An Entangled Web of Crime: Bell’s Theorem as a Short Story

Kurt Jacobs    Howard M. Wiseman Centre for Quantum Computer Technology, Center for Quantum Dynamics, School of Science, Griffith University, Nathan 4111, Australia

Non-locality of the type first elucidated by Bell in 1964 is a difficult concept to explain to non-specialists and undergraduates. Here we attempt this by showing how such non-locality can be used to solve a problem in which someone might find themselves as the result of a collection of normal, even if somewhat unlikely, events. Our story is told in the style of a Sherlock Holmes mystery, and is based on Mermin’s formulation of the “paradoxical” illustration of quantum non-locality discovered by Greenberger, Horne and Zeilinger.

With the discovery of Bell’s theorem in 1964,Bel64 and the experiments it prompted over the next two decades,Aspect an astonishing fact about the nature of the universe was revealed: it is non-local. That is, that certain things which happen in the universe can only be explained if there is instantaneous action-at-a-distance, although this cannot be used to communication instantaneously. The exact nature of the non-locality is thus very subtle and not as easy to explain to a general readership as other key insights about the physical universe such as the invariance of the speed of light, or even Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle.

In this article we illustrate the weird non-locality of quantum mechanics, which is the import of Bell’s theorem, using the literary device of a detective story. While a few previous articles have been written with a similar purpose — that is, to explain quantum non-locality using everyday settingsJack ; Price ; Penrose ; gameshow ; cakes ; Avarind — in none of these was the use of the non-locality required to solve a problem with which someone might be faced as the result of everyday, if rather coincidental, events. This article was motivated by a desire to construct an example of such a situation. We feel that our story should be of use in engaging students, and with this in mind we have included a number of exercises throughout the story, the answers to which are given at the end of the article.

Like Ref. gameshow we base our story around the example of nonlocality, described in this form by Mermin, which uses three-party GHZ entanglement. GHZ ; Mermin90 ; GHSZ ; CRB ReferenceBra04 gives a comprehensive review of nonlocality of this sort, which the authors call “quantum pseudo-telepathy”. In this the authors show that the GHZ example is the simplest possible in the sense of requiring the smallest Hilbert-space dimension. Other examples from Ref. Bra04 may however be quicker to explain, in particular one by Aravind Ara02 . We have been unable to construct a compelling story around this example, but we encourage the reader to try. A much broader review of “strange correlations, paradoxes and theorems” in quantum mechanics may be found in Ref. Lal01 .

We were prompted to write this article as a reaction to the (throwaway) statement by Mermin that “the action at a distance [in Bell’s theorem] is entirely useless.”Mermin As the story shows, it is certainly not useless. Bell-type non-locality does not break Einstein’s no-signaling condition, but that does not make it any less real. Of course quantum non-locality is known to be potentially useful for practical tasks such as scheduling with a minimum of classical communication,schedule but a) the protocols for these tasks are far more complicated, and b) the effect appears less dramatic than for the one we describe.

There are simple tasks, such as quantum teleportation, or dense coding, which rely upon quantum entanglement and are usually understood to involve quantum non-locality. However, for a non-specialist to appreciate any of the weirdness in these examples he or she must first understand a substantial amount of quantum mechanics.footnote Moreover, recent studiesHardyTel ; Spe04 show that these (and many other) tasks in quantum information can be simulated in a quantum-like theory which is completely local. It seems that Bell’s theorem is still the best way of illustrating the non-locality of the world.

The story below is told in the style of a Sherlock Holmes mystery. The narrator is Mr. Doyle, and the protagonist is Dr. Bell. As is now well-known, the chief inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous literary creation, Sherlock Holmes, was a Dr. Bell who lectured Doyle at Edinburgh University Medical School. A fictionalized version of their relationship has been told in a number of recent novels,Engel ; Pirie in which Mr. Doyle plays Watson to Dr. Bell’s Holmes, and we model our story loosely on that pattern.

The Case of the Two-Colour Gang

It was a late afternoon early in October when first I found myself outside the door of number 8 Hilbert Place, a rather nondescript two-storey house in a small street just south of the city center. While it was mid autumn, the sky was clear, and the afternoon warm as the sun’s rays lingered on the trees and grounds of number 8. The bright weather was in some contrast to my mood however, as I was weighed down with a problem which had been occupying my mind for some days. I rang the doorbell, and as I did so my thoughts wandered back over the events of the last few weeks.

I made my living as a barrister, and my private legal practice was doing very well. I enjoyed my work, and had been attracting cases both of increasing interest and importance. A few months before I had been lucky enough to land a defense case which was very much in the public eye — certainly it was the highest profile case of any with which I had then been associated. As events would turn out, it would also be one of my greatest triumphs, for (despite the evidence against them) the case against my clients was dropped. Now, many years later, the details of the case can be told for the first time.

The preceding summer had seen a number of break-ins at the Museum of Semi-Classical Art. This had been the cause of considerable concern as the museum was due to host the exhibition Local Realism, a collection of very valuable works by artists of the world-renowned realist school that arose in our city. In view of this the curator had increased security by placing four guards in the newly built Isosceles wing, which was to house the collection. This precaution was indeed prudent, for a mere three days after the exhibition opened a very daring robbery was attempted. Three robbers somehow defeated the perimeter alarms and broke into the museum at midnight. They split up and dashed through the corridors of the Isosceles wing, each aiming to grab a particularly valuable piece of art. Their plans were foiled by the guards, however, who spotted them and raised the alarm. While this prevented the robbers from carrying off any of the art, the guards did not manage to catch them.

Fortunately for the police, the descriptions given by the guards fitted three well known criminals, and the next day they made a dawn raid on their home. There the police found further evidence linking the three to the attempted robbery, and they were subsequently arrested and charged. I had myself only just put down the evening paper, where I learnt of the arrest, when quite out of the blue I received a call from the three men in custody. Having no other matter of importance on hand at the time, I agreed to represent them, but certainly had no idea what a curious turn the case would take.

My reverie on the doorstep of number 8 Hilbert Place was broken by footsteps in the hall. The door opened to reveal a young woman with a pleasant face and a bright smile. She was dressed in casual clothes, with a loose-fitting pullover and blue jeans. While one would not immediately associate such attire with that of a consultant to a prestigious legal firm, it was only when I noticed the fluffy Bugs Bunny slippers that I wondered for an instant if I had indeed knocked at the right door.

‘You must be Mr. Doyle’, said the young woman. ‘I’m Alice Bell. Do come in.’

‘Thank you’, I said. ‘It was good of you to see me at such short notice’

‘Not at all Mr. Doyle. As you probably know I do most of my consulting for the legal firm Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger, but they have offered few cases of late which exhibit those singular features so necessary if the problem is to provide any real interest for me. I assure you the debt will be more than repaid if your case is of sufficient curiosity’.

‘It certainly seems so to me, I must admit’, I replied.

‘Excellent’, said Dr. Bell, ‘Cup of tea?’

