EU launches antitrust probe into alleged Google abuses

The European Commission has launched an investigation into Google after other search engines complained that the firm had abused its dominant position.

The EC will examine whether the world's largest search engine penalised competing services in its results. 

The probe follows complaints by firms including price comparison site Foundem and legal search engine ejustice.fr.
Google denies the allegations but said it would work with the Commission to "address any concerns".

Earlier this year the attorney general of Texas launched a similar investigation following complaints from firms including Foundem. 

The objections in both cases are from competitors which allege that Google manipulates its search results. 

"The European Commission has decided to open an antitrust investigation into allegations that Google has abused a dominant position in online search," the body said in a statement. 

It said the action followed "complaints by search service providers about unfavourable treatment of their services in Google's unpaid and sponsored search results coupled with an alleged preferential placement of Google's own services."

Honda's Hatchback Brio unveiled

Honda BRIO Prototype makes World Premiere at the 27th Thailand International Motor Expo 2010. The new hatchback is developed for Asian markets and scheduled to be introduced in India in 2011. 

Honda BRIO further advances Honda’s “man maximum, machine minimum” concept. Being developed as a commuter vehicle which is easy-to-use even in urban areas, the Honda BRIO prototype adopts an easy-to-handle compact body (length 3,610mm x width 1,680mm x height 1,475 mm).


Gay Pride Parade Delhi 2010

Under Delhi's beautiful November afternoon sun, nearly two thousand young men and women marched on Sunday to mark the city's third Queer Pride parade.
This year's colourful and celebratory parade starting at the end of Barakhamba Road near Connaught Place and ending next to Jantar Mantar -- was the first march after last year's Delhi high court verdict that struck down the antiquated Article 377 of Indian Penal Code.
"I am always reminded of my school days in the 1960s," said 57-year-old artist Sunil Gupta as he observed the marchers gather at Barakhamba Road. Gupta has attended all the three Delhi parades.
"It seemed it would never happen in my lifetime. What's surprising is that the rate of change has accelerated. The first year there were fewer people wearing more masks, and today there are more people in fewer masks," he observed.

There were many masks, but a lot of people wore them more to add colour to their looks, and less to hide their faces. As a lot of people observed, this year's parade, with over 2,000 boisterous marchers, included many youngsters - gays, lesbians, transgenders, but also straight people.
"There is a real change this year," said Gautam Bhan, an activist and one of the organisers of the parade.

"At the first pride parade there were four of us who gave interviews to the media. The numbers of supporting crowds have increased. There are new faces and new people talking to the press and that's fantastic," he said.

In the pride parades of the West, everything appears more orderly, and marchers are represented by ethnic, national, and other political and social groups. But here it was one big party along Delhi's Tolstoy Marg, with many people dancing to the beats of drums. And the cooler weather made it easier for people to break into dance.

The first pride parade in Delhi had about 800 marchers. Last year's parade, held a few days before the high court judgment, had nearly 1,500 marchers. The number was far higher this year.

WikiLeaks reveals how US snoops on friends and foes

Nearly 250,000 classified United States documents procured by WikiLeaks give detail about a wide variety of secret diplomatic episodes and incidences of backroom bargaining, the New York Times reported on Sunday.

The confidential cache of US cables released to the paper by the whistleblower website was described by the Times as the one that unlocks the secrets of American diplomacy. The newspaper made public the details contained in the documents on Sunday, some time after WikiLeaks said its website was under a cyber attack.

"A cache of a quarter-million confidential American diplomatic cables, most of them from the past three years, provides an unprecedented look at backroom bargaining by embassies around the world, brutally candid views of foreign leaders and frank assessments of nuclear and terrorist threats," The Times said in its lead story. 


US-Pak stand-off over nuclear fuel
More eminent newspapers across the globe are expected to follow suit, even as WikiLeaks on its Twitter account said that it is "currently under a mass distributed denial of service attack". It added that even if its website goes down, a number of newspapers will go ahead and publish the documents.

These documents, according to NYT, reveal a dangerous standoff with Pakistan over nuclear fuel. Since 2007, the US has mounted a highly secret effort, so far unsuccessful, to remove from a Pakistani research reactor highly enriched uranium that American officials fear could be diverted for use in an illicit nuclear device.

In May 2009, Ambassador Anne W Patterson reported that Pakistan was refusing to schedule a visit by American technical experts because, as a Pakistani official said, "if the local media got word of the fuel removal, they certainly would portray it as the United States taking Pakistan's nuclear weapons, he argued".


