10 Most Rarest and Expensive Coins in the World

Coin collecting is a hobby to many people; while some engage in collecting coins that are beautiful and others collect them depending on their historical significance. Old and rarity of the coin hold more importance than the printed value on it. This may lead a curious person to ask, what are the most expensive coins in the world?

We have come up with 10 such expensive coins in the world, as listed out by Bornrich -

1. Flowing Hair Dollar

Price: $7.85 Million

Flowing Hair Dollar is the top most expensive coin in the world which was sold for $7,850,000. Its size and weight were based on Spanish dollar, which was popular in American trade then.

This master piece was designed in 1794 and again in 1795 by Robert Scot and it valued 2 cents according to United States Dollar then. Steven L. Contursi, President of Rare Coin Wholesalers said that this coin was a “National Treasure” and that he was proud to have been its "custodian" since 2003.

2. 1933 Double Eagle

Price: $7.59 Million

The U.S. Gold Double Eagle Coin is the second most expensive coin which was minted in 1933. Reports say that 445,500 Double Eagle coins had been minted but none of them were released officially for circulation due to the discontinuance of the domestic gold standard in 1933.

Marc Pachter of the National Museum of American History said that “The U.S. Gold Double Eagle Coin proved to be the symbol of struggle in Global Economy”, as quoted by Bronrich. The coin got sold for $7.59 million in an auction.

3. Rare Edward III

Price: $6.80 Million

The Edward III double florin is claimed to be the 3rd most expensive coin in the world. Its inscription consisted of a king seated holding the globe and scepter, with two leopards beside him and a canopy overhead which clearly showed Edward III, the king of England. It was auctioned for £460,000 (approx: $6.80 million) at the Spink auction house. The coin was in circulation from 1343 to 1344, as this was considered overvalued, because its face value was more than the value of gold.

4.1804 Silver Dollar

Price: $4.14 Million

This 1804 Silver Dollar is the rarest American Dollar and is regarded to be the 4^th most expensive coin in the world. This coin was displayed as part of the King of Siam’s collection, where it was named as “The King of Coins”. In 2001, this expensive coin was purchased by a coin collector. The anonymous collector also brought all the coins that existed at the time of King of Siam for $4.14 million.

5. Queen Elizabeth II

Price: $4 Million

Queen Elizabeth II is the world’s largest Gold coin weighing about 100 kilos and is 53 centimeters in diameter, with the purity rate of 99.999 percent (purest Gold according to market). The coin has the face value of $1 million dollars which is lesser than the actual value of the coin’s materials. The inscription on this coin consists of maple leaves and Queen Elizabeth II. At the back of this coin is the American national symbol.

6. 1804 Class I Silver Dollar from Queller's Collection

Sold for: $3,737,500

This coin comes under 1804 Silver Dollar collections from King of Siam that is mentioned earlier. Only 15 of this silver dollar were minted in 1834. Records show that due to its rarity that that due to its nature of rarity, some of the coins had been sold for high dollar figures. Anyhow, the coin was sold for $3,737,500 in 2010, which has been claimed as one of the world's most expensive coins.

7. 1913 Liberty Head Nickel

Price: $3,700,000

The 1913 Liberty Head nickel is an American five-cent piece which was produced in extremely limited quantities unauthorized by the United States Mint, making it one of the best-known and most coveted rarities in American numismatics. In 1972, one specimen of the five cent coin became the first coin to command a price of $100,000; in 1996, another specimen became the first to break the million dollar barrier. It is also rumored that if one were to be found in perfect condition, it could be worth over $20,000,000. In 2003 one coin was sold for almost $3 million. In 2010, the Olsen piece sold for $3.7 million at a public auction. Only five examples are known to exist: two in museums and three in private collections.

8. Brasher Doubloon EB on Breast

Price: $2,990,000

Brasher Doubloon EB on Breast claims to be the 8^th most expensive coin in the world. This golden coin was minted in 1787. Ephraim Brasher a goldsmith and a silversmith was offered to make the gold coins, with unique specimen bearing his hallmark EB on the eagle's breast is certainly among the most desirable American coins. The coin was sold in 1981 for $625,000 at a public auction, and finally got sold for $2,990,000.

9. Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle

Price: $2,990,000

Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle was named after its designer and sculpture Augustus Saint-Gaudens. This American coin is one of the most expensive coins in the world. The Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle was first issued in 1850.

The value of this coin was 20 dollars and it was minted from 1907–1933 made of 90 percent gold. The inscription consists of, Liberty holding torch and olive branch, at this back it consists of rays of sun. This coin was sold at $2,990,000 U.S. Dollars.

10. Brasher Doubloon EB on Wing

Price: $2,415,000

Brasher Doubloon EB on Wing was also minted in 1787 like Brasher Doubloon EB on Breast. The sign “EB” is printed on the breast of the latter whereas in the former one, the sign was printed on eagle’s wing.

Apart from this list of coins, there are a number of other coins known for their exceptional high value like - Earliest Saudi gold dinar from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Pedro I coronation coin and Most Expensive Australian “Holey Dollar”.

World's Fastest Internet at 40 Gbps?

Researchers at the University of Southampton have developed a hollow-core fibre optic cable that has transmitted wavelength division, multiplexed data at 99.7 percent the speed of light in vacuum.

They claim to have increased the speed at which data can be transmitted over fibre optic cables, a link that forms the backbone of the internet.

If faster light can travel through a fibre, the potential latency of data transmission is lower. To compare, the solid silica glass fibre optic cables that are used today propagate light at some 69 percent the speed of light in a vacuum.

The trouble that is found with hollow-core fibers to transmit data is that these cables have struggled to keep up the combination of low loss, wide bandwidth and mode-coupling characteristics that is required for high capacity data transmission.

The researchers have claimed to achieve a required balance of these factors, with a recorded loss of 3.5dB per km, and using a 160nm bandwidth channel to transmit 37 WDM (wavelength division multiplexing) channels at 40Gbps which according to them is 1.54 microseconds/km faster than over conventional fibre.

Besides general benefit in faster transmission, wide bandwidth, low latency signal transmission links are in demand to increase the rate at which algorithmic financial trading can take place and as fast interconnects between components inside future exaflop-scale supercomputers.

