We live in an age where if we're unsure of something, or just plain curious, we can quickly look it up on Google. Many college students today can fight in the search engine with hopes to find some guidance in times of doubt. My name is Jenna Falk with CalTV Entertainment, and I'm here to ask UC Berkeley students the most commonly googled questions by college students. What does FAFSA stand for? FAFSA? FAFSA. Wait what?  I don't know what that is. FAFSA. FAFSA. FAFSA. FAFSA. For adding fun stuff around. Wrong. Isn't it the financial aid thing? Can you eat expired eggs? Yes, I believe so. Probably not. No? Can you? I think you can. Do eggs expire? I mean I don't eat expired eggs, I don't think you should. Yes, but they'll make you sick. Um, no. Salmonella. Salmonella. Do you know what the Electoral College is? Yes, I do know what the Electoral College is. Thanks, Trump. It's basically so- Yeah, I took a push. Um, like people vote in the like- Um, for like the president. I know that. Oh boy, do I know what the Electoral College is. So, um, this is a little tangent, but junior year of high school, I um- What happens if you don't sleep for two days?  If your brain starts to do weird things? I think you start crying, then you start like- Then you feel really weird. How many energy drinks can you drink in one day? Zero.  Two? You shouldn't drink any. Just don't do it. It's a recipe for disaster. What's your phone number? Invalid. And there you have it. Even UC Berkeley students don't have all the answers. I'm Jenna Falk with CalTV Entertainment. And go Bears. If you were a vegetable, you'd be a cucumber. I think cucumber is a fruit.


Welcome to the Hindu News Analysis by Shankar IA's Academy, displayed at the list of news articles taken up for today's analysis along with the page numbers of Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Trivandrum editions. The handwritten notes in PDF format and the timestamping of all the news articles taken up for today's discussion is available in the description section and also in the common section for the benefit of the smartphone users. Let us now start our discussion. This news article talks about the high prevalence rate of HIV in the state of Mizoram and in some other northeastern states. In the context of this news article, first we will be seeing about HIV. The syllabus that is relevant to the analysis of this news article is given here for your reference. See, the human immunodeficiency virus belongs to a family of viruses called as retroviridate. The virus infects the CD4 cells in the immune system. So these CD4 cells are the protective white blood cells which indicate the health of the immune system. So when they are infected with the virus, it destroys or impairs their function. And as the infection progresses, the immune system of the human body becomes progressively weak. This immunodeficiency results in increased susceptibility to a wide range of infections, cancers and other diseases that people with healthy immune systems can fight off. We tell that a person infected with HIV becomes more susceptible to life-threatening infections. The most advanced stage of HIV infection is the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or the AIDS. It can take somewhere from 2 to 15 years for an individual to develop AIDS depending on the individual. And AIDS is defined by the development of certain types of cancers, infections or other severe clinical manifestations. See a healthy person's CD4 cell count can vary from 500 to more than 1000. Even if a person has no symptoms, the HIV infection progresses to AIDS when his or her CD4 count becomes less than 200. Now let us discuss the symptoms. There are three main stages of AIDS if you see. They are acute symptoms, clinical latency and severe symptoms. The acute symptoms, these include an influenza or flu with headache, fever, soat throat, etc. Next is the clinical latency. It is a state or period of HIV living or developing in a host without producing any clinical symptoms. And if you see there is a persistent, that is a continuous swelling of lymph nodes during this stage. Know that lymph nodes are also part of the immune system in human body. Apart from this, there are no other specific signs or symptoms at this stage. Now let us see the third stage, which is the stage of severe symptoms. These include blood or distorted vision, then cough and shortness of breath. Then a person can experience weight loss, chronic diarrhea, etc. Now let us discuss how HIV is spread, that is the transmission of HIV.  This is the most frequent mode of transmission of HIV. In certain case, the virus is transmitted through blood transfusions in hospitals. If you remember certain months back, there was a case in Vrindanagar district in the state of Tamil Nadu that a person was infected with HIV because of a faulty blood transfusion. Then HIV can also be transmitted through needles and syringes contaminated with infected blood. And a pregnant woman who is infected with HIV virus can transmit the virus to her fetus through the shared blood circulation or an infected nursing mother can also transmit it to her baby through her breast milk. So these are some of the transmission modes of HIV. Now let us see the diagnostic tools that are available to detect HIV. The most common diagnostic tool or test to detect HIV is ELISA. Now ELISA is the acronym for Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Essay. ELISA test is performed by inserting a needle to draw the blood, then a positive result on the ELISA screening test does not necessarily mean that the person has HIV infection. So a positive ELISA test is always followed by a Western blood test which confirms the HIV infection. Next let us see about the cure that is available for AIDS. See as of now there is no definitive cure for AIDS. However, there are some medicines which are given at certain stages of the disease depending upon the CD4 cell count in the blood of the patient. So this can prolong the life of HIV positive persons. One is the Protease Inhibitors. These Protease Inhibitors interferes with the protein that HIV uses to make infectious viral particles. Next is Fusion Inhibitors which blocks the virus from entering the body's cells. Then also there are some other multidrug combinations which are available. Also anti-retroviral therapy is available. Anti-retroviral therapy is nothing but a combination of daily medications which helps to protect the cells. Therefore the immune system is strong enough to fight the disease. So these are some of the cure that is available for AIDS as of now. Know that there is no definitive cure for AIDS. It is yet to be discovered. Now let us come to the news article. This news article tells that the state of Mizoram which is one of the least populated states in India reports 9 positive cases of HIV AIDS in a day. This news article tells that this rate was 3.8 during 2012-2013. And it increased to 7.5 during 2017-18. And now 9.2 cases are reported as of March 2019. In the context of this news article let us discuss some facts about the HIV estimation report 2017 which has been released by the National AIDS Control Organization. As per this report the total number of people living with HIV in short PL HIV in India is estimated at 21.40 lakhs in the year 2017. And among the states and union territories in 2017 Maharashtra is the state which has the highest estimated number of people living with HIV and this is followed by the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. If you see these 8 states together account for almost 3.4 that is 75% of the total estimated people living with HIV. And rest all the other states have less than 1 lakh people who are living with HIV. Next is the estimated adult HIV prevalence. If you see among the states and union territories in the year 2017 the state of Mizoram has shown the highest estimated adult HIV prevalence which is 2.04% when compared to the total population of that particular state. This is followed by Manipur where the prevalence is 1.43% and this is followed by Nagaland where the prevalence is 1.15% which is followed by Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. We saw that this report has been released by NACCO or National AIDS Control Organization know that this National AIDS Control Organization is a division which is functioning under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So this organization provides leadership to HIV AIDS Control Program in India. In the year 1986 following the detection of the first AIDS case in India the National AIDS Committee was constituted in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. And as this epidemic spread in the year 1992 India's first National AIDS Control Program was launched and the National AIDS Control Organization was constituted to implement the program. Now let us come back to the news article. As per the data compiled by the Mizoram State AIDS Control Society the report shows that 67.21% of the positive cases from the year 2006 to March 2019 have been transmitted sexually. The next major cause for the transmission of AIDS is through infected needles shared by intravenous drug users. So this accounts for 28.12% of the total cases and analysis of the HIV positive cases which were confirmed at the testing centers show that the people who are living in the age group of 25 to 34 years are the most vulnerable in Mizoram. This is followed by the people who are living in the age brackets of 35 to 49 years followed by the people who are living in the age group of 15 to 24 years. So the HIV AIDS prevalence rates in these three age groups are 42.38% age, 26.46% age and 23.03% age respectively. And we just now saw that the second major cause for HIV in Mizoram is through drug abuse. It is to be noted that Mizoram is still battling with drug trafficking especially drugs like methamphetamine, heroin from the neighboring country of Myanmar. So the Northeastern states including Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland have all long been struggling from drug trafficking because of their proximity to the golden triangle. Golden triangle roughly consists of the countries of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos where illicit opium is being produced. So this is all about this news article. So in this news article we have seen in detail about HIV AIDS, about the symptoms, estimation, cure and then about the news article and then about the HIV estimation 2017 report. Now have a look at the practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. This news article speaks about the growth projection for South Asia by the World Bank. The syllabus that is relevant to the analysis of this news article is given here for your reference. See, recently the World Bank has released the South Asia economic focus and the report is titled as making decentralization of work. This report tells that the growth rate in India is projected to fall to 6% for the year 2020. Now you need to know that there is a continuous decline in the growth rate for India over the last two years. For the financial year 2017-18 it was 7.2%. Then for the next financial year that is 2018-19 the growth rate was 6.8%. For the present financial year it is projected to be 6%. And the report also says that the growth rate in India will recover in the future. So the growth rate for the financial year 2020-21 is expected to be 6.9% and for the fiscal year 2022 that is financial year 2021-22 the growth rate is expected to be 7.2%. Next let us discuss the actual sector specific growth for the financial year 2018-19 that is given in