sentence: fire crews called to rescue lost puppy after she got stuck 50ft above the ground on precarious ledge in a quarry

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data: quarry quarry NOUN bn:00062637n 0 0


Cocker spaniel Ruby had run off after she was in a minor road crash


sentence: she was spotted three days later by a dog walker trapped in the quarry

data: days day NOUN bn:00000086n 0 0


sentence: firefighters abseil down cliff face to pluck the dog from certain death

data: firefighters firefighter NOUN bn:00034631n 0 0

data: dog dog NOUN bn:00015267n 0 0

data: death death NOUN bn:00025582n 0 0


sentence: a puppy had a lucky escape after fire crews were called to lift her to safety when she somehow got herself stuck 50ft up on a precarious cliff ledge.

data: safety safety NOUN bn:00070219n 0 0


sentence: nine month-old cocker spaniel Ruby had run off after being involved in a road crash on Sunday afternoon and survived three days alone before being rescued from a quarry on Wednesday.

data: month month NOUN bn:00055794n 0 0


sentence: her owners Scott Alderson, 25, and his girlfriend Becky Hall, 20, were at Flappit Quarry in Denholme, West Yorkshire, to be reunited with Ruby and have thanked West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.

data: girlfriend girlfriend NOUN bn:00040536n 0 0


sentence: they had searched frantically for their missing dog and posted appeals on social networking sites after she had ran into the quarry following the minor accident.


sentence: at around 2.15pm on Wednesday, an eagle-eyed dog walker spotted Ruby on the ledge in the quarry, stranded 50ft up.


sentence: a Technical Rescue Team from Cleckheaton Fire Station rushed to the scene and abseiled down to rescue Ruby and used a pet tube to transport her up the cliff.

data: rescue rescue NOUN bn:00026061n 0 0


sentence: specialist Technical Rescue Officer Andy Clayton said: 'she was in a precarious situation.

data: situation situation NOUN bn:00063707n 0 0


sentence: she was right in the middle of the cliff face - 50ft from the top and bottom.

data: middle middle NOUN bn:00017123n 0 0


sentence: she did not move a muscle during the rescue - she was frozen solid.

data: muscle muscle NOUN bn:00056378n 0 0


but she is fine now.


she was eating biscuits afterwards.


this was a very unusual call-out.


sentence: the fact that the dog was spotted is unbelievable.

data: fact fact NOUN bn:00032654n 0 0


specialist Technical Rescue Officer Peter Lau said: "Ruby had a very lucky escape."


the potential was there that she could have been very seriously injured or worse.


sentence: Ruby was taken to the vets for a check-up and was found to be fine other than exhaustion and dehydration.

data: vets vet NOUN bn:00079883n 0 0

data: exhaustion exhaustion NOUN bn:00051518n 0 0


sentence: miss Hall, from Halifax, West Yorkshire, said: "watching the rescue was terrifying."


I could not believe that she was up there in the first place.


sentence: it was amazing to get her back in our arms.

data: arms arm NOUN bn:00005702n 0 0


sentence: the vet said that if she became too exhausted and collapsed she would probably have fallen.

data: vet vet NOUN bn:00079883n 0 0


sentence: the firefighters were amazing.


it was really daring what they did.


we are just so grateful and every single one of them was absolutely tremendous.


Mr Alderson, from Keighley, added: "we were scared that she might fall but she stayed there."


sentence: the firefighters were brilliant.


I just can't believe where she was.


Mick Jagger says he never hit on Katy Perry when she was 18.


sentence: during an interview with an Australian radio show this week, the pop star said she sang backing vocals for Jagger's 2004 song "Old Habits Die Hard."

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Perry said she had dinner with the veteran rocker and that "he hit on me when I was 18."


she added, "That was a long time ago, and he's been very kind."


sentence: in a statement Thursday, a representative for Jagger, 70, says he "categorically denies that he has ever made a pass at Katy Perry."

data: representative representative NOUN bn:00067199n 0 0


the rep adds: "perhaps she is confusing him with someone else."


sentence: Perry was one of the singers to make a guest appearance on the Rolling Stones' tour this year.

data: year year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


sentence: her new album, "Prism," debuted at No. 1 this week.

data: album album NOUN bn:00002488n 0 0


sentence: George Kerevan: Europe break-up gives Scots choice

data: choice choice NOUN bn:00018661n 0 0


sentence: another day, another independence scare story.

data: day day NOUN bn:00000086n 0 0

data: independence independence NOUN bn:00046406n 0 0


sentence: this time we are warned that an independent Scotland would be required to join the Europe-wide free-travel zone as a condition of EU membership.

data: condition condition NOUN bn:00021649n 0 0

data: membership membership NOUN bn:00054282n 0 0


sentence: cue stories about passport controls at Berwick and a barbed wire border along Hadrian's Wall.

data: border border NOUN bn:00012212n 0 0


true, the Strathclyde paper pointed out the possible economic benefits of freer movement with the rest of Europe, though - predictably - that did not figure in the headlines.


sentence: nor did anyone point out that the EU member states spend much of their time bending their formal rules if it suits them.

data: rules rule NOUN bn:00066933n 0 0


since Scotland isn't in the Schengen area now, continued non-compliance would be a cheap concession for Brussels to offer up in return for whatever it really wanted out of the Scots.


so, a non-story, then.


sentence: and one that is so long in the tooth it has become fossilised: I first heard the "independence means passport controls" canard at least 40 years ago.

data: years year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


sentence: yet there is an interesting point lost in this retelling of a whiskery old tale.

data: point point NOUN bn:00025966n 0 0

data: tale tale NOUN bn:00056857n 0 0


why should an independent Scotland be expected to do Europe's bidding, anyway?


why trade London's yoke for that of Brussels, especially now?


sentence: here is the real European news: the great, post-war plan to unite Europe has finally stalled.

data: war war NOUN bn:00080439n 0 0

data: plan plan NOUN bn:00062759n 0 0


with the euro crisis, Project Europe is officially dead.


sentence: across the EU, parties which are dedicated to opposing the EU, or to scrapping the euro as a common currency, are gaining ground.

data: parties party NOUN bn:00060834n 0 0

data: ground ground NOUN bn:00041883n 0 0


sentence: even in Germany, the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany Party - founded only this year - came from nowhere to grab nearly five million votes in September's federal elections, thus effectively knocking the Free Democrats (equivalent to our own Lib Dems) out of the Bundestag.


sentence: there has always been domestic opposition to the plan to create a federal Europe.


however, the current economic crisis has proved a watershed.


sentence: the austerity imposed by Berlin and the European Central Bank, coupled with the straitjacket imposed on national economies through adherence to the common currency, has led many people to think Project Europe has gone too far.

data: straitjacket straitjacket NOUN bn:00074515n 0 0

data: economies economy NOUN bn:00029678n 0 0

data: currency currency NOUN bn:00024507n 0 0


sentence: the crisis of the euro has little to do with national governments running excessive budget deficits - that was true only of Greece.

data: crisis crisis NOUN bn:00023844n 0 0

data: governments government NOUN bn:00007299n 0 0


sentence: rather, the euro system locked in its members at exchange rates favourable to German exporters - something German politicians want to keep.

data: members member NOUN bn:00034004n 0 0

data: politicians politician NOUN bn:00063277n 0 0


sentence: without the possibility of domestic currency devaluation, southern Europe finds itself with a built-in productivity disadvantage vis-à-vis Germany.

data: possibility possibility NOUN bn:00017621n 0 0

data: devaluation devaluation NOUN bn:00026686n 0 0


sentence: the only recourse is to slash wages and public spending - spurred on by Berlin.

data: wages wage NOUN bn:00029416n 0 0

data: spending spending NOUN bn:00032300n 0 0


beyond the current budget and currency problems lies a deeper European productivity malaise.


sentence: as a result of "green" energy policies imposed by Brussels - code for subsidising French and German energy firms at the consumer's expense - European industry pays twice as much for electricity, and four times as much for gas, as in the United States.

data: result result NOUN bn:00021961n 0 0

data: code code NOUN bn:00020354n 0 0

data: consumer consumer NOUN bn:00022095n 0 0

data: industry industry NOUN bn:00046576n 0 0

data: electricity electricity NOUN bn:00030192n 0 0

data: gas gas NOUN bn:00037382n 0 0


that is a crippling cost disadvantage, as we've already seen at Grangemouth.


sentence: all the wage freezes in the world won't stop the European petrochemicals industry being hammered by cheap US shale gas.


sentence: as a result, revolt is brewing, especially in France, once the EU's main cheerleader.


sentence: after the war, the French political elite saw the EU as a vehicle to keep Germany in check, and to give Paris equal billing in the world with Washington.

data: war war NOUN bn:00080439n 0 0

data: elite elite NOUN bn:00030376n 0 0


sentence: but Berlin no longer needs Paris as a passport to political legitimacy and has imposed its own economic policy on Europe, leaving the battered French economy struggling.

data: economy economy NOUN bn:00029678n 0 0


sentence: result: marine Le Pen's right-wing, anti-EU National Front has just won a crucial by-election, knocking the ruling Socialists into third place.

data: result result NOUN bn:00034520n 0 0

data: by-election by-election NOUN bn:00014347n 0 0

data: place place NOUN bn:00062699n 0 0


sentence: the Front is now the most popular party in France with 24 per cent of the vote - a timely warning to British Labour that they can't assume a split on the right will automatically favour the left.

data: party party NOUN bn:00060834n 0 0

data: warning warning NOUN bn:00080495n 0 0

data: left left NOUN bn:00050522n 0 0


sentence: what is Le Pen doing with her newfound popularity among the French white, working class?