1,800 Children Die Daily From Unsafe Water: Unicef

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has said that almost 90 percent of death of children from diarrhoeal diseases are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation, or inadequate hygiene.

Globally, an estimated 2,000 children under the age of five die every day from diarrhoeal diseases and of these some 1,800 deaths are linked to water, sanitation and hygiene, the UN agency said as the international community marked World Water Day, which falls Friday this year, reported Xinhua.

"Sometimes we focus so much on the big numbers, that we fail to see the human tragedies that underlie each statistic," says Sanjay Wijesekera, global head of UNICEF's water, sanitation and hygiene program.

"If 90 school buses filled with kindergartners were to crash every day, with no survivors, the world would take notice," Wijesekera said. "But this is precisely what happens every single day because of poor water, sanitation and hygiene."

World Water Day has been observed March 22 since 1993 when the United Nations General Assembly declared the date as World Day for Water.

Almost 90 percent of child deaths from diarrhoeal diseases are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation, or inadequate hygiene.

Despite a burgeoning global population, these deaths have come down significantly over the last decade, from 1.2 million per year in 2000 to about 760,000 a year in 2011.

Improvements in water and sanitation would greatly contribute to a reduction in child mortality in these counties, UNICEF said.

Progress made since 1990 shows that with the political will, with investment, with a focus on equity and on reaching the hardest to reach, every child should be able to get access to improved drinking water and sanitation, perhaps within a generation, said Wijesekera.

IIM Grads Who Trashed Placements For A Startup Life

Many MBA graduates today skip their placements and start their own companies. Even graduates from the most sought after institutions in the country are doing the same. IIM graduates who pay lakhs for their graduate degrees are passing out of the institution to start their own ventures instead of taking a comfortable job with good pay. These IIM graduates decided that entrepreneurial ventures are the right way to go even though it means facing a lot of hurdles and challenges.

These 5 IIM graduates felt that they had to break out of the routine and to execute the plan they have been dreaming of for quite some time according to a compilation by ET.

#1 Gaurav Midha

Gaurav Midha an alumnus of IIM Lucknow along with his two batch mates, started a data analytics firm, Beyond Numbers, freshly within months of joining campus. His co-founders took up job offers during placements at the end of the their post graduate course in IIM Lucknow but this entrepreneur went ahead with Beyond numbers and decided to keep his dream alive. "Data analytics is still a relatively new concept in India but it's been growing at 20%-25%. I want a share of that pie," he says.

#2 Venkat R

Venkat is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad. Conceived as a social media platform to get photographers to discuss and share their photographs, Focaloid was launched on 19th August – incidentally World Photography Day - by a group of photography enthusiasts when they figured out that there was no place for them to discuss with their fellow aficionados from around the world. The website has caught the eye of photographers across the world given the 200,000 page visits they have clocked up within 4 months of their launch and the average visit length of 12 minutes where the users gaze at their ‘Photoboard.’

Recently incubated through the iAccelarator program in CIIE – IIM Ahmedabad, Focaloid was also selected to the Microsoft BizSpark plus program, which identifies the top start-ups in the technology domain.

Given that Focaloid has not just caught the eye of the shutterbug community but also the business world, Focaloid could be the next big thing in the fast evolving world of e-business tomorrow. Venkat has received a seed fund of Rs 5 lakh from the CIIE and has raised another Rs 4 lakh along with two other friends who have just quit regular jobs.

#3 Niranjan KM

Niranjan KM of IIM Indore has come up with a brilliant idea to sell sanitary napkins in rural areas. He previously wanted to be a candy maker or a mineral water producer but somewhere along the way he realized that the there is tremendous room for growth in the rural areas for sanitary napkins. His research showed rural women know little about sanitary napkins and his marketing campaign includes raising awareness through skits during festivals.

Niranjan will start the plant in global manufacturing hub Tirupur. "The big companies see money in the urban areas, while I plan to concentrate on rural areas. I can sell each napkin for around Rs 3-4 which is about half the cost for such a product from an FMCG major," he says. His idea needs 1 Crore to take flight and the Tamil Nadu government has already approved 25lakhs for this project.

#4 Ajusal Sugathan & Achin Agarwal

Ajusal Sugathan and Achin Agarwal are alumni of IIM Bangalore. Their startup called Hedge Quants specializes in quantitative trading and investment strategies across Indian equities, fixed income, currency, volatility and derivatives.

"We have developed seven to eight models and our simulation tests show we can predict market movements," says Ajusal Sugathan.

"Unlike the West, Indian markets do not use the algorithm-based trading method, but our live simulations have shown good results," adds Sugathan.

Hedge Quants is tied up with Kolkata based brokerage firm Shivmangal Securities on a profit sharing mode.

10 Most Dangerous Airlines in the World

‘Flying is the safest means of travel,’ that’s the slogan you’ll get to hear when it comes to air travels. And it might be true too if we consider the number of disasters that happen on road; only difference being that- road accidents don’t make headlines around the world but air crashes do. But even after air travel is touted to be the safest, there are some of the airlines in the world that make voyagers shudder while boarding, all thanks to the history of air crashes.

The Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre (JACDEC), the German organization, which collects information about aviation accidents and safety, has published its annual Airline Safety Ranking. It has come up with the data after rating 60 airlines, based on the number and deadliness of the hull losses (destroyed airplanes) that they have suffered in the past 30 years, and how they have fared more recently.

Here are the ten airlines with the worst safety records, including the number of hull losses since 1983, and how many fatalities they caused, as compiled by Yahoo.

#10 SkyWest Airlines: 3 hull losses; 22 dead

SkyWest Airlines is a North American major airline but operates on a regional airline level and is a member of the Regional Airline Association. It is headquartered in St. George, Utah, USA.

SkyWest Airlines flies to 169 cities, in 37 States, Washington D.C., 5 Canadian Provinces and 2 cities in Mexico. The airline serves as a feeder airline, operating under contract with various major carriers.