the report. The report tells that the industrial output growth in India increased to 6.9%. The report says that this increase in the growth is due to a pickup in the manufacturing and the construction activities in India. If you see the growth in the agricultural sector for financial year 2018-19 was 2.9% and for the service sector it was 7.5%. So from this we can tell that the service sector is the most growing sector in India. Let us discuss some of the reasons given for India's declining growth rate. This report tells that Indian economy had witnessed significant growth deceleration or decline in the growth in the first quarter of the present financial year which is 2019-20. This decline was caused by a sharp decline in the private consumption and also because of the weakening growth in both the industry and services. When we tell private consumption it means the demand side and when we are discussing about industry and services it means the supply side. So there are issues at both the demand side and also at the supply side. And when we tell private consumption it is nothing but the total value of the goods and services that are acquired and consumed by private individuals or households. If you see we have already discussed these issues in detail why there was a sharp decline in the growth rate and some of the steps that have been taken by the present government in order to push the growth like revising the Mandrega wages, then cutting down the corporate tax rate, then offering stimulus package to the automobile sector etc. So this is how we need to link the news articles that we have discussed to some of the issues that have been discussed in the report. Next let us see the future position that the Reserve Bank of India might take with its own monetary policy for that we need to see some of the indicators. This report tells that apart from the economic slowdown, India is witnessing persistent that is continuous low food prices there can be many reasons. One reason is it might be because of the good monsoon and the corresponding good yields that were received in the last financial year. The report also says that India's headline inflation was 3.4 percentage in the financial year 2018-19 which is well below the Reserve Bank of India's target of 4 percentage for the first half of the financial year 2019-2020. Now we need to know what is meant by headline inflation. It is nothing but the measure of total inflation in an economy. It covers volatile items like food, energy, fuel etc. Here inflation means the persistent or the continuous rise in the prices of commodities. The main reason for the sharp increase in the price is because of the increase in the demand or because of decline in the supply. So a below target inflation or a low rate of inflation means that either the demand is less because of less consumption or there is an increase or there is stability in the supply that is supplies that but the products are not sold because of less demand. So the report says that the monetary policy of the Reserve Bank of India would continue to be accommodative. So this is the stance which the Reserve Bank of India is going to take and when we tell accommodative monetary policy it means the central bank like the Reserve Bank of India attempts to expand the overall money supply in the economy in order to boost the economy since the growth is slowing down. So this is basically done by lowering the interest rate. As we know the Reserve Bank of India started to adopt an accommodative policy since January 2019 that is from the previous financial year 2018-19. Since then the Reserve Bank of India had cut its repo rate by around 135 basis points. Your 100 basis points means 1 percentage. So here the term repo rate means nothing but the rate at which the Reserve Bank of India lends money to the commercial banks and the report is saying that the repo rate will further decrease in the coming days. So we can see that RBI is going to follow an accommodative monetary policy. Next the news article talks about the current account deficit of India which was discussed in the report. In simpler terms current account means the difference between the value of net imports and the exports of the goods and services of a country in a particular financial year and current account deficit means the total imports exceed the total exports. So always imports are more than the exports. If you see for the financial year 2017-18 the current account deficit was 1.8 percentage of the GDP but it has widened to 2.1 percentage of the GDP in the financial year 2018-2019 which means the imports are further increased when compared to the export when compared to the exports in the financial year 2018-2019. So we can see that the trade balance is deteriorating. It simply means that the exports from India are still weak compared to the imports of India or in other terms imports are greater than the exports. Next the report also talks about the capital outflows with respect to India. Now the term capital outflow means the capital or the money that is flowing out or leaving an economy. This report tells that the capital flew out of India during the first half of 2018 that is the financial year 2018-2019. The reasons were a better interest rates that were offered by the other economies like the United States. But this trend has reversed since October 2018 that is the second half of the financial year 2018-19 and because of this inflow it has led to building up of foreign exchange reserves in India. So at the end of the financial year 2018-19 India's foreign exchange reserves rose by 411.9 billion US dollars. So we saw that in the first half capital flew out of India because of this the demand for the dollar increased in the first half of 2018 which led to depreciation or decrease in the value of rupee. But in the later half of the financial year 2018-19 we saw that there was an inflow in the capital and because of this the value of the rupee appreciated. So this is about the capital inflows and the capital outflows. Next this report also talks about government deficit. Now the term government deficit is nothing but the amount by which the expenditure of the government exceeds the income of the government in a particular financial year. This report tells that the general government deficit is estimated to have widened by 0.2 percentage points that is increased by 0.2 percentage points to 5.9 percentage of the GDP in the financial year 2018-19 which means in financial year 2017-18 it was 5.7 percentage of the GDP. In financial year 2018-19 it has increased by 0.2 percentage points to 5.9 percentage of the GDP. Next this report also speaks about the government debt. It tells that the general government debt remained at 67 percentage of the GDP. Now the general government debt is nothing but the total borrowings of the government of India. This report tells that the government debt is stable and sustainable because a large part of it has been domestically raised in the form of small savings then in the form of the issue of securities etc. and also long term savings. This report has spoken about poverty. This report tells that poverty in India continued to decline but the decline was at a more slower pace when compared to the earlier data. If you see in the financial year 2011-12 the poverty in India declined 21.6 percentage but in the financial year 2015-16 the poverty declined to 13.4 percentage. And know that poverty is calculated by the World Bank using a terminology called Purchasing Power Parity. So the value is $1.9 a day and this purchasing power parity measures the prices of a common basket of goods at different countries to measure the purchasing power of the currencies of the respective markets. So this report is telling that the risk for the poor household in India is increased by several factors like the disruptions brought in the economy by the introduction of goods and service tax and the disruption that was brought into the economy by the demonetization process and also because of the stress in the rural economy and also because of the high youth unemployment rates in the urban areas and certain other reasons. So from this report we can tell that India is witnessing a continuous slowdown for the past few years and the growth rate is expected to increase in the coming years as projected by the World Bank. Let us move on to the next news article. This news article tells that the foreign plastic is invading the Nicobar Islands at alarming levels. The syllabus that is relevant to the analysis of this news article is given here for your reference. With respect to this news article, we will first consider the issue that has been reported in the news article then about the geographical location of the islands that have been mentioned in the news article. As per this news article based on a survey of five major beaches that was conducted in the Nicobar Islands, it was found that the major portion of the plastic is of foreign origin. About 40.5 percentage of the plastic litter was from Malaysian origin and this was followed by the plastic litter which was of Indonesia origin which is about 23.9 percentage followed by Thailand which was about 16.3 percentage. But the Indian origin plastic was only about 2.2 percentage. So this clearly shows that these beaches are under threat mainly from the foreign plastic and thus they are posing challenge to sustain the marine ecosystem. Now let us examine the reasons for increasing the foreign litter in Nicobar group of islands. The article mentions some of the reasons like the geographical proximity of the islands with Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and other countries. Talking about the influence of water currents in particular via the Malacca Strait because of which the foreign litter is dumped in Nicobar group of islands. And one more reason is given which is the improper handling of the solid waste from fishing or other mariculture activity and also because of the ship traffic. So these are some of the reasons why the foreign litter is being dumped in Nicobar group of islands. Now moving forward to understand better about these group of islands, let us see in detail about the geography of the Andaman and Nicobar islands. See Andaman and Nicobar islands consists of two major group of islands. One is the Andaman group of islands and the other is the Nicobar group of islands. And know that these islands are of tectonic origin. And if you take the Andaman group of islands it consists of mainly North Andaman islands then the Middle Andaman islands, South Andaman islands and the Little Andaman islands. Next if you consider the Nicobar group of islands it mainly consists of Car Nicobar islands then the Little Nicobar islands and the Great Nicobar island. And know that the southernmost point of India when Andaman and Nicobar islands are taken into account is the Indra point or the Great Pygmolian point which is located in Great Nicobar island. And as you can see in this picture the Andaman group of islands and the Nicobar group of islands are separated by 10 degree channel. You know that the country which is located close to the Andaman group of islands is Myanmar and the country that is located close to the Nicobar group of islands is Indonesia. And there are also some of the important facts that are given in the news article like the Great Nicobar biosphere reserve which comprises of the Galatia National Park and the Campbell Bay National Park is located in the Great Nicobar island. And the Andaman and Nicobar islands have a wide spectrum of ecosystem which ranges from tropical wet evergreen forest