data: popularity popularity NOUN bn:00063592n 0 0


sentence: she wants to use next year's EU elections to create an anti-EU, anti-common currency bloc across the European Parliament.

data: year year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0

data: elections election NOUN bn:00030113n 0 0


sentence: if, as is very possible, anti-EU parties do well in these elections, such a bloc could dominate the European Parliament for the first time.

data: parties party NOUN bn:00060834n 0 0

data: bloc bloc NOUN bn:00007533n 0 0


sentence: here's my point: sometime soon growing anti-EU and anti-common currency feeling in Europe will coalesce to kill the euro.

data: point point NOUN bn:00025966n 0 0

data: currency currency NOUN bn:00024507n 0 0


the EU won't disappear, but it will revert to something more like the loose "Europe of the (Sovereign) Nations" favoured by General de Gaulle.


sentence: Germany and a few of its satellite economies might keep the euro but France and southern Europe will revive their own currencies.

data: economies economy NOUN bn:00029678n 0 0

data: currencies currency NOUN bn:00024507n 0 0


sentence: I expect the UK will distance itself from this project, hoping to cosy up to the US.

data: project project NOUN bn:00049573n 0 0


sentence: however, Washington's growing interest in the Pacific suggests Britain will be left out in the Atlantic cold.

data: interest interest NOUN bn:00047077n 0 0


where does this leave Scotland?


sentence: we can choose to be a region of (essentially) Little England.

data: region region NOUN bn:00066884n 0 0


sentence: or we can defend our own economic interests - which includes telling Berlin and Brussels where to get off.

data: interests interest NOUN bn:00047077n 0 0


sentence: I suspect that Scotland could do well inside a looser European arrangement provided we kept our own currency.


sentence: co-operation with other like-minded countries will be easier in a non-federal Europe of the Nations.

data: countries country NOUN bn:00023236n 0 0


sentence: otherwise we should consider emulating Norway and retaining our economic independence.

data: independence independence NOUN bn:00046406n 0 0


sentence: the SNP government in Scotland is - remarkably-- the most successful anti-austerity political movement in Europe, having won a spectacular majority in 2011 on the basis of opposing the cuts proposed (and implemented) by Labour's chancellor Alistair Darling and the subsequent Tory-Lib Dem coalition.

data: government government NOUN bn:00007299n 0 0

data: majority majority NOUN bn:00000445n 0 0

data: coalition coalition NOUN bn:00002740n 0 0


sentence: it would be ridiculous now for Scotland to vote for independence only to accept austerity imposed by Berlin and Brussels.


sentence: early puberty: growing older sooner

data: puberty puberty NOUN bn:00065079n 0 0


sentence: African-American and Hispanic girls tend to reach puberty earlier than their white counterparts, research shows.

data: girls girl NOUN bn:00034453n 0 0

data: research research NOUN bn:00074790n 0 0


sentence: physical changes don't mean puberty is imminent

data: changes change NOUN bn:00003125n 0 0


sentence: there's no evidence that hormones or other chemicals are to blame

data: evidence evidence NOUN bn:00032047n 0 0


sentence: experts think the obesity epidemic might be one trigger of early puberty

data: experts expert NOUN bn:00032322n 0 0

data: obesity obesity NOUN bn:00022824n 0 0


sentence: the trend toward early puberty is not as pronounced with boys

data: trend trend NOUN bn:00076496n 0 0

data: boys boy NOUN bn:00012569n 0 0


sentence: former CNN correspondent Pat Etheridge is a journalist specializing in children's health and family issues.

data: journalist journalist NOUN bn:00048461n 0 0


sentence: should a mother be alarmed if her daughter begins to sprout breast buds and pubic hair at 7 or 8?

data: mother mother NOUN bn:00034027n 0 0

data: daughter daughter NOUN bn:00025364n 0 0


sentence: at the annual conference of the American Academy of Pediatrics this week in Orlando, Florida, pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Paul Kaplowitz explained that these early physical changes are quite common among American girls and represent a new norm.

data: conference conference NOUN bn:00022333n 0 0

data: week week NOUN bn:00043484n 0 0


sentence: "I spend a lot of time reassuring parents -- usually, this does not signal a rapid progression into full puberty," said Kaplowitz.

data: time time NOUN bn:00077267n 0 0

data: parents parent NOUN bn:00060643n 0 0


sentence: obvious signs of development, such as budding breasts, pubic and underarm hair and body odor are appearing sooner in girls.

data: development development NOUN bn:00026696n 0 0


sentence: but there has been only a slight shift in the age of menarche (the first period) over the past four decades.

data: shift shift NOUN bn:00071059n 0 0

data: age age NOUN bn:00001940n 0 0

data: period period NOUN bn:00016665n 0 0


sentence: in the United States, the average age is 12.5 years, down from 12.75 in 1970.

data: years year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


sentence: "once breasts begin to develop, it takes at least two to three years before menarche," said Kaplowitz, also author of "Early puberty in Girls: the Essential Guide to Coping with This Common Problem."

data: author author NOUN bn:00007287n 0 0

data: puberty puberty NOUN bn:00065079n 0 0


sentence: time is the most accurate test of how puberty is going to progress.

data: time time NOUN bn:00077270n 0 0

data: test test NOUN bn:00032089n 0 0


sentence: there is debate about what constitutes the actual onset of puberty, but it is considered "precocious" when breast enlargement is accompanied by a growth spurt before age 8.


sentence: in most cases, the process will slow down or stall -- something a pediatrician can monitor closely.

data: cases case NOUN bn:00016402n 0 0

data: pediatrician pediatrician NOUN bn:00060151n 0 0


sentence: a more rapid progression may warrant tests by an endocrinologist to rule out serious problems such as tumors or cysts.

data: tests test NOUN bn:00032089n 0 0

data: problems problem NOUN bn:00048242n 0 0


sentence: there are treatments to delay early menses and ward off another consequence: premature aging of the bones that ultimately can lead to stunted growth and being short as an adult.

data: consequence consequence NOUN bn:00021961n 0 0

data: bones bone NOUN bn:00011999n 0 0


sentence: recommendations for drug or hormone therapy are based on the child's age, rate of development, growth rate and emotional maturity.

data: therapy therapy NOUN bn:00076843n 0 0

data: child child NOUN bn:00018345n 0 0

data: age age NOUN bn:00001936n 0 0


sentence: psychosocial aspects are important, too.

data: aspects aspect NOUN bn:00006382n 0 0


sentence: Kaplowitz is cautious with medication but acknowledges, "suppressing puberty may alleviate behavioral issues and girls' feelings of being different from peers."

data: medication medication NOUN bn:00054128n 0 0

data: girls girl NOUN bn:00034453n 0 0

data: feelings feeling NOUN bn:00033963n 0 0


sentence: the other big issue is understandable: parents simply don't want their very young daughters having periods.

data: parents parent NOUN bn:00060643n 0 0

data: daughters daughter NOUN bn:00025364n 0 0

data: periods period NOUN bn:00031261n 0 0


"they worry about the risk of pregnancy or even how they will handle hygiene," said Kaplowitz.


sentence: "it was a shock," recalls one woman whose daughter started her period at 10.

data: woman woman NOUN bn:00001530n 0 0

data: daughter daughter NOUN bn:00025364n 0 0


sentence: even though there were signs and we had talked about menstruation, she was not emotionally prepared.

data: signs sign NOUN bn:00053450n 0 0

data: menstruation menstruation NOUN bn:00016665n 0 0


sentence: she came home from school scared and upset to be the first among her friends.

data: school school NOUN bn:00069619n 0 0


sentence: there are lots of well-publicized theories about the causes of precocious puberty.

data: theories theory NOUN bn:00045632n 0 0

data: causes cause NOUN bn:00016845n 0 0

data: puberty puberty NOUN bn:00065079n 0 0


sentence: yet, there's no consistent body of evidence that hormones in milk or other foods, chemicals in the environment or sexual messages in the media are to blame.

data: evidence evidence NOUN bn:00032045n 0 0

data: milk milk NOUN bn:00054996n 0 0

data: environment environment NOUN bn:00031075n 0 0

data: messages message NOUN bn:00022154n 0 0


sentence: boys - like girls - are hitting puberty earlier.

data: girls girl NOUN bn:00034453n 0 0


sentence: Kaplowitz contends the premise that holds the most weight is the epidemic of obesity.

data: premise premise NOUN bn:00006558n 0 0

data: epidemic epidemic NOUN bn:00031153n 0 0

data: obesity obesity NOUN bn:00022824n 0 0


sentence: he helped conduct a 2001 study of 6- to 9-year-old girls that links body fat to the timing of puberty.

data: study study NOUN bn:00074790n 0 0

data: year year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


sentence: other findings support this conclusion, but there are many other contributing factors.

data: factors factor NOUN bn:00032661n 0 0


sentence: in this country, African-American and Hispanic girls tend to reach puberty earlier than their white counterparts.

data: country country NOUN bn:00023235n 0 0


sentence: there are varying explanations.

data: explanations explanation NOUN bn:00000741n 0 0


sentence: globally, patterns of early puberty appear to be influenced by everything from economic conditions to climate to genes.

data: climate climate NOUN bn:00019780n 0 0

data: genes gene NOUN bn:00019262n 0 0


sentence: another conundrum: although boys are getting facial and pubic hair at younger ages, the trend toward full-blown early puberty is not as pronounced as it is with girls.

