, Toronto hosts New York to begin a four-game series. Blue Jays RHP Brandon Morrow (8-7, 3.28) faces Yankees RHP Ivan Nova (12-7, 4.94).

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Cabrera's season for the ages

??HBT Extra: Tiffany Simons and Craig Calcaterra speculate if the Tigers slugger can become the first Triple Crown winner since 1967.

Rich Schultz / Getty Images

Mailbag: Save Cy Young votes for Kimbrel

MLB mailbag: Braves closer Craig Kimbrel has had the kind of utterly dominant season that should earn him some attention in the NL Cy Young race. But winning the award figures to be a difficult proposition for him.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/49188577/ns/sports-baseball/

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The Emergency Apps Toolbox For Students

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Analysis: Itau may change Brazil card industry with Redecard buy

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Itau Unibanco's takeover of Redecard will help Brazil's most profitable bank vie for a bigger share of the fast-growing credit card business and could alter the relationship between banks and card users.

A relentless government push to lower borrowing costs is forcing banks to promote products such as credit cards to make up for falling interest income. Redecard for years enjoyed a large chunk of the booming $400 billion-per-year card processing industry - and Itau wants to leverage its ownership as card transactions soar in Latin America's largest economy.

By taking full control of Redecard, Itau can offer a more complete array of services without having to disclose strategies or investments to minority shareholders - who for years objected the company's ambitious capital spending plans. Itau previously owned 50.1 percent of Redecard, which contributed to 7 percent of the bank's profit last year.

"With Redecard folded into Itau, the new competitive scenario will reinforce banks' role as a distribution channel," said Francisco Kops, an analyst with J Safra Corretora in S?o Paulo.

Hours before Itau clinched the Redecard deal, competitors were actively announcing new steps. Banco Bradesco cut interest rates on Monday on all its credit card products, while Elavon, Citigroup's acquirer, launched a new clearing platform with Brazilian technology company Bematech.

Itau will spend as much as 11.77 billion reais ($5.82 billion) to take Redecard private. The bank owns another acquirer, Hipercard, which might be merged with Redecard to gain scale, Jorg Friedemann, an analyst with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, said on Monday.

The deal may also allow Itau to book one-off tax gains worth 4 billion reais, analysts said.

INTEREST-FREE INSTALLMENTS

The takeover of Redecard could accelerate changes in the way banks finance card holders. Itau's efforts to reduce the widespread use of interest-free installments on credit card purchases could help banks remove part of the risk of defaults from their balance sheets.

Currently, Brazilian consumers are only charged interest if they fail to pay credit card bills in full or on time. Banks and retailers for years financed the existence of interest-free installments to encourage demand for both goods and credit.

But after a decade of robust economic and wage growth, lenders are increasingly reluctant to offer interest-free installments for consumers who are better off financially.

Itau could use Redecard to speed up plans for a new type of credit card that would cut interest rates in half but charge interest from the date of the purchase of a good or service if the client makes a partial payment or defaults, said Victor Schabbel, a financial industry analyst with Credit Suisse Group.

That would allow the bank to bring in more revenue from credit card transactions.

"This is an important change to the way credit cards have been historically structured in Brazil," Schabbel wrote in a recent report.

RISING COMPETITION

Record-low interest rates in Brazil have also increased banks' focus on credit cards and other fee-based services.

A robust job market is allowing Brazilians to more rapidly substitute cash with credit. Abecs, the group representing acquirers, expects the industry to expand 20 percent this year.

Merchant acquirers, as companies in the sector are known, have thrived in the past three years even as newcomers have driven down fees. Redecard and rival Cielo hold about 80 percent of the market, down from 90 percent in 2009.

With Redecard's delisting, the fight for market share should intensify. The change could spark a fight between the two major players, Friedemann noted, driving down fees and hampering the performance of Cielo's shares.

($1 = 2.03 Brazilian reais)

(Additional reporting by Danielle Assalve; Editing by Alden Bentley)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-itau-may-change-brazil-card-industry-redecard-143528648--sector.html

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Violence of the lambs | Fraser Coast Pets | Animal and Dog News in ...

WHAT will it take to end the nightmare families like the Bryant-Philo's are forced to confront? The Booral residents spent yesterday amid the carnage of body parts and blood after a pack of aggressive dogs mercilessly killed 11 of their beloved pets. But now, because of restrictive laws surrounding aggressive animals, the family will not be told if the attackers even face punishment.