Accidents:
1) January 15, 1987: SkyWest Airlines Flight 1834 a Fairchild Metro collided with a Mooney M20 transporting an instructor and a student, while on a flight between Pocatello to Salt Lake City in the vicinity of Kearns. All 10 people on Flight 1834 and the two occupants of the Mooney were killed. The accident was found to be a navigation error of the student pilot aboard the Mooney.

2) February 1, 1991: SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569, a Fairchild Metro was awaiting departure clearance on an active runway at Los Angeles for a scheduled flight between Los Angeles and Palmdale when USAir Flight 1493 arriving from Columbus, Ohio collided with it while it was landing. All 12 people on the Metro were killed (10 passengers and 2 pilots), and 22 of the 89 aboard the 737 perished (20 passengers, 1 pilot and 1 flight attendant). The cause was found to be Air Traffic Controller Error.

#9 South African Airways: 1 hull loss; 159 dead

South African Airways (SAA) is the national flag carrier and largest airline of South Africa. The airline flies to 38 destinations worldwide from its hub at OR Tambo International Airport, using a fleet of 54 aircraft.

On 28 November 1987, flight SA295, a Boeing 747-200B Combi, named Helderberg, crashed over the Indian Ocean en route from Taipei, Taiwan to Johannesburg via Mauritius, after a fire in the main cargo hold. All 159 people on board were killed.

#8 Thai Airways International: 5 hull losses; 309 dead

Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI) is the national flag carrier and largest airline of Thailand. It operates out of Suvarnabhumi Airport and flies to 75 destinations in 35 countries, using a fleet of more than 80 aircraft.

Accidents:
1) 31 July 1992 – Flight 311, an Airbus A310-300 hit the side of a hill 23 miles north of Kathmandu while descending toward Tribhuvan International Airport from Bangkok. All 113 on board (99 passengers and 14 crew) died. The accident was caused by technical failures, a lack of radar equipment at Tribhuvan International Airport.

2) 11 December 1998 – Flight 261, an A310-200, bound for Surat Thani from Bangkok, crashed into a rice paddy about two miles from Surat Thani airport during its third landing attempt in heavy rain; 102 of 143 on board were killed.

3) 3 March 2001 – Thai Airways International Flight 114, a Boeing 737-400, bound for Chiang Mai from Bangkok, was destroyed by an explosion of the center wing tank resulting from ignition of the flammable fuel while the aircraft was being serviced at the gate in Bangkok. One crew member was killed.

#7 Turkish Airlines: 6 hull losses, 188 dead

Turkish Airlines is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey and operates from Atatürk International Airport, Istanbul. It operates scheduled services to 184 international and 37 domestic airports, serving a total of 221 airports, in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas as of February 2013. With an increase to 98 destination countries, the carrier's destination network from one hub is the world's largest. Also with 221 destination numbers, the airline is the 5th biggest carrier in the world by number of destinations.

Accidents:
1) 16 January 1983: Flight 158, a Boeing 727-2F2, named Afyon, landed about 50 m (160 ft) short of the runway at Ankara Esenbo?a Airport in driving snow, broke up and caught fire. 47 passengers died, all of the seven crew and 13 passengers survived the accident with injuries.

2) 29 December 1994: Flight 278, a Boeing 737-4Y0, named Mersin, crashed during its final approach to land at Van Ferit Melen Airport in driving snow. Five of the seven crew and 52 of the 69 passengers died.

3) 7 April 1999: Flight 5904, a Boeing 737-4Q8, named Trakya, on a repositioning flight crashed in Ceyhan eight minutes after taking off from Adana ?akirpa?a Airport. There were no passengers on board, but all six crew members died in the accident.

4) 8 January 2003: Flight 634, an Avro RJ-100, named Konya, crashed while approaching to runway at Diyarbak?r Airport, Turkey. 75 of the 80 passengers and crew died.

5) 25 February 2009: Flight 1951, a Boeing 737–800, named Tekirda?, carrying 135 passengers, crashed while approaching Schiphol Airport, Netherlands. Nine people died, including the three pilots.

#6 Saudia: 4 hull losses; 310 dead

Saudi Arabian Airlines operating as Saudia is the flag carrier airline of Saudi Arabia, based in Jeddah. It operates domestic and international scheduled flights to over 90 destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. Domestic and international charter flights are operated, mostly during Ramadan and the Hajj season.

On 12 November 1996, a Saudia Boeing 747-168B, Flight 763, was involved in the 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision. The aircraft was on its way from New Delhi, India, to Dahran, Saudi Arabia when a Kazakhstan Airlines Ilyushin Il-76 collided with it over the village of Charkhi Dadri, some miles west of New Delhi. Flight 763 was carrying 312 people, all of whom, along with 37 more on the Kazakh aircraft, died, for a grand total of 349 fatalities.

#5 Korean Air: 9 hull losses; 687 dead

Korean Air Lines operates as Korean Air, is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of South Korea, with global headquarters located in Gonghang-dong, Seoul, South Korea. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 130 cities in 45 countries, while its domestic division serves 20 destinations. It is among the top 20 airlines in the world in terms of passengers carried and is also the top-ranked international cargo airline.

Korean Air had many fatal accidents between 1970 and 1999, during which time it wrote off 16 aircraft in serious incidents and accidents with the loss of 700 lives. On 1 Sep 1983, Korean Air Lines Flight 007, carrying 269 people, including a sitting U.S. Congressman, Larry McDonald, was shot down by the Soviets west of Sakhalin Island. The last fatal passenger incident was the Korean Air Flight 801 crash in 1997. The last crew fatality was Korean Air Cargo Flight 8509 in December 1999. Since the last fatality in 1999, safety has greatly improved.

#4 GOL Transportes Aéreos: 1 hull loss; 154 dead

Gol Transportes Aéreos is a Brazilian low-cost airline based São Paulo, Brazil. According to the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil (ANAC) between January and December 2012 Gol had 32.91 percent of the domestic and 10.32 percent of the international market shares in terms of passengers per kilometre flown.

