“If your success is not on your own terms, if it looks good to the world but does not feel good in your heart, it is not success at all.”     VBA's Positive News Euro zone economic sentiment hits 15-month high in July Economic morale in the euro zone reached a 15-month high in July as sentiment improved in the currency bloc's four largest economies, underpinning Europe's chances of a gradual exit from nearly three years of economic downturn. In a positive sign, the European Commission said on Tuesday its economic sentiment index rose to 92.5 points in July -- its highest since April 2012 -- from 91.3 points in June. Separately, the euro zone's business climate index, which measures the phase of the business cycle, improved to its best reading in 15 months.     Euro zone unemployment falls for first time in two years The number of people out of a job in the euro zone has fallen for the first time in more than two years, the latest sign the bloc may make a muted recovery from recession later this year. In June, 24,000 fewer Europeans in the single currency area were jobless compared with May, EU statistics agency Eurostat said on Wednesday, the first decrease since April 2011. Talk of a recovery has intensified after euro zone business and economic sentiment indices rose to a 15-month high in July, helped by the European Central Bank's pledge to stand behind the euro zone, as well as a recovering US economy and a lessening of harsh austerity policies.      US economy accelerates, further gains seen US economic growth unexpectedly accelerated in the second quarter, laying a firmer foundation for the rest of the year that could bring the Federal Reserve a step closer to cutting back its monetary stimulus. A separate report showed private employers maintained a higher pace of hiring in July, adding to the brightening economic picture. US: Private employers add 200,000 jobs in July A private survey shows US businesses created a healthy 200,000 jobs this month. The payroll company ADP said Wednesday that companies hired in July at the fastest pace since December. And it revised up its estimate of the number of jobs the private sector created in June. 'Job growth is consistently good -- solid across industries,' said Mark Zandi, chief economist with Moody's Analytics, which compiled the jobs report for ADP. Video of the Day:

World Round-Up

Political + Crucial meet between BJP and RSS to decide poll strategy begins         The Union Cabinet will on Thursday discuss the amendment to the Right To Information (RTI) Act to keep political parties out of its ambit. The Cabinet will seek to ratify the amendments proposed which is likely to be notified as an ordinance. Most political parties have given its nod to the amendment. The move comes after the Central Information Commission (CIC) last month held that six national parties the Congress, BJP, NCP, CPI-M, CPI and BSP are substantially funded indirectly by the Central government and are required to appoint Public Information Officers as they have the character of a public authority under the RTI Act. Government sources had said that the Law Ministry had earlier cleared the ordinance route to amend the Right to Information Act but since the dates of the Monsoon session have already been announced and some parties have expressed uneasiness over supporting the ordinance route, it had been decided to bring a bill before Parliament instead. Sources had claimed that back channel talks with all major parties had concluded. BJP had maintained that it will be difficult for them to support the Ordinance route to amend the RTI Act because they were opposing the Ordinance on food security. At the same time, they had said that they would support amendments, if they were brought in form of a bill in the upcoming session beginning August 5, highly-placed sources in the government had said. The amendments state that declaring political parties as public authorities under the Right to Information Act would "hamper their smooth internal functioning since it will encourage political rivals to file RTI applications with malicious intentions". They maintained that the Representation of the People Act and the Income Tax Act provide sufficient transparency regarding financial aspects of political parties, it was learnt. Under Section 2 of the RTI Act, the definition of public authority in the proposed amendment will make it clear that "it shall not include any political party registered under the Representation of the Peoples Act", the sources had said.  Astrology Aries March 21 to April 19 You'll find it easy to recruit the help of someone in your clan to assist with your hectic schedule or a demanding home related project. In fact, this relative will likely ease any anxiety you have about being overscheduled. If you operate your own business, it's also possible that you'll decide to hire someone you're related to on a trial basis. This family member is likely to dazzle you with his or her level of competence on the job, much to your delight.           Taurus April 20 to May 20 There's a strong possibility that you and someone special will share heartfelt sentiments with each other. If you've recently started to date someone, you and this person might even exchange tender declarations of love. Venus and Mars will embrace in a gorgeous link today, opening up romantic potential in a solid way. Since Mars will be in your communication sector and Venus in your true love sector, you'll have little trouble saying what you feel.                                     