Robyne Cuerel

UPDATE 9PM: Another heartbroken Fraser Coast family is demanding council take action against two dogs that mauled 11 pets to death.

The Booral residents, who practice sustainable living on a small acreage, woke to discover the dogs still feasting on the felled animals in the early hours of yesterday.

The two dogs are believed to be a tan-coloured bull mastiff cross and a black border collie type.

The animals are also suspected of an attack on a pony during the same rampage.

Owner of the slain pets, Dawn Bryant said the gratuitous killing had left her distraught.

She claimed hunting dogs with a thirst for blood had left lambs without mothers and ewes without newborns.

"They were all family to us, they would come to you every time because we would raise them from the moment they were born," Ms Bryant said.

Distressingly, one of the ewes killed was carrying a lamb and had been only weeks away from giving birth.

Ms Bryant claimed it was time the Fraser Coast Council took control of dog laws and provided action for its residents.

"The council needs to be more proactive in getting people who have aggressive dogs to understand acts like this will not be tolerated...," she said.

Councillor Darren Everard, who represents the division where the attack took place appealed to the public for help locating the dogs.

"We would like people in the Booral area who have seen dogs of that description to contact council so the dogs can be captured," Cr Everard said.

Cr Everard confirmed patrols would be stepped up in the area and that dog traps had been placed on the property.

Source: http://www.frasercoastchronicle.com.au/story/2012/09/25/more-pets-killed-fraser-coast/

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U.S. Air Force trainer gets 45 days in jail in sex scandal

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - A U.S. Air Force training instructor was sentenced to 45 days in jail after confessing on Monday to engaging in an improper relationship with a trainee in a case that is part of a wider sex scandal at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.

Jason Manko was reduced in rank from staff sergeant to airman first class and sentenced to 45 days in prison after pleading guilty on Monday.

A military judge, who heard the case without a court martial panel, declined to discharge Manko from the Air Force, allowing him to stay in the service and undergo internal punishment.

"This appears to be another case where the punishment does not fit the crime," said Nancy Parrish, president of Protect Our Defenders, a group that fights sexual assault in the military. "This supports a perception that sexual offenses are a low priority in the military."

Six trainers at Lackland Air Force base in San Antonio have been charged with sexual misconduct in the worst military sex scandal in 16 years. A total of 38 women have come forward to claim they were victims of inappropriate conduct at the hands of their basic training instructors.

Manko was ordered to forfeit $1,500 in pay over three months and sentenced to 30 days hard labor without confinement, in addition to the reduction in rank. He also will be restricted to base for 30 days.

Four other instructors have either pleaded guilty or been convicted by courts martial. They have been sentenced to punishments ranging from 30 days to 20 years in prison.

Brent Boller, a spokesman for the base, said Manko's case was different from the other four trainers, who engaged in improper sexual relationships with newly arrived recruits going through the Air Force's basic training program.

He said the woman in Manko's case had already gone through basic training and was taking advanced military career training at Lackland. Officials didn't say how long she had been in the Air Force.

One more trainer is set to face a court martial on charges related to the sex scandal, which has rocked the military and prompted the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee to agree to hold hearings to investigate the treatment of female recruits in all of the services.

(Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-air-force-trainer-gets-45-days-jail-042247329.html

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2013 Ford Fusion Test Drive

On-Sale Date: Fall

Price: $22,495?$32,995

Competitors: Toyota Camry, Nissan Altima, Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord, and Hyundai Sonata

Powertrains: 2.5-liter I-4, 175 hp, 175 lb-ft; 1.6-liter Turbocharged I-4, 178 hp, 184 lb-ft; 2.0-liter turbocharged I-4, 240 hp, 270 lb-ft; 2.0-liter I-4 hybrid, 188 total system hp

EPA Fuel Economy (city/hwy): 22/26 (I-4 2.5), 23/36 (I-4 1.6, auto), 25/37 (I-4 1.6, manual), 22/33 (I-4 2.0), 22/31 (I-4 2.0 AWD), 47/47 (hybrid)

What's New: Ford's new Fusion is so thoroughly redesigned and improved that few will draw any similarities to the old one. The car is a stunner, looking more like it just rolled off the auto stage in Frankfurt than came from Detroit. It looks sporty and fresh and slips through the air with a Cd of only .27, thanks to 450 hours of testing in the wind tunnel.