then it also has mountain ranges and also coastal plains are present in these islands. And then these islands are also home to geontrober crabs then crab eating macaques then the rare mega pod as well as the leatherback turtles. And also know that Champagne tribe which is a particularly vulnerable tribal group are also living in the Great Nicobar island. So this is all about the geography of Andaman and Nicobar islands. Now let us discuss what kind of measures can be taken in order to save the Andaman and Nicobar islands from the menace of foreign plastic. One measure can be a detailed scientific examination of the origin of the plastic can be done. Next regional partnership of the countries can be mooted which will be based on the scientific examination of the source of origin of the plastic. So that strict measures can be enforced and the countries from where these plastics have been originated can be heavily penalized if the countries fail to adhere to the collective norms based on the regional partnership. So like this some measures can be taken to curb the menace of foreign plastic. So this is all about this news article with this information, test your understanding of the topic with the help of the practice question given here. Let us move on to the next news article. Our next discussion is based on an advertisement about FASTAC, the syllabus that is relevant for the analysis of this advertisement is given here for your reference. Sometimes you must also look into the advertisements which will be relevant from examination preparation point of view. Like the other day we saw about coal and the limiter, similarly we shall be seeing about FASTAC today. So first let us see in brief about what is meant by FASTAC. FASTAC is a device for making toll payments directly when the vehicle is in motion. For ensuring this function this device employs a technology called as RFID technology or the radio frequency identification technology. At present you can see a lot of vehicles waiting in queue in the toll plazas for paying the tolls. When we say toll it normally means the charge of payment made to appropriate authority for using the road or a bridge infrastructure. So at present because of manual waiting in queue for paying the toll it leads to certain unwanted things. Now what are those unwanted things? One is the congestion in the toll booths. Then the wastage of fuel because of waiting in the toll booths and then the waiting increases the travel time because of this the travel plans of the passenger is affected. The passenger is required to carry the required or needed change for paying the toll in the toll booths. But if this RFID passive tag is used for making toll payments then it would reduce the congestion then reduce the travel time also there will not be any wastage of fuel. Because the vehicles need not stop at the toll plazas if they are going to use RFID passive tag. See this RFID tag will be affixed on the front windscreen of the vehicle. They are calling it as passive RFID tag. This is because these fast tags work with no internal power source and they are powered by the electromagnetic energy that is transmitted from an RFID reader. We shall see more about what is meant by active and passive RFID in the later part of our discussion. Now know that there are exclusive lanes in toll booths for the fast tag RFID vehicles. The fast tag ID in all these vehicles will be linked to a prepaid account or say a savings account or a current account of the customer who is using that particular fast tag ID. So as a vehicle moves across or crosses the toll booth the payment will be directly deducted from the fast tag linked account of the customer. And if an account is not having any balance then that particular vehicle will be blacklisted and therefore the person on the vehicle has to manually pay the toll payment. Note that this fast tag is also vehicle specific. As a result once a particular fast tag ID is affixed to a vehicle it cannot be transferred to any other vehicle. I know that this fast tag is an important part of the national electronic toll collection program. This national electronic toll collection program has been developed by the National Payments Corporation of India. This program offers an interoperable nationwide toll payment solution. This includes clearing house services for the payment settlement and it also includes dispute management. Here the term clearing house services refers to the toll booth houses who act as an intermediary between the toll payer and the authority who receives the payment. So where can an individual purchase the fast tag? It can be purchased from any of the member banks of the national electronic toll collection. Note that state bank of India then Paytm Payments Bank then Arktel Payments Bank and few other banks are designated as national electronic toll collection member banks or in short NETC member banks. Now this advertisement mentions that fast tag is mandatory from 1st of December 2019 at all national highway toll plazas. Note that Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has decided to declare all the lanes in all the toll fee plazas on national highways across the country as dedicated fast tag lanes. So this is to be from 1st of December this year. Note that a fast tag lane in a toll plaza is reserved exclusively for the moment of fast tag uses according to national highways fee determination of rates and collection rules of 2008 and there is also one more rule under these rules. According to rule number 6 sub rule number 3 under this fee rules 2008 non fast tag uses will be charged double the fee if they pass through fast tag lanes. Apart from this also know that there will be one hybrid lane at every toll plaza. So this hybrid lane will facilitate and monitor over dimensional or oversized vehicles and in this hybrid lane fast tag and other modes of payments will be accepted and this lane will be converted into a fast tag lane in a time-bound manner that is in future this lane will also be converted into a fast tag lane. Then know that for the financial year 2019-20 there is an announcement that there will be a 2.5 percentage cashback on all the toll payments that are made at the national highways. Now let us see certain benefits of using this fast tag. One is that there will be increased transparency of toll payments. Then it will be a step towards less cash economy. Then the drivers or the vehicles need not carry the cash and the required change for payment since they'll be using the fast tag. Now let us come to our next part of the discussion with respect to this fast tag that is the technology that is being used for this fast tag. We saw in the beginning that fast tag uses RFID technology that is radio frequency identification technology. One of the most important effects of this technology is that it enables tracking the movement of men, materials and vehicles. And know that this technology is an automated data collection technology which uses radio frequency waves. These radio frequency waves will transfer the data between a reader and a movable item. The movable item can be man, a material or even a vehicle. Now the purpose is to identify or to categorize or to track. This system is fast and it does not require any physical site or any contact between the reader or the scanner and the RFID tagged item. And one more advantage of the system is that it performs the operation using low cost components. So the cost for this technology is quite low. And this technology also provides unique identification to the track or monitored object and it also provides fine backend integration. So this backend integration allows the usage for a wide range of applications. And these tags can be attached to almost any objects. It can be tied to human beings as well or it can even be implanted into human body as a RFID microchip. At present, there are many research studies that are being conducted to make RFID microchip implantation more and more feasible. Also we saw during the starting of our discussion that these are passive RFID tags. Now let us see the difference between active and passive RFID tags. Here the term active RFID tag means they're battery powered and the term passive RFID tag means there is no internal power source. And they're powered by the electromagnetic energy that is transmitted from the RFID reader. So these passive RFID systems normally have lower storage capacities and shorter read ranges. If you see the storage capacities is from few bits to one kb and the read ranges is from four inches to 15 feet. But on the other side if you see the active RFID systems have higher storage capacities because they are battery powered. The storage capacities are up to about 512 kb and they also have a long read range up to around 300 feet that is almost near to 90 meters. So as a result of this active RFID systems are much costly and expensive than the passive RFID systems. So this is all about the analysis of this particular advertisement. Based on this advertisement discussion we have seen what is meant by fast tag in brief. Then the rules for the definition of fast tag lane and the fee for violation in the fast tag lane. Then the benefits of fast tag and at the end we have seen in brief about the RFID system and two different kinds of tags which is the active and passive RFID tags. Now have a look at the practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. In this editorial the author gives certain suggestions to raise the tax revenues of the central government. The syllabus that is relevant to the analysis of this editorial is given here for your reference. The author tells that the central government has missed the tax targets in the previous financial year. Also the tax collection targets which has been planned for the first quarter of this financial year have also not been met. Now one main reason which the author tells is the poor GST collections that is the goods and service tax collections. And recently the government has announced corporate tax cuts for companies that do not avail any other concessions and also the tax rebates for the new companies. So the author is telling that in this financial year as well that will be a significant tax shortfall. Now let us see the suggestions given by the author to increase the tax collections. One measure which the author tells is that the government should come up with a strategy to ensure that the multinational companies that is the MNCs actually pay their fair share of taxes. Now let us see what are MNCs or multinational companies. A multinational company usually has one head office in a particular country and one or more branch officers or factories which are working in other countries. The officers in the other countries can also be called as subsidiaries. Now what the multinational companies do is that in order to avoid paying the taxes they will keep shifting their declared costs and revenues through transfer pricing across their subsidiaries which are located in many countries. Usually if you see the transactions happen from the higher tax base countries to lower tax base countries. Such a practice is called as base erosion and profit shifting because the tax base in one country is eroded or lost and the profit is shifted to other countries. This kind of practice is especially seen among the digital companies if you see where some of the companies make billions of dollars in profits through their subsidiaries which are located worldwide. But these companies or subsidiaries do not pay taxes in any of those countries. The author has also mentioned the estimates of the International