Gemini May 21 to June 20 A positive real estate opportunity may present itself today and if this happens, you may decide to jump at the prospect. In addition, you might choose to have a family heirloom or piece of jewelry appraised, or, if you and a relative are in business together, you might discover that you're now turning a nice profit together after a stretch of diligent effort to make your business a success. Looking to decorate your home? Today you'll have the perfect shopping experience.                           Cancer June 21 to July 22  You'll be a force to be reckoned with now that Mars, the planet of stamina, will be in Cancer. This will truly be a gorgeous time to move ahead with gusto in any personal endeavor you hope to successfully get off the ground. Today expect a positive window of opportunity to open up that will help you move forward in any type of negotiation or conversation you need to have in order to help further one of your personal goals.                                                         Leo July 23 to Aug. 22  Today will be the time to cultivate one of your special talents that you typically keep under wraps. You might have the impression that this ability is one that you can't do much with outside of personal enjoyment. In reality, nothing could be farther from the truth and you might be able to monetize it. Today, if you put forth a small amount of effort, you'll experience a boost in confidence that helps you see the possibilities.                               BUSINESS+VE                                                                              China factory sector struggles, big firms fare better     China's factory activity stayed weak in July as persistent pressure on the economy extended into the third quarter, although bigger firms fared better as the government moved to bolster growth, a pair of surveys showed on Thursday. A small improvement in the official PMI offered some optimism for an economy that has slowed in nine of the past 10 quarters, but analysts cautioned against rushing to a conclusion the world's second-largest economy had arrested its decline. The government has tried to allay concerns the economy has slowed more than expected as it pushes through reforms, recently announcing a series of targeted support measures and expressing confidence of meeting its 7.5 percent growth target this year. "The government needs to do more to strengthen this momentum if you look at the official figure. There are still a lot of uncertainties in the economy," said Haibin Zhu, chief China economist at JPMorgan Chase in Hong Kong. The official PMI, which focuses on big and state-owned firms, published by the National Bureau of Statistics, rose to 50.3 in July from 50.1 in June. Economists had expected it to fall to 49.9. In contrast, the HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by Markit Economics Research, showed activity shrank for a third straight month as it fell to an 11-month low of 47.7, matching a preliminary figure last week. A reading above 50 indicates expanding activity while a figure below that level points to a contraction. "The HSBC PMI concentrates on small companies, so we can see the small companies are more affected by the liquidity tension apparently," said Wei Yao, China economist at Societe Generale in Hong Kong. "I think the official report does offer a slim hope that the economy is stabilising at least, but it is still a bit early to conclude that things have turned around decisively." The better-than-expected official PMI buoyed shares in China and Asia and helped the Australian dollar, considered a proxy for Chinese growth because of the countries' strong trade links, pull away from a three-year low hit in early trade. The politburo, China's top decision-making body, has pledged stable economic growth in the second half of this year as it presses ahead with reforms and restructuring. While keeping the door shut for big stimulus, the government has unveiled polices to boost spending in social housing, urban infrastructure, high-speed rail and energy-saving industries, and tax breaks for small firms. Analysts in a Reuters poll forecast annual GDP growth slowing to 7.4 percent in the third quarter from 7.5 percent in the second. Full-year growth is forecast to be 7.5 percent - in line with the official target HEALTH+VE                                                              Foods that don't let you slim down       Your diet staples could be sabotaging your efforts to slim down and denying you vitamins and minerals Those low-fat, low-taste alternatives passed off as 'health foods' could, in fact, be costing you your health. It's easy to be misled with labels such as 'high fiber', and 'natural'. In reality, many so called 'healthy' foods contain high levels of fat, sugar and salt. Reading the ingredient list and nutrition facts column could help you choose the right items. Here's a round up of the things you consider good that may actually be bad: Honey You think honey is healthier and more natural than sugar? You are wrong. Both contain similarly high levels of glucose. Because honey is denser, one tablespoon actually contains more calories than the same sized spoonful of granulated sugar. Eat too much honey and you'll gain just as much weight as you will gorging on other sweet stuff. Low-fat salad dressing Scientists at Iowa State University, US, have found that low-fat dressing cancels out the goodness in salad. Conversely, using olive oil, or a little butter, boosted vitamin intake because fat helps your body absorb nutrients from vegetables more efficiently. Breakfast cereals Studies show that people who eat cereal for breakfast tend to be slimmer than those who don't — but only if they're opting for a healthy brand. Choose the wrong box and you may as well start your day with a slice of cake, as some cereals are high in sugar and fat. The main ones to watch out for are your flavoured, chocolate and sugar-coated