I realized that I was indeed thirsty, and as she handed me a steaming cup and took a plate of cookies from the sideboard, I realized that I was also quite hungry, having not eaten since breakfast. She then led me up some stairs to a pleasantly furnished office — along with the mandatory desk and laptop it housed two comfortable and somewhat weatherbeaten leather chairs and a small coffee table. Shelves lined two adjacent walls, and while many were filled with books, others contained jars of various shapes and sizes which I assumed at first to contain chemicals, although later inspection revealed a much greater and more unusual variety of contents. The third wall was covered by a large and detailed map of the world, with the final wall devoted almost completely to a huge window, affording a good view of the city center, including a hint of the harbor and northern hills beyond. To the side of the desk was what seemed to be some kind of electronic apparatus, but apart from the brand name ‘Cryptolightning’ which was written on the side there was no indication as to its function.

Placing the cookies on the coffee table she sat down and motioned me to take the other chair. I did so, and as I helped myself to a cookie she slid a little further into her chair, and placing the tips of her fingers together said with a slight smile and an unmistakable air of anticipation ‘So Mr. Doyle, what is it that brings you here?’

‘You have heard of the break-in at the Museum of Semi-Classical Art?’, I asked.

‘It is hardly possible not to have’, she said ‘You may safely assume that I am familiar with all that has been in the papers, but no more’.

‘Then I shall begin straight in with the details’ I said. ‘As you know from the papers, my clients were discovered with a number of body suits of the type worn by cat burglars. While some of these were a single color, being red or green, the others were more unusual in that they were green on the front and red on the back, or vice versa. Obviously the prosecution wanted to form as strong a link as possible between these suits and those that the robbers were wearing, so naturally I cross-examined the guards very carefully on this point.’

‘Naturally’, murmured Dr. Bell as I paused to take another bite.

‘Now, one must understand’ I continued, ‘that the lighting in the Gallery was rather odd, changing in color and intensity from place to place in accordance with the artwork. As a result the guards were not able to discern completely the colors of the robbers’ clothes. However, the first three asserted that they had had a clear view of one of the robbers, and that he was wearing a red suit, but none of them could remember which robber it was. Thus it may even have been a different robber in each case. In addition, they were sure that the other two robbers were wearing the same color, but they could not be sure what color it was under the lighting conditions. The testimony of the fourth and final guard was only a little different. He asserted that one of the robbers was wearing a green suit, and that the other two were wearing the same (although again unknown) color.’

‘So can we sum up the guards’ statements by saying that the first three guards saw an odd number of robbers wearing red, and the fourth saw an even number wearing red?’, asked Dr. Bell.

‘Most artfully put,’ I said. ‘Now while it was not possible to conclude much from these statements alone, further evidence was provided by the infra-red security cameras, which showed clearly the paths taken by the robbers as they ran through the gallery. In addition, the guards made definite statements as to their respective locations when they saw the robbers. In the light of this I was able to find an inconsistency in the guards’ testimony.’

‘I have here a map of the Gallery on which I have indicated the positions of the guards and the paths taken by the robbers.’ I drew the map from my briefcase, and handing it to Dr. Bell, added ‘I have labeled the guards with the numbers 1 to 4, and the robbers with the letters A B and C’ (Note: Mr. Doyle’s map is reproduced in Fig. 1)

Figure 1: Here is shown Mr. Doyle’s map of the Isosceles wing of the Museum for Semi-Classical art, with the positions of the four guards (marked by the numbered circles), and the passage of the robbers A, B and C through the gallery as recorded by the infra-red security cameras.

I paused for a few moments, allowing Dr. Bell the chance to take in the map.

‘So each of the Guards saw only the back or the front of each robber, but not both?’, she asked, looking up from the map.

‘Yes, indeed’, I replied, most impressed by her perspicacity. ‘Thus the testimony of each guard only refers to either the back or the front of each of the robbers. From the map we know, for example, that the first guard saw the back of robber A but the fronts of robbers B and C. The statements of the guards therefore refer not to three, but to six different things, being the two sides of each of the three robbers. I found it convenient to summarize which sides were seen by the various guards in a table.’, and fishing the table out of my briefcase I handed it to Dr. Bell. (Note: Mr. Doyle’s table is reproduced here in Table 1footnote2

Robber A Robber B Robber C
Guard 1 Back Front Front
Guard 2 Front Back Front
Guard 3 Front Front Back
Guard 4 Back Back Back
Table 1: Each of the guards saw either the back or the front of each of the robbers. Mr. Doyle’s table reproduced here shows which of the two it was for each guard and each robber.

‘From this table, and the statements of the guards,’ I went on, ‘I was able to show that while any three of the guards’ claims are consistent, all four are not — one of them must be lying, or at the least mistaken.’ In response to the Doctor’s raised eyebrows I proceeded to explain my reasoning, with which I must say I was rather pleased.

Exercise 1: Reproduce Mr. Doyle’s argument.

‘After I had presented the argument in court,’ I continued, ‘the prosecution asked for a private word. It turned out that the police suspected that one of the guards was working for the gang that organized the break-in, but didn’t know which one it was. If this was the case, then the guard in question was almost certainly away from his post turning off the perimeter alarms when the robbers broke in, and this would mean that he would have to have fabricated his evidence. If the police could find out which guard was lying, it would give them a new lead to the mastermind behind the robberies.’

‘So the prosecution offered me a deal. They said that if my clients would tell them which guard was lying, they would drop the case against them. Now this deal is indeed attractive, because there is considerable evidence against my clients, and I certainly cannot guarantee a victory. However, my clients deny any involvement in the attempted robbery, and if they are telling the truth then they do not have the information the police want. And if (heaven forbid) they are members of the crime ring, it would be unwise for them to aid the police; if the crime boss discovered that they led the police to him then my clients would be better off in jail.’

‘I thought at first that we might be able simply to make up a story as to what the robbers were wearing, so as to accept the offer and satisfy the prosecution. However, this fails for two reasons. The first is that the police informed me that one of the guards is an undercover officer who’s testimony is beyond doubt. Thus, if our story conflicts with his testimony they will know we are lying. The second reason is that, if by chance our story incriminates the guard working for the crime ring, my clients could be in worse trouble.’

‘I had virtually decided that I would have no option but to reject the offer. However, I mentioned the problem last night to a colleague of mine who works for GHZ, and she was adamant that before giving up I should come and see you — so there you have it.’ Having finished my exposition I sat back and drained my cup.

Dr. Bell was silent for a few minutes, apparently lost in thought. At last she said, ‘Your situation is indeed an interesting one, Mr. Doyle. Let us consider what would happen if we let the police ask just one question of each of your clients, being either what color his suit was on the front, or what color it was on the back.’

I picked up my table again, which Dr. Bell had placed on her coffee table, and examined it as she continued.

‘I think you will find that in this case the police will only be able to test one of the guards’ statements, rather than all four, but they will be able to test any one of the statements by choosing which question they ask each of your clients’.

‘Yes, that seems to be right’, I said, after studying the table. However, I don’t see how this would help us. It is true that if my clients were to know which question each was to be asked, they would know which guard’s statement was being tested, and thus what to answer so as to confirm that statement. That way they could be sure neither to contradict the undercover policeman, nor to unwittingly finger the crooked guard. However, the police will surely demand to question each of my clients separately. Moreover, in a case as important as this they will no doubt place each of them in a sealed room, in different buildings, so as to prevent absolutely any form of communication between them. Thus none of them will know which questions the others are being asked. Without that information they won’t know what to answer.’

Exercise 2: (a) Reproduce Dr. Bell’s reasoning that the police can test any one of the guards’ statements by questioning in the manner she suggests. (b) Reproduce Mr. Doyle’s reasoning that it is not possible for his clients to know which statement is being tested unless they communicate.