Monetary Fund to substantiate this claim as per the IMF estimates countries lose 500 billion dollars a year because of base erosion profit shifting. So such a practice causes an uneven playing field as per the author which means it benefits one party and it actually does not benefit another party. Because here the domestic companies have to pay the taxes but the MNCs avoid paying the taxes with the help of their subsidiaries. So it benefits the MNCs and it affects the domestic companies or we can tell it does not benefit the domestic companies. Now how can one make sure that the MNCs pay their taxes regularly? One way which the author mentions is that since an MNC in a country actually functions as one entity it should be treated as one entity for tax purposes as well and the total global profit of that particular MNC should be calculated and then a portion that is split across the countries according to some formula. This formula can be based on sales, based on employment, based on uses or based on a combination of all these three especially for the digital companies. The author is telling that this is already being practiced in the United States where each state governments have the power to set direct tax rates and indirect tax rates. To make this arrangement more effective the author proposes unitary taxation. The term unitary taxation means a common minimum tax that can be imposed by all the countries. The author is telling that a minimum corporate tax should be agreed by all the countries. So if there is a minimum corporate tax say for example 25 percentage this will prevent the MNCs to shift their revenues and profits to the low tax jurisdictions that is to those countries which have low taxes. The author is telling that this idea is workable especially if the big countries like United States and European Union come forward to decide the tax based on this principle so that there would be less incentive for many of the MNCs who try and shift the reported profits to other countries. So if there is a uniform tax base then the MNCs cannot escape. The author is also telling that the Indian government has already proposed in a white paper that India could take such an initiative by itself especially for the digital companies. And next the author is also telling that the OECD BEPS initiative will be meeting on 19th of October to set out its own proposal on this issue. For the first time OECD is willing to consider the possibility of unity taxation. Here the term OECD stands for the organization for economic cooperation and development. And this initiative the OECD BEPS initiative is nothing but the OECD G20 inclusive framework on BEPS. Over 130 countries are collaborating under this particular framework. The aim is to put an end to tax avoidance strategies by the multinational companies which exploit the gaps and mismatches in the tax rules in order to avoid paying the tax. Know that India is not a member of OECD but it is a member of this inclusive framework on BEPS. So remember this. So we saw that unity taxation has been proposed by the author. But there are some concerns in this unity taxation according to the author. One problem which the author has mentioned is the arbitrary separation between the routine and residual profits as termed by OECD. And according to OECD proposal only the residual profits will be subject to unity taxation. And the author is telling that this has no economic justification at all that only residual profits will be subjected to unity taxation. Also the OECD proposal does not clearly specify the criteria for determining what is meant by routine profits. So we can see that there is no clarity on the definition of what is meant by routine and residual profits and also why OECD is favoring only residual profits which will be subjected to unity taxation. Another concern which the author has mentioned is about the formula to be used to distribute the taxable profits. The OECD suggests only sales revenues as a criterion. The author is telling that if only sales revenues are considered then the developing countries would suffer. Because if you see the developing countries are the producers of commodities and these commodities are consumed in the advanced economies. Now if only sales revenues are taken as a criteria then only the advanced economies or the developed economies will benefit but the developing countries will not benefit. So the author is suggesting that a combination of sales, users and employment should be considered or should be used to distribute the taxable profits. The author tells that the Indian government must look at this issue seriously and it should take a clear position at the OECD meeting because the outcome will be very important for India in order to raise its tax revenues. At present if you see India is facing economic slowdown and also declining tax revenues as we saw. So the author is telling that as a way forward India should make use of this crucial opportunity at the OECD meeting. So in this editorial we have seen that India is facing shortfall and tax revenues and the suggestions given by the author to raise the tax revenues. Now have a look at the practice question. Let us move on to the practice questions discussion session. See the first question the question is consider the following statements regarding HIV estimation report 2017 by the National AIDS Control Organization. They have given two statements and they have asked you to choose the correct answer. The first statement it tells that Uttar Pradesh as the highest number of people living with HIV. This statement is wrong during our discussion we saw that among the states and union territories of India as per this report Maharashtra as the highest estimated number of people living with HIV and this is followed by the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and together these eight states account for almost three-fourth of the total estimated people living with HIV in India. So the first statement is wrong here. Now see the second statement it tells that Mizoram as the highest estimated adult HIV prevalence. This statement is correct as per this report Mizoram has shown the highest estimated adult HIV prevalence which is 2.04 percentage and this is followed by the states of Manipur, Nagaland, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. This question has asked for the correct statement see correct answer is option B2 only. Now see the next question consider the following statements they have given four statements and they have asked you to choose the correct answer. The first statement it tells that Andaman and Nikoba group of islands are of coral origin. This statement is wrong during our discussion we saw that the Andaman and Nikoba islands are of tectonic origin. Now see the second statement it tells that Indonesia is geographically nearest to Andaman islands. This statement is also wrong because during our discussion we saw that Indonesia is geographically located near to the Nikoba group of islands and it is the country of Myanmar which is geographically located near to Andaman islands. Now see the third statement it tells that Shampen tribes reside in great Nikoba island. This statement is correct we saw this during our discussion we also saw that the Shampen tribes are PVTG tribes that is they belong to particularly vulnerable tribal group. Now see the fourth statement it tells that the pristine beaches of Nikoba islands are being polluted because of Indian origin plastic material. Now just by seeing this statement you may think it is wrong because during our discussion we saw that the pristine beaches of Nikoba islands are being polluted because of plastic materials of foreign origin but we also saw that 2.2 percentage of plastic is of Indian origin and this statement is a general statement which tells that the pristine beaches of Nikoba islands are being polluted because of Indian origin plastic material. There is a term or a superlative like only then the statement is wrong but since this is a generalized statement the statement is correct. So the first and second statements are wrong and the third and fourth statements are correct so the correct answer for this question is option C 3 and 4. Now see the next question the question is consider the following statements with reference to fast stack. They have given two statements and they have asked you to choose the correct answer. The first statement it tells that it is a part of national electronic toll collection program aimed at reducing congestion, travel time and promoting transparency at toll plazas on national highways. This statement is correct. Now see the second statement it tells that it is based on RFID technology. During our discussion we saw that this fast stack system is based on RFID technology to be specific passive RFID technology. So this statement is also correct. Now this question is asked you to choose the correct options. So the correct answer is option C both 1 and 2. Now see the main question the question is define base erosion profit shifting in short BEPS. Do you think that BEPS is a reason for poor tax revenue collections? Suggest suitable measures to tackle BEPS. So first you have to define what is meant by base erosion profit shifting. We saw during our discussion that it refers to the tax planning strategies that are used by the multinational companies such that they exploit the gaps and mismatches in the tax rules of countries in order to avoid paying the tax. So these multinational companies will shift their revenues and profits from the high tax imposing countries to the low tax imposing countries. So that they will avoid paying the tax. This is especially seen in the case of digital companies where they earn billions and billions of dollars but they do not pay tax in any of the nations. Now see the second part of the question. Do you think that BEPS is a reason for poor tax revenue collections? Yes it is a reason for poor tax revenue collections especially for developing nations like India. This also we saw during our discussion. Now the question is asking you to suggest suitable measures to tackle this BEPS that is base erosion profit shifting. We saw two strategy one was to ensure that the MNC pay their fair share of taxes when they are treated as one entity. So when they are treated as one entity they have to pay tax in that particular company. And the global profits of these MNCs can be calculated in a portion using certain formula based on the sales or employment or the users of the MNC. And the next strategy that we saw was the unitary taxation which is nothing but the common minimum tax that can be imposed by all the countries to a particular MNC. But then again we saw that certain concerns need to be addressed by OECD because during our discussion we saw that the OECD BEPS initiative is having a plan to introduce unitary taxation but there are some issues like the separation between the routine and residual profits and also the formula that has to be decided to distribute the tax profits etc. So finally you can conclude this answer by telling that BEPS is one of the reason for the poor tax revenue collections and the suggested measures will help developing economies or developing countries like India to increase their tax revenue collections. With this we come to the end of the discussion of all the news articles taken up for today's discussion and also the practice questions discussion session. Do like comment and share the video and do subscribe to Shankar IA's academy youtube channel for latest videos and updates. Stay focused and motivated friends. Thank you.