or frosted kids' ones. So always read the label. . Skimmed milk Although guzzling whole milk has been demonised as a health no-no in recent years, research shows that it could be a better choice than its skimmed counterpart. Whole milk only contains around 4 per cent fat per 100ml as opposed to the 20 per cent plus deemed to be in the 'high fat' category. Skimmed milk contains 0.1 per cent fat. So switching from whole to skimmed milk won't make a huge difference. Skimmed milk is less nutritious because cream contains fatsoluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Research reveals that full-fat milk boosts metabolism and help you burn more calories, while also lowering the risk of heart disease. Raw vegetables Cooking is believed to kill the vitamins and minerals, but studies have found the opposite. While cooking may destroy some (but not all) vitamin C, the process boosts the uptake of disease-fighting nutrients — antioxidants. A 2008 study found that vegetables such as carrots, spinach, mushrooms, asparagus, cabbage and peppers supply more antioxidants when cooked than when eaten raw. Diet drinks They seem like a straightforward way for soft drink lovers to cut calories but experts think diet drinks could actually scupper weight loss. While the artificial sweeteners in such drinks can convince the taste buds they're consuming sugar, the brain can't be tricked so easily. When it's denied the calories it's expecting, your body goes on a calorie hunt, making you feel hungry and eat more.          Virgo Aug. 23 to Sept. 22  Your social life will be busier than ever, thanks to Mars touring the area of your chart that rules friends and groups. You might have recently taken the lead in a group project or humanitarian endeavor. Today, as Mars will embrace Venus - now in Virgo - you'll have an even stronger dose of magnetism that will help you gain the support of others. Romantically, you and a friend might discover a strong affinity for each other. Don't be afraid to explore these feelings.                                 Libra Sept. 23 to Oct. 22 There's every prospect that you're about to launch a vital new business endeavor or reach for a career goal that will help elevate your status to an even greater level. Mars, the planet of action, will be at the top of your chart, giving you the entrepreneurial ability and gumption to take charge of your professional direction. Today, Mars will connect to Venus, allowing you to showcase your special talents for the entire world to see.                             Scorpio Oct. 23 to Nov. 21 An exciting opportunity to take advantage of a broadcasting, advertising, or publishing venture - or to promote an existing campaign - may be underway. If you're in the type of industry that allows you to give radio, television, or even live Internet appearances, then today will be an ideal time to partake in any such invitation. You're likely to tap into a whole new audience, which will give your work greater scope. You'll be thrilled.                               Sagittarius Nov. 22 to Dec. 21 If you hope to obtain venture capital or a loan in order to secure funding for a career endeavor, today might be your lucky day. Not only will you have a special ability to convince someone with the clout to help you to open up his or her wallet, but you'll also have an extraordinary ability to turn a profit quickly. Any investment you make now in your long term future will likely pay off. Trust your business instincts.                                                 Capricorn Dec. 22 to Jan. 19 If you're in any situation where you need to seek legal counsel or retain an attorney, then you're in luck. There's every potential now for you to find a lawyer who has your best interests at heart, along with the talent and prudence you'll need. If you already have a court appearance scheduled for today, you'll likely be pleased with the outcome. Alternatively, if you're considering hiring an agent or publicist, the right person for the job is likely to appear.                               Aquarius Jan. 20 to Feb. 18  There's no shortage of work for you these days with Jupiter touring your workaday sector. With Mars, the planet of assertive drive, also in this part of your chart (until August 27), you'll find it easier than ever to work feverishly in order to beat even the most impossible deadlines. Although you might be overscheduled, these days you're not likely to admit it. While Mars is offering extra support, you'll have every ounce of stamina you need to push ahead on assignments.                             Pisces Feb. 19 to March 20  Your romantic prospects are remarkable. Jupiter will be in your true love sector and will remain here until next July. This is a once-in-twelve-year opportunity to remain more open to the possibility of making a true heart-to-heart connection with someone special. Today, Mars - also in this part of your chart - will embrace Venus, the planet of love, in your partnership sector. A new romantic interest may quickly turn into an exclusive relationship. Enjoy the bliss!               Moral Story           SMS     “Each successful person has a painful story. Each painful story has a Successful ending. Accept the pain and Taste the success..”       LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS     Love will not serve those who do not live for her, and in her, and to whom she is not the breath of life.   LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS    Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.       A teacher asked her class for sentences using the word "beans".. "My father grows beans," said one student. "My father cooks beans," said another. Then a Little Santa spoke up: "We are all human beans."