‘Indeed’, said Dr. Bell. ‘If the police accept the offer of asking a single question of each of your clients they will wish to make sure that communication between them is impossible precisely to ensure that your clients cannot know which guard’s statement is being tested.’ However, I think that there may yet be a way to solve this problem. The theory which describes the behavior of elementary particles, called quantum mechanics, has a very strange property referred to as non-locality. While it does not allow instantaneous communication, it may nevertheless be sufficient to solve our problem. I must investigate the question further. How long do we have?’

‘Two or three days at the outside, I would say’, I replied.

‘Excellent!’, said Dr. Bell. ‘Then call me mid morning tomorrow, and we shall see if I do not have something for you.’

Well I must say that I was highly sceptical. This “quantum mechanical non-locality” to which the Doctor referred sounded to me more like the ravings of an eccentric than hard science. Perhaps the good Doctor’s recent boredom had sent her a little over the edge? However, I agreed to call the next morning, and thanking her for the advice and the cookies, I left for home.

Calling Dr. Bell the next morning, as I had promised, I found her in excellent spirits.

‘I have good news for you Mr. Doyle’, she said, ‘Quantum mechanical non-locality is indeed sufficient to solve your problem, so long as the police will agree to ask each guard a single question. Moreover, I have contacted some colleagues of mine at a laboratory which specializes in quantum information, and they are able to construct the devices which you will require. I should have the gadgets in my possession by tomorrow afternoon.’

This was superlative news indeed! I lost no time in making Dr. Bell’s suggested counter-offer to the prosecution. To my gratification they accepted it later that day, and the following afternoon I was back in Dr. Bell’s office, sitting in one of her comfortable chairs and tucking into another batch of freshly baked cookies.

‘We are lucky, Mr. Doyle, that quantum technology is now at the point where we can manufacture these little gismos.’ Dr. Bell was holding a small object, the size and shape of an electronic car key, and there were two more like it on the coffee table between us. On each were two buttons, labelled “lock” and “unlock”.

‘These devices contain elementary particles — in this case electrons — in a joint quantum state which is described as being entangled. Because of this the results of measurements on individual particles will be correlated. You must slip these to your clients when you next meet, and explain to them what to do. Each of your clients is to take one of them with him in his pocket when he is questioned. If he is asked about the color of the back of his suit, then he should press the “lock” button. The device will then vibrate for a few seconds. If it vibrates constantly, then he should answer “green”. If it vibrates in pulses he should answer “red”. Alternatively, if he is asked about the color of the front of his suit, then he should press the “unlock” button, and answer depending on the vibration in the same way. This will guarantee that no matter which guard’s testimony is being tested by the police, it will be confirmed by your clients answers.’

‘But without the device’s communicating to each other which questions the police have asked each of my clients, surely that is impossible!’, I replied.

‘Not, impossible, Mr. Doyle, just very strange’, Dr. Bell assured me. ‘Although there is no physically detectable signal between the devices, the quantum particles do influence each other, both at a distance and apparently instantaneously, ’

Having done a physics-for-poets course in my law degree, I was not put off this easily. ‘That can’t be right. An instantaneous action at a distance would violate Einstein’s theory of relativity which forbids faster-than-light communication’

Dr. Bell smiled enigmatically. ‘One might think so’, she said ‘but it turns out that this nonlocal influence cannot under any circumstances be used to communicate information. You will note that when your clients use the devices, none of them will learn what questions the other two have been asked, or what their answers are, so no information is communicated between them. Einstein’s theory survives, although only by the skin of its teeth. This is one of the reasons Einstein was never comfortable with quantum mechanics.’

‘That is truly remarkable’, I said, pocketing the devices and handing over a well-earned check. ‘Well, I cannot thank you enough for your help. You have indeed solved a problem which I thought to be impossible.’

‘Really the pleasure is mine Mr. Doyle. It is delightful to find a real-life use for something as curious and apparently arcane as quantum non-locality.’

Exercise 3: Explain in detail how Dr. Bell’s gadgets worked.

Answers to the Exercises

Exercise 1

There is, in fact, an elegant way to see that the four statements cannot all be true by using the properties of multiplication.Mermin90 Note first that the guards’ statements concern 6 different things, these being the two sides (the back and front) of each of the three robbers, and that each guard saw three of these sides. As Dr. Bell saw, the statements of the first three guards are equivalent to each of them claiming that “of the three sides of the robbers that I saw, an even number were green”, and the statement of the fourth guard amounts to “of the three sides of the robbers that I saw, an odd number were green”. Now see what happens if we associate a number with the front and back of each robber (giving 6 real numbers), making the value 1 if the color is red, and if the color is green. Now, since the first three guards saw an even number of green sides, the product of their three numbers is plus one, while the product of the three numbers for the forth guard is minus one. Therefore, the four statements together imply that the product of all of the guards’ numbers (i.e. twelve numbers) is minus one. However, using the rules of multiplication it is easy to see that this is not possible. If we examine (using Table 1), the twelve various sides that the guards saw, we see that each of the six different sides appears exactly twice in this set of twelve. Thus, the product of the associated set of twelve numbers is actually the product of the squares of the six numbers associated with each side. Since squares are always positive, this product must be positive. Thus all four statements cannot be true simultaneously.

We do not know of a similarly elegant procedure which demonstrates that any three of the statements alone are consistent, but it is enough to find four situations which satisfy each of the four subsets of three statements, and this is not difficult to do by inspection of Table 1. In fact, since the statements of the first three guards are symmetric under an interchange of two of the robbers, we need only find two situations, one which satisfies the first three statements, and one which satisfies the last statement along with two of the first three; interchanging the identities of the robbers will then provide the others. If all the robbers have red backs and green fronts, then the statements of the first three guards are true. If robber A is green on the back and front, and B and C are green on the front and red on the back, then the statements of guards 2, 3 and 4 are true. Thus any three of the guards could be telling the truth, but at least one is either mistaken or lying.

Exercise 2

(a) With only three yes/no questions, the prosecution can only find out the color of three of the robber’s sides. Now, from the discussion in the answer to Exercise 1, above, we know that each guard’s statement concerns only whether there are an even or odd number of a given color among the three sides that he saw. As a consequence, to verify any one of the statements the prosecution must know the colors of all of the sides which the statement in question concerns. Thus, since each of the guard’s statements concerns a different set of three sides, the prosecution can only determine the truth or falsity of one of the statements.

(b) The reason that Mr. Doyle’s clients cannot know which statement is being tested against their answers is as follows. At the time of questioning each suspect will know only whether he is being asked about the color of his front or his back. An inspection of Table 1 shows that for each side of each robber, there are two of the guards’ statements which apply to it. Thus each suspect will know only that one of these two possible statements is being tested. Now, since any two of the statements are mutually consistent each suspect can choose his answers to agree with those two statements. However, further examination shows that for each statement that the prosecution might test against, each suspect will be trying to satisfy a different pair of questions. For example, from Table 1, if the prosecution decides to test the statement of the first guard, then suspect A will know that he is being tested against either statement 1 or 4, suspect B that it is statement 1 or 3, and suspect C that it is statement 1 or 2. Thus, together, Mr. Doyle’s three clients will be trying to satisfy all four statements. But since the four statements are inconsistent, they cannot decide beforehand on a set of answers which will do this.