Hi, welcome back to the Curious Giraffe Show. Hi, I'm glad to be here. I'm glad you're here too. And look, we've brought back a lot of our friends. And I see George still has his mask on. Why does he still have his mask on? Because he's practicing how he needs to be out in the world. But here, with the other stuffed animals, he actually could take it off. Yes, I'm glad I can see my whole face and see your whole face. I do, I miss that too when I'm out in the world, but I know you're under there, just like we know George is under there. Yeah, I'm glad you're here George, with your mask too. Hi Tiger, I'm glad you're here too. Me too. What are we going to do today? Let's sing the Curious Giraffe Song and find out. Giraffe looked over at Dorothy and said, I'm curious what book and song she'll share with us today. Dorothy said, I can help, has lots to say, as we share under one big sky. Oh yeah, share one big sky, share one big sky. Give the world a big five-five. Yeah, we're different and we know it but we all get along because we can all share and we can all care. We're different but we all belong. We're different but we all belong. Yes, we do. And different just makes our world more interesting. I've always liked difference. I notice what's the same, but I notice what's different too, and it just makes life more interesting. So, today's story is called I Can Help and we've seen this author before. David Hyde Castello wrote this book and he wrote the book a few weeks ago about Little Pig and the band. So, here we go. The duck family is together. This one goes out by himself. Uh oh, I'm lost. So, monkey looks out from his spot on the tree and can see far away. Thank you, monkey. The duck mommy and brothers and sisters are so glad to see. I can help. Thank you, giraffe. Can't reach. I can help. How can that little gorilla on the ground help that tall giraffe reach higher? What's gonna happen? Look how strong he is. Thank you, gorilla. I have a splinter. Can help. Thank you, sunbird. I'm tired. I can help. Thank you, elephant. I'm hot and thirsty. I can help. Follow me. Thank you, duck. You're welcome. I'm lost again. We can help. Isn't that an amazing book? How the young animals keep helping each other and bringing them back to their grownups who take care of them. And at the end, they all know we can help each other. It's never just one who is not able to help. It's everybody has a way of helping. So, here's a song I wrote called Can I Help? Oh, and I made up these verses to go with this storybook. When I first wrote the song, I thought about helping around the house, how we can help in our families or help school or wherever we are. But this book gave us so many new ideas about how to help each other that I wrote some verses to go with David Costello's book. Oh, can I help? Can I help you? Yes, you can help. You can. You start to fall. You start to fall. Start to fall. Start to fall. You can like a friend. Can I help? You can help me yourself. Thanks for help. You can help. You can help me take my splinter out. You can help me take my splinter out. Help me take my splinter out. I sure like your help when you offer yourself. Thanks for help. So, his friend said, Can I help? Yes, you can help. You're singing along, everybody. So, I have another song about what could we all people do no matter they're rich or poor. It's cold or somewhere in between or somewhere in between. What are the things we all can do? So, the first thing I thought of is we all can sing. Another thing I thought of was dance. Because even if our legs don't work for some reason, we can make our hands dance or our arms or in our minds we can even dance. Share if we have a little or a lot. We can always share. Always. If there's even only one thing we can share by taking turns. So, we're going today we're going to sing this song and then the last verse we're going to sing we can help. Okay, so let's start with all people can sing. And now all people can sing Set their mighties all free And now all people can sing Release love's energy Now all people can sing They are you, yes no matter How to stand up together and sing Now all people can dance Release love's energy Now all people can share Release love's energy How to stand up together and share Release love's energy One more song that I did not write through the Children's Music Network Wonderful network of songwriters and teachers and families and librarians Just people who enjoy music Good quality music. And this is one of those songs that everybody should be singing. It's called We're Building a Better World I'm going to teach you the sign language for this one. Building a better world We're building a better world We're building a better world One person at a time Okay? We're building a better world We're building a better world We're building a better person Goes round and round and That was really an encouraging show. Thank you, Jeanette. What was encouraging about it? I like that word encouraged. Yes, it makes me feel like I have a part to do but I don't have to do all the parts because everyone will do their part and it made me feel good inside. That's a really nice idea, Jeanette. What did you think, Tiger? Thinking about how, how can I help? Sometimes I feel so little and I'm just not sure how I can help. Well, if you just stay with someone who's helping, maybe you can learn. Yeah, yeah.  You just make me feel better just being with you. Just being together helps? Yes, just being who you are is the help and as you live every day you will find ways that you can build a better world, a kinder world, a peaceful world and a friendly world. So let's all do that. We all have our part but we're out of time now so let's sing our goodbye song. Keep singing, keep looking up Keep asking questions and never give up Keep singing, keep looking up Keep asking questions and never give up Bye bye, bye bye. See you next time. They are free. Yes, no matter what our background now in every place that we're found we are naming the power to stand up together and sing.


Presendaka in the Itilema has continued to make pronouncements that he is going to govern and ensure that the rule of law prevails. He is going to govern under the principle of the rule of law and that he will make sure that the rule of law prevails. But unfortunately, slightly over 100 days of him being in office, it has turned out that actually under his leadership, it is the rule of gangsters that is prevailing. It so happened that I was a victim to that kind of behavior but you PND members, you PND officials and government officials remember that a few days ago, a week or so ago, I was Simon to the police and the unfortunate part thing is that a minister in the name of Mike Imposh led huligans, thans, to come to the police station to come and cause mayhem which is unprecedented. That is the rule of gangsters, people who don't even fear the police. With impunity, he came and caused the mayhem that is in public domain. A few days ago, we had the UPND thans go to stonging Zambesi Portland on the Kopa Bear demanding that they want to inspect all their warehouses and storage facilities without any regard to the law and what is even more perplexing is that a government official in the name of a district commission was in the forefront reading these huligans to break locks, open forcefully all the storage facilities for Zambesi Portland without any court order or indeed any warrant. This can only but speak to the fact that now we are under the law or the rule of gangsters who expected the president to speak to those issues but the very loud silence from the president and from government officials, from the police is highly, highly warrant. Beyond that, we are aware that now the media has become the second target. The Ministry of Information has begun to sign on media houses to intimidate media houses that seem to be covering the opposition and wanting to cohesst them or indeed to begin to give them a script according to UPND on how the opposition should be engaged by the media. That is very unfortunate and it should not be condoned. Beyond that, we are aware that there are cases that the police have been vigorously pushed to investigate and pursue one, the case of the death of Mappenzi and the other one is the death of Vespa. As far as we are concerned as patriotic friends any life lost regardless of the circumstances even if there is a perception for example that the Mappenzi and Vespa were UPND sympathizers we demand that justice prevails because there is no life that is worth losing just because of politics or any other consideration. But we would love that the same way the UPND government are insisting that the police should investigate matters and cases that were committed in time past they must also begin to investigate and pursue matters and cases and offenses that are being committed now. What is of great concern is also the double standard whereas in relation to Vespa, in relation to Mappenzi there is a push that justice prevails. When it comes to Mr. Kungo who died in Suwesi information through the binocracy that is reaching us suggests that there is interference in wanting to have justice aborted. One of the prime suspects I mean one of the prime witnesses apparently is reported or alleged to be here in Uusaka moved from Suwesi by one of a non-security personnel of UPND of the UPND path a gentleman that is popularly known as Muwhai who as it we speak now is being accommodated at Paramount Motel and the young lady who took a video that actually helps to identify the perpetrators of that heinous act that led to the death of Mr. Kungo equally is alleged or reported to also be in Uusaka and also accommodated at Paramount Motel. Our fear is that possibly the Hatembo saga is going to repeat itself where the cause of justice is aborted through the process of abduction, compromising witnesses. We want to call upon the police the command in northwestern province plus the command here in Nusaka to investigate these matters and ensure that those who are to aid and help the police and later on the court to bring to book those who are responsible for those deaths must not be interfered with or indeed end up disappearing in the air. May they protect their witnesses? May they look into these matters? We have some names of members of parliament that are involved in this host come but we want to make sure that the facts that were presented are such that none of them can deny their involvement. So in the next day or so we should be able to give more details but I can confirm that these two individuals the security person who transported the other witness they are at Paramount Motel as we speak today. So I thought we could just speak to the fact that President Haka in there must on up to his word at least for the first time letting for few this promise of who allowing that this country is governed by the rule of law not the rule of gangsters. That's why we are having the likes of Uriambanda with impunity begin to warn and threaten people that are planning to join in the campaigns of patriotic front in Kawata. What kind of behavior is that? If Mr. Kaido serious about the rule of law these are characters that should have already been caged by now if you're serious but you notice that every time a UPND member or members do something that is unlawful there is a deafening silence on the part of the president on the part of the party and on the part of the government. Are you telling me that Mr. Kaido hasn't listened to what Uriambanda is saying? Are you telling me Mr. Kaido hasn't witnessed or seen what has happened at Zamebzu Portland? Are you telling me that he didn't see what happened at Chestnut Police? And at Chestnut Police he had his minister in the forefront and his own deput IG Mr. Sendenge was also at Chestnut Police. So what kind of governance of the country is this? Apart from the fact that it is a rule of gunstance. Thank you very much and God bless.