EDUCATION +VE Empty seats haunt engineering courses in Tamil Nadu colleges       COIMBATORE: With counselling for engineering seats coming to an end, several colleges have been unable to fill seats even for popular courses. "Around 37 colleges could not fill a single seat for electrical and electronics engineering, while the same was the case for IT in 30 institutions across the state," said Moorthy Selvakumaran, an educational consultant. Several institutions have failed to fill a single seat in the computer science branch too. While the top engineering colleges have been able to fill seats, lesser-known ones are left in the lurch. This is a clear indication that there are more engineering seats than needed. Data available on Anna University's website indicates that a little less than 80,000 seats have gone vacant this academic year. Clearly, engineering education is facing a crisis. The economic downturn has affected the intake of students. And with employability no longer assured, students are increasingly careful about choosing the course, the branch of study and the college. Colleges that are unable to make the right pitch for students are falling by the wayside, forcing managements to put up their institutions for sale. Many academics blame the glut in vacant seats on the increasing number of technical institutions in the state. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has been liberal in granting permission to start colleges as well increasing seats in the existing ones. The result is that there are fewer takers for the lesser known colleges. While AICTE officials maintain that allowing colleges to increase their intake will aid in the 'survival of the fittest', there are many academics who feel otherwise. They say that established institutions increase intake without enhancing their facilities, allowing them to increase profits while the students from poor backgrounds are left to choose the lower rung institutions. "Many of these colleges unable to fill seats have been established in the last two years," says the chairman of a new college who spoke on condition of anonymity. According to him, colleges should either be established or have established 'business networks' to. "Ability to organise attractive programmes and having a network of agents capable of luring students through advertisements are essential for a new established institution," he said. "It is only natural for students to opt for the best institutions. However, there may be other reasons why colleges are unable to fill seats," said V Balusamy, an engineering lecturer and the zonal chairman of the Association of University Teachers (AUT). He says that the permission to increase seats in the leading colleges have eaten up the share of those in the lower rung. "Though healthy competition is good, this has led to many unhealthy trends," he said. Many of these institutions have started taking in more students without increasing the faculty or increasing infrastructure. This increases the advertising expenses of colleges which are eventually borne by students, he said. SPORTS +VE Victoria Azarenka celebrates birthday with win           CARLSBAD: Top-seeded Victoria Azarenka, playing for the first time since an injury withdrawal from Wimbledon, celebrated her birthday with a WTA win at Carlsbad on Wednesday. Australian Open champion Azarenka, ranked third in the world, cruised into the quarter-finals with a 6-2, 6-3 second-round victory over former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy. "Just going on the court and competing was so much joy for me," said Azarenka, who turned 24 on Wednesday. She hadn't played since limping out of Wimbledon after hurting her right knee in her first-round win over Portugal's Maria Joao Koehler. "I missed playing and I was just happy to be able to do something I've been training for," Azarenka said. "I enjoyed the time I had to go through rehab and learn so many new things. I was excited to see how I would handle it in the match. It was a good feeling to have that platform, and I'll just try to make it better and better now." Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, the third seed, also eased into the quarters, beating Britain's Laura Robson 6-1, 6-2 Kvitova hadn't been counting on an easy passage. "I didn't know exactly what to expect from myself because the first match after preparing for the US hardcourts is always difficult, plus I lost to her at the Australian Open," Kvitova said. "But this is tennis, and every day is different, and that's how I approached the match. I played well and my serve was great today. We practiced very hard on my serve back home after Wimbledon." Fourth-seeded Roberta Vinci of Italy advanced with a 6-4, 6-2 win over American Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Vinci will next face either US qualifier Coco Vandeweghe or former world number one Ana Ivanovic. Ivanovic, the seventh seed from Serbia, rallied to beat defending champion Dominika Cibulkova 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the last match of the first round. Cibulkova, who won the title up the California coast at Stanford on Sunday, was looking perfectly able to maintain her momentum as she took the opening set. But with the second set deadlocked at 3-3, Ivanovic came alive, winning eight games to take the second frame and build a 5-0 lead in the third. "As soon as the draw came out I thought this was one of the toughest first-round matches, but I was really happy with my performance today, especially in the last two sets," Ivanovic said. "Since Wimbledon I've been working on consistency and hitting a lot of balls, and I did work out in the gym a lot, trying to get stronger and more stable. This gives me good motivation to keep doing that." Fifth-seeded Australian Samantha Stosur was in action on Wednesday night, taking on Kazakh qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva. But first, Swiss great Martina Hingis was on court in her first WTA match since her second retirement in 2007, playing doubles with Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova.      