On 29 September 2006, flight 1907 operated by the Boeing 737-800 SFP, disappeared from radar while flying over the center-western state of Mato Grosso en route from Manaus to Brasília and Rio de Janeiro-Galeão. The aircraft collided in mid-air with an Embraer Legacy 600 business jet, near the town of Matupá, 470 miles (760 km) south of Manaus. The Gol aircraft crashed in the Amazon jungle leaving no survivors among its 154 occupants and its wreckage was found a day later. The Legacy jet landed safely at Cachimbo Airport, part of the military complex Campo de Provas Brigadeiro Velloso of the Brazilian Air Force with damage to the tail and left winglet.

#3 Air India: 3 hull losses; 329 dead

Air India is the flag carrier airline of India. It is part of the government owned Air India Limited (AIL). The airline operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving Asia, the United States, and Europe. Air India has two major domestic hubs at Indira Gandhi International Airport and Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

Accidents:
1) On 23 June 1985 Air India Flight 182 Emperor Kanishka a Boeing 747-237B was blown up in mid-air, mid-flight by a suitcase-bomb planted by Babbar Khalsa Terrorists allegedly as revenge for the Indian Government's operation on the Golden Temple on June 1984. The flight was on the first leg on its Montreal-London-Delhi-Bombay flight when it exploded off the coast of Cork, Ireland. The plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. All 307 passengers and 22 crew on board died. After this incident Air India suspended all services to Montreal.

2) On 22 May 2010: Air India Express Flight 812, a scheduled passenger service from Dubai to Mangalore, overshot the runway on landing, fell over a cliff and caught fire, spreading wreckage across the surrounding hillside. Of the 160 passengers and six crew members on board, only eight passengers survived.

#2 TAM Airlines: 6 hull losses; 336 dead

TAM Airlines is the Brazilian brand of LATAM Airlines Group. The merger of TAM with LAN Airlines was completed on June 22, 2012. The company is currently the largest Brazilian airline. Before the takeover, TAM was Brazil's and Latin America's largest airline. Its headquarters are in São Paulo, operating scheduled services to destinations within Brazil, as well as international flights to Europe and other parts of North and South America.

Accidents:
1) 28 June 1984: An Embraer EMB 110C Bandeirante operating a chartered flight by Petrobras from Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont to Macaé flew into a hill while descending through rain and clouds over the Municipality of São Pedro da Aldeia. All 18 passengers and crew died.

2) 7 October 1986: An Embraer EMB 110C Bandeirante flying from Campo Grande to Araçatuba struck the ground just short of the runway threshold after missing the approach at Araçatuba Airport twice. Seven crew members and passengers died.

3) 31 October 1996: A Fokker 100, operating as Flight 402 from São Paulo-Congonhas to Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont crashed on urban area during takeoff procedures and after engine no. 2 suffering at least three uncommanded reverse thrust deployments and thus losing power, stalled, rolled to the right and struck two buildings. All 96 passengers and crew on board and 3 people on the ground died.

4) 17 July 2007: An Airbus A320 operating flight 3054 from Porto Alegre to São Paulo-Congonhas overran the runway while landing at Congonhas, crossed a major thoroughfare and impacted against a TAM Express warehouse. All 186 passengers and crew perished. 199 bodies were recovered from the crash site, including passengers, crew and people that were working at the warehouse.

#1 China Airlines: 8 hull losses; 755 dead

China Airlines (CAL) is the largest airline in Taiwan. Although not directly state-owned, the airline is owned by China Airlines Group, which is owned by the China Aviation Development Foundation, which is in turn owned by the government of the Republic of China. The airline, with headquarters in and flight operations from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, flies to destinations in Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania.

Accidents:
1) On 16 February 1986, Flight 2265, a Boeing 737-200, crashed 12 mi off Makung, Penghu, killing 13. During landing, a nosewheel tire blew. The crew performed a go-around during which the aircraft crashed; the wreckage was found on March 10 in 190 feet of water.

2) On 26 October 1989, Flight 204, a Boeing 737-200, struck a mountain near Hualien, Taiwan after the crew used the climb-out procedure of the incorrect runway, causing the aircraft to make a wrong turn. All 54 passengers and crew aboard were killed.

3) On 29 December 1991, Flight 358, a Boeing 747-200F, hit a hillside near Wanli, Taiwan after separation of its No.3 & 4 engines, killing all five crew on board.

4) On 26 April 1994, Flight 140, an Airbus A300, crashed while landing at Nagoya, Japan due to crew error, killing 264 of 271 on board.

5) On 16 February 1998, Flight 676, an Airbus A300, crashed after a failed missed-approach at Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan, killing all 196 aboard along with 9 on the ground, including ROC Central Bank chief Hsu Yuan-Dong.

6) On 25 May 2002, Flight 611, a Boeing 747-200B, broke up in mid-air on the way to Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong from Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan. All 206 passengers and 19 crew members died. The aircraft was the last 747-200 in China Airlines' fleet. The cause was improper repair after a tailstrike incident in Hong Kong in 1980.

H-1B Visas May Double: Report

The number of H-1B visas issued by the US could double under a proposed Senate immigration plan which would also remove the cap on the green card, a move likely to benefit Indian-American technology professionals but not the Indian companies.

The Senate immigration plan would dramatically increase the number of high-skilled foreign workers allowed into the country and give permanent legal status to an unlimited number of students who earn graduate degrees from US universities in science, technology, engineering or math, Washington Post reported quoting people familiar with the negotiations.

The plan, if passed by both the chambers of the US Congress - House of Representatives and the Senate - would meet one of the major demands of top American technology companies including Facebook, Google and Microsoft who argue that they are not able to find enough qualified workers in the US.

Given that India has the maximum qualified such professionals in the world, Indian-American technology professionals are likely to benefit from this.

But Indian companies are unlikely to benefit from this immigration reform, if some of the legislations introduced in the Congress are passed, including the one which was introduced by Senator Chick Grassley this week.

The Grassley resolution among other things ensures that an H-1B application filed by an employer that employs 50 or more US workers will not be accepted unless the employer attests that less than 50 per cent of the employer's workforces are H-1B and L visa holders.

"The agreement would be a major victory for the tech industry, which has backed an intense lobbying campaign on Capitol Hill in recent months arguing that Google, Facebook, Microsoft and other companies are having trouble finding qualified workers because of visa limits," the daily said.