Now, Roma Wines, R-O-M-A, made in California for enjoyment throughout the world. Roma Wines, present. Suspense. Tonight, Roma Wines bring you the David O. Selsnick star, Mr. Joseph Cotton, in Crime Without Passion, by Ben Heck. A suspense play produced, edited and directed for Roma Wines by Williams Spear. Suspense. This radio's outstanding theater of thrills is presented for your enjoyment by Roma Wines. That's R-O-M-A, Roma Wines. Those excellent California wines that can add so much pleasantness to the way you live. To your happiness and entertaining guests. To your enjoyment of everyday meals. Yes, right now a glass full would be very pleasant, as Roma Wines bring you Joseph Cotton in a remarkable tale of... Suspense. She had phoned me to come over to her apartment. She wanted to show down. Well, I wanted to show down, too, and so I went over to her apartment. And after all the time I've given you, well, everybody thinks we're engaged to be married. Now you're time to give me the go-by just like that. The girls in this show, what a laugh they'll hand me. Who do you think you are, anyway? Now, now, come and watch a temper. To think.  Earl Wilson and Winschel and just everybody won't think of me the rat in their column. The rest of the bunch around the El Bravo. Well, when they get through with me, I'll probably lose my lead in the Verda Paradise. The nerve! Feeding me as if I was a nobody! Why do you get like that, taking up a girl's time? She was the dancer at the El Bravo Club. She was number one on the line in the Verda Paradise number in the floor show. That was where I first noticed her. I looked at her now with complete detachment.  How could I have ever considered it charming or desirable? Probably for you. More likely it's Eddie White calling you that dean of collegiate hero. Oh, yeah? For me, by any mischance, just say I'm not here. Hello? Hello? No, he's not here. I don't know where he is. He's not here.  Always making me lie for you. And that's for that crack about Eddie White. You don't fool me, not for a minute. In that smug way. You know, very well I haven't been seeing Eddie White. You're just using that for an excuse, aren't you? Well, I... Well, I don't, aren't you? You know all the answers. Sure, I know the answer to that. You're just saying that because you're trying to get rid of me, trying to put me on the escalator. That's what. Have it your own way. Have it your own way. Why you... Now, cut that out.  You can get away with this. I'll show you. Hey, look out. Your photograph in a swell, expensive frame. I'll show you what I think of that too. Oh, no, no, not my derby. Your derby? Why, I'll smash your face. Now, stay away from me now. Don't come near me. No, that hurts. I need to have it out. Nixon, how...  I love you.  Don't you strike me. Don't you... Suddenly aware of a large brass candlestick in my hand and on the floor lay calm and brown. I leaned over her. Her skull cracked and blood was running from it. Her eyes were closed. I listened. No heartbeat. I was suddenly overwhelmed with the thought that I had committed a murder. I don't think there's a lawyer in New York with more thorough experience in the handling of criminal cases. No. I knew all the angles. I knew the pitfalls of the defense in such a case as this. I knew the psychology of the prosecution. I had unexpectedly and inadvertently been cast in the role of a criminal. Through my mind rushed all the prejudices and difficulties of such a case. And in less than a minute, I had put myself on trial on a plea of self-defense, reviewed the evidence, and found myself guilty. It's a curious thing. No doubt the public at large, the layman, would expect that some unpublicized and secret professional legal maneuver would be used by the great Lou Hendricks in the present predicament. It would seem to the reader of crime fiction and the listener to radio mystery drama that some less hackneyed word than alibi would be the key word to my puzzle. I am sorry, ladies and gentlemen. I should dearly love to shake some diabolically ingenious trick out of my loyal sleeve. But that would be a waste of time. And alibi was what I needed. I needed to establish simply and conclusively that I was not there at the time of Carmen Brown's murder. Time was the important element. Yes. I must begin at once to establish that alibi. For Suspense, Roma Wines are bringing you Joseph Cotton in Crime Without Passion by Ben Hect. Roma Wines' presentation tonight in Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills, Suspense. Between the acts of suspense, this is Truman Bradley for Roma Wine. For Suspense, Roma Wines are bringing you Joseph Cotton in Crime Without Passion by Ben Hect. Roma Wines' presentation tonight in Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills, Suspense. Between the acts of suspense, this is Truman Bradley for Roma Wines. Do you know the principal difference between American and European hospitality? Well, here's how famed Elsa Maxwell authority on entertaining sees it. Says Miss Maxwell, American hospitality is distinguished by its informality. Good friends in America don't need an invitation. They just drop in and take part luck. That's why millions of American families always keep Roma California sherry on hand. Roma sherry is ideal for entertaining. A delicious wine, mellow, fragrant and medium sweet with tempting nut-like taste. Glorious Roma sherry is so easy to serve, so good with a simple snack any time of day. And Roma sherry is popular with men and women alike, preferred by millions as the perfect first call for dinner. Yes, you can serve Roma sherry proudly, for Roma wine is America's first choice. Yet, Roma costs no more than ordinary wines. So, for better, easier entertaining, get Roma sherry tomorrow. That's R-O-M-A, Roma Wines. Remember, more Americans enjoy Roma than any other wine. And now, Roma Wines bring back to our Hollywood soundstage Joseph Cotton, who as New York's famous criminal lawyer Lou Hendricks in Crime Without Passion, resumes a narrative well-calculated to keep you in... suspend. I leaned over and glanced at the watch on Carmen's wrist. The dialed glass was broken. The watch had stopped. The hands pointed to two minutes of four. The clock on the desk had just struck four. The telephone. I let it rain. Had to. Of course, the phone made it impossible to call about by setting the time forward. The phone calls might come in before five o'clock. Someone, perhaps a maid, might even come to the apartment in person. Through my mind rushed the courtroom scene, in which my case would be tried. The prosecuting attorney wouldn't miss that. At 3.50, Carmen Brown was alive, as witness the fact that she answered a phone call, which came through the switchboard to her apartment at that time. At two minutes after four, just 12 minutes later, a phone call came through that same switchboard which she failed to answer. Why, gentlemen of the jury? No. What I needed was an alibi for the hour preceding four o'clock. The time at which her watch had stopped. I must provide not only an alibi for myself, but also fortify it with evidence, tending to prove that someone other than myself had done the deed. But how? Fingerprints? They told a graphic story. A story that would reveal that Carmen had been in a rage demanding something of the killer. This would point directly to me, since I was known to have been her admirer and steady caller at her apartment. But if I could make it appear as though the assailant was demanding something of her, he was in a jealous rage, had smashed the articles, including the frame-framed photograph of Lou Hendricks, and it's concluded with the killing of Carmen. I wiped the fingerprints carefully from the articles in question with my sole cankerchief. Again, I imagined myself on trial in the courtroom. This time with my defense counsel addressing the jury. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, Carmen Brown had undoubtedly been attacked by some other shooter who was obviously jealous of the defendant, Lou Hendricks. As witness, the destroyed photograph of the latter. You will also note her assailant was crafty enough to remove all fingerprints. So far it was good. I had set the scene. I was ready to leave the apartment, but wait, I just remembered. A gun was in Carmen's desk only a few freaks from where she now lay. They would wonder why she hadn't defended herself with it. The prosecuting attorney wouldn't miss that. Oh, no, he had pointed an accusing finger at me. And yet Carmen Brown did not reach for this weapon with which he could have defended herself. Why? Was it because the assailant was someone familiar with her? Someone against whom she had no thought of harming herself? Or perhaps because the assailant was familiar with the premises and knew where the gun was and prevented her from reaching it? I took the gun and slipped it into my coat pocket. I would dispose of it later. I took every precaution to make sure that no one saw me as I left the building. My trained legal mind warned me against a surprise witness which in so many court cases was dramatically brought forth by the prosecutor to confound the guilty. I remembered grimly how some of my best cases had tumbled by the appearance and court of some aimless stray human, someone who happened to have seen the defendant during his presupposed alibi. The prosecutor would have a gleam in his eye questioning such a witness in the courtroom. And you say you saw the defendant, Lou Hendricks, leaving the apartment building shortly after the time of the