http://www.kkl.org.il/kkl/kklMain_eng.aspx
The Jewish National Fund (Hebrew: קרן קימת לישראל, Keren Kayemet LeYisrael) (abbreviated as JNF, and sometimes KKL) was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Palestine (later Israel) for Jewish settlement. The JNF is a quasi-governmental, non-profit organisation. [1][2] By 2007, it owned 13% of the total land in Israel.[3] Since its inception, the JNF has planted over 240 million trees in Israel. It has also built 180 dams and reservoirs, developed 250,000 acres (1,000 km2) of land and established more than 1,000 parks.[4]In 2002, the JNF was awarded the Israel Prize for lifetime achievement and special contribution to society and the State of Israel.[5][6] The JNF was founded at the Fifth Zionist Congress in Basel in 1901 with Theodor Herzl's support based on the proposal of a German Jewish mathematician, Zvi Hermann Schapira.[7] Early land purchases were completed in Judea and the Lower Galilee. In 1909, the JNF played a central role in the founding of Tel Aviv. The establishment of the “Olive Tree Fund” marked the beginning of Diaspora support of afforestation efforts. The Blue Box (known in Yiddish as a pushke) has been part of the JNF since its inception, symbolizing the partnership between Israel and the Diaspora. In the period between the two world wars, about one million of these blue and white tin collection boxes could be found in Jewish homes throughout the world.[8] From 1902 until the late 1940s, the JNF sold JNF stamps to raise money. For a brief period in May 1948, JNF stamps were used as postage stamps during the transition from Palestine to Israel.[9]
Friday, October 14, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Chronicle for Higher Education: Politics and the University: Views From the Campuses
The value of a higher degree is not what it could be since the global economic slowdown has stalled production, growth, and employment. Universities in the US however do not recognize this trend and continue to raise tuition costs at rates higher than the national inflation rate.Potential students are pondering the value and cost of a higher education degree when there is no promise it equates to better employment or employment at all. Used to be that a slow economy meant students went on to graduate school to wait out the bad economy and time their dive
into the employment search pool with a higher degree in their hands. Now it seems not only are students doubting the promises of higher education, but perhaps the future as well. Nevertheless, this time should be seen as a chance for universities to provide the leadership with the US to encourage optimism, design education and employment directives, and coordinate with industries for research and development.
The Chronicle for Higher Education offers some more insight by experts:
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Hey, Einstein... who's your congressman ?
In recent years, there has been a trend for the training of scientists to enter into public service leadership positions. Perhaps the most recent and most notable is US DOE Secretary Steven Chu. Secretary Chu is considered a Washington-outsider with an objective analytic outlook on America's energy issues. Really, you think so ? Even as a scientist, Dr. Chu had his own scientific predilections at Stanford and SLAC; why would he not have a political oppinion. So, the thinking in the science community has been to get others like Dr. Chu into public service leadership posts. Dr. Chu was appointed by the President, but it's alot harder to win an election. Another physicist, Bill Foster ( from Fermilab ) was formerly a Democratic congressman from Illinois and served one term then lost in his incumbent race to a Republican.
Some advocates for scientists in Congress say that scientists should enter the public service in order to vote on legislation and $100 million budgets that effect science and education. But transforming a professional scientist to become a professional politician would require some special training beyond advocacy. Why not just gather scientists to advocate for their causes and put their money where their mouths are and campaign for actual politicians who will be on their side. We need more scientists not scientists becoming politicians. Bigger science and smaller government would be better.
For more reading, see the NY Times:
"My looks are not great" - Yoshihiko Noda, new PM of Japan...
Here's some expert Q&A from Prof. Michael Green at CSIS:
http://csis.org/publication/japans-new-prime-minister
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
The Burroughs Welcome Fund - supporter of the biomedical sciences
The Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF) is a private, independent biomedical research foundation based in Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina.RTP is one of the most prominent high-tech research and development centers in the United States. It was created in 1959 by state and local governments, nearby universities, and local business interests. RTP has attracted many foreign universities to also come and join the North Carolina region which has boosted the local economy.The Burroughs Wellcome Fund is dedicated to advancing the medical sciences by supporting research and other scientific and educational activities.This sort of general vision is common among organizations promoting science and the careers of young researchers. However, more specifically BWF looks to support young investigators who are working in, or entering, fields in the biomedical sciences that are poised for significant advance but currently " undervalued and underfunded". The development of scientists early in their careers is crucial to independent and curiosity-driven discoveries.