"The expansion of the visas, known as H-1Bs, is one element of talks among a bipartisan group of eight senators, whose legislation is expected to serve as the basis for a deal between Congress and the White House to retool the immigration system.

"The number of visas available would approximately double from the current limit of 65,000 per year," The Washington Post said.

Fingerprint sensor and NFC in new Apple iPhone 5S:rumors

 

 

Rumors of fingerprint sensor technology for the iPhone have ramped up since Apple's acquisition of mobile security firm AuthenTec. Apple's new iPhone 5S is rumored to come with fingerprint sensor and near field communications (NFC) feature. 

China Times reports [Google translation, via Macotakara] that Taiwanese chip firm Chipbond has been selected to provide touch display driver as well NFC capabilities along with other components.
According to MaCRumors, the report suggests that Apple will use the fingerprint sensor functionality to enhance the security of NFC features such as mobile payments.

Rumors of fingerprint sensor technology for the iPhone have ramped up since Apple's acquisition of mobile security firm AuthenTec last year. AuthenTec has been rumored to be cutting off its fingerprint sensor customers this year, presumably to focus on supporting Apple's own efforts in the area. Reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has also stated that a fingerprint sensor will be one of the differentiating features for the iPhone 5S.

NFC has been a long-standing rumor for the iPhone, and evidence supporting its inclusion for the iPhone 5 failed to pan out amid claims that the device's design wouldn't even accommodate an NFC antenna. Some have suggested, however, that Apple could have novel plans up its sleeve for deploying NFC within the mostly metal case of the iPhone 5 that will presumably carry over to the iPhone 5S. Still, specific claims of NFC for the iPhone 5S have been essentially non-existent until now.

How HCL Tech ruined my life: A distraught recruit writes

A candidate from Uttar Pradesh, who was recruited on-campus by HCL Technologies in September, 2011, explains how things unfurled ever since the drive.

I would like to explain you about the whole drama played by HCL Technologies. They are saying that "All students who passed out in 2011 have been on-boarded". It is true that all the students who graduated in 2011 and recruited by HCL Tech have been on-boarded. But this has nothing to do with us, because we are from the 2012 batch.

In September 2011, when we were in our seventh semester of our B.Tech course, HCL Tech visited our campuses for its on-campus recruitment drive. In that drive, they had three rounds - 1. Aptitude Test, 2. Technical Interview, and 3. HR Interview. There were around 76 students (from his college), mostly cream (bright, top-scoring) students from all the disciplines, who cleared all the three rounds, and at that time, HR of HCL Tech who visited our campus announced that we all would be placed in HCL Tech as Software Engineer and that they would on-board us as soon as we finish our course and earn our degree (By Apr-May, 2012).

Later on in May 2012, HCL Campus Portal was opened for us, the link of which is mycampus@hcl.com, and they asked us to fill our personal academic information on the portal and LOI (Letter of Intent) was given to us and our Service Agreement was released on the campus portal. They said that "Joining is scheduled in batches depending on candidates academic calendar and business requirements" and that joining is scheduled to start from July.

Two batches of around 700 students joined in July and August 2012. We were waiting for our turn, then suddenly, HCL introduced FRP (Front Runner Program) in September 2012, a mandatory test to sequence on-boarding. The test was conducted in three locations - Noida, Chennai and Bangalore - on September 30, 2012, and the test location was decided based on the location of college from where we graduated and were informed just two days before the test. The portions were C and DS for Non-CS branches and C, DS, Java and RDBMS for CS branches.

I had to travel from Agra (UP) to Chennai, nearly 2,000 km, for attending that 45-minute test. The test was conducted by Aspiring Minds (AMCAT) and the pattern was ridiculous as one cannot skip any question. The passing cut-off was 60 per cent. The result was said to be announced within a week. But they promptly delayed it and announced on October 26, 2012, instead, and in this test, only 1,300 out of 6,500 candidates were declared as who passed. It means nearly 5,000 students were not able to clear the test.

The test score was not revealed to anyone; they said it is confidential. As per their promise, FRP-shortlisted candidates had to be given joining dates within a couple of weeks. And as for those who didn't manage to clear the test (remaining 5,000, including me), they said that they would be given one more chance to clear it, otherwise they would be put in HCL Infrastructure or BPO sevices. Over this, recruits were mighty upset, as they were already tested on their respective college campus and questioned the need of this shortlisting through FRP test, which was not communicated early. So, some students tried to approach media for help.

After two days, we received a mail from one Mr Prithvi Shergill, from the senior management of HCL Tech, stating that FRP test was just to sequence on-boarding and its result becomes void once we join the company. It added that those who didn't make it in their first attempt would be given three more chances to clear it and he stressed on the point that 'No offer letter will be revoked' and all would be joining, but that the sequence would be decided by FRP.

The joining dates for FRP-shortlisted recruits were said to be scheduled for January 2013, and FRP 2 was announced on January 6, 2013, exactly the same date XAT was to be administered. We started preparing very hard to clear the test, but suddenly on January 1, 2013, HCL Tech sent the greetings of New Year in the form of canceling the second test - FRP 2. We got a mail saying that FRP 2 was canceled and then again, the same methodology would be used to sequence on-boarding. 'The joining is scheduled in batches depending upon business requirements and candidates' academic calendar', the same line was repeated.

It was the time when all the off-campus drives for 2012 batch freshers were closed, as from October to May (every year) recruitment is conducted primarily for experienced candidates and since we were freshers, we could in no way get a chance to sit for off-campus interviews, as they were asking for experience.

Anyway, moving further after January 1, there was no communication from HCL Tech to us. A few days ago, only the candidates who cleared the FRP test held in September 2012 received a mail stating that they would be able to decide about their joining dates only by August 2013. Meanwhile, if they wish to choose HCL Infrastructure domain, they were mandated to appear again for the test. And it is very pertinent to mention here that those who hadn't cleared FRP (Around 5,000) did not get this mail. It clearly indicates that we, 'FRP failed' recruits, are totally out of the equation.