The new Fusion is built largely of European bones, specifically those of the Ford Mondeo?a car we don't see on these shores, but one that for the past several years has garnered high praise across the pond for its handling and style. This Fusion, as well as the new Mondeo, uses a heavily redesigned version of the previous Mondeo's chassis. Though the MacPherson struts upfront have been reworked, it's the new rear multilink suspension that engineers credit with building upon the Mondeo's deft moves while creating a ride quality that can soak up the worst potholes in Detroit.

Under that sculpted hood and behind that Aston Martin-esque grille is a wide selection of powertrains. Entry-level cars will use the older 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder. But most Fusions will pack either the 178-hp 1.6-liter Ecoboost four-cylinder or the more robust 240 hp 2.0-liter version. Unlike many in the midsize class, Ford chose an all-four-cylinder lineup backed by six-speed transmissions instead of CVTs. That's true for all the new Fusions, except the hybrid model, which uses a smaller 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle engine, a lighter and more power-dense 1.4 kwh lithium-ion battery pack, and a more powerful electric motor that combine to deliver an electric-only top speed of 62 mph and 47 mpg combined. The non-hybrid Fusions benefit from a number of fuel-economy enhancements such as optional aerodynamic grille shutters, electric power steering, and auto start-stop, which bumps up the highway mpg into the mid-30s for most of the lineup.

The 2013 Fusion is roomier than the outgoing car in nearly every dimension except for trunk space, which is down half a cubic foot to 16 cubic-feet. Legroom up front and in the rear has improved noticeably thanks to the 4.8-inch wheelbase stretch. But thanks to tidy front and rear overhangs the Fusion is a little more than an inch longer than its predecessor despite the wheelbase extension. You can option the Fusion with a dizzying array of safety and luxury features that were the domain of flagship luxury cars just a few years ago, like lane departure warning with lane keeping aid, auto park, adaptive cruise control, blind spot detection, and cross-traffic alert.

Tech Tidbit: Ford offers automatic start-stop?the tech that turns off your engine automatically while the car is at rest?as a $295 option on automatic transmission 1.6-liter Fusions. Since the alternator can't support the electrical system (stereo, climate control, headlights) when the engine turns off at a stoplight, a battery has to handle these tasks in a vehicle with stop-start. The Fusion uses a new, 12-volt Absorbed Glass Mat battery from Johnson Controls, which, Ford says, is more durable than a conventional one for deep cycling, cold-weather operation, and heavy loads.

Ford also beefed up the Fusion's conventional starter to handle repeated engine cycling and put in a DC-to-DC convertor that helps maintain constant voltage when the engine is started. There's an auxiliary water pump that in cooler weather will maintain heat in the climate control system when the engine shuts off at a stoplight. Also, the transmission positions itself into the lowest gear prior to the engine shutoff so that it will be ready for immediate drive-away. All of this means that Fusions equipped with the stop-start technology gain 2-mpg city over cars without it.

Driving Character: The previous Ford Fusion was one of the smoothest-riding midsize sedans. But fun to drive? Not so much. The new car maintains the supple ride character while improving on the older Fusion's agility. The new car weighs about the same, but feels lighter. That's especially true for the 1.6-liter cars paired to the six-speed manual. The $26,040 1.6-liter Fusion SE with 18-inch wheels we tested was an easy rider on the worst streets we could find near Santa Monica, Calif. Yet once we began challenging the car on the twisty roads high above the Malibu coastline, it felt poised, light on its feet, and even a bit, ahem, German. These weren't quite sport sedan moves, but probably as close as any domestic front-drive midsize sedan has come yet. All Fusions now use an electric power steering system, and we think it could be one of the best-calibrated systems on any midsize sedan.

The Fusion we drove is the lightest combination in the lineup. It weighs about 200 pounds less than the 2.0-liter Ecoboost automatic. Though that 240-hp, 2.0-liter engine makes the Fusion a speedy machine, we prefer the handling balance of the 1.6-liter car. The new hybrid model felt just about as competent in the corners as its brethren despite its low-rolling-resistance tires. Unlike most hybrids, the Ford doesn't require that you give up driving fun for mpg. We appreciate that.