data: conundrum conundrum NOUN bn:00012686n 0 0

data: boys boy NOUN bn:00012569n 0 0

data: trend trend NOUN bn:00076496n 0 0


sentence: other doctors attending the AAP conference reinforced the complexities of the topic.

data: doctors doctor NOUN bn:00027976n 0 0

data: conference conference NOUN bn:00022333n 0 0

data: complexities complexity NOUN bn:00021383n 0 0

data: topic topic NOUN bn:00074900n 0 0


sentence: the appearance of acne and pubic hair is common even in infants and toddlers.

data: acne acne NOUN bn:00000944n 0 0

data: infants infant NOUN bn:00007630n 0 0


sentence: "we need to be careful about how we identify the true onset of puberty," said Dr. Lawrence Silverman, a pediatric endocrinologist at Goryeb Children's Hospital in Morristown, New Jersey.

data: puberty puberty NOUN bn:00065079n 0 0


sentence: parents should not hesitate to get guidance from their pediatrician about how to talk with their child.

data: parents parent NOUN bn:00060643n 0 0

data: pediatrician pediatrician NOUN bn:00060151n 0 0

data: child child NOUN bn:00018346n 0 0


sentence: "it may mean having a sooner-than-expected conversation," Kaplowitz advised.

data: conversation conversation NOUN bn:00022349n 0 0


sentence: if you remain calm, your child usually will respond well.

data: child child NOUN bn:00018345n 0 0


sentence: girls who blossom early need reassurance that, even when it happens ahead of schedule, the process is a normal part of life.

data: girls girl NOUN bn:00034453n 0 0

data: part part NOUN bn:00021395n 0 0

data: life life NOUN bn:00002761n 0 0


sentence: jet makers feud over seat width with big orders at stake

data: makers maker NOUN bn:00052911n 0 0

data: orders order NOUN bn:00059308n 0 0


sentence: a row has flared up between leading plane makers over the width of tourist-class seats on long-distance flights, setting the tone for a bitter confrontation at this month's Dubai Airshow.

data: tone tone NOUN bn:00033960n 0 0

data: month month NOUN bn:00014710n 0 0


sentence: the dispute focuses on the width of seats provided on long-haul flights for economy passengers - not always the ones most courted by airlines, but whose allocated space holds the key to efficiency claims for the latest jets offered by Airbus SAS and Boeing Co.

data: airlines airline NOUN bn:00002298n 0 0

data: space space NOUN bn:00011110n 0 0

data: key key NOUN bn:00048986n 0 0


sentence: Airbus this week called for an industry standard that would provide for a seat at least 18 inches (46 cm) wide in economy cabins, but its U.S. arch-rival Boeing says it should be for airlines to decide.

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sentence: the dispute comes as plane makers vie to sell ever-larger versions of their twin-engined long-distance aircraft, with potentially record orders expected at the November 17-21 event.

data: versions version NOUN bn:00029773n 0 0


sentence: how the back of the plane is laid out - particularly whether seating is 9 or 10 abreast - is central to the economic performance claims being made for new "mini-jumbo" jet designs.

data: plane plane NOUN bn:00001697n 0 0

data: designs design NOUN bn:00026535n 0 0


sentence: Boeing says its revamped "777X" will hold 406 people based on economy seats more than 17 inches wide and set out 10 in each row.

data: row row NOUN bn:00068424n 0 0


sentence: Airbus says the competing version of its A350 will carry 350 people in 18-inch-wide economy seat laid out 9 abreast.

data: version version NOUN bn:00029773n 0 0

data: inch inch NOUN bn:00046209n 0 0


sentence: plane giants often trade blows on technical matters through advertising in the trade press.

data: advertising advertising NOUN bn:00001227n 0 0


sentence: now, Airbus is appealing directly to the public ahead of the Dubai Airshow, where the 777X is expected to dominate with more than 100 orders.


sentence: it recently previewed what may be the start of a new ad war by showing financiers a slide illustrating three people squashed together at a restaurant, titled "Would You Accept This?"

data: start start NOUN bn:00009632n 0 0

data: restaurant restaurant NOUN bn:00029545n 0 0


"Boeing is proposing long-distance flying in seats narrower than regional turbo-props," said Airbus sales chief John Leahy.


sentence: as diets change, people get bigger but plane seating has not radically changed.

data: people people NOUN bn:00061450n 0 0


sentence: between the early 1970s, when the Boeing 747 jumbo defined modern long-haul travel, and the turn of the century, the weight of the average American 40- to 49-year-old male increased by 10 per cent, according to U.S. Health Department Data.

data: century century NOUN bn:00017234n 0 0

data: weight weight NOUN bn:00080831n 0 0

data: year year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


the waist of the average 21st-century American male is 39.7 inches, according to U.S. health statistics.


sentence: Airbus says its rival is sticking to a seat concept from the 1950s, when the average girth of the newly christened "jet set" was narrower.

data: rival rival NOUN bn:00017562n 0 0


sentence: Airbus says it has commissioned research suggesting an extra inch in seat width improves sleep quality by 53 per cent.

data: research research NOUN bn:00074790n 0 0

data: seat seat NOUN bn:00070066n 0 0


sentence: Boeing disputes Airbus's figures on seat measurements and says it is not up to manufacturers to step into decisions on how airlines balance fares and facilities.

data: figures figure NOUN bn:00034394n 0 0

data: manufacturers manufacturer NOUN bn:00052911n 0 0

data: airlines airline NOUN bn:00002298n 0 0

data: facilities facility NOUN bn:00032645n 0 0


sentence: it also says research shows cabin experience depends on more than the width of a seat.

data: experience experience NOUN bn:00032306n 0 0


sentence: "it really comes down to providing flexibility to airlines and allowing them to do the things that they believe they need to do to be successful," said Boeing cabins expert Kent Craver.

data: flexibility flexibility NOUN bn:00035190n 0 0


they don't want us to dictate to them what makes them profitable.


sentence: they know their business better than anyone else.

data: business business NOUN bn:00014138n 0 0


for flyers it is about more elbow room, but for suppliers it is increasingly an issue that could affect earnings.


sentence: behind the dispute is a race for plane orders with at least $700-billion of estimated business at list prices in coming decades, enough to tip the scales of U.S. and European exports.

data: decades decade NOUN bn:00025646n 0 0


as Reuters first reported in July, seat layout is exactly what drives the battle between the latest jets.


sentence: both Airbus and Boeing claim 20 per cent better efficiency per seat in their latest twin-engined long-haul designs than the market leader in that segment, the 365-seat Boeing 777-300ER.

data: segment segment NOUN bn:00070193n 0 0


sentence: Boeing's performance claims depend in part on comparing the 10-abreast 777X with an original 9-abreast 777 design.

data: claims claim NOUN bn:00019404n 0 0


sentence: the gain in unit costs is blunted compared with 10-abreast now in use.

data: unit unit NOUN bn:00079107n 0 0

data: costs cost NOUN bn:00022995n 0 0


sentence: "the reason Boeing are doing this is to cram more seats in to make their plane more competitive with our products," said Kevin Keniston, head of passenger comfort at Europe's Airbus.

data: seats seat NOUN bn:00070066n 0 0

data: plane plane NOUN bn:00001697n 0 0

data: products product NOUN bn:00054416n 0 0

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sentence: on the other hand, analysts say full 10-seat-per-row cabins for existing 777s suggest many passengers are voting for the denser layout, which may go hand in hand with cheaper fares.

data: passengers passenger NOUN bn:00060894n 0 0


sentence: "eighteen inches in seat width would be great for passengers, but the reality is that from a business point of the Airbus proposal is driven by the threat of the 777," said cabin interiors expert Mary Kirby, founder and editor of the Runway Girl Network.

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data: reality reality NOUN bn:00066414n 0 0

data: threat threat NOUN bn:00054311n 0 0


sentence: Airbus and Boeing do not supply seats but offer a catalogue of suppliers for airlines to choose from.

data: catalogue catalogue NOUN bn:00016652n 0 0

data: airlines airline NOUN bn:00002298n 0 0


sentence: globe-trotting jet sellers even carry tape measures to check on competing layouts.

data: sellers seller NOUN bn:00053479n 0 0


sentence: while boasting comfort, all builders also offer jets with high-density layouts for low-cost airlines and regional travel.

data: comfort comfort NOUN bn:00020912n 0 0


Airbus offers a 10-abreast A350 but says it has not yet sold it.


sentence: until recently, Airbus was stressing the need for more cabin customization by offering wider aisle seats on some of its jets.

data: aisle aisle NOUN bn:00002320n 0 0


sentence: without the support of the only other maker of large modern jets, experts say its call for a new industry standard is unlikely to fly, but could distract from a wave of 777X sales.

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sentence: new anti-nicotine vaccine could take the pleasure out of smoking

data: vaccine vaccine NOUN bn:00079447n 0 0

data: smoking smoking NOUN bn:00072322n 0 0


sentence: scientists have developed an anti-nicotine vaccine that could take the pleasure out of smoking a cigarette.

data: scientists scientist NOUN bn:00069680n 0 0

data: cigarette cigarette NOUN bn:00072322n 0 0


sentence: a single dose of the vaccine was able to protect mice against nicotine addiction for life.

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sentence: further tests are needed before starting human trials, which would take several years, but Professor Ronald Crystal of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York said the early signs are good.

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sentence: "we are very hopeful that this kind of vaccine strategy can finally help the millions of smokers who have tried to stop, exhausting all the methods on the market today, but find their nicotine addiction to be strong enough to overcome these current approaches," Prof Cornell said.