murder? This must not happen. I had my plan pretty well in mind by now. I took a back shortcut to Broadway. The Palace Theater was an off-ar that was not a long line waiting. I bought my ticket and went quickly. Without waiting, seats in the third aisle to your right, please. The moment I was seated, I got up again. I returned to the lobby, up the other side of the aisle and went directly to the lost and found desk. Is there something I can do for you, sir? I wish to report the loss of a pair of gloves. Do you have any idea where they were lost? Somewhere in the theater, I had them when I came in. I'm not usually so careless, but the picture was so engrossing I was completely carried away with it. Well, apparently I failed to carry away my gloves. Gloves? I imagine they'll be turned in, sir? Oh, I'm sure they'll be found. You'll just make a record of it. Lou Hendricks is the name with an X. Hendricks, huh? H-E-N-D-R-I-X, huh? That's an unusual spelling. Well, family name. Well, all right, sir, Mr. Hendricks. If you'll just fill out this blank with your name and address, and the time. Oh, yes, yes, to be sure, the time. Let's see, what is the time? It's exactly 20 minutes after four. I'll record that on the blank for you. After four? Could it be that way? I haven't had no idea of the time. Quite a long picture. Yes, the picture was a little longer than most. I hope you enjoyed it, sir. Yes, indeed, I enjoyed it very much. It was well worth sitting through. Well, thank you very much. I had established an alibi for having spent the time between 2.30 and 4.20 in the movie theater. This was a period of two hours, and this was now recorded in black and white at the Lawson Found desk. I'd taken care that this should be a movie that I had already seen, so I'd be able to recite the plot of question. The main body of my alibi had been achieved. I now went directly from the movie to my next court of call, Saudi's restaurant, where I'm well-known. How are you, Mr. Hendricks? Your usual salesman? Yes, Henry. Is he in the headline? No, no, I just came from a movie. Oh, by the way, what is the exact time? I've got to make a telephone call. It's just 4.30, Mr. Hendricks. 4.30? I think I'll make my telephone call while you make me a chicken sandwich. Okay, the booth is just there, you know. Mr. Healy, please. This is Mr. Hendricks. Oh, certainly, Mr. Hendricks. One moment. Hello, Tom. This is Hendricks. I've been trying to locate you all afternoon. Oh, what for? Several things came up that needed your attention. It's not so hard to locate, but I had to try. I tried everywhere I could think of, even common bounds apart. Yeah? Did you talk to her? Sure. I was trying to find out if she knew where you were. What time was that? Oh, about 3.50. How did she seem when you asked if I were there? Well, I don't know. Why? Well, try and think. I'd like to know. Well, you're upset about something. Upset, eh? Listen, I don't want you to call me at that number anymore. Understand? I'm all washed up at that telephone number. Understand what I mean? In the future, that number is out. Is there any other cause? No. Okay. Again, my mind reverted to the courtroom scene, in which I imagined my case being tried. But this time, I had my case well in hand. The thought of facing the prosecuting attorney did not disturb me. The thought of that little bout between the two attorneys even amused me. So, Mr. Hendricks told you that you needn't try to reach him at Miss Brown's apartment anymore, eh? Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, when the defendant made this statement to his trusted friend and law partner, he had undoubtedly good reason to believe there was another man in Carmen Brown's life. I had forged another link in the chain of evidence pointing to my innocence. Everything was working out in favor of a perfect alibi for my defense. Everything was going fine. I was beginning to enjoy the case very much. Now that the tension was relieved, I began to look upon my case as a sort of a game. I began to get a kick out of it, and I conceived the idea of building up another witness. Eddie White was the only one of Carmen's previous and more as whom I knew, and I considered for a moment involving him in the case. He was Carmen's previous suitor just before I entered the picture. He was known to be a hot-headed young gentleman given to nocturnal fisticuffs in public places, but I finally dismissed this idea. This witness I decided would be Miss Moore, who was also a dancer at the El Bravo Club. She was Carmen's closest friend and confidant. I telephoned Miss Moore and requested her to join me at the restaurant. She came right over. You see before you, Miss Moore, a man suffering from the perfidy of one whom he has loved and trusted. Would you mind saying that again in plain English? Well, to put it more simply, I think Carmen has been too timing me. Miss Moore, I'm consumed with jealousy. I must know the truth, and you're the only one who can tell me. I don't get you, Mr. Henry. Miss Moore, I'm going out of my mind with a brooding and uncertainty of this thing. Oh, that's terrible, Mr. Henry. My law practice is suffering. I'll wind up by losing all my money. Oh, you mustn't do that, Mr. Henry. You know something? No. What is it? Oh, honest, Mr. Henry, I wouldn't tell this to another soul. You know Carmen's my best girlfriend, but you're such a swell guy. Well, I think you should know. Well, to tell you the truth, I don't think Carmen appreciates you. That's what... Miss Moore, if there is another man someone Carmen really loves, I'd force myself to step aside. It's her happiness. Well, I ain't saying she has. I just say Carmen has got an awful swell head since she got the lead in the Bird of Paradise number. She thinks she's some pumpkin. And I'm only saying I don't think she appreciates a high-class gentleman like you. Thank you, Miss Moore. Have you seen Carmen today? No, I haven't. Have you seen? I don't trust myself to fear. Goodness knows what I would do feeling this way.  And I don't blame you. Say, I have to leave you. I hate to leave, but I gotta go. It's getting late. And the dinner show goes on before long enough. Tell Carmen I'll be over to the El Bravo tonight and give her a last chance to prove herself. Oh, I'll sure give her your message, Mr. Hendricks. I sure will. I knew Carmen had not been receiving attention from another man, but if I could get Miss Moore to testify in court, I could use her to convince the jury that I was jealous of Carmen, but that I loved her and wanted her alive, not dead. This would make my case airtight. I then made another telephone call. This was the Carmen's apartment. Hello, is Miss Carmen Brown in? I'll ring her apartment. Well, this is Mr. Hendricks calling. Haven't you been in at all? I've been trying to get her all day. She hasn't come in while I've been here, Mr. Hendricks. How long is that? About three hours. Thank you. I'm coming over there. Tell her if she comes in, will you? This would strengthen my apparent effort to contact Carmen. It was a bold stroke, this, to go back to her house. I approached the switchboard operator. Good afternoon, Mr. Hendricks. Has Miss Brown come in since I called on the phone? I haven't seen her. I'll ring her apartment again. She still doesn't answer. Well, please give her this note when she comes back. All right, Mr. Hendricks. I'll see that she gets it. I handed her the note. It read, Don't torture me anymore. Give me a chance to believe you. I'm willing to forget what I heard or thought I heard over the phone as ever, Lou. This, too, would throw suspicion on another suitor. Not only had I established an alibi for myself, but also I had succeeded in pointing a finger at the suspected rival. I saw myself looking winningly at the jury while my defense counsel continued to address them. The gentlemen of the jury. If the defendant, Lou Hendricks, had known Carmen Brown when he did in her apartment, would he have written such a note? The testimony reveals, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, that the defendant strongly suspected that Carmen Brown was receiving attention from a suitor. But, but he did not know that this very afternoon this creature had entered her apartment and stuck her down and killed it. While the defendant was still trying to seek her out and forgive her. My alibi was now complete. I had every angle worked out. I summed up my case. It was perfect. From my superior legal knowledge, my vast experience, I had built a perfect case for myself. I was very pleased. My case was ready. I had an excellent dinner. Really excellent. I then put in another phone call to Carmen's apartment. I was ready to hear the news of the finding of the body. At the news of the crime, I would rush right over and act my part of the thoroughly breached spritzen suitor. This would be the finishing touch, or final flourish if it were. Miss Brown does not answer. Crime had evidently still not been discovered. I decided the best course would be to go to the El Bravo Club. I was well known there. I would order coffee and dessert and wait there until Carmen's absence was noticed. Good evening, Miss Hendricks. Good evening, George. Hello there. How are you? Hello, Lenore. Hi, Kay. Hello. Come on, come on. Can't you think of anything? Come on, honey. Let's go home. I'm not here to hear this. Oh, the famous criminal lawyer, Lou Hendricks. Our ex-college hero, Eddie White. Product of the higher education. Looking him over, I see. Yeah, why have I sat here? I don't entertain this table. I have no monopoly