title: The <DATA> syntax in perl
body: <p>Where can I find more about the following syntax in perl?</p>
  
  <p>The connection between <code>&lt;DATA&gt;</code> and <code>__DATA__</code> is unclear.</p>
  
  <pre><code>while (my $date_string = &lt;DATA&gt;) {
    chomp($date_string);
    next if not length $date_string;
    print "$date_string ist Unixtime ",
          $lang_date-&gt;str2time($date_string),
          " und ",
      $lang_date-&gt;time2str( '%d.%m.%Y %T (%Z)',$lang_date-&gt;str2time($date_string) ),
          "\n";
  }
  
  __DATA__
  1.3.1999
  1 Marz 1999
  1. Marz 1999
  1/3/1999
  </code></pre>