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sentence: the new vaccine contains a harmless virus that has been engineered to carry the genetic information to make anti-nicotine antibodies.

data: virus virus NOUN bn:00080085n 0 0

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data: antibodies antibody NOUN bn:00004629n 0 0


sentence: the virus selectively infects liver cells, which then start to make a steady stream of the antibodies.

data: stream stream NOUN bn:00024511n 0 0


sentence: the antibodies hunt down any nicotine molecules in the bloodstream, neutralising them before they reached the brain, preventing a smoker from getting a nicotine hit.

data: nicotine nicotine NOUN bn:00057642n 0 0

data: brain brain NOUN bn:00012679n 0 0


sentence: in tests, vaccinated mice who were subsequently given nicotine continued with their normal activity.


sentence: but mice who had not been given the vaccine "chilled out," say the researchers, a sign that the nicotine had reached their brains.

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sentence: the experiments are described in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

data: experiments experiment NOUN bn:00032309n 0 0


sentence: previous tobacco vaccines failed because they contained antibodies.


the jabs had to be given so frequently to keep antibody levels topped up that they proved expensive and impractical.


sentence: but the cost of the new vaccine is likely to be far lower, because it turns liver cells into antibody factories.

data: cost cost NOUN bn:00022995n 0 0


sentence: prof Crystal said that if a future human vaccine was completely safe it could be given to children before they were tempted to try a cigarette, preventing nicotine addiction.

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data: children child NOUN bn:00018345n 0 0

data: cigarette cigarette NOUN bn:00014238n 0 0


but more likely it would be used by smokers to quit.


"they will know if they start smoking again, they will receive no pleasure from it due to the nicotine vaccine, and that can help them kick the habit," he said.


sentence: British scientists said the results were interesting but warned far more research was needed.

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Tripodi denies being influenced by Obeid


sentence: former NSW Labor minister Joe Tripodi will be investigated by the state's corruption watchdog.

data: minister minister NOUN bn:00041200n 0 0


sentence: former NSW minister Joe Tripodi has denied changing maritime leases policy at the request of his political mentor Eddie Obeid, who had hidden interests in three properties on government-controlled land.

data: land land NOUN bn:00001019n 0 0


sentence: the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on Friday widened its inquiry into whether Mr Obeid lobbied several state ministers to have leases at Circular Quay, where the Obeids owned two restaurants and a cafe, renewed without going to tender after their expiration in August 2005.

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sentence: it's now investigating allegations Mr Tripodi knew of Mr Obeid's secret interest in the properties, after evidence given by Mr Tripodi's former deputy chief of staff, Lynne Ashpole, on Thursday.

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data: interest interest NOUN bn:00047077n 0 0


sentence: during years of discussions starting in 2005 the government had been pushing for the leases to go to public tender.

data: government government NOUN bn:00007299n 0 0


sentence: the lessees were against this and also wanted longer terms.

data: terms term NOUN bn:00076588n 0 0


sentence: in 2009 leases for the Circular Quay enterprises, which earned the Obeids about $2.5 million annually, were renewed without going to public tender.

data: enterprises enterprise NOUN bn:00021286n 0 0


Mr Tripodi, who was ports minister from February 2006 until November 2009, was initially in favour of public tenders.


sentence: but he denied the changes were made at the request of Mr Obeid, who Mr Tripodi acknowledged was urging a shift in government lease policy.

data: changes change NOUN bn:00003125n 0 0


sentence: a phone transcript tabled in ICAC showed calls in August and September 2007 between Mr Obeid, Mr Tripodi and Steve Dunn, a senior bureaucrat who had come into the ports ministry after working under Mr Obeid in the fisheries department.

data: calls call NOUN bn:00014791n 0 0


"was the matter being discussed in the course of these telephone conversations the development of the commercial lease policy," Assistant Commissioner Anthony Whealy asked Mr Tripodi.


"no," Mr Tripodi replied.


I can't remember what was discussed but it definitely wasn't that.


definitely not between myself and Mr Obeid.


Israeli warplanes attack target inside Syria, official says


sentence: Israeli warplanes struck a target inside the Syrian port city of Latakia Thursday night, a senior administration official confirms to Fox News.

data: port port NOUN bn:00063640n 0 0


sentence: the official did not specify what the target was, but said there was at least one.

data: target target NOUN bn:00002179n 0 0


sentence: the Associated Press reports the target was Russian-made SA-125 missiles.

data: missiles missile NOUN bn:00055322n 0 0


sentence: at least twice earlier this year Israel launched airstrikes on shipments of missiles inside Syria.

data: year year NOUN bn:00078738n 0 0


sentence: foreign workers on 457 visas could undergo "genuineness" test

data: visas visa NOUN bn:00080087n 0 0


sentence: a "genuineness" test for foreign workers on 457 visas is being considered by the government as it contemplates expanding a crackdown.


sentence: the test, if adopted, would be applied through a criteria aimed at preventing 457s being used to fill unskilled positions or as a back door way to move family and friends to Australia.

data: test test NOUN bn:00032089n 0 0

data: criteria criterion NOUN bn:00023853n 0 0

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sentence: a government discussion paper was released today as former Labor MP Maxine McKew slammed the government's rhetoric about foreign workers, saying it could offend Australia's neighbours.

data: neighbours neighbour NOUN bn:00057219n 0 0


sentence: "loud declarations about 'foreigners getting to the back of the queue' and 'Aussie jobs first' are a very unpleasant throwback to a time when unions demanded a protected labor market," she told the Australia India Institute today.

data: foreigners foreigner NOUN bn:00002725n 0 0

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data: unions union NOUN bn:00013379n 0 0


sentence: historically, that meant it was white labour that had to be protected - and if some in the region saw echoes of that historic artifact, I wouldn't be surprised.

data: region region NOUN bn:00066884n 0 0

data: artifact artifact NOUN bn:00005956n 0 0


the discussion paper outlines 12 measures that were previously considered by former Immigration Minister Chris Bowen.


immigration Minister Brendan O'Connor, who was yesterday in Sri Lanka where he is meeting officials about people smuggling, has implemented five of the recommended changes with the remainder under consideration.


sentence: if the "genuineness" criteria was adopted a visa applicant could be scrutinised about "whether the nomination is genuine in circumstances where the nominee is a relation or personal associate of an owner or relevant person of the sponsoring business."

data: visa visa NOUN bn:00080087n 0 0

data: owner owner NOUN bn:00059953n 0 0

data: person person NOUN bn:00046516n 0 0


sentence: businesses could also be required to account for the number of 457 visa holders after previously businesses who had intended to sponsor a small number of workers then employed hundreds.

data: number number NOUN bn:00034394n 0 0

data: workers worker NOUN bn:00047795n 0 0

data: hundreds hundred NOUN bn:00000009n 0 0


sentence: meanwhile, a 35-year-old Sri Lankan asylum seeker died of a suspected heart attack after arriving on an asylum boat at Christmas Island this week.

data: week week NOUN bn:00043484n 0 0


sentence: the man's distraught nine-year-old son travelled to Australia with him and has been comforted since the death of his father on Wednesday by an adult cousin who was also on the vessel.

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data: cousin cousin NOUN bn:00023333n 0 0


sentence: Australian authorities rushed the man to Christmas Island Hospital, where he died.

data: authorities authority NOUN bn:00001961n 0 0


sentence: a study aiming to increase the benefits to Scotland of the HS2 rail project has been announced by the UK government.

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data: government government NOUN bn:00007299n 0 0


sentence: the work by HS2 Ltd suggests high-speed services to Scotland and the north of England will start as soon as Phase One opens in 2026.

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data: north north NOUN bn:00029051n 0 0

data: Phase phase NOUN bn:00061898n 0 0


sentence: transport minister Baroness Kramer said the project would "bring the UK together."

data: project project NOUN bn:00049573n 0 0


sentence: Scottish transport minister Keith Brown said he was "excited" to work with the UK government on the plan.

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sentence: phase One will consist of a new high speed rail line between London and the West Midlands.

data: phase phase NOUN bn:00061898n 0 0


sentence: when Phase Two is completed, lines will run to Manchester and Leeds.


sentence: in June the government revised the estimated cost of building the high-speed link between London and the North of England from £32.7bn to £42.6bn.

data: cost cost NOUN bn:00022995n 0 0


sentence: the UK government, which has been holding talks with Transport Scotland, has instructed HS2 Ltd to look at further rail capacity and journey time improvements for northern England and Scotland.


sentence: this is to include the possibility of eventual journey times from Glasgow and Edinburgh to London of three hours or less.

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sentence: Baroness Kramer said: "our goal for HS2 is for a truly national network that will bring the UK and its cities closer together."

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data: cities city NOUN bn:00019319n 0 0


we are driving forward HS2 because the benefits it will bring are huge.


without it we face a crisis in capacity on our rail network.


sentence: but it is also about connectivity, across the UK 18 cities including Glasgow and Edinburgh will be better connected because of HS2.


Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael added: "today's announcement is good news for Scotland."


sentence: for the Scottish government, Keith Brown called on Mr Carmichael to "unequivocally" back Scotland's inclusion in the HS2 network.

data: network network NOUN bn:00030258n 0 0


Mr Brown said: "high speed rail has the potential to bring huge economic benefits to Scotland, but also adds Scotland's economic weight to the overall case for high speed rail across Britain."


sentence: so we are excited to work in partnership with the UK Government to examine options for bringing high speed rail to Scotland, creating benefit for all and complementing the Glasgow-Edinburgh line which the Scottish Government is already planning.

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sentence: I look forward to reviewing the report of the investigation with UK ministers next year and together decide on the next steps.