China on a hacking spree
Besides, they also provide an insight into a global computer hacking effort initiated by the Chinese government. China's politburo directed the intrusion into Google's computer systems, a Chinese contact told the American embassy in Beijing in January, according to one cable.

The Google hacking was part of a coordinated campaign of computer sabotage carried out by government operatives, private security experts and Internet outlaws recruited by the Chinese government.

They have broken into American government computers and those of Western allies, the Dalai Lama and American businesses since 2002, the cables said.

The White House immediately condemned the release strongly, saying it risked the lives of thousands of diplomats and officials and endangered its relationship with friends and allies.



 WikiLeaks exposed rights abuse in Iraq
Top officials of the Obama administration called up several countries including India and warned them about the imminent release of such classified US documents.

The Pentagon condemned what it called a 'reckless' act, and said it has initiated measures to prevent such leaks in the future ahead of the imminent release. The State Department asked it to return the 'illegally obtained' papers, insisting that their leak would "endanger the lives of countless individuals."

The Twitter message by WikiLeaks earlier said that El Pais, Le Monde, Speigel, Guardian and New York Times newspapers will publish many US embassy cables on Sunday night, even if WikiLeaks goes down.

The website has earlier released thousands of documents on the US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In October, WikiLeaks released four lakh secret US files on Iraq war detailing abuse of Iraqi prisoners in US custody, rights violations and civilian deaths.
Earlier in July, the website had published tens of thousands of secret documents on the war in Afghanistan.


WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Sunday said the soon-to-be released classified US documents will cover 'every major issue' in the world.

Late on Saturday, Washington rejected talks with WikiLeaks, saying the website was holding the cables in violation of US law. However, Assange has rejected the claim that the release would put to harm many lives.

The 251,287 cables, first acquired by WikiLeaks, were provided to The Times by an intermediary on the condition of anonymity. Many are unclassified, and none are marked 'top secret', the government's most secure communications status.


 China hacks Google, US spies on allies 
The NYT reported that details contained in the released documents include plans to reunite the Korean peninsula after the North's eventual collapse and bargaining over the repatriation of Guantanamo Bay detainees.

The cables also detail fresh suspicions about corruption in Afghanistan and Saudi donors financing Al Qaeda. Many more cables name diplomats' confidential sources, from foreign legislators and military officers to human rights activists and journalists, often with a warning to Washington: 'Please protect' or 'Strictly protect'.

The cables show that nearly a decade after the attacks of September 11, 2001, the shadow of terrorism still dominates the United States' relations with the world.

They depict the Obama administration struggling to sort out which Pakistanis are trustworthy partners against Al Qaeda, adding Australians who have disappeared in the Middle East to terrorist watch lists, and assessing whether a lurking rickshaw driver in Lahore, was awaiting fares or conducting surveillance of the road to the US Consulate, the daily said.

"They show American officials managing relations with a China on the rise and a Russia retreating from democracy. They document years of painstaking effort to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon and of worry about a possible Israeli strike on Iran with the same goal," it said. 

In Haryana, get a bride for Rs 1,000 from Bihar

CHANDIGARH: Haryana, reeling under a skewed sex ratio, is faced with yet another startling fact – an NGO has found that girls are being "bought" and brought to Haryana from 20 states across the country. The state's sex ratio stands at 837 in the 0-6 years age group, its lowest in the last five years and second only to Punjab.

In one case, the family of a girl from Bihar was paid just Rs 1,000.

In its report released in Pune on Saturday, the NGO, Drishti Stree Adhyayan Prabodhan Kendra, has found that most of the girls were brought from West Bengal, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Assam. It's findings also indicate that girls were bought within the state too.

The NGO surveyed 10,190 households in Haryana and found 318 women who were bought and married off to men in Haryana. The NGO has shared the findings with the Haryana government.


Important Money Management Formulas

Managing money can involve calculations to understand the worth of an investment. To arrive at a result, calculations can be done in a different way or by using a different formula.

Even the same formula can be used differently to arrive at a certain result. Here are a few commonly used money management formulas.


Compound Interest

I want to take a loan of Rs 1 lakh to buy a used car. How much will the car cost me at an annual interest rate of 8 per cent for four years?
The compound interest formula can be used here to calculate the final cost, which would include the loan amount and the interest paid. The amount that is actually paid for Rs 1 lakh is Rs 1,36,048.90. The total amount of interest charged for borrowing Rs 1 lakh is Rs 36,048.90.