Now, the company HRs are telling that FRP test will be given priority and they will be able to decide by August 2013 over the joining dates. That means those who cleared FRP (around 1,300), if they are lucky, can get a chance to join the company by November 2013 and that is also not for sure. If FRP-cleared recruits are not sure to join by November 2013, then when will we be joining? Perhaps, by July 2014 or July 2015 or may be never.

At this time of the year, 2013 batch is set to pass out and there would be nothing left for us (2012 batch). We all are very good students, as HCL visited all the campuses as the first company and so, selected only cream students from all the colleges across India. They kept us in dark for almost a year and now left us in the middle of nowhere. Nobody can understand our situation, our pain, as HCL Tech had caused me to suffer social humiliation and unbearable physical and mental agony. Society, family members and neighbors, they don't understand all these things; they just know that you are unemployed even after one year of completing graduation.

Seriously, now I regret so much for getting placed in this company. I am a meritorious student having more than 85 per cent throughout my academics and still jobless. This company is 100 per cent responsible for ruining the career of almost 6,000 bright students. We were selected through campus interview and as with the policy of almost all colleges, we were not allowed to sit for any other company's interviews.

- An HCL recruit

Facebook Now a Forbidden Fruit for IITians

The Indian Institute of Information Technology-Allahabad (IIIT-A) has banned its students and staff from accessing and using social networking site Facebook. The decision was taken after they received complaints of threat and abuse on Facebook by three of its students, as reported K Sandeep Kumar for Hindustan Times.

A notice issued by dean (student affairs) Prof RC Tripathi said “The restriction has been imposed with effect from March 1 and will remain in force for an unspecified period,” as reported by HT.

IIT-A has also cautioned its students against maintaining web blogs, saying that offensive messages on social networking sites and blogs by students are harmful to the institute's image. The premier institute has asked the students not to blog or post offensive material as it violates the code of conduct of the institute.

The notice which was also sent on emails to students, teachers and other staff members, said that it has been a matter of concern because of the offensive postings against faculty members, students and administration by some of the institute’s own students.

It also listed out the names and batches of the students against whom explicit complaints had been received regarding the same. A BTech (IT) 2011 student was accused of putting up posts threatening a girl student of biomedical engineering, while two BTech (IT) 2010 batch students were charged with using "abusive language".

For now, the students as well as faculty members have not taken the Facebook ban well.  While they agree that those who violate the code of conduct should be punished, most of them said that banning all from accessing the social networking site for an action of a few was unfair.

World's Most Ethical Companies in 2013

You all must know the famous quote “Actions speak better than words”. There are many companies who speak a lot about running their business ethically but hardly keep their words. Whereas there are also companies who go beyond just words and convert those words into action. Ethisphere in its World’s Most Ethical Companies 2013 list honors such companies who carry out their business on true ethical terms. Read on to know which two Indian MNCs made to the list.

10. PepsiCo

PepsiCo is an American multinational food and beverage corporation headquartered in Purchase, New York, United States. The company deals in the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of grain-based snack foods, beverages, and other products. PepsiCo was incepted in the year 1965 with the merger of the Pepsi-Cola Company and Frito-Lay and since than the company has performed really well. Few of the big acquisitions by PepsiCo are include an acquisition of Tropicana in 1998 and a merger with Quaker Oats in 2001 - which added the Gatorade brand to its portfolio.

9. Microsoft

Paul Allen and Bill Gates, two childhood friends found a company in 1975, which today is one of the leading MNC in the world.  Headquartered in Redmond Washington, Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational software corporation. Microsoft develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services related to computing. The company also produces a wide range of other software for desktops and servers, and is active in areas including internet search and mobile phones via the Windows Phone OS.

8. Intel Corporation

Intel Corporation, founded on July 18, 1968, is a valise of Integrated Electronics. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Intel is the worlds largest and highest valued semiconductor chip maker, based on revenue. During the 1990s, Intel invested heavily in new microprocessor designs fostering the rapid growth of the computer industry. During this period Intel became the dominant supplier of microprocessors for PCs.

7. eBay Inc.

eBay Inc. is an American multinational internet based consumer-to-consumer corporation, headquartered in San Jose, California. It was established in 1995, and became a famous success story of the dot-com bubble. eBay is now a multi-billion dollar business with operations spread in over thirty countries. It is an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services globally. Millions of collectibles, decor, appliances, computers, furnishings, equipment, domain names, vehicles, and other miscellaneous items are listed, bought, or sold daily on eBay.

6. Accenture

Accenture is a multinational management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company headquartered in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. The international company was first incorporated in Bermuda in 2001. It is one of the world's largest consulting firms measured by revenues and is also a constituent of the Fortune Global 500 list. As of September 2012, the company had more than 257,000 employees across 120 countries. India currently is the single largest employee base for Accenture, with the headcount expected to reach 80,000 in August 2012. Accenture's current clients include 89 of the Fortune Global 100 and more than three-quarters of the Fortune Global 500.

5. American Express

Business Week and Interbrand ranked American Express as the 22nd most valuable brand in the world, estimating the brand to be worth $14.97 billion. Fortune listed the company as one of the top 20 Most Admired Companies in the World. Headquartered in Three World Financial Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States the company is best known for its credit card, charge card, and traveler's cheque businesses.

4. Cisco Systems

Leonard Bosack and Sandy Lerner, a married couple who worked as computer operations staff members at Stanford University, later joined by Richard Troiano, founded Cisco Systems in 1984. It is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States. The company designs, manufactures, and sells networking equipment. The stock was added to the Dow Jones Industrial Average on June 8, 2009, and is also included in the S&P 500 Index, the Russell 1000 Index, NASDAQ 100 Index and the Russell 1000 Growth Stock Index.

3. Colgate-Palmolive

Colgate-Palmolive involves distribution and provision of household, health care and personal products, such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products including toothpaste and toothbrushes. Under its "Hill's" brand, it is also a manufacturer of veterinary products. The company's corporate offices are on Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.

2. Tata Steel

Headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, a subsidiary of the Tata Group. It is a steel manufacturing company and has manufacturing operations in 26 countries, including Australia, China, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Thailand and the United Kingdom, and employs around 81,600 people. Its largest plant is located in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.