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sentence: aircraft electronic device rules to stay in force in Australia for now

data: device device NOUN bn:00026716n 0 0

data: force force NOUN bn:00035768n 0 0


sentence: Australian airline passengers will need to continue turning off their tablets and smart phones during take-off and landing despite moves in the US to loosen regulations covering the devices.

data: devices device NOUN bn:00026716n 0 0


sentence: the US Federal Aviation Administration has left the way open for American carriers to change their procedures so that passengers will be able to read e-books, watch videos or play games on their devices during critical phases of flight provided they remain in "airplane" mode.

data: passengers passenger NOUN bn:00060894n 0 0

data: videos video NOUN bn:00079972n 0 0


sentence: passengers can already do this during the bulk of a flight but many people find it annoying to be unable to access their e-books during take-offs and landings.

data: people people NOUN bn:00061450n 0 0

data: landings landing NOUN bn:00049864n 0 0


sentence: Australian carriers are looking at the decision, which requires US carriers to undertake a massive amount of work to meet the requirements, but have indicated they have no immediate plans to change their procedures.

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data: plans plan NOUN bn:00062759n 0 0


sentence: the Civil Aviation Safety Authority also said it was looking at the announcement but emphasised that restrictions on the use of electronic devices in critical phases of flight were still in place in Australia.

data: restrictions restriction NOUN bn:00021755n 0 0

data: use use NOUN bn:00030627n 0 0


sentence: "Casa currently has no specific regulations governing the use of electronic devices in aircraft," it said.


sentence: the issue is covered by regulations which require aircraft operators to ensure safety is maintained at all times and passengers to comply with the safety instructions given by crew members.

data: safety safety NOUN bn:00068799n 0 0


sentence: Virgin, which has already been talking to CASA about extending the use its in-flight wi-fi entertainment system, was amenable to a change but said it would take its lead from the regulator.

data: change change NOUN bn:00003125n 0 0


sentence: "we would welcome a review by CASA into allowing the use of electronic devices because we really do think it will improve the customer experience now that we have (wireless in-flight entertainment) on our planes," a spokesman said.

data: entertainment entertainment NOUN bn:00003693n 0 0

data: spokesman spokesman NOUN bn:00073526n 0 0


Qantas said it would stick with the current rules for now.


sentence: "our current policy is that electronic devices cannot be used during take-off and landing and we have no immediate plans to change that," it said.

data: landing landing NOUN bn:00049864n 0 0


sentence: the FAA ruling applies to American airlines.

data: airlines airline NOUN bn:00002298n 0 0


sentence: however, we are always interested in regulatory developments that could benefit passengers and we will certainly be taking a close look at the FAA's decision and the reasons behind it.

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data: reasons reason NOUN bn:00041881n 0 0


sentence: for US carriers, the impact of the ruling will vary from airline to airline and will depend on the age of their fleet.

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data: fleet fleet NOUN bn:00035171n 0 0


sentence: carriers will need to prove their planes can tolerate radio interference from mobile devices as well as revise manuals, training materials, carry-on baggage programs and passenger briefings.

data: planes plane NOUN bn:00001697n 0 0

data: manuals manual NOUN bn:00053279n 0 0

data: programs program NOUN bn:00062759n 0 0


sentence: "once an airline verifies the tolerance of its fleet, it can allow passengers to use handheld, lightweight electronic devices such as tablets, e-readers, and smartphones-at all altitudes," the FAA said.

data: airline airline NOUN bn:00002298n 0 0

data: tolerance tolerance NOUN bn:00077517n 0 0

data: devices device NOUN bn:00026716n 0 0

data: altitudes altitude NOUN bn:00003142n 0 0


sentence: in rare instances of low visibility, the crew will instruct passengers to turn off their devices during landing.

data: visibility visibility NOUN bn:00080101n 0 0

data: passengers passenger NOUN bn:00060894n 0 0


sentence: the group also recommended that heavier devices should be safely stowed under seats or in overhead bins during take-off and landing.

data: group group NOUN bn:00041942n 0 0

data: seats seat NOUN bn:00070066n 0 0


sentence: travelling BVB fans created terrible scenes with flares in the Veltins Arena before the district derby against Schalke

data: fans fan NOUN bn:00013648n 0 0

data: scenes scene NOUN bn:00006384n 0 0


sentence: Borussia Dortmund announced that there would be serious consequences.

data: consequences consequence NOUN bn:00021961n 0 0


sentence: before Friday's Bundesliga match against VfB Stuttgart, the 'Ultras' responded with silence - initially.

data: silence silence NOUN bn:00065703n 0 0


it was an unusual, almost ghostly atmosphere that the fans created until shortly before the kick-off of the Bundesliga match between the German runners-up Borussia Dortmend and VfB Stuttgart, in the Signal Iduna Park.


it was mainly the chants of away fans that could be heard.


sentence: the south stand, on the other hand, where the most loyal - and the loudest - of BVB fans stand, was initially unusually quiet: no singing and no battle cries.

data: fans fan NOUN bn:00033600n 0 0

data: singing singing NOUN bn:00071734n 0 0


the 'Capo's' podium, the individual who usually coordinates the unison chants, remained empty.


and right at the front, on the stand, a single large flag with the text "Stadium Ban Section" blew in the wind.


sentence: only when goalkeeper, Roman Weidenfeller, was the first BVB player to step onto the field, did cheers briefly erupt, as is usually the case.

data: goalkeeper goalkeeper NOUN bn:00040851n 0 0

data: player player NOUN bn:00060799n 0 0


sentence: when his team mates followed, there was loud singing and scarves were waving - but by no means everywhere.


sentence: in the central blocks of the south stand, blocks 12 and 13, nothing moved.

data: blocks block NOUN bn:00011308n 0 0


sentence: even stadium announcer, Norbert Dickel, speaking once again of the successful results in recent days - the derby victory, the win against Arsenal, the contract extension of coach Jörgen Klopp - did not raise spirits.

data: announcer announcer NOUN bn:00076423n 0 0

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data: victory victory NOUN bn:00078365n 0 0

data: coach coach NOUN bn:00020119n 0 0


sentence: just five minutes before kick-off, the Capo climbed onto his podium - and the tension that had been almost tangible up until that point, lifted with a large shout, as Dickel asked for a shout from each section of fans as usual.

data: minutes minute NOUN bn:00055094n 0 0


sentence: as always, the south stand was left until the end, and finally the stand resumed its usual role as the loudest section of the stadium.

data: stadium stadium NOUN bn:00005532n 0 0


and as soon as the vociferous request for "derby winners stand up" came from the south stand upon kick-off, everything was back to normal.


sentence: the previous silence was indeed a reaction to the events of previous days.

data: reaction reaction NOUN bn:00066344n 0 0


sentence: immediately before the local district derby against FC Schalke 04, some of the travelling BVB fans fired flares into the crowds of spectators and onto the pitch - and in so doing almost hit goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller.


sentence: the kick-off was delayed on account of the chaotic scenes,

data: scenes scene NOUN bn:00069552n 0 0


sentence: as a result, BVB Chairman Hans Joachim Watzke had invited the heads of the Dortmund Ultras fan group to his office - and if Watzke's words are to be believed, this was a rather uncomfortable meeting for the fan representatives.

data: office office NOUN bn:00014169n 0 0

data: words word NOUN bn:00081546n 0 0


"there will be massive impact for the entire Ultra movement," announced the BVB Chairman on Thursday evening at a panel discussion in Frankfurt.


sentence: as an immediate measure, Watzke prohibited the Ultras from organising choreography for the home match against VfB Stuttgart.

data: choreography choreography NOUN bn:00018762n 0 0


"I have banned it," he explained.


we cannot ignore the zero tolerance policy regarding pyrotechnics in Saxony.


in addition, the Ultras were given the option of several different punishments - they now have until Tuesday to decide which one to accept.


sentence: otherwise BVB will impose a sanction by the end of next week, said Watzke.

data: sanction sanction NOUN bn:00007294n 0 0

data: end end NOUN bn:00030719n 0 0

data: week week NOUN bn:00043484n 0 0


"it will be severe," assured Watzke.


sentence: it will be interesting to see the reactions in the south stand then.

data: reactions reaction NOUN bn:00066344n 0 0


pawnbrokers shine in Singapore as middle class feel the pinch


sentence: at a pawnshop in Bendemeer shopping centre in Singapore, Janani Amirthalinga is swapping a gold bangle, ring and pair of earrings to pay her daughters "school fees.

data: ring ring NOUN bn:00008287n 0 0

data: pair pair NOUN bn:00012596n 0 0

data: daughters daughter NOUN bn:00025364n 0 0


sentence: "my husband and I have just bought a house so all my money's stuck there," Mrs Amirthalinga says.

data: husband husband NOUN bn:00045106n 0 0

data: house house NOUN bn:00044994n 0 0

data: money money NOUN bn:00055644n 0 0


sentence: even though she earns S $3,000 ($2,400) a month as an administrator and her husband works as well, the monthly family income is insufficient, she says.

data: month month NOUN bn:00014710n 0 0


sentence: indeed, such is demand across parts of southeast Asia - where household debt is rising - that ValueMax, where she is carrying out her transaction, this week became the third pawnshop to list on the Singapore stock exchange.

data: demand demand NOUN bn:00026104n 0 0

data: parts part NOUN bn:00021395n 0 0

data: household household NOUN bn:00032892n 0 0


sentence: pawning jewellery is not merely a fast way to land cash - S $1,300 in Ms Amirthalinga's case - but almost as cheap as unsecured bank loans.

data: jewellery jewellery NOUN bn:00048188n 0 0

data: way way NOUN bn:00080721n 0 0

data: cash cash NOUN bn:00055644n 0 0

data: case case NOUN bn:00016402n 0 0


sentence: typically pawnbrokers in Singapore charge an effective annual percentage rate of 17 per cent, just above the 15.4 per cent offered at United Overseas Bank, a local lender with a branch in the same shopping centre.

data: percentage percentage NOUN bn:00061135n 0 0


sentence: however, pawnbrokers have the advantage of not requiring credit checks or proof of salary, and can arrange loans faster than banks.

data: advantage advantage NOUN bn:00001559n 0 0

data: loans loan NOUN bn:00051693n 0 0

data: banks bank NOUN bn:00008364n 0 0


sentence: hence millions of people across the region are turning to pawnshops as families feel the squeeze from rising living costs and ballooning household and consumer debt.

data: millions million NOUN bn:00000013n 0 0

data: region region NOUN bn:00066884n 0 0

data: families family NOUN bn:00032893n 0 0


sentence: after five years of robust growth since the global financial crisis, and cheap credit fuelled by loose monetary policy in advanced economies, lower- and middle-income families are turning to pawn shops to make up the difference as their economies slow.