This is the midsize sedan segment, so comfort matters, too. The front seats are supremely soft and supportive. It is a cocoonlike atmosphere inside, with thick A-pillars. The Fusion's coupelike profile means those front windows do not provide the most visibility. Out back, there's plenty of headroom and legroom, but again, the rear side pillars spoil the view for taller passengers.

Favorite Detail: A plug-in hybrid Fusion called the Energi will arrive before the end of the year, and may be Ford's answer to the Chevy Volt. Ford claims that it will return more than 100 mpge and more than 20 miles of electric driving on one charge.

Driver's Grievance: The Fusion SE's infotainment system is a study in minimalism. There's a touchscreen with just two knobs for volume and tuning. The problem is that the touchscreen's buttons are too few, too small, and too confusing to navigate. We repeatedly had to pull over to figure out how to get back to the menu we wanted or find the right command.

The Bottom Line: The new Ford Fusion is visually and dynamically an exciting midsize sedan. It clearly makes the outgoing car look like a relic of the old Ford, a time before the attractive and talented new Fiesta and Focus arrived. For the first time in a long while, there is continuity of character in Ford's car lineup, and each of the three now combines engaging driving, impressive mpg, and good looks.

We'd like to see an even higher performance version of the Fusion?perhaps one wearing an ST or SVT badge?

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/reviews/drives/2013-ford-fusion-test-drive-13029886?src=rss

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Language use is simpler than previously thought, study suggests

ScienceDaily (Sep. 25, 2012) ? For more than 50 years, language scientists have assumed that sentence structure is fundamentally hierarchical, made up of small parts in turn made of smaller parts, like Russian nesting dolls.

A new Cornell study suggests language use is simpler than they had thought.

Co-author Morten Christiansen, Cornell professor of psychology and co-director of the Cornell Cognitive Science Program, and his colleagues say that language is actually based on simpler sequential structures, like clusters of beads on a string.

"What we're suggesting is that the language system deals with words by grouping them into little clumps that are then associated with meaning," he said.

Sentences are made up of such word clumps, or "constructions," that are understood when arranged in a particular order. For example, the word sequence "bread and butter" might be represented as a construction, whereas the reverse sequence of words ("butter and bread") would likely not.

The sequence concept has simplicity on its side; language is naturally sequential, given the temporal cues that help us understand and be understood as we use language. Moreover, the hierarchy concept doesn't take into account the many other cues that help convey meaning, such as the setting and knowing what was said before and the speaker's intention.

The researchers drew on evidence in language-related fields from psycholinguistics to cognitive neuroscience. For example, research in evolutionary biology indicates that humans acquired language (and animals did not) because we have evolved abilities in a number of areas, such as being able to correctly guess others' intentions and learn a large number of sounds that we then relate to meaning to create words. In contrast, the hierarchy concept suggests humans have language thanks only to highly specialized "hardware" in the brain, which neuroscientists have yet to find.

Research in cognitive neuroscience shows that the same set of brain regions seem to be involved in both sequential learning and language, suggesting that language is processed sequentially. And several recent psycholinguistic studies have shown that how well adults and children perform on a sequence learning task strongly predicts how well they can process the deluge of words that come at us in rapid succession when we're listening to someone speak. "The better you are at dealing with sequences, the easier it is for you to comprehend language," Christiansen said.

The study by Christiansen and his colleagues has important implications for several language-related fields. From an evolutionary perspective, it could help close what has been seen as a large gap between the communications systems of humans and other nonhuman primates. "This research allows us a better understanding of our place in nature, in that we can tie our language ability, our communication abilities, more closely to what we can see in other species. It could have a big impact in terms of allowing us to think in more humble terms about the origin of language in humans," Christiansen said.

The research could also affect natural language processing, the area of computer science that deals with human language, by encouraging scholars to focus on sequential structure when trying to create humanlike speech and other types of language processing, Christiansen said. He pointed out that machines already successfully perform such tasks as translation and speech recognition thanks to algorithms based on sequential structures.

The study, "How hierarchical is language use?" was published Sept. 12 in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. The research was funded by the European Union, the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research and the Binational Science Foundation.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Cornell University. The original article was written by Susan Kelley.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. S. L. Frank, R. Bod, M. H. Christiansen. How hierarchical is language use? Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2012; DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2012.1741

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/living_well/~3/ELHMnBWHm7s/120925143555.htm

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