The Burroughs Welcome Fund http://www.bwfund.org/
NYT - "All Together Now" By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Published: August 27, 2011
HOLD onto your hats and your wallets. Since the end of the cold war, the global system has been held together to a large degree by four critical ruling bargains. Today all four are coming unstuck at once and will need to be rebuilt. Whether and how that rebuilding happens — beginning in the U.S. — will determine a lot about what’s in your wallet and whether your hat flies off.
Now let me say that in English: the European Union is cracking up. The Arab world is cracking up. China’s growth model is under pressure and America’s credit-driven capitalist model has suffered a warning heart attack and needs a total rethink. Recasting any one of these alone would be huge. Doing all four at once — when the world has never been more interconnected — is mind-boggling. We are again “present at the creation” — but of what? Let’s start with the Middle East, the world’s oil tap. Libyans just joined Tunisians, Egyptians and Yemenis in ousting their dictator, while Syrians and Iranians hope to soon follow suit. In time, virtually every Middle East autocrat will be deposed or forced to share power. The old model can’t hold. That model was based on kings and military dictators capturing the oil revenue, ensconcing themselves in power — protected by well-financed armies and security services — and buying off key segments of their populations. That lid has been blown off by an Arab youth bulge that today can see just how everyone else is living and is no longer ready to accept being behind, undereducated, unemployed, humiliated and powerless. But while this old Middle East system — based on an iron fist and a fistful of petro-dollars holding together multiethnic/multireligious societies — has broken down, it will take time for these societies to write their own social contracts for how to live together without an iron fist from above. Hope for the best, prepare for anything.
Bloomberg - Labor Expert Is Right Choice to Lead Obama’s Economic Team: View
Aug. 28, 2011
With unemployment stuck above 9 percent, the U.S. needs all the job-creation expertise it can get. For that reason, President Barack Obama’s choice of Alan Krueger, an eminent labor economist, to head the Council of Economic Advisers is an inspired one.
Krueger, a Princeton University professor, has built his academic career on the study of labor markets, wage structures and long-term unemployment. He also has strong policy-making credentials. During the first two years of the Obama administration, he served as chief economist at the Treasury Department, where he helped devise the first stimulus package, the cash-for-clunkers effort and the Build America Bond program.
Krueger has shown that he understands the need for a strong government role as an anti-recessionary force, especially after a contraction brought on by a severe financial crisis. He also has made clear that there can be no meaningful job recovery if business confidence isn’t restored.
With unemployment stuck above 9 percent, the U.S. needs all the job-creation expertise it can get. For that reason, President Barack Obama’s choice of Alan Krueger, an eminent labor economist, to head the Council of Economic Advisers is an inspired one.
Krueger, a Princeton University professor, has built his academic career on the study of labor markets, wage structures and long-term unemployment. He also has strong policy-making credentials. During the first two years of the Obama administration, he served as chief economist at the Treasury Department, where he helped devise the first stimulus package, the cash-for-clunkers effort and the Build America Bond program.
Krueger has shown that he understands the need for a strong government role as an anti-recessionary force, especially after a contraction brought on by a severe financial crisis. He also has made clear that there can be no meaningful job recovery if business confidence isn’t restored.
WaPo - Suspected North Korean cyberattack on a bank raises fears for S. Korea, allies
By Chico Harlan and Ellen Nakashima,
SEOUL — After nearly half of the servers for a South Korean bank crashed one day in April, investigators here found evidence indicating that they were dealing with a new kind of attack from an old rival: North Korea.South Korean officials said that 30 million customers of the Nonghyup agricultural bank were unable to use ATMs or online services for several days and that key data were destroyed, making it the most serious of a series of incidents in recent months. But even more troubling was the prospect that a belligerent neighbor had acquired the tools to disrupt one of the world’s most heavily wired nations — and that even more damaging attacks could be in store.
Cspan - cyber security
James Lewis, Catherine Litronte, and Alan Paller talked about U.S. ability to thwart and prevent attacks on private and public computer systems.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Didn't Sell in May? You Still Might Want to Get Out Now
On Wednesday August 17, 2011, 3:52 pm EDT
If you chose not to take the advice to sell in May and go away, you missed the hands-down trade of the year. But there's still time to act, because more selling likely awaits.A CNBC.com report on April 19 advised that the popular market maxim would be in full gear for a market that was "setting up nicely" for a big sell that soon commenced after the May 2 highs.