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data: credit credit NOUN bn:00023671n 0 0

data: economies economy NOUN bn:00029678n 0 0

data: difference difference NOUN bn:00027022n 0 0


sentence: this week Standard & Poor's, the rating agency, cited increasing household leverage, mainly from rising mortgages, as a risk factor for Asian banks "creditworthiness.

data: week week NOUN bn:00043484n 0 0

data: agency agency NOUN bn:00001962n 0 0


sentence: it said that Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore had the highest household debt to gross domestic product ratios in Asia.

data: ratios ratio NOUN bn:00066247n 0 0


Malaysia topped the list at 80 per cent of GDP, up from 60 per cent in 2008.


sentence: economists are also worried about high levels of consumer debt in Thailand, which this week narrowly emerged from technical recession.

data: recession recession NOUN bn:00066516n 0 0


on Thursday, data showed continued export weakness, and a softening in consumer demand.


sentence: "bottom line is that with costs rising, people in the middle to lower end [of the income scale] will be looking to supplement their income wherever they can," says Song Seng wun, economist at CIMB, a Malaysian bank.

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data: economist economist NOUN bn:00029667n 0 0

data: bank bank NOUN bn:00008364n 0 0


sentence: historically high prices for gold in the past two years have added to the rush to pawn personal belongings, as people take the opportunity to cash in the value of their family jewellery.

data: opportunity opportunity NOUN bn:00017621n 0 0

data: cash cash NOUN bn:00016448n 0 0

data: family family NOUN bn:00032893n 0 0

data: jewellery jewellery NOUN bn:00048188n 0 0


in Singapore, about 70 per cent of items pawned at the city-state's 200 pawn outlets are gold.


sentence: people are saying "the gold price looks good, let's pawn grandma's gold chain and get it back next month.

data: people people NOUN bn:00061450n 0 0

data: month month NOUN bn:00014710n 0 0


sentence: in Thailand the largest pawnshop operator, EasyMoney, has seen an up to 20 per cent rise in the number of customers using its outlets in recent months.

data: months month NOUN bn:00014710n 0 0


sentence: such is the growth in the pawn business that ValueMax, operator of the outlet at Bendemeer and of 15 others like it in Singapore, plans to expand not only in neighbouring Malaysia - where it has four shops - but outside Asia too, says Yeah Lee Ching, ValueMax's executive director.

data: growth growth NOUN bn:00041979n 0 0

data: operator operator NOUN bn:00053226n 0 0


sentence: the company will fund that by using 60 per cent of S $66m it raised this week in a listing on the Singapore stock exchange.

data: company company NOUN bn:00021286n 0 0

data: week week NOUN bn:00043484n 0 0


sentence: while some discount lenders have come under fire for high interest rates, Ms Yeah says that not only does pawning offer cheaper rates than other lenders, it also does not add directly to debt.

data: debt debt NOUN bn:00025638n 0 0


sentence: "customers are mortgaging items that they already own, and monetising personal assets does not increase household debt," she says.

data: customers customer NOUN bn:00019763n 0 0


sentence: there's an increased social acceptance of pawnbroking as a means to secure short term, secured financing.

data: financing financing NOUN bn:00034545n 0 0


nor are the types of people who use pawnbrokers only the financially stretched.


sentence: wealthy people in Singapore also use ValueMax outlets, pawning gold bars or Rolex watches, which can command up to 60 per cent of their purchase price in cash.

data: bars bar NOUN bn:00008462n 0 0

data: watches watch NOUN bn:00077172n 0 0


sentence: we see customers from all walks of life.


sentence: "they include wealthy individuals who need to borrow short term for business ventures or investments, or small businesses with a need to tide over their cash flow needs," says Ms Yeah.

data: business business NOUN bn:00014138n 0 0

data: ventures venture NOUN bn:00021286n 0 0

data: investments investment NOUN bn:00047358n 0 0


sentence: sometimes they just need the money very quickly.

data: money money NOUN bn:00055644n 0 0


NSA siphons data from Google and Yahoo - Snowden wants to help


sentence: secret Service whistleblower, Edward Snowden, has a fundamental interest in helping Germany clarify the increasingly explosive NSA espionage scandal.

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sentence: according to Green Party MP. Hans-Christian Ströbele, his surprising meeting with Snowden in Russia addressed the conditions under which the former Secret Service employee would make a statement to a German District Attorney or before an investigation committee.

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sentence: Snowden referred to his complex legal situation, Ströbele said on ARD's "Panorama" programme.

data: situation situation NOUN bn:00071869n 0 0


$325m rescue package for Tassie health


sentence: the Federal Government insists a $325 million rescue package for Tasmania's ailing health system has tough conditions attached that will ensure the State Government can't waste the funds.

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sentence: Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek has announced the Commonwealth is taking "urgent action" to head off a crisis caused by the island state's aging population, higher rates of chronic disease and system constraints.

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sentence: the funding, over four years, was decided after government consultations with Tasmanian independent MP Andrew Wilkie.

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sentence: "the Government has come up with an emergency rescue package we believe will address the unique challenges faced by the state," Ms Plibersek said today.


the $325 million package includes a $31 million elective surgery blitz.


sentence: an additional 2600 operations including orthopedic and cataract surgery will help clear a backlog.

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sentence: there's also money for walk-in clinics in Hobart and Launceston, better after-hospital care, medical specialist training, mental health services and the rollout of personal electronic health record systems in local hospitals.

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sentence: "these investments respond to the ideas that front-line clinicians have told me will be the best ways to tend to Tasmania's health system," Ms Plibersek said.

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sentence: the minister insisted the Tasmanian Government would face a strict reporting and accountability regime.


sentence: the state would have to maintain current funding levels in order to receive Commonwealth cash and report monthly on where it was spending the extra funds.

data: cash cash NOUN bn:00055644n 0 0


a three-person commission will be set up to ensure the state is delivering services as effectively and efficiently as possible.


sentence: Mr Wilkie today said the $325 million would count for little "unless it's followed by genuine reform to put Tasmania's public health system on a more sustainable footing."

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sentence: he nevertheless praised the Government for responding to his request for urgent assistance which he first raised with the Prime Minister at the beginning of May.

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"I'm hopeful the federal assistance package will go a long way towards taking the state's public health system off the critical list," Mr Wilkie said.


sentence: according to the State Government these additional elective procedures will largely reverse the recent cuts.

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sentence: but federal Opposition health spokesman Peter Dutton believes today's announcement is a "band-aid solution."

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"the reason we are here is that the Labor State Government ripped $430 million out of its health system," he told ABC TV.


sentence: you can't have a state government ripping out almost half-a-billion dollars and the Commonwealth put in $300 million and pretend it's a good news day.

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sentence: Mr Dutton called on Ms Plibersek to guarantee that not one dollar out of the rescue package would be spent on additional bureaucracy.

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sentence: Guillaume Nicloux's adaptation of Denis Diderot's novel boasts exceptional production design and period detail but is also heavier going than it should be.

data: novel novel NOUN bn:00058201n 0 0


sentence: unfolding in 1760s France, it tells the grim story of Suzanne, a young aristocrat sent to a convent by her family.

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sentence: when she rebels, she experiences extreme cruelty at the hands of a wantonly sadistic Mother Superior and becomes an object of erotic fascination for another.

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sentence: the film never slips into prurience or sensationalism - and that's the problem.

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data: problem problem NOUN bn:00048242n 0 0


sentence: the earnest solemnity of the storytelling risks making it a hair shirt-like ordeal for audiences, too.

data: audiences audience NOUN bn:00007096n 0 0


Syria has destroyed its chemical weapons making ability, watchdog group says


sentence: Syria has destroyed critical equipment for producing chemical weapons and poison gas munitions, the global chemical weapons watchdog said Thursday as fierce clashes raged in the country's north, close to one of the sites where toxic agents are believed to be stored.

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sentence: also Thursday, a Syrian activist group said more than 120,000 people have been killed since the start of the country's civil war nearly three years ago.

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sentence: the announcement by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons came one day ahead of the Nov.

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sentence: 1 deadline set by The Hague-based organization for Damascus to destroy or "render inoperable" all chemical weapon production facilities and machinery for mixing chemicals into poison gas and filling munitions.

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sentence: the completion of what is essentially the initial stage of destruction is a significant milestone in an ambitious timeline that aims to destroy all of Damascus' chemical weapons by mid-2014.

