QUES: A month ago , the Commerce Department estimated that GDP had grown at a 7.2 percent rate in the third quarter .

A month ago , the Commerce Department said GDP grew at a 7.2 percent rate .

The sentences above mean the same or not?
****
ANS: yes

QUES: Police said her two small children were alone in the apartment for up to two days .

Police said her two small children were alone there for up to two days as she lay dead .

The sentences above mean the same or not?
****
ANS: no

QUES: Three Southern politicians who risked their political careers by fighting against bigotry and intolerance were honored Monday with John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Awards for 2003 .

Three Southern politicians who ''stood up to ancient hatreds ' ' were honored Monday with Profile in Courage Awards from the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum .

The sentences above mean the same or not?
****
ANS:
yes