Formula: Future value = P(1 + R)^N

Type in: =100000(1+8%)^4 and hit enter. P: amount borrowed; R: rate of interest; N: time in years.

Also used for: Calculating the maturity value on lumpsum investment (bank fixed deposits and National Savings Certificate, for example) over a fixed period at a certain rate of interest.



Compound Annualised Growth Rate

I had invested Rs 1 lakh in a mutual fund five years back at an NAV of Rs 20. Now the NAV is Rs 70. How should I calculate my returns on an annual basis?

Compound annualised growth rate (CAGR) will be used here to calculate the growth over a period of time. The gain of Rs 50 over five years on the initial NAV of Rs 20 is a simple return of 250 per cent (50/20 * 100). However, it should not be construed as 50 per cent average return over five years.

Formula: CAGR = {[(M/I)^(1/N)] 1} * 100

Type in: =(((70/20)^(1/5))-1)*100 and hit enter. M: maturity value; I: initial value; N: time in years. CAGR here is 28.47%.

Also used for: Calculating the annualised returns on a lumpsum investment in shares.




Internal Rate of Return

I paid Rs 18,572 every year on a moneyback insurance policy bought 20 years back. Every fifth year, I received Rs 40,000 back and Rs 4.5 lakh on maturity. What was my rate of return?

The internal rate of return (IRR) has to be calculated here. It is the interest rate accrued on an investment that has outflows and inflows at the same regular periods.

In the excel page type Rs 18,572 as a negative figure (-18572), as it is an outflow, in the first cell. Paste the same figure till the twentieth cell.

Then, as every fifth year has an inflow of Rs 40,000, type in Rs 21,428 (40,000-18,572) in every fifth cell. In the twentieth cell, type in 18572. In the twenty first cell, type in Rs 4,50,000, which is the maturity value of the policy.

Then click on the cell below it and type: = IRR(A1:A21) and hit enter.

5.28% will show in the cell. This is your internal rate of return.

Also used for: Calculating returns on insurance endowment policies.




XIRR

I bought 500 shares on 1 January 2007 at Rs 220, 100 shares on 10 January at Rs 185 and 50 shares at Rs 165 on 18 May 2008. On 21 June 2008, I sold off all the 650 shares at Rs 655. What is the return on my investment?

XIRR is used to determine the IRR when the outflows and inflows are at different periods. Calculation is similar to IRR's. Transaction date is mentioned on the left of the transaction.

In an excel sheet type out the data from the top most cell as shown here. Outflows figures are in negative and inflows in positive. In the cell below with the figure 4,25,750, type out =XIRR (B1:B4,A1:A4)*100

Hit enter. The cell will show 122.95%, the total return on investment.

Also used for: Calculating MF returns, especially SIP, or that for unit-linked insurance plans.



Post-Tax Return

My father wants a bank FD at 10 per cent return for five years. He pays income tax. What will be the returns?

The post-tax return has to be calculated here. The idea is to know the final returns on a fully taxable income. Interest income from the bank is taxed as per your tax slab.

Formula: ROI (ROI * TR)=Post-tax return

Type in: =10 (10 * 30.9%) and hit enter. You will get 6.91%

ROI: rate of interest; TR: tax rate (depends on tax slab)

Also used for: Calculating post-tax returns of national savings certificates, post-office time deposits, and Senior Citizens' Savings Scheme.



Pre-Tax Yield

My brother says that the investment in public provident fund (PPF), which gives 8 per cent, is the best. Isn't 8 per cent a low rate of return?

An investment's pre-tax yield tells us if its return is high or low. The return on PPF (8 per cent) is tax-free. Also, this has to compared with returns of a taxable income to estimate its worth. For someone paying a tax of 30.9 per cent, the pre-tax yield in PPF is 11.57 per cent. At present, there is no fixed, safe and assured-return option that has 11.57 per cent return and a post-tax return comparable to PPF's 8 per cent.

Formula: Pre-tax yield = ROI / (100-TR)*100

Type in: =8/(100-30.9)*100 and hit enter. You will get 11.57%. ROI: rate of interest, TR: tax rate, (depends on tax slab)

Also used for: Calculating the yield on an Employees' Provident Fund or any other tax-free instrument.