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destruction of the equipment means that Syria can no longer produce new chemical weapons.


sentence: however, Damascus still has to start destroying existing weapons and stockpiles.

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sentence: the country is believed to have around 1,000 metric tons of chemicals and weapons including mustard gas and the nerve agent sarin.


sentence: the announcement came as fighting raged Thursday in the town of Safira, which experts say is home to a chemical weapons production facility as well as storage sites, reported the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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sentence: the activist group, which has been tracking the death toll through a network of activists in Syria, said Thursday that 120,296 people have died.

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sentence: of those, it said 61,067 are civilians, including 6,365 children.

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sentence: on the government side, it said 29,954 are members of President Bashar Assad's armed forces, 18,678 are pro-government fighters and 187 are Lebanese Hezbollah militants.

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sentence: also among the dead it said were 2,202 army defectors and some 5,375 opposition fighters, many of them foreigners.

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sentence: on July 25, the U.N. estimated 100,000 have died in the conflict since March 2011.

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sentence: it has not updated that figure since.

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sentence: the conflict has forced some 2 million people to flee the country.

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sentence: Assad's troops have been battling rebels, many of them linked to al-Qaida groups, in Safira for weeks.

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sentence: the Observatory said there were casualties on both sides Thursday but had no specifics.

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sentence: the fighting underscored the dangers the chemical weapons' inspectors face as they race against tight deadlines in their mission to rid Syria of the toxic arsenal in the midst of an ongoing civil war.

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sentence: a statement from the OPCW, which works closely with the United Nations, said its team was "now satisfied that it has verified - and seen destroyed - all of Syria's declared critical production and mixing / filling equipment."

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it added that, "no further inspection activities are currently planned."


sentence: earlier this week, the inspectors said they had completed their first round of verification work, visiting 21 of 23 sites declared by Damascus.

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sentence: they were unable to visit two sites because of security concerns, the inspectors said.


sentence: on Thursday, OPCW said the two locations were, according to Syria, "abandoned and... the chemical weapons program items they contained were moved to other declared sites, which were inspected."

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sentence: it was not immediately clear if the facility in Safira was one of the two sites that OPCW inspectors were not able to visit.

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sentence: Syria has submitted a plan for the total destruction of its chemical weapons that has to be approved next month by the OPCW's executive committee.

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sentence: "I salute the fortitude and courage you've all demonstrated in fulfilling the most challenging mission ever undertaken by this organization," the watchdog's director-general, Ahmet Uzumcu, said in comments released by the OPCW.

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sentence: now in its third year, the civil war pits the primarily Sunni Muslim rebels against Assad's government and its security forces, which are stacked with members of his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.

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sentence: in other developments, the Observatory's chief Rami Abdurrahman said there had been a strong explosion Wednesday inside an air defense facility in Syria's coastal province of Latakia.

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sentence: the cause of the blast was not known, he said.

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sentence: anger over Bali bomb plotter's sentence

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sentence: survivors and relatives of the 202 people killed in the 2002 Bali bombing have reacted with anger over the sentence given to the last of the plotters to face justice, saying Umar Patek should face a firing squad.

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sentence: Patek, who spent almost 10 years on the run as one of South-East Asia's most wanted, was yesterday sentenced to 20 years in jail for his role in building the explosive devices used in the bombing.

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sentence: he could be released within 15 years if granted parole.


sentence: the 45-year-old was found guilty of mass murder for the attack on two nightclubs in the popular tourist area of Kuta which left 202 people dead, including 88 Australians, and injured scores more.

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data: nightclubs nightclub NOUN bn:00014419n 0 0


sentence: he was also found guilty of a number of other terrorism-related charges, including a wave of bombings of churches across Indonesia on Christmas Eve in 2000.

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sentence: prosecutors had demanded a life sentence, although they could have pushed that the man dubbed the "Demolition Man" for his reputation as a master bomb-maker be sentenced to death.

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sentence: the decision has reignited painful memories for Perth mother June Corteen, who lost her 39-year-old twin daughters Jane and Jenny in the destruction unleashed by Patek and his co-conspirators almost a decade ago.

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sentence: fighting back tears, she said Patek should have been sentenced to death.

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I really feel that he should follow in the footsteps of the other guys.


"he should be put in front of the firing squad," Ms Corteen told AAP.


sentence: I have to live every day without seeing more grandchildren, and my daughters.

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sentence: the Sari Club was levelled when a massive bomb loaded into a van parked outside was detonated just after 11pm on October 12, 2002.

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sentence: Peter Hughes was in Paddy's Bar where a suicide bomber detonated a backpack loaded with explosives just 20 seconds earlier.

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sentence: he lapsed into a month-long coma in the wake of the bombing, and "died" three times while on life support.

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sentence: Mr Hughes said Patek should have shared the same fate as three other members of the Jemaah Islamiah terror cell responsible for the carnage - Amrozi, Mukhlas and Imam Samudra - who were executed four years ago.

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really, this guy should get the death penalty before anybody.


sentence: to keep him alive, well, there's no reason to keep him alive.

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sentence: to get 20 years, after killing 202 people and injuring many hundreds, it's not much.

data: hundreds hundred NOUN bn:00000009n 0 0


sentence: Patek is the last of the Bali bombers to face justice.

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sentence: he had avoided capture for almost a decade but was eventually apprehended in January 2011 in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad, where US forces killed former al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden less than four months later.

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sentence: during the trial, an FBI agent testified that intelligence reports had revealed Patek was in Pakistan to meet with bin Laden in an effort to re-establish links between South-East Asian terrorist groups and al-Qaeda.

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"he didn't give himself up," Ms Corteen said.


until just recently, he really didn't feel sorry for how much grief he caused other people.


sentence: the verdict comes ahead of the 10th anniversary of the attack later this year, which will be marked by ceremonies in Bali and Australia.

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sentence: "there will be a lot of tears this year," Ms Corteen said.

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sentence: Patek may yet appeal his sentence.

data: sentence sentence NOUN bn:00021628n 0 0


sentence: FAA: air passengers can now use gadgets on planes (but not make cell phone calls)

data: planes plane NOUN bn:00001697n 0 0


sentence: airline passengers will be able to use their electronic devices gate-to-gate to read, work, play games, watch movies and listen to music - but not talk on their cellphones - under much-anticipated new guidelines issued Thursday by the Federal Aviation Administration.

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data: movies movie NOUN bn:00034471n 0 0

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data: cellphones cellphone NOUN bn:00017029n 0 0


sentence: but passengers shouldn't expect changes to happen immediately.

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sentence: how fast the change is implemented will vary by the airline, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said at a news conference.

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sentence: airlines will have to show the FAA how their airplanes meet the new guidelines and that they've updating their flight crew training manuals and rules for stowing devices to reflect the new guidelines.

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sentence: the FAA said it has already received plans from some airlines to expand the use of portable electronic devices on planes.

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Delta and JetBlue were among the airliners who have already submitted plans.


sentence: "depending on the condition of the plan, we could approve expanded use of electronic devices very soon," the FAA said in a statement.

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sentence: currently, passengers are required to turn off their smartphones, tablets and other devices once a plane's door closes.


sentence: they're not supposed to restart them until the planes reach 10,000 feet and the captain gives the go-ahead.

data: captain captain NOUN bn:00015752n 0 0


sentence: passengers are supposed to turn their devices off again as the plane descends to land and not restart them until the plane is on the ground.

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sentence: under the new guidelines, airlines whose planes are properly protected from electronic interference may allow passengers to use the devices during takeoffs, landings and taxiing, the FAA said.

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data: landings landing NOUN bn:00049864n 0 0


sentence: most new airliners and other planes that have been modified so that passengers can use Wifi at higher altitudes are expected to meet the criteria.

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data: Wifi wifi NOUN bn:00081176n 0 0

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sentence: Laura Glading, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, welcomed the changes.


"once the new policy is safely implemented - and we're going to work closely with the carrier to do that - it will be a win-win," Glading said in a statement.


we're frankly tired of feeling like 'hall monitors' when it comes to this issue.


sentence: but connecting to the Internet to surf, exchange emails, text or download data will still be prohibited below 10,000 feet, the agency said.

data: agency agency NOUN bn:00001961n 0 0


sentence: passengers will be told to switch their smartphones, tablets and other devices to airplane mode.

data: passengers passenger NOUN bn:00060894n 0 0

data: devices device NOUN bn:00026716n 0 0


sentence: so, still no Words With Friends, the online Scrabble-type game that actor Alec Baldwin was playing on his smartphone in 2011 when he was famously booted off an American Airlines jet for refusing to turn off the device while the plane was parked at the gate.

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sentence: and heavier devices such as laptops will continue to have to be stowed because of concern they might injure someone if they go flying around the cabin.

data: laptops laptop NOUN bn:00049998n 0 0


in-flight cellphone calls also will continue to be prohibited.


regulatory authority over phone calls belongs to the Federal Communications Commission, not the FAA.


sentence: FAA may lift ban on some electronic devices during takeoff and landing

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data: takeoff takeoff NOUN bn:00075945n 0 0

data: landing landing NOUN bn:00049864n 0 0


sentence: last month, National Transportation Safety Board Mark Rosenker, a CBS News national transportation safety expert, said that cell phones are still considered a risk.

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sentence: "cell phones, that really is an issue, not just because potentially it could create interference with navigational devices, but we do know, according to the FCC, that it could interfere with cell phone towers when they're in the air," Rosenker said.