Exercise 3

In order for Mr. Doyle’s clients to answer the questions put to them in such a way that they could guarantee their answers are consistent with the statement which the prosecution is testing, they would have to determine their answers in a coordinated fashion. In a universe which obeyed the rules of classical physics, this would be impossible, because they are prevented from communicating. However, they are able to achieve this task by using the following remarkable non-local property which quantum systems possess: It is possible to prepare two or more quantum systems in a joint state, such that when the systems are separated (so that communication between them is impossible), the relationship between the results of measurements made on the separated systems depends upon what measurements were made on the distant systems. It is as if the quantum systems had been able to communicate about what measurements were being made on them, and used this information to arrange the relationship between the measurement outcomes. This effect cannot be used for communication by three people in possession of the quantum systems, however, because each person cannot influence which outcome the others receive, merely the relationship between all their outcomes.

Dr. Bell’s plan was to use the non-locality of quantum mechanics by preparing three quantum systems in a joint state, giving one to each suspect, and then at the time of questioning, having each suspect make one of two possible measurements on his own system depending upon which of the two questions they were asked. They would then answer their respective questions by using the result each obtains from his measurement. The joint state that gives precisely the right answers is the Greenberg-Horne-Zeilinger, or GHZ, state of three spin-half particles.GHZ If you are not familiar with the mathematical formalism which is used to describe states of, and measurements upon, quantum systems, then unfortunately at this point you will just have to take our word for it that the GHZ state, along with suitable measurements, allows the suspects to answer the questions so as to cheat the prosecution. However, if you are familiar with elementary quantum mechanics, then the details of the scheme may be explained quite simply.

If we denote the two spin-half eigenstates of the operator for spin in the direction as for “spin up” and for “spin down”, then the GHZ state is

Here the subscripts indicate which system belongs to which suspect (A, B, or C). Dr. Bell’s gadgets work as follows: If a suspect is asked what color his suit was on the front, then he presses the “lock” button. This triggers a measurement which projects his system onto one of the basis states , where these states are given by

This corresponds to a measurement of the spin of the particle in the -direction. If the gadget gets the result corresponding to then it vibrates in a way that tells him to answer that the color was red. Similarly, if the result is then he will know to answer that the color was green. Alternatively, if a suspect is asked what color his suit was on the back, he presses the “unlock” button and this makes a measurement which projects the system onto one of the states , where

This is a measurement of the spin of the particle in the -direction. If the suspect gets the result corresponding to then he answers that the color was red, otherwise he says that it was green. A quantum mechanical analysis of the two measurements shows that every set of possible outcomes of three of these measurements is consistent with all the statements of the guards, and in particular will be consistent with any statement that the police choose to test by asking their three questions. For example, assume the police are checking if the suspects’ answers are consistent with the first guard’s statements. Then suspect A will be asked about the back of his suit, so he will make an spin measurement. The result of the measurement is either or , and let us assume that it is or red. In this case the action of the measurement is to apply the projection operator to A’s system, and renormalise the state (which in this case involves multiplying by ). The state of the three systems after the measurement is then

Now suspect B is asked about the front of his suit, so he makes a spin measurement. The result can be either or , but let’s assume the result is or red. The state in Eq. (6) now becomes

(Note the minus sign appearing in because is the adjoint of .) Since C’s system is now in the state , when C is asked about the front of his suit his measurement must give or red. Thus, the police find that there are no green suits among the answers, which is consistent with the first guard’s testimony that he saw an even number of green suits. One could try out all the other possibilities and one would find that in each case the suspects’ answers will be consistent with the testimony of the guard chosen by the police. Also, notice that the order in which the suspects give their answers does not matter. There is an elegant treatment of this problem in Mermin’s paper,Mermin90 where this three-particle GHZ-style proof of Bell’s theorem was first presented.

The gadgets provided by Dr. Bell do not yet exist. However, spin-based qubitsspinqbits are one of the contenders for scalable quantum information processing. With the current rapid advances in quantum information technology,QIC:IQC there is no reason to assume that devices operating as we describe could not be built within the next few decades.

We thank Damian Pope for helpful discussions. We note also that the basic structure of Figure 1 was inspired by the diagram illustrating the GHZ result in Ref.Maudlin


Quantum random walks in waveguide lattices

Keil, Robert GND

Random processes are ubiquitous in the natural world as well as in man-made environments. While classical random walks may behave highly complex or even chaotic, there outcome can, in principle, always be predicted from the parameters of the system and the initial conditions. In the realm of quantum mechanics, however, this is not possible as the underlying wave mechanics leads to intrinsically indeterministic outcomes. Moreover, if multiple indistinguishable particles are subjected to such a quantum random walk, their exchange symmetry causes quantum interference, thereby enriching the dynamics of the system even further. In this work, quantum random walks of pairs of indistinguishable photons, the quanta of light, are investigated. Networks of coupled optical waveguides are chosen as the experimental platform of choice, offering a high degree of coherence and versatility. In these photonic lattices, light propagates along one spatial dimension, whereas the individual waveguides are connected by evanescent coupling in the transverse dimensions. In particular, it is investigated how the various degrees of freedom, which are available in such photonic lattices, affect the trajectories in the quantum walks and their complexity. It is shown how the facilitation of both transverse dimensions allows for much richer quantum walks with properties unencountered in planar arrangements. But even if just a single transverse dimension is available, the coupling properties of the lattice along this dimension are a potent degree of freedom, which can be used to manipulate the quantum walk. Finally, an experimental technique is developed which enables a convenient characterisation of the expected quantum walk in an arbitrary waveguide lattice by classical light. The thesis concludes with a summary of the results and an outlook onto further developments in the field.

Citation style:
Keil Dr. rer. nat., R., 2014. Quantum random walks in waveguide lattices.
Could not load citation form. Default citation form is displayed.


Public Release:

Productivity increases with species diversity

150 years later, research result proves Darwin prediction

University of Toronto

Environments containing species that are distantly related to one another are more productive than those containing closely related species, according to new research from the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC).

The experimental result from Marc William Cadotte confirms a prediction made by Charles Darwin in On the Origin of Species, first published in 1859. Darwin had said that a plot of land growing distantly related grasses would be more productive than a plot with a single species of grass.

Since then, many experiments have shown that multi-species plots are more productive. Cadotte's experiment showed for the first time that species with the greatest evolutionary distance from one another have the greatest productivity gains.

"If you have two species that can access different resources or do things in different ways, then having those two species together can enhance species function. What I've done is account for those differences by accounting for their evolutionary history," Cadotte says.

What's going on isn't mysterious, Cadotte says. Distantly related plants are more likely to require different resources and to fill different environmental niches - one might need more nitrogen, the other more phosphorus; one might have shallow roots, the other deep roots. So rather than competing with one another they complement one another.

What's interesting about his result is that evolutionary distance is all you need to know to predict productivity. The result suggests that as plant species disappear the Earth will become less productive, and plants will draw even less carbon from the atmosphere, possibly increasing the rate of global warming.

This research will be published in the upcoming edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States (PNAS).

Marc W Cadotte
Assistant Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
University of Toronto -Scarborough
Office: 416-208-5105


Scientists like to publish their research so as to advance scientific knowledge. Scientific journals often vet proposed articles and suggest changes or further research in order to exercise some quality control over the research published. However, according to a California district court opinion issued this week, when the journal publisher also has a commercial interest that may be affected (positively or negatively) by the research, and suggests changes or clarifications to the proposed article, that publisher may be held liable for false advertising.