Chennai Express Chennai Express Movie Name :   Chennai Express Release Date :   August 9, 2013 Genre :  Comedy Producer : Gauri Khan Director :   Rohit Shetty Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar Cast : Shahrukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Sathyaraj, Manorama.   Synopsis: The filming began at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai on 5th October 2012 . The lead actor was dressed in black casuals and the actress in a South Indian attire, wearing Kanjeevaram saree. Filming was done at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station with minimum crew members. These working stills of the lead actor were unofficially released in mid-October 2012. In November 2012, the cast and crew was off to Goa for the first filming schedule. The railway station of Vasco da Gama was used as a double up, portraying Kalyan. A romantic scene on board a train passing next to Dudhsagar Falls was also shot. In December 2012, the team was off to Jakarta for some scenes. By early January 2013, the next schedule was supposed to happen in Ooty but Khan opined that the opted place would be too far from commercial venue, Mumbai. Hence, recreation of the lanes of Ooty along with some of its tourist spots, was constructed as a set on the outskirts of Panchgani in Wai by art director Narendra Ruharikar. It took over 40 days to make the set at an estimated cost of INR1.5 crore (US$260,000). The Wai schedule of filming ran for entire month of March 2013. A 10-day shooting schedule began in Munnar, Kerala from mid of April 2013, scenes were canned at Devikulam Lake, Meesapulimala, Wagavara and Kannimala. The shoot had to be stopped for a few days due to the heavy rainfall and the schedule was slightly extended until end of the same month. A press conference was also held in the town Munnar. In May 2013, certain scenes were canned in North Goa The lead actress wrapped up all her portions of shoot on 25th May 2013. Khan flew to Hyderabad by end of May 2013 for remaining filming.    The Statue of Liberty's tablet is two feet thick. " INSPIRING STORY "   Keep your dream     I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro.     He has let me use his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs.   The last time I was there he introduced me by saying, “I want to tell you why I let Jack use my horse.   It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of an itinerant horse trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to ranch, training horses.   As a result, the boy’s high school career was continually interrupted.   When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up.   “That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse ranch.   He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track.   Then he drew a detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch. “He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back.   On the front page was a large red F with a note that read, `See me after class.’   “The boy with the dream went to see the teacher after class and asked, `Why did I receive an F?’   “The teacher said, `This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from an itinerant family. You have no resources. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money.   You have to buy the land. You have to pay for the original breeding stock and later you’ll have to pay large stud fees.   There’s no way you could ever do it.’ Then the teacher added, `If you will rewrite this paper with a more realistic goal, I will reconsider your grade.’   “The boy went home and thought about it long and hard.   He asked his father what he should do. His father said, `Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.’   “Finally, after sitting with it for a week, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all. He stated, “You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream.   ”Monty then turned to the assembled group and said, “I tell you this story because you are sitting in my 4,000-square-foot house in the middle of my 200-acre horse ranch.   I still have that school paper framed over the fireplace.” He added, “The best part of the story is that two summers ago that same schoolteacher brought 30 kids to camp out on my ranch for a week.”   When the teacher was leaving, he said, “Look, Monty, I can tell you this now. When I was your teacher, I was something of a dream stealer.

“Every failure redirects and opens a new path; every step on the new path, after failure, will turn into success. So the beginning of success starts with failure.”