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sentence: an industry advisory committee created by the FAA to examine the issue recommended last month that the government permit greater use of personal electronic devices.

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sentence: pressure has been building on the FAA in recent years to ease restrictions on their use.

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sentence: critics such as Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., contend there is no valid safety reason for the prohibitions.

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sentence: the restrictions have also become increasingly difficult to enforce as use of the devices has become ubiquitous.

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sentence: some studies indicate as many as a third of passengers forget or ignore directions to turn off their devices.

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data: passengers passenger NOUN bn:00060894n 0 0


sentence: the FAA began restricting passengers' use of electronic devices in 1966 in response to reports of interference with navigation and communications equipment when passengers began carrying FM radios, the high-tech gadgets of their day.

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data: radios radio NOUN bn:00065900n 0 0


sentence: new airliners are far more reliant on electrical systems than previous generations of aircraft, but they are also designed and approved by the FAA to be resistant to electronic interference.

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sentence: airlines have been offering Wi-Fi use at cruising altitudes to passengers for several years.

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sentence: planes modified for Wi-Fi systems are also more resistant to interference.


sentence: the vast majority of airliners should qualify for greater electronic device use under the new guidelines, Huerta said.

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data: device device NOUN bn:00026716n 0 0


sentence: today's electronic devices generally emit much lower power radio transmissions than previous generations of devices.


e-readers, for example, emit only minimal transmissions when turning a page.


but transmissions are stronger when devices are downloading or sending data.


sentence: among those pressing for a relaxation of restrictions on passengers' use of the devices has been Amazon.com.


sentence: in 2011, company officials loaded an airliner full of their Kindle e-readers and flew it around to test for problems but found none.

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sentence: FAA advisory committee members expressed mixed feelings about whether use of the devices presents any risk.

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sentence: Douglas Kidd of the National Association of Airline Passengers said he believes interference from the devices is genuine even if the risk is minimal.

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sentence: other committee members said there are only anecdotal reports from pilots to support that the devices can interfere with aircraft systems, and most of those reports are very old.

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sentence: however, the committee recommended the FAA allow pilots to order passengers to shut off devices during instrument landings in low visibility.

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sentence: a travel industry group welcomed the changes, calling them common-sense accommodations for a traveling public now bristling with technology.

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sentence: "we're pleased the FAA recognizes that an enjoyable passenger experience is not incompatible with safety and security," said Roger Dow, CEO of the U.S. Travel Association.

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sentence: bird airlifted to safety from North Sea rig released back into wild

data: bird bird NOUN bn:00010605n 0 0


sentence: a bird airlifted ashore after being found exhausted on a North Sea oil rig has been released back into the wild.


sentence: the water rail was put on a helicopter to Aberdeen last month before being nursed back to health by the Scottish SPCA at its rescue centre in Alloa.

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sentence: centre manager Colin Seddon said: "this water rail was likely a winter migrant from Northern Europe who got caught up in strong winds over the North Sea."

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sentence: it seems the bird became exhausted and managed to find refuge on the oil rig.

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sentence: he added: "it was unable to fly off again so we were contacted for help."

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the water rail was fit and well by the time it was released.


sentence: is Europe's elite ready to do business with Britain?

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sentence: business for Britain launched in April with a pledge to bring business together and define what the UK's wealth and job creators want to see changed in our relationship with the EU.

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sentence: to that end, we commissioned the largest and most comprehensive poll of British business leaders asking them for their thoughts on Britain, business and the EU.

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sentence: YouGov polled over 1,000 business leaders, broadly representative of Britain's business sizes, sectors and regions.

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sentence: the conclusions of the poll will come as a surprise to many.


sentence: we found that the vast majority of businesses are now looking to export outside of Europe, focusing on countries that are modernising and growing while the EU states stagnate.

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data: countries country NOUN bn:00023236n 0 0

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sentence: they want to see the Government prioritise new trading links with the likes of China, India and Brazil, rather than getting bogged down in the long and arduous process of reforming the EU's arcane institutions.

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sentence: when asked their views on specific policy areas - ranging from monopoly regulation to product laws - the majority of business leaders thought that control of these key competences should be returned to Westminster.

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data: control control NOUN bn:00022287n 0 0


sentence: there was general discontent with the Single Market, with businesses saying that the costs of Brussels regulation now outweighed the benefits of being part of Europe's trading area - even 40 per cent of large businesses, traditionally the most pro-European of companies, agreed.

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data: costs cost NOUN bn:00022995n 0 0

data: part part NOUN bn:00021395n 0 0

data: companies company NOUN bn:00021286n 0 0


sentence: finally, and most tellingly of all, our poll of business leaders found a clear majority wanted to see Britain pursue a course of treaty change and a relationship with the EU that is based on trade, not politics.

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sentence: this finding, which was reflected across the sizes and major business groups, shows that business is pushing for a "meaningful change" that brings powers back to the UK.

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data: business business NOUN bn:00014136n 0 0


sentence: the stakes are high - achieving treaty change and a better deal for Britain sees a 16 per cent swing towards voting to stay in the EU in a referendum.


sentence: the Prime Minister should be in no doubt: this poll shows that British business backs his plan for renegotiating the terms of Britain's membership of the EU.

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sentence: it also shows that business expects that renegotiation to make a significant shift in the current balance of power back towards the UK.

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a better deal for British business is possible, and increasingly necessary as the eurozone embarks on the road to closer economic and fiscal union.


sentence: the priority must be jobs and growth in Britain and, as the findings of our poll show, for business this means a renewed focus on trade and a fundamental change in Brussels "regulatory approach.

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Gazprom's Alexei Miller says pipeline in Bulgaria starts new gas era


sentence: the start of construction of the South Stream gas pipeline in Bulgaria marks the launch of one of Europe's largest energy projects, Gazprom's chief said.

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sentence: "a landmark event has taken place today: construction started on the Bulgarian section of the South Stream gas pipeline, the most large-scale and important project in Europe," Gazprom Chairman Alexei Miller said in a statement Thursday.

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sentence: this project is a key element of energy security of the whole European continent.

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sentence: South Stream is meant to add diversity to Russia's export routes through Europe.

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sentence: a contractual dispute between Gazprom and its counterparts in Ukraine, which hosts most of Russia's gas for Europe, adds a layer of risk to conventional routes, officials say.

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sentence: Miller said the direct connection to Bulgaria, a member of the European Union, means geopolitical risks associated with transit countries are eliminated "forever."

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sentence: Bulgarian consumers will receive gas from South Stream at a discounted rate once the entire project starts operating in 2015.

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sentence: Gazprom said construction should begin in other downstream countries by year's end.

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sentence: the pipeline is designed for an annual capacity of 2.2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

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sentence: nothing beats Germany as a property location for national and international investors.

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the economic situation is right, and the financing options are fantastic.


sentence: this was the message of the 9th 'Immobilientag' (Property Day) organised by the Börsen Zeitung (stock exchange newspaper).

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sentence: the German property markets are benefiting from the country's economic strength and general conditions which, compared with the rest of Europe, are very competitive.

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sentence: this was pointed out by Christian Ulbrich, Jones Lang LaSalle CEO for Europe, the Near East and Africa, at the 9th 'Immobilientag' (Property Day) organised by the Börsen Zeitung (stock exchange newspaper).


the extent to which German commercial properties are sought after is evident in the transaction volumes, said Ulbrich.


sentence: in the first three quarters of this year, there was an increase of 31% compared to the same period the year before.

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in Great Britain, growth stands at just 6%, and in France at 19%.


"property investments offer an attractive rate of return," said Ulbrich.


sentence: the yield gap between properties and federal government bonds is at a historically high level.

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sentence: the FAA is easing restrictions on the use of electronic gadgets on airplanes - though chatting on cellphones will still be prohibited.

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sentence: warplanes attack a store of Russian missiles in the port city of Latakia, an official says.

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sentence: it's an apparent continuation of Israel's campaign to keep arms from proliferating in the Mideast.

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sentence: a federal appeals court blocks a judge's ruling that the NYPD's controversial tactic discriminates against minorities.

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nearly 100 African migrants hoping to travel to Algeria die of thirst after their two trucks break down in the middle of the Sahara.


sentence: experts say violence that left 14 adults and seven children dead is nothing more than random chance, not a sign of growing violence in America.

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sentence: rather than being rattled by the U.S. government shutdown, investors kept their focus on what probably matters more: the Federal Reserve.

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sentence: the California woman plans to challenge what may be a first-of-its-kind citation, saying the Internet-connected eyewear makes navigation easier.

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data: navigation navigation NOUN bn:00057073n 0 0


sentence: police say they have a video that appears to show Mayor Rob Ford smoking a crack pipe.

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even close allies keep things from one another - and work every angle to find out what's being held back.


sentence: the Vatican wants to know how Catholic parishes around the globe handle sensitive issues like contraception, divorce and gay couples.

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sentence: two YMCA employees charged with sex offences before allegations against Jonathan Lord, Royal Commission hears

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sentence: two YMCA NSW employees had been charged with child sex offences before allegations were raised against Caringbah child care worker Jonathan Lord in 2011, the child sexual abuse Royal Commission has heard.

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sentence: but in its opening statement to the Commission it said it had "never dealt with an incident of child sexual assault within its organisation," the Commission was told.

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sentence: chief executive officer Phillip Hare was asked about one case where a YMCA employee was charged child pornography offences, and another when a gym instructor at the YMCA Caringbah Hall was convicted of child sexual offences against children in his care in 1991.

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sentence: Mr Hare told Gail Furness, counsel assisting the Commission, he knew about the first case but did not know about the second one.

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