In Crossfit v. National Strength and Conditioning Association, plaintiff Crossfit sued the defendant Association (which, among other things, certifies fitness instructors and publishes the “Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research”) for false advertising and related claims because of statements made in an article published in the journal by unaffiliated researchers about Crossfit’s training regime.

The defendant moved for summary judgment, arguing that merely publishing a peer-reviewed journal that contained an article analyzing the plaintiff’s exercise program was not commercial speech that could give rise to false advertising liability. The court denied summary judgment, finding that because the defendant suggested certain changes to the article and it arguably competed with the plaintiff, the article could be deemed commercial speech giving rise to false advertising liability.

This is an unusual result, and likely will merit some searching appellate review if it gets that far. But for right now, publishers beware if the article you publish may contain arguably unsubstantiated commentary about one of your competitors.


Unit price per

our cubo in viola features a rich and striking burgundy vein. the design highlights a seamless square edge with a hallow centre. suggested as a side table or bedside this petite piece will fit into any space.

designed by just adele

handmade by highly skilled and local stonemasons. each piece is made to order, crafted using recycled stone only.

honed viola calacatta marble.

width: 400mm

depth: 400mm

height: 400mm

the lead time is 6 weeks.


FLUGGER Pattern Recognition Evening Doji Star

FLUG-B -- Denmark Stock

DKK 326.00  2.00  0.61%

FLUGGER GROUP pattern-recognition tool provides you with the Pattern Recognition execution environment for running Evening Doji Star recognition against FLUGGER GROUP. FLUGGER GROUP momentum indicators are usually used to generate trading rules based on assumptions that FLUGGER GROUP trends in prices tend to continue for long periods. Please specify Penetration to run this model.

The function did not generate any output. Please change time horizon or modify your input parameters. The output start index for this execution was twelve with a total number of output elements of fourty-nine. The function did not return any valid pattern recognition events for the selected time horizon. The Evening Doji Star is FLUGGER GROUP AS three day bearish reversal pattern. View also all equity analysis or get more info about evening doji star pattern recognition indicator.

FLUGGER GROUP Technical Analysis Modules

Most technical analysis of FLUGGER stock help investors determine whether a current trend will continue and, if not, when it will shift. We provide a combination of tools to recognize potential entry and exit points for FLUGGER from various momentum indicators to cycle indicators. When you analyze FLUGGER charts, please remember that the event formation may indicate an entry point for a short seller, and look at other indicators across different periods to confirm that a breakdown or reversion is likely to occur.
Cycle Indicators
Math Operators
Math Transform
Momentum Indicators
Overlap Studies
Pattern Recognition
Price Transform
Statistic Functions
Volatility Indicators
Volume Indicators

About FLUGGER GROUP Predictive Technical Analysis

Predictive technical analysis modules help investors to analyze different prices and returns patterns as well as diagnose historical swings to determine the real value of FLUGGER GROUP AS. We use our internally-developed statistical techniques to arrive at the intrinsic value of FLUGGER GROUP AS based on widely used predictive technical indicators. In general, we focus on analyzing FLUGGER GROUP stock price patterns and their correlations with different microeconomic environment and drivers. We also apply predictive analytics to build FLUGGER GROUP's daily price indicators and compare them against related drivers such as pattern recognition and various other types of predictive indicators. Using this methodology combined with a more conventional technical analysis and fundamental analysis, we attempt to find the most accurate representation of FLUGGER GROUP's intrinsic value. In addition to deriving basic predictive indicators for FLUGGER GROUP, we also check how macroeconomic factors affect FLUGGER GROUP price patterns. Please read more on our technical analysis page or use our predictive modules below to complement your research.
Band Projection (param)
LowerMiddle BandUpper
LowEstimated ValueHigh
LowReal ValueHigh
LowNext ValueHigh

Current Sentiment - FLUG-B

FLUGGER GROUP AS Investor Sentiment

Macroaxis portfolio users are insensible in their opinion about investing in FLUGGER GROUP AS. What is your opinion about investing in FLUGGER GROUP AS? Are you bullish or bearish?
50% Bullish
50% Bearish

Current Thematic Trending

Purchased over 90 shares
Active 16 hours ago
Purchased over 70 shares
Active 17 hours ago
Purchased few shares
Active 17 hours ago


What can the world do for the Rohingya?

There has long been a lively debate about the origins of the Rohingya Muslims—and it’s far from clear-cut. Active Rohingya campaigning is a relatively recent phenomenon, aiming to establish a separate state in Myanmar rather than seek outright independence.

Yet throughout time, the Rohingya and their political goals have not been taken seriously. When Burma progressed towards independence in 1948, the Rohingya failed to efficiently collectivise and represent their political aspirations, instead seeking ambiguous terms such as “social and economic development”, or even expressing their aims in conjunction with other political organisations.

In fact, Myanmar’s political consensus on the Rohingya has always been questionable. The attitudes of Buddhist authorities have been inconsistent—sometimes appearing to recognise the Rohingya as citizens in specific practical cases, such as paying taxes, voting in elections before 2015, etc—while at other times, denying the Rohingya temporary residence claims outright.

For many years under Myanmar’s military rule, people from other parts of Myanmar could not enter Northern Rakhine State, just as most Rohingya could not leave. Thus among the Myanmar people to this day, the understanding of the Rohingya situation is not extensive. Any solution to the Rohingya problem must be a sustainable one in order to succeed.

The non-sustainability of the current situation is very apparent. Political pressures are felt by successive Myanmar governments because of the high population growth among the Rohingya, the effect of limited education/employment prospects on Rohingya well-being, and the lack of assimilation causing inter-communal tensions to spread quickly with unpredictable consequences. High demand for international assistance is generated every time a humanitarian incident occurs. This usually involves the same international donors, so there is also a real risk of “donor fatigue”.

Furthermore, the Rohingya in Northern Rakhine State are in effect, permanently stateless: lacking ID, protection, and having no guaranteed recourse to justice. As a result, illegal emigration into neighbouring countries and people trafficking are both possible and potentially encouraged; “slave labour” in cross-border economic activities is condoned and most international human rights conventions cannot be applied effectively, if at all.

Can the international community do more to help the Rohingya?

Neither Bangladesh nor Myanmar accept the Rohingya as citizens, who are said to be the largest single group of stateless people in the world. There is little sign of this changing any time soon. The Myanmar Government “segregation” approach continued by the SLORC/SPDC military regime (from 1964–2010) provided short-term stability and allowed the Rohingya to work while maintaining their essential seclusion.  But this did not represent a long-term approach to the problem.

In the confusion of recent efforts to progress towards some solution of the Rohingya problem, one proposal was for “safe havens” in Myanmar and/or Bangladesh to allow Rohingya to move safely into Bangladesh. Not surprisingly, this was rejected by both countries for arousing an infringement on sovereignty. While such a zone might have allowed safe movement, it would have incalculable effect in terms of encouraging people to leave. Neither government wanted more people to move, or to add to the existing humanitarian risks. Such a zone might have brought a short term solution, but it would have inherent long-term disadvantages.

Current international cooperation in the area mainly involves humanitarian relief agencies—while this might have averted mass starvation, it does not underwrite the health and wellbeing of more than one million people. International mediation to produce a long-term, legally binding political solution is non-existent, but must be actively pursued. The UN Security Council is not likely to take up the Rohingya issue unless the situation deteriorates dramatically. No world leaders have taken up the Rohingya cause. There remains more to be done.