 Inflation

My family's monthly expense is Rs 50,000. At an inflation rate of 5 per cent, how much will I need 20 years hence with the same expenses?

The required amount can be calculated using the standard future value formula. Inflation means that over a period of time, you need more money to fund the same expense.

Formula: Required amt.=Present amt. *(1+inflation) ^no. of years

Type in: =50000*(1+5% or .05)^20 and hit enter. You will get Rs 1,32,664 as the answer, which is the required amount.

Also used for: Calculating maturity value on an investment.



Purchasing Power

My family's monthly expense is Rs 50,000. At an inflation rate of 5 per cent, how much will be the purchasing value of that amount after 20 years?

Inflation increases the amount you need to spend to fetch the same article and in a way reduces the purchasing power of the rupee. Here, Rs 50,000 after 20 years at an inflation of 5 per cent will be able to buy goods worth Rs 18,844 only.

Formula: Reduced amt.= Present amt. / (1 + inflation) ^no. of yrs

Type in: =50000/(1+5%)^20 and hit enter. You will get Rs 18,844, which is the reduced amount.



 Real Rate of Return

My father wants to make a one-year bank FD at 9 per cent. On maturity, he says, the capital will be preserved and he would get assured return on it.

It is true that fixed deposit is safe and gives assured returns. However, after adjusting for inflation, the real rate of return can be negative.

Formula: Real rate of return=[(1+ROR)/(1+i)-1]*100

Type in: =((1+9%)/(1+11%)-1)*100 and hit enter. -1.8% is the real rate of return. ROR: Rate of return per annum; i: rate of inflation (11 per cent here).




Doubling, Tripling of Money

I can get 12 per cent return on my equity investments. In how many years can I double or even triple my money?

Formula: No. of years to double = 72/expected return

Type in: =72/12 and hit enter. You will get 6 years. For tripling, type in: =114/12 and hit enter. You will get 9.5 years. For quadrupling, type in: =144/12 and hit enter to get 12 years.

Nokia C7 Price in India

Nokia C7 Price in India




Nokia has released its latest edition of mobile phones  the Nokia  C7 in India. Nokia C7 is available in India at Rs. 16000. Nokia C7 comes with 8 mega pixel camera with zoom function. It is a complete multimedia mobile phone.

Features:

Beautifully crafted design

Integrated social networks

Maps with free GPS navigation

Powered by Symbianˆ3

Micromax Android Phone | Micromax Andro A60

Micromax Andro takes a leap into Android phones under Rs. 10,000 bracket. Andro has 2.8-inch touchscreen supporting 320x240 pixel resolution which might not please the mobile fanatics. With dual-band GSM support this smartphone will be 3G ready and promises up to 7.2Mbps speeds via HSUPA and up to 5.76 speeds via HSDPA. Micromax has added Wi-Fi for wireless connectivity.
 

True Hyderabadi

Complicated Mechanical movement Mechanisms Explained with GIFs

Rotary Engine:
Also called wankel engine. Converts pressure into rotation motion instead of reciprocating pistons. found in cars like the mazda RX-7.



Radial Engines:

Used in aircrafts having propeller connected to the shaft delivering power in order to produce thrust its basic mechanism is as follows


Steam Engine:
once used in locomotives. Based on the reciprocating principle.

Skoda Fabia RS 1.4 TSI 180 bhp 7 speed

The Fabia RS hatchback and Estate models are motivated by the VW Group's 1.4-liter double-supercharged four-cylinder gasoline engine that delivers an output of 180 horsepower.
A seven-speed dual-clutch DSG transmission with paddle-shifters transfers power to the front wheels.

Skoda said that 0-100km/h (62mph) acceleration comes in 7.3 seconds for both versions with the hatchback reaching a top speed of 225km/h or 140mph, and the Estate 227km/h or 141mph.
Combined fuel consumption for both models is estimated at 6.4lt/100km, equal to 36.8mpg US and 44mpg UK.
Being a sporty model and all, Skoda's err VW's engineers tweaked the Fabia's suspension and brakes and added the firm's new XDS electronic differential which is also found on the Ibiza Cupra and Polo GTI cars.
In the styling department, both versions of the Fabia RS features subtle cosmetic upgrades that include the new front bumper with integrated LED daytime running lights 17-inch alloy wheels, red brake callipers, tinted windows and a new rear bumper with a diffuser and dual exhaust.
Depending on the color of the body, the roof, rear spoiler and wheels for the Fabia RS hatchback can be finished in black, white or silver.
As for the interior, both cars get sports seats with "RS" logos on the backrests, a new three-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel and aluminum pedals.




