Within this sector another distinction can be made between operations of either an active or passive nature.

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Sun, of course, is touting Java's cross-platform nature in the active appliance arena.

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Trading, by its nature, is active management and index fund managers did a lot of trading just to stay in the game.

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While BNP Paribas, the leading French bank, the only foreign bank active in Iran, the nature of its activities in that country is sufficiently important to merit investor attention.

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"The tablet corresponds to the playful nature of Babbel exercises and ensures that learners remain active and focused, and thus achieve rapid progress, " says Miriam Pleininger, head of content production at babbel.com.

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