Some others have called for the United Nations to impose fresh sanctions against Myanmar because of the abuses against the Rohingya. It has been just a few years since the international community’s earlier sanctions against Myanmar were lifted (mostly in April 2012) in response to Myanmar’s free and fair by-elections, in which Daw Aung San Suu Kyi herself was elected. Two kinds of sanctions had been canvassed on this occasion: economic sanctions against Myanmar individuals believed to be indirectly responsible; and targeted sanctions against the Myanmar army.

There does not seem to have been any detailed discussions in New York about such sanctions, which may not have seriously interested permanent members of the UNSC. Sanctions against the Myanmar army could have been effective and could have been justified, but comprehensive economic sanctions would probably not have had any real effect and indeed could have harmed ordinary Myanmar citizens rather than anyone responsible. There would still be no guarantee that the offending Myanmar policies would change.

Can Australia do more to help the Rohingya?

From 1990s, Australia has provided substantial relief assistance through humanitarian agencies based in Myanmar, with full support of the Myanmar military regime. Australia also provided food aid through the WFP. Furthermore, Australia has been granting entry to Rohingya as refugees from 2005. Many of the “Burmese” entering Australia under the “humanitarian program” were Rohingya who were treated as asylum seekers/refugees and who now live, work, and study in Sydney, Melbourne, or Brisbane.

It has been reported that Australia is proposing to send back to Myanmar some (Rohingya) asylum seekers from Myanmar, who have been detained in the Manus and Nauru processing centres. Being stateless people, Australia must not attempt to “repatriate” the Rohingya or forcibly return them to Myanmar.

Australia should continue to provide humanitarian assistance directly to Myanmar to help the Rohingya, and should in principle accept them for resettlement in Australia. Furthermore, Australian Government should periodically report to the Australian people on the situation in Rakhine State.

•  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •

Trevor Wilson is a Visiting Fellow at the Department of Political & Social Change, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, located at the Australian National University. He retired in August 2003 after more than 36 years as a member of the Australian foreign service, and after serving as Australian Ambassador to Myanmar (2000–03).

Header image: a Rohingya refugee couple in Kuala Lumpur, via Overseas Development Institute on Flickr, used under Creative Commons.

More Myanmar at New Mandala

Making better laws for Myanmar

The quantity of laws being passed in Naypyidaw is impressive. The quality is another matter.

A better political economy of the Rohingya crisis

Fences and ghettoes aren’t the answer in Rakhine


Older drivers: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

In 2015, motor vehicle crashes accounted for less than 1 percent of fatalities among people 70 and older. 1People ages 70 and older are less likely to be licensed to drive compared with younger people, and drivers 70 and older also drive fewer miles. However, older drivers are keeping their licenses longer and driving more miles than in the past.

Per mile traveled, fatal crash rates increase noticeably starting at age 70-74 and are highest among drivers 85 and older. The increased fatal crash risk among older drivers is largely due to their increased susceptibility to injury, particularly chest injuries, and medical complications, rather than an increased tendency to get into crashes. 2


While Casement had always expressed a desire to be buried in Murloch Bay, Co Antrim his remains were exhumed from Pentonville and returned to Ireland where they were re-interred in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin.

Casement was given a State funeral and was buried with full military honours in 1965.

Approximately 30,000 people attended the ceremony and President of Ireland Éamon de Valera gave the graveside oration.

A volley of shots was fired over the grave of Casement, during his re-interment. This photo was taken from some distance away; there is snow in the foreground. Smoke from the gunshots is visible on the left.

Photographers can be seen on scaffolding to the left of shot. Casement's coffin is draped in an Irish tricolour and several priests can be seen gathered in front of it.

Casement's remains were re-interred in the Republican plot of Glasnevin Cemetery.


Asset Publisher

Hemp Museum -

Hemp Museum - Sant'Anatolia di Narco

Inaugurated in 2008, the Museo della Canapa of Sant'Anatolia di Narco is housed in the building that used to be the town hall.

The Museum is one of the "Antennas" of the Valnerina Valley Eco-Museum that was founded to enhance the culture, techniques and ancient knowledge of this territory.

The Museum displays document the entire cycle of transformation of raw hemp—from farming, maceration and drying to kneading and carding processes—and displays collections of textiles dating from the 17th to the 20th centuries

Piazza del Comune Vecchio
06040 - Sant'Anatolia di Narco (PG)
sito web:

Fonte Regione Umbria - Servizio Musei e soprintendenza ai beni librari

Explore the surroundings
Main attractions in the vicinity


LAWA's Gina Marie Lindsey Prioritizes Green Airports, Transport

Gina Marie Lindsey

With a constellation of regional airports, including one of the country’s busiest, LAX, Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) will play a crucial role in the greening of air travel in the United States. But in L.A., air travel is just a single piece in one of the most complex transportation puzzles in the country, where goods movement and car traffic clogs up vast and varied terrain. In the following VerdeXchange News interview, LAWA Executive Director Gina Marie Lindsey discusses the opportunities for sustainable air travel offered by efficiently managed air traffic and integrated ground access.

Airports and air traffic are widely cited as one of the largest and fastest-growing sources of pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. What efforts are currently underway, or being considered, by LAWA and other metropolitan airports around the world to mitigate and reduce emissions?

Aircrafts are the largest source of carbon emissions in our world. We are trying to reduce our contribution by encouraging new aircraft to use our airports. Aircraft manufacturers need to take some Airports and air traffic are widely cited as one of the largest and fastest-growing sources of pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.

Aircrafts are the largest source of carbon emissions in our world. We are trying to reduce our contribution by encouraging new aircraft to use our airports. Aircraft manufacturers need to take some credit for the work that they’ve done to improve the technology and reduce emissions and fuel usage for their aircraft. That’s the largest single contributor, and it’s the toughest thing we’re dealing with. The airport can, however, try to create a ground environment that lets those aircraft get in the air and out of the air as fast as possible so they’re not spending time circling, waiting for a runway to free up, and they’re not spending time waiting on the taxiway to take off.

LAWA owns and manages three airports. Focusing on landside operations, what initiatives is LAWA considering to reduce greenhouse emissions, pollution, and traffic congestion?

Really, the easiest thing for us to do to reduce emissions is to ensure easy access on the ground for vehicles. Even though I’m telling you that aircraft are the largest source of emissions, certainly the ground transportation access for passengers is a contributor. If you’ve got a lot of single occupancy vehicles coming to your airport and if it’s congested getting to your airport, you’re obviously impacting the environment more than you want to. Having efficient access for passengers and efficient access for aircraft is really what you can do on the ground to try to reduce emissions.

One of your jobs before taking over at LAWA was as manager of the Sea- Tac airport. What happened in terms of environmental and emissions mitigation during your time at that airport?

On the ground side, we were just about to launch a reconstruction of our major roadways coming into the airport because they were fairly congested; they forced people to circle around to pick people up instead of parking and going into the airport to pick people up. There was a reconstruction of the roadways there that was going to make it easier for folks to get in, but not so easy for them to just circle around in front of the terminal. On the air side, the effort to build a third runway in Seattle dealt with the inclement weather. About 40 percent of the time, there is weather that puts aircraft in an inclement flying configuration. The close spacing of the runways on that airfield meant that, about 40 percent of the time, we had aircraft circling so we could have the appropriate separation. That, of course, was a major project, costing over $1 billion building for the runway, which will be open next year. The net effect creates an efficient airfield for all weather conditions.