1. Wipro

The company was established on 29 December 1945 at Mumbai by Mohamed Hasham Premji as Western India Products, later renamed to Wipro. Wipro is the second major India-based IT services company according to 2012 revenues. Wipro is an India based multinational company dealing with information technology (IT) services, consulting and outsourcing services. Headquartered in Bangalore, Karnataka, the company operates in 54 countries across the globe. The company is also listed in the Fortune India 500, 2012.

8 Indians Among Asia's Top 50 Businesswomen

The Indian women are enjoying the impact of globalization and making an influence not only on domestic but also on international sphere. They are passionate about their work, they are confident about what they do and the trend they have shaped has taken them to the top of their game. Read on to know these 8 “game-changers” who made it to the list of “50 dynamic women” by Forbes.

1. Shobhana Bhartia
Age: 56
Chairmen and Editorial Director HT Media

Media baroness hails from the storied Birla business clan. She joined her family's media empire in 1985 at the age of 28, eventually transforming it from a stodgy publisher into fast-growing listed outfit HT Media. It is one of the biggest newspapers in the nation and was started at the request of Mahatma Gandhi to her grand father Ghanshyam Das Birla. Other interests include the Hindi daily Hindustan; business daily Mint, in partnership with the Wall Street Journal; FM radio stations; and jobs portal shine.com. It is also expanding in the education space with a new 50-50 joint venture with U.S.-based Apollo Global.

2. Chanda Kochhar
Age:  51
Managing Director & CEO ICICI Bank

She is the first woman to run the country’s second largest lender and once its fastest growing bank, ICICI Bank. With around 25 million customers, the bank has assets of $91 billion, over 2,500 branches. Kochhar is credited with building ICICI's retail arm from scratch. She took charge of the bank in 2009, after a passionately contested the succession race, becoming its youngest ever CEO at 47.

3. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw
Age: 59
Founder, Chairman and Managing Director Biocon India

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw owns the tag of India's richest self-made woman. She established Biocon in 1978 at the age of 25 as a garage startup to make industrial enzymes and now the company is the country's largest listed biotech firm, with annual revenue of $572 million. It manufactures drugs for diabetes, cancer and autoimmune diseases. She has supported the Mazumdar-Shaw Cancer Center in Bangalore, where the poor are treated for free.

4. Chitra Ramkrishna
Age: 49
Joint Managing Director, National Stock Exchange

Ms. Chitra Ramkrishna serves as Joint Managing Director of National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. Chitra has been with the National Stock Exchange of India from its birth. Chitra Ramakrishna is a Chartered Accountant and she considers the opportunity to become a part of the team that set up the National Stock Exchange as the most important turning point of her career.

5. Renuka Ramnath
Age: 51
Founder, Managing Director and CEO, Multiples Alternate Asset Management India

The business tigress defines power as the ability to improve the economic condition of a large number of people. She is the founder, Managing Director and CEO, Multiples Alternate Asset Management India.
After work she prefers to spend time with her family and friend. Renuka considers raising $250 million for ICICI Venture between 2001 and 2003 just after the Internet bubble as the most important turning point of her career.

6. Preetha Reddy
Age: 55
Group Managing Director Apollo Hospitals

She has been an Executive Director of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd. since 1989 and became the managing director in the year 2011. The soft-spoken and self-effacing Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals firmly declares that she is not the first among equals among her siblings, and that it is age rather than ability that has given her that commanding designation. Dr. Reddy was awarded the Outstanding Personality Award by the Indian Medical Association in 1999 and received the Good Samaritan Award from the Rotary Club in 1999.

7.  Shikha Sharma
Age: 54
CEO and Managing Director Axis Bank, India

She is the CEO and Managing Director of the country's third-largest bank in the private sector, Axis Bank. Sharma worked for 29 years at ICICI Bank and was a contender for the CEO's post but surrendered the spot to Chanda Kochhar. Since Sharma joined Axis Bank its assets grew 30% last year to $55 billion. She has more than doubled the bank's network to 1,500 branches and 8,300-plus ATMs. She plans to continue expansion, notably of the corporate bank, while "balancing growth with risk."

8. Priya Paul
Age: 46
Chairman Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels

A graduate of Wellesley College in the U.S., Paul came back home in 1988 to join the hotel unit of the Apeejay Surrendra Group as marketing manager. Self-taught, hands-on hotelier today Paul runs the Park Hotels chain, a collection of 11 luxury boutique hotels in India known for their funky designs that attract a cheerful crowd. She plans to list the privately held company. Meantime, she’s spending more than $225 million to expand, with 4 hotels in the pipeline, becoming the first woman in her family to work in the family conglomerate.

Indians Among Top 4 Sources For Business Studies in U.S.

Business-related programmes are the most popular single field of study among international students in the US with China, India, South Korea and Saudi Arabia being the top four source countries, according to a new study.

However, among Indian and Saudi students business ranks third behind engineering and math, and engineering and English respectively, while it is the single-most popular field among Chinese and Korean students, according to World Education Services (WES).

This growth in the popularity of business programmes has paralleled, to a degree, the overall demand for undergraduate programmes at US institutions, the WES study on "International Student Mobility Trends 2013: Towards Responsive Recruitment Strategies" noted.

As a result, international undergraduate students in business studies grew by approximately 60 percent in the US between 2003 and 2011, with nearly three out of ten international undergraduates enrolled in business fields-a proportion that is now comparable to the UK and Canada.

The authors Rahul Choudaha, director of research and advisory services, and research associates Li Chang and Yoko Kono noted how student mobility patterns to the US have changed in the decade following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Due to visa policy changes and perceptions that the US had become a less welcoming host country for international students, enrolment growth stalled in the immediate aftermath of the attacks.

At that time, Indians represented the largest international student population, rising almost 12 percent in 2002/03 compared to just two percent among Chinese students-bucking an overall downward trend in enrolments that would last until the 2006/07 academic year.

Within a decade, that story has been turned on its head. Overall enrolments are again growing at a healthy level.

Chinese enrolments have been booming at an average annual growth rate of well above 20 percent since 2007/08, while Indian enrolments have stagnated and recently started a downward trajectory.

A look into the level of study reveals that India is a graduate market, but a combination of socioeconomic and demographic factors suggest an inflow of more Indian undergraduates in the coming years.