Tata Motors Vista EVX takes top honours at the RAC Future Car Challenge

Tata Motors' battery-powered Indica Vista EVX outshines rivals in two categories in the battle for energy-efficient vehicles of tomorrow.

Developed by Tata Motors' UK technical arm-Tata Motors European Technical Centre (TMETC), the Tata Indica Vista EVX bagged two category wins at the inaugural Royal Automobile Club (RAC) Brighton to London Future Car Challenge. The Tata Indica Vista EVX, which can carry four adults and hit 96km/h in about ten seconds, bagged the top honours in the Economic Small Passenger Electric Vehicle (EV) and the Most Economical and Environment Friendly Small Passenger EV classes, where it trumped competition from bigwigs like SMART, BMW and Mitsubishi.

The Vista EVX finished the 93.3km long drive from Madeira Drive in Brighton to Pall Mall, London at an energy cost of just Rs. 98.73 and in the process it only depleted 36 percent of its lithium-ion phosphate battery capacity, which calculates into an operating range of 257.4km on a single charge translating into a phenomenal plug-to-wheel efficiency figure of 74 kmpl. The Vista EVX will be manufactured in the UK and it is expected to go on sale in Europe sometime in 2011.


The Brighton to London Future Car Challenge has been formulated to help promote and encourage major car-makers showcase their alternative-energy technologies and it is open for electric, hybrid and low emission internal combustion engine vehicles. The vehicles are judged on the basis of their minimum energy impact through the entire drive determining the overall winners in each category. All sorts of vehicles including road-legal models, concepts, development prototypes, and pre-production and production vehicles are allowed to enter the Brighton to London Future Car Challenge in order to promote new or alternative energy technologies.

Inattention Blindness Test

You Have “Inattention Blindness”
First let’s start with a little test for you to take. Watch the video below.


This is an example of what is called “inattention blindness” or “change blindness”. The idea is that people often miss large changes in their visual field. This has been shown in many experiments.
Remember, just because something happens in the visual field doesn’t mean that people are consciously aware of it.

Google v/s Facebook

Shocking Google Search suggestions




Amazing Condom Dresses

Creative clothing made from condoms popping up all over the internet in such versatile and surprisingly beautiful styles, we have to wonder – could condom garments be an innovative new eco-fashion trend? And would you actually be willing to wear prophylactic couture?





The Ferrari 360 Limousine

The world’s first and only Stretched Ferrari F1 360 Limousine.This unique vehicle was designed By Dan Cawley of Style Limousines, Machester, England. Then tuned to perfection by Prestige Limousines, Birmingham, England. prestigelimousines.co.uk Renowned for His Unique and crazy Limo’s Dan Commissioned Carbonyte Uk To build this vehicle, Carbonyte UK is the pioneer of HotFusion Composite Manufacturing Technology that was used on the McLaren SLR Supercar

Ferrari Limo is attracting the automotive press from around the world already only 50% complete the build has been filmed for the Canadian Discovery Channel and been featured in The Chauffeur Magazine also featured on many automotive websites around the globe.

Not only will the Stretched Ferrari F1 360 be the world’s longest Ferrari and the worldsStretched Ferrari F1 360 it will be the most technically advanced limo built to date .(soon to be entered into the Guinness book of world records).



Photos of wild Stallions Fighting

This is the dramatic moment two proud stallions faced off in a bloody fight for dominance and mating rights in a herd of wild horses.

The Koniks, or Polish primitive horses, reared up on their hind legs with their teeth bared during the ferocious attack.

Photographer Henri Ton, 41, captured the fight over females at a nature reserve in Loevenstein, The Netherlands.

One stallion could be seen chasing a mare while others fought among themselves.

Mr Ton, who works as an electronic engineer, spends several hours a week observing the herd of 36 horses to better understand their behaviour.

He said: 'The Koniks were put in a nature reserve and left to fend for themselves.

'The public are told to keep their distance and not to feed them so they can remain wild.

'I go looking for them about once a week and have done for over a year now.

'I try to avoid attracting their attention so their behaviour in my pictures is as natural as possible.'
Dominance: Teeth bared, the two horses continue to fight as other members of the herd watch on in the background.

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