Seattle’s Mayor Nickels has led the U.S. Conference of Mayors initiative on climate change, and Mayor Villaraigosa of Los Angeles has proposed some very aggressive goals for the city of L.A. As executive director of LAWA, how do you prioritize a green agenda, especially as you carry out the reconstruction of LAWA’s three airports?

The Board of Airport Commissioners has adopted a sustainability program that is comprehensive not only regarding how we operate, but also how we develop. On the development side of things, we are going to do our very best to be sure that everything we build has a LEED certification where applicable. We are in the middle of the reconstruction project for the Tom Bradley International Terminal. We’ve incorporated design standards for that project, which I think, when delivered, will be the first LEED-certified terminal renovation program in the world. Certainly, there are new terminals that have been built to LEED-certification standards, but I don’t think that there has been a renovation of a terminal that has received LEED certification. We’re making that a high priority; the board is making it a high priority. That will certainly be a key value that drives how we design all of our projects and rebuild this airport.

People involved in airport management weren’t brought up and trained in environmental sciences, yet the climate change and emissions reductions movement has begun to dominate the public environment. How do you learn to “connect the green dots” at LAWA’s airports, especially given all the pressing priorities on your plate?

Somebody said that the key attribute of the 21st century is that everybody will be learning throughout their lives. I have to say that that is certainly a requirement for airport directors these days because, you’re right, the whole idea of environmental sensitivity and green values was not something that was a formal part of the traditional professional-life education. I connect the dots by being sure that I’ve got folks on staff that are very educated on this—because I’m not—folks that are passionate about creating a sustainability program and are able to drive the values and principles of sustainability throughout the organization, incorporating them into everything we do.

LAWA consists of more than just LAX; it includes regional airports, such as L.A./Ontario. In a recent interview in the San Bernardino County Sun, you implored people to fly out of L.A./Ontario in order to regionalize the use of these airports, which can have an affect on climate change issues. What are the challenges of making regional airports a more viable part of the air travel landscape?

We’ve got Ontario, Van Nuys, and Palmdale. From the standpoint of commercial service, effectively we’re really only talking about Ontario and Palmdale as alternatives to LAX. We are trying, number one, to be sure that we’ve got the facilities on the ground that are appropriate to growing those airports for commercial passenger service. It’s important to recognize, though, that it’s not just the airport that is going to be key to making regionalism work. The surface transportation network that brings passengers from the population base to these airports is absolutely critical. Right now, we’ve got a system of highways that doesn’t necessarily make it an attractive option to drive 25 miles to get to an airport. That’s a real obstacle for us in building air service at Ontario and Palmdale. If we could figure out a way to help on the regional transportation challenges so that it creates a more conducive market for these airports, then I think we’ve got some real potential. Of course, traffic at Ontario is steadily growing. Traffic at Palmdale is going to be a real challenge. We’ve got one flight there now, serving the Palmdale/San Francisco route, which has a subsidy promise to United Airlines. It will be very important that there is market acceptance. For those that live close to these airports, they really need to make it a major objective to fly out of these airports, or else we will lose the service.

At the GreenXchange Conference in December, you’ll be on a panel with former Transportation Secretary Mineta. What’s the interface between airports such as Seattle and L.A. and the federal government? How does the communication function between government and the airports and between the airports themselves in order for all parties to achieve their goals?

In the past, I think that the federal government has taken a fairly vertical approach to transportation challenges. There’s been the highway program, the transit program, and the aviation program. There hasn’t always been a broad understanding on the federal level that intermodalism is truly necessary to deal with congestion in some of the most popular corridors. If you look at the FAA long-term plan, even if they get the next generation of air transportation technology implemented, there are two large red dots in sectors of the country that are still problematic—one of those is the Northeast corridor and the other is Southern California. So, I think there is a growing awareness on the part of the federal Department of Transportation that the various modes of transportation need to be interlinked so that there is a true ability to disperse traffic from what may have historically been the most popular places. In the new Federal Aviation bill that is currently being contemplated by Congress, I think you’ll see more flexibility with some of the aviation money that was historically channeled only toward airport planning and aviation planning for specific airports. Now, there is more willingness and flexibility to look regionally at aviation system issues and how other modes of transportation might affect those airports. That, I think, is a major move in the right direction—for the federal government to recognize that local governments and local mobile transportation hubs need to look at their issues in a broader context.

As you’ve mentioned, the ingress and egress at LAX and the other LAWA airports depends on autos and other ground transport. There is no mass transit into any of LAWA’s airports (i.e., the Green Line and mass transit lines don’t reach the LAX). With what’s happening in New York, Chicago, Heathrow, and other large airports, what is the chance that you can alter transit priorities and secure support for a regional transport system linked into the expansion plans for LAX?

I’m hopeful that there is a good chance for that. In this day and age, it would be ridiculous for us to not have a mass transit node that feeds into LAX. I say that with some chagrin because LAX is the only major airport I know of that doesn’t have direct freeway access. We’ve got some challenges on the ground transportation side of how to get to LAX that I think are pretty signifi cant. However, I think they are resolvable. The future will absolutely require looking at an airport as an intermodal transportation mode. We need a mass transit connection somewhere close to the central terminal area at LAX. Part of our long-term development plan is to provide an automated people mover from someplace east of the central terminal right now, which would also logically be a transit stop. Combining a transit stop with the automated people mover provides a convenient transfer so that folks never have to use their automobiles and can still get directly to their terminals.

If we were to do another interview a year from now, what would the discussion be about? What do you foresee as the issues that will dominate your time during the coming year?

I hope we’ll be talking about specific plans of action and schedules, whereby some of these needed ground transportation improvements will get in place, and a plan of action to potentially fix some of our geography challenges on the airfields.


DIRS21 is a web-based reservations and channel mangement system, which helps to open up the world of online distribution. The compny have been providing solutions for hotels, restaurants, and the tourism industry for over 20 years. Their device is: Better coverage, more bookings, higher turnover Using the DIRS21 Office, partners can manage all of the information and data to optimize personal success. Generate bookings on your website and maximize their number by fine-tuning your prices, availability and core data.
More than 5 000 hotels and accommodation providers use DIRS21, making it the leading channel management system in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Recommended by the leading booking portals BOOKING and HRS.

Category: Tag:

You have successfully subscribe! Thank you!


Zero Tolerance

An evident symptom of worn-out word is its incorporation into the discourse on the politically correct. When a word falls into this black hole (where everything can fit because there is nothing there, and what does enter loses its purpose), paradoxically reduces its usefulness upon increasing its use. Recently my attention was called to a television commercial which promoted special products for the lactose-intolerant, saying:  « Zero tolerance to «that’s just a woman’s thing». Zero tolerance to not feeling good. Stick with what’s good! »

The text is great! Besides selling, with the final phrase, the philosophy of the mass-man and his «impression (…) that life is easy», against what Ortega y Gasset warned us a century ago, adopts the euphemism of «zero tolerance», which has penetrated into our society little by little. This recently born syntagm came to life linked to the discourse against the so-called «domestic violence» —another euphemism of the politically correct: bad influences also function in language— and it has been slowly incorporated into other discourses against uncivil or criminal behavior. The topic is once again in fashion due to the sad data provided by the EU and due to the recent assassinations of women in our country.