Three fourths of Indian students at the graduate level (77 percent) were enrolled in S&E fields, significantly higher than the concentration for international students overall (59 percent), according to WES.

In addition to aggressive outreach in traditional Asian markets, particularly China and India, the WES study highlighted the need for diversification of international student populations by place of origin.

Samsung Galaxy S IV: Scroll web pages with eyes

Samsung will unveil its next flagship smartphone - Galaxy S IV - at an event on March 14 in New York.

Imagine scrolling web pages just by movement of eye-balls. This new feature called 'Eye scrolling feature' is just about to come on Samsung's new flagship smartphone, according to reports.

The New York Times reports that the new Samsung Galaxy S IV is likely to have an eye scrolling feature, thereby enabling users to scroll through webpages without even touching the screen of the phone.

"The phone will track a user's eyes to determine where to scroll," said a Samsung employee who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"For example, when users read articles and their eyes reach the bottom of the page, the software will automatically scroll down to reveal the next paragraphs of text," said the report.

However, it is still not known which technology has been used by the company to track eye movement. Samsung will unveil its next flagship smartphone - Galaxy S IV - at an event on March 14 in New York.

3 Amazing Reasons Why Samsung's Android Is Better Than Google's

You might have come across a different UX (user experience) while handling two different devices running same versions of Android platform. It may be little things like decreasing the volume of mobile by just placing palm on the screen to your Smartphone waiting till you sleep to go into timeout mode.

And when it comes to UX, Samsung’s Android really holds a strong and stiff upper hand over Google’s original version of Android. The reason behind this substantiality is Google allows its OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) partners to tweak the OS to suit themselves. Samsung tweaks the original Android versions to suit to each of its different range of devices that come in different sizes and specs, be it Smartphones, its phablets, or its tablets. And these tweaks turn Samsung devices into gadgets that offer users an all new and good UX.

It’s not that Samsung invented all of these features but they brought them together in style that defines Samsung.

Some of the tweaks take advantage of special hardware in particular while others make common hardware components work better, read on to know the 3 amazing Features why Samsung’s Android is better than Google’s, as compiled by ZDNet.

#1 Display Features

Samsung always experiments with the screen sizes while building Smartphones, tablets and its note devices. Samsung’s Android always has an edge over others because a lot of little and cool features are baked into its UX. Together these features work to make Samsung devices more  interesting than its competitors. Some of the important features in this category are-

Smart Rotation

Android devices generally sport the auto-rotate feature that toggles the screen between portrait and landscape orientation. It’s a common but annoying problem when screen gets jarred as the user moves around or the phone is inadvertently tilted to the side. The display rotates even though the user didn't intend for it to do so, and then it must be tilted back to reorient the screen which brings a small delay in operation.

However Samsung’s Smart Rotation technology  prevents this accidental rotation using its front camera. When the phone is tilted sideways it "looks" at the user's face to see if it indicates an accidental tilting. If so it prevents the display from rotating, keeping it the way the user wants it even though tilted.

Smart Stay

Displays have a screen timeout setting to save the battery. If nothing happens on the touchscreen for a set time, the display turns off. Unfortunately this feature can cause annoyance when you are reading a book or a long web page, that doesn’t require you to touch the screen for any operation for a while. The end result, screen turns off interrupting the reading and forcing the need to turn it back on.

Smart Stay uses the front camera to determine if the user is looking at the screen. Before turning the display off it looks for the user's face and eyes and if he/she is looking at the screen it won't turn off the display.

Pop up apps

Several apps Samsung has included in its version of Android include windowed versions that pop up when desired. These include the web browser, video player, and the S Note app. They take advantage of the larger displays on many Samsung devices by using a floating window that is visible while using other apps.

Page Buddy

The Page Buddy feature is activated, if it is configured to, when certain hardware features of the Samsung device are triggered. The Page Buddy opens specific pages to augment user customization based on a user action.

There are four special pages that make up Page Buddy: one that opens when you remove the S Pen from the device; one that opens when you plug in headphones; one when you drop your phone in a dock; and another that opens when you are roaming outside your home area. Each page buddy has its own specific app icons that are useful in that mode.

These pages are special home screens and the user can swipe to standard home screens. What makes Page Buddy so useful is how they automatically appear when you need them.

Multi-view

The ability to work with two apps side-by-side is wonderful and the multi-view is very useful. The two displayed apps often work together, such as hitting a link in one window opens the web page in the other if the browser is running there.

#2 Motion activated features

Most Android devices have an accelerometer that detects movement and Samsung has included a number of features that take advantage of detected motion in everyday use of the phone or tablet.

Tilt to Zoom

This feature is a great way to look at photos on the Samsung device. Touch the photo with two thumbs and tilt the screen toward you or away from you to zoom the image in and out.

 

Pan to move/browse

With multiple home screens it's common to move icons around to arrange them just like you want. Hold the icon you want to move to another home screen and pan the device. The icon moves to the screen in the direction of the pan.

The same function can be used to pan through images in the gallery. You can flip through photos as fast as you wish using the panning action.

Quick glance

If the phone is kept idle on a table and if you want to check whether you got a message or mail, the Quick Glance feature is activated by simply reaching for your phone. It senses your hand hovering over the phone and displays a special lock screen that shows any new activity that has occurred while the display was turned off. Remove your hand and the display goes to sleep. This happens without even touching the phone.

Double tap to zoom to top of list

If you've scrolled down a long list and want to quickly get back to the top, simply double tap the top of the phone and it jumps back to the top. This is app independent and eliminates the need to find a small scrolling control.

Don't forget your pen

Samsung alerts you when you leave the phone without putting the pen back in the storage silo on the device.

#3 Other Handy Features

Muting with palm

Ever been in a situation when you need to mute your device's volume quickly for a bit? Samsung makes it easy by simply covering the display with your palm. Instant silence and volume returns when you remove your hand from the display.

Screenshot swipe

Simply swipe from the left of the display to the right with the side and the image is captured.

Display/Hide multi-view tab

By simply long-pressing the soft Back button on the bottom of any screen hides/displays the multi-view tab.