on it. Then I'll sit down. By the way, Hendricks, I didn't know you were such a movie fan. Just what do you mean? Saw you going into the Palace Theater this afternoon. You did. Just what time was that? What time? Ooh, a little after four, I should say. You're crazy. You think you saw me going to the Palace after four? Well, I came out at 4.20 after seeing the whole show. I don't care what you say. I saw you going in at a quarter after four, to be exact. I was going to say hello, but you weren't looking my way. How'd you like the picture? Or to be in your line, all about one of those crooked legal sharks? And you say you saw the defendant, Lou Hendricks, going into the Theater at a quarter after four? Yes, sir, I did. The surprise witness that I had been so carefully guarding against. Jerry was sitting opposite me, and the person of all people, Eddie White. In a flash, I could see all the evidence I had planted turning against me. The prosecution would take it apart piece by piece. The all too obvious false mechanism of my alibi. There wasn't an alibi. I had no case. Eddie White, simple statement of the time, 4.15, revealed all of my subsequent actions as those of a thoroughly guilty man. Look, White, it must have been somebody else you saw. Listen, don't tell me I saw you looking around buying your ticket and ducking in. I know it was a quarter after four because I had a date outside. And don't get excited it wasn't with Kong. That's a lie. What's that? I said you're lying. You didn't see me. Oh, that's what you said. Is it, listen, I never liked you and I don't take that kind of talk of a guy I got no use for. Get that!   A perennial drop-kicker. Once a drop-kicker always a drop-kicker.  Let me go. The guy hands off me a thing. You're calling me a liar?  Somehow, I don't know how or when I had taken the gun out of my pocket. Carmen's gun. The gun I was going to dispose of. I was holding it in my hand and it exploded. No one heard the shot through the Blair of the Orchestra. A new number of the floor show was starting. Everyone's attention was focused on the dance floor. The chorus girls were coming out for the bird of paradise number. Everything was a little blurred, a little hazy. I looked at the girls as they came forward. Leading the chorus, I saw... I saw Carmen Brown. She was dancing. This... this could not be. I... I grew sick. I shot my eyes. And I opened them again. There was no hallucination. It was Carmen. Under her ear at the back of her head, I saw strips of court plaster. Now I knew then what had happened. I left her apartment without taking a second look at her. The blow had merely knocked her out. She must have regained consciousness and called for a doctor. It was as simple as that. She was alive now. And dancing. The shining legal intelligence. I had built a perfect alibi to exonerate myself of a murder which had never occurred. While across the table slumped in a chair opposite me was the body of a man for whose murder I had no defense. Every step of my carefully built alibi, a terrific case would help to convict me of the killing of Betty White. This time I had no alibi. This time there was no possible defense. This time when the judge asked the foreman if they'd reached a decision, there could be only one reply. Yes, Your Honor, we have. We find the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree. Suspense. Presented by Roma Wines, R-O-M-A. Made in California for enjoyment throughout the world. Before we hear again from Joseph Cotton, the star of Crime Without Passion, tonight's suspense play, this is Truman Bradley for Roma Wines. One of the finest cooks I know recently told me her secret for winning praises. She said she cooks no better than her friends, uses about the same recipes. But her dinners win more compliments, actually taste better, because she regularly serves Roma wine with meals. Yes, Roma wine does make food taste better. For proof, tomorrow night, savor the tempting taste harmony of red Roma California Burgundy and the good thick hamburger steak or spaghetti heat with a spicy meat sauce. Or if you prefer, try Roma Burgundy with Friday's traditional fish dinner. You'll discover Roma Burgundy adds tantalizing new flavor fullness to every meal. Let red, robust Roma Burgundy win compliments for your meals. Get delicious Roma Burgundy tomorrow. Remember, Roma wine is America's first choice. Yet, Roma costs no more than ordinary wines. So insist on Roma, R-O-M-A. Roma Wines. Made in California for enjoyment throughout the world. This is Joseph Cotton. I've always been particularly fond of crime without passion and it's been a great pleasure indeed to appear in it tonight for you on Suspense. Next Thursday, I know you'll want to hear a very young actor whom we've all admired for a very great number of years. It's Jackie Cooper grown up in just out of Uncle Sam's Navy. He'll appear on Suspense in a role quite different from anything you've ever associated with him. Joseph Cotton will soon be seen in the David O. Selznick Technicolor production, Duel in the Sun.  Radio's outstanding theater of thrill. Produced by William Spear for the Roma Wine Company of Fresno, California. Suspense is broadcast from coast to coast and to our men and women with the armed forces overseas by short waves and through the worldwide facilities and armed forces radio service. This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.


As our communities continue to return to school, work, and regular activities, we're relying more on COVID-19 testing to help us keep risk at minimal levels. There are now three different types of COVID-19 tests readily available, including rapid antigen tests, PCR tests, and antibody tests. Rapid antigen tests are an option for people experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, such as a cough or fever. A rapid antigen test uses a swab of the nose or throat to collect a mucus sample. The sample is tested on the spot to rapidly determine the presence of specific proteins that appear in individuals who are at the peak of infection when COVID-19 presence in their body is the highest. Test results are usually available in a few minutes. However, it's important to know rapid test results can produce false negatives in people without COVID-19 symptoms. If your rapid antigen test results are positive, you most likely have an active case of COVID-19. You should stay home and follow CDC guidelines to reduce the potential spread of illness. Contact your primary care physician for treatment instructions. If your rapid antigen test results are negative, you either do not have COVID-19 or you do have COVID-19 but were tested at a time when the virus was not at its peak within your body. You should continue to practice social distancing, wearing masks and good hand hygiene. Remember, it's still possible to spread the virus even if you don't have symptoms. If symptoms worsen, contact your primary care physician as you may need to be retested with a PCR test. A PCR test uses a swab of the nose or throat to see if someone has an active COVID-19 infection. Rapid PCR tests also exist. However, there is limited availability and they are typically used by hospitals in emergent situations. PCR tests can be performed on people with or without symptoms. PCR tests are typically sent to a lab and results can take a few days. PCR tests are the most accurate tests available to determine the presence of an active COVID-19 virus in people with and without symptoms. You should get a PCR test if you have COVID-19 symptoms. You could also get a PCR test if you're recovering from COVID-19 and would like to confirm your status or if you're required to receive a COVID-19 test prior to a hospital stay. PCR tests are also the best option for people without symptoms who would like to confirm their status after traveling out of state. If your PCR test results are positive, you most likely have an active case of COVID-19. You should stay home and follow CDC guidelines to reduce the potential spread of illness. Contact your primary care physician for treatment instructions. If your PCR test results are negative, you most likely do not have an active case of COVID-19. You should still continue to practice healthy habits. If you have symptoms, contact your doctor if they get worse. If symptoms worsen, it's possible you may need to be retested. An antibody test is a blood test that can detect if you were previously infected with COVID-19. The presence of specific antibodies suggests that you may have been exposed and your body developed the blood proteins needed to fight the infection. Antibody tests are usually sent out to a lab for processing and results are available within a few days. An antibody test may be right for you if you want to know if you've had COVID-19 in the past or if your doctor has directed you to get an antibody test. Antibody testing can identify which recovering COVID-19 patients can be candidates for convalescent plasma therapy. An antibody test and a PCR test can often be performed in the same visit. If your antibody blood test results are positive, you most likely have had COVID-19 at some point in the past. You should continue to practice social distancing, wearing masks and good hand hygiene. A positive antibody test result does not mean you are 100% immune to COVID-19 and it is possible to become reinfected in the future. If your antibody test results are negative, you most likely have never had COVID-19. You could still get COVID-19 and should continue to take steps to protect yourself and others.