Due to the graveness of the situation of violence against women, the euphemism of intolerance may go by unnoticed, but its implications are also important. On the one hand, tolerance is presented as a quality in which different degrees exist, among them degree zero, the absence of tolerance, meaning intolerance. On the other hand, this latter term is usually avoided because to be intolerant is to be dogmatic, to not accept the relativity of the truth. Obviously, the discourse is contradictory.

An error is understandable. At the base of civilized and democratic society lie human rights as an undisputed truth (absolute, not relative), based on inherent dignity to the human being. Take inherent as meaning farther than any external circumstance, whether it be a law, an opinion, the need to solve the crisis or the conjunction of the stars.

However, this dignity and its obliged respect do not extend to acts and ideas. The prevailing belief is that most of all, we must be tolerant and respectful and realize that all opinions are respectable and must be respected. The problem or contradiction arises when we find ourselves before a behavior that goes against the basic principles of society; when we find that someone is of the opinion, for example, that man is superior to women and therefore, has the right to abuse women. Other similar ideas were, for example that the Jews deserved to be exterminated or more recently, that the defense of a religion had the right to crash planes and blow up trains, killing thousands of persons. In such cases, what can be done? The maximum of «the most fundamental is to not be intolerant» cannot be contravened and therefore, it cannot be denied that these opinions «have their own truth». The answer is to resort to the subterfuge of the euphemism: we are not intolerant; we have «zero tolerance».

It would be a good idea to remember Machado now: «Your truth? No, the Truth». Let’s not deceive ourselves; not everything is relevant. Not all opinions have the same importance and we should not tolerate everything. If things were this way, neither good nor bad would exist.  Everything would be negotiable and we would not be able to censure opinions or behaviors: everything would have to be permitted. It is strange that these ideas frequently are based on Ortega’s philosophy. Ortega’s perspective (whoever reads very little, explains badly and cannot be understood easily) does not speak of multiple truths, but rather of different perspectives regarding a one and only truth, which is human nature to try and reach: «Man is the being that absolutely needs the truth», he said. This implies that we should not settle for just branding everything with an opinion, subjective and valid like any other. In other words, all human beings merit respect and therefore, they all have the right to freely express their opinions; but this does not mean that all opinions have the same value (no do they necessarily have any value at all). No one would ever think to tell a doctor, when he gives a prescription for a cough syrup that we need, that «this would just be his opinion»; however, we feel that a neighbor’s opinion is valid when she recommends another type of cough syrup that «worked for her».

Let us free ourselves from the dictatorship of the «politically correct»; let us not permit that liberties be on top of that which gives them meaning (human dignity), nor should we accept the opposite, an opinion justifying the ending of a life or vice versa, that someone uses freedom of thought to demand that the ending of human lives be approved.

Deja un comentario


E-City E-City

Q. From when can tax refund be availed?

The Federal Tax Authority – FTA has declared that Tax Refund Scheme for tourists will be initiated from November 2018. In this scheme, tourists will be able to avail VAT refund if they shop from retailers like ECITY who have registered for Tax Refund Scheme for Tourists.

Q. Where can tax refund be availed?

Tax can be refunded from the airport (Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah International Airports) or any point of exit in the UAE. 16th December onwards, there would be an addition of 9 more refund points: Al Maktoum airport, Abu Dhabi Port Zayed, Al Ain Airport, Al Ain land border, Fujairah Airport, Ras Al Khaimah Airport, Al Ghuwaifat land border, Hatta land border and Dubai Mina Rashid Harbour..

Q. How much tax refund are you eligible for?

You are eligible for 5% Tax Refund for purchases you make in the UAE excluding an additional processing fee of 4.80 AED per invoice Among the incentives offered by the new system is the refund of VAT on purchases of up to AED 10,000 in cash for every overseas tourist within every 24 hours, while there is no maximum cap where amounts due for refund are paid to your credit card.

Q. What is the eligibility criteria?

▶ You must be an “Overseas tourist”, which means any person who is not resident in any of the Implementing States and who is not a crew member on a flight or aircraft leaving an Implementing State. Therefore, under the current rules, GCC Nationals are eligible.

▶ There is a minimum purchase requirement of AED 250 per tax invoice to avail tourist refund scheme.

▶ You must be above 18 years of age

Q. Can you buy your goods online?

Yes, if the goods are picked up from the store in person. The receipt should state the same date as the date of collection.

Q. What’s the process of availing the tax refund?

▶ You must purchase from a retailer like ECity who has registered for “Tax Refund Scheme for Tourist”.

▶ You must present a valid passport upon request of Tax refund for every purchase.

▶ A Tax-Free tag will be issued by the retailer for the recipt.

▶ You must keep all receipts with the Tax-Free tag on the back of the receipt and must validate the transaction at the point of exit during departure (airport). Visit the Planet validation point: For airports, this is before checking in and going through security.

▶ Finally, present your receipts or tax invoice with Tax-free Tag, credit cards you used to make the purchase, and passport at the validation point to confirm your refunds. You will be refunded through your credit card or cash.

Q. Are there any exceptions?

▶ Goods that are partially or fully consumed in the UAE are not eligible.

▶ Goods that have been used, fully or partly, in the UAE and are not accompanied by the original packaging (for example: a smartphone that was used in the UAE and is accompanied by the original packaging upon leaving the UAE is eligible, but if the packaging is not present it is not eligible);

▶ Goods purchased online, unless they are picked up in person at the store, and the receipt and Tax Free Tag are issued on the same day as the collection date.

▶ You must bring the goods upon leaving the Emirates.

▶ Goods sold to companies.

Q. What time should you arrive for your flight to complete the tax-free process?

It is advised to arrive few minutes early to validate the tax free tags.

Q. How much time do you have to complete the whole procedure?

Your tax-free tag needs to be validated within 90 days of the purchase date.

Q. Can you request refund on someone else’s behalf?

The person requesting the refund must be the person whose name and passport number are recorded during issuing the tag. Requesting a refund on someone else’s behalf is not allowed.

Q. What if your refund is more than 10,000 AED?

Cash refund is available after airport security, and only up to 10,000 AED per person in any 24-hour period. For higher amounts the only refund method available is a card refund.

Q. What if there is no cash refund agent present at the end point?

If exiting through points without a refund cash agent, a card refund is the only option available. If you validated a Tax Free Tag and chose cash as the refund method, but didn’t collect cash before leaving the UAE, then you will be able to enter your card details later on Planet Payment’s website using the Tax Free Tag number and check the status of your refund. For any queries regarding refunds, Tourists can contact at tourists@planetpayment.com.

Q. What if your card currency is not AED?

For refunds to cards in which the currency is not AED, foreign exchange rates will apply to convert funds into the card currency.

Q. What if you wish to return your products?

If the tax-free tag has been validated in the system, the FTA states that there can not be any return or refund possible. However, if the tax-free tag has not been validated, it can be returned or refunded subject to the retailer’s decision.

Q. What if you have partially consumed the good?

You can claim the refund on partially used (mobile phones, laptops, etc) goods but not partially consumed products (milk, perfume, etc).

Q. Can you avail the tax refund on products sent through courier?

No, the products have to carried out of the country by the tourist when leaving the country. They cannot courier it.