Back then, Walter Zimmerman, chief market strategist at United-ICAP, cited a "perfect storm" of factors coming together, an "embarrassment of riches for potential things to go wrong" that would trigger a major selloff that would last until at least November.
Zimmerman got his storm: Accelerated fears of eurozone debt default contagion, terrible news on unemployment and housing, and a vicious political battle over raising the national debt ceiling, all of which conspired to send the averages nearly into bear market territory.
On Wednesday, Zimmerman stuck to his thus-far prescient forecast and said he expects more damage to come.
"The economic indicators are unexpectedly bearish from all quarters," he said. "So the reality is starting to set in that this is more than just a little soft patch. When and if the market takes out the lows from earlier this month it will really start to sink."
Michael D. Tanner on deficit reduction on C-SPAN's Washington Journal
Michael Tanner talked about the various ways that the newly created joint congressional Select Committee on Deficit Reduction could go about reducing the deficit, and he responded to telephone calls and electronic communications. Mr. Tanner has been a proponent of making changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
The elect Committee on Deficit Reduction was created on August 2, 2011, as part of the Budget Control Act of 2011 and comprises six Democrats and six Republicans. Mr. Tanner has been a proponent of making changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
C-SPAN Radio's Nancy Calo read news headlines at the end of the program.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
WSJ - Which Way to Retirement?
Monday, August 15, 2011
provided by
If you are on the verge of retirement, the past few weeks must have seemed like a horror movie. Just when you thought you had emerged from the wreckage of 2008 with your savings intact, another market storm erupted.
Lynette Robinson, a 65-year-old executive director of a consortium of colleges, was planning on retiring this November —until her investments took a hit this past week.
"The really sad thing is that I am back where I was after the 2008 crash," says Ms. Robinson, who lives in Boston. Now she is considering other alternatives, including working longer or taking on work as a consultant.
"It's scary because you are going along one path and then suddenly you have to shift your plans," she says.
The worst thing you can do now is panic. Hitting the "sell" button on your stock portfolio, after the Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen 11.1% in three weeks' time, could hurt you more than anything else. Not only would you be locking in losses prematurely to preserve capital you might not need for years, but you also would miss out on any future rally.
"If what this crisis has done is focus your attention on the fact that stocks are risky, make a note to act on that knowledge later," says Alicia Munnell, director of the Boston College Center for Retirement Research. "But don't sell now."
That doesn't mean you should sit tight, however. If you are consumed by worries, there are other steps you can take right away, from ramping up on "alternative" investments and annuities with guaranteed payments to restocking your cash accounts and rethinking your budget.
Here's what to do now.
If you are on the verge of retirement, the past few weeks must have seemed like a horror movie. Just when you thought you had emerged from the wreckage of 2008 with your savings intact, another market storm erupted.
Lynette Robinson, a 65-year-old executive director of a consortium of colleges, was planning on retiring this November —until her investments took a hit this past week.
"The really sad thing is that I am back where I was after the 2008 crash," says Ms. Robinson, who lives in Boston. Now she is considering other alternatives, including working longer or taking on work as a consultant.
"It's scary because you are going along one path and then suddenly you have to shift your plans," she says.
The worst thing you can do now is panic. Hitting the "sell" button on your stock portfolio, after the Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen 11.1% in three weeks' time, could hurt you more than anything else. Not only would you be locking in losses prematurely to preserve capital you might not need for years, but you also would miss out on any future rally.
"If what this crisis has done is focus your attention on the fact that stocks are risky, make a note to act on that knowledge later," says Alicia Munnell, director of the Boston College Center for Retirement Research. "But don't sell now."
That doesn't mean you should sit tight, however. If you are consumed by worries, there are other steps you can take right away, from ramping up on "alternative" investments and annuities with guaranteed payments to restocking your cash accounts and rethinking your budget.
Here's what to do now.
Low T-bill Yields Suggest US Recession Likely: Strategist
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Low-Tbill-Yields-Suggest-US-cnbc-856125359.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=8&asset=&ccode=
"It is much more structurally worse now than in 2008. Back then it was about liquidity. Today we don't have much in the way of ammunition left at the Fed. We now have a better than 50 percent chance of the US economy entering a recession ," said JJ Burns, chairman at JJ Burns.
"Looking back, quantitative easing one worked and we needed it. I don't think QE2 worked and now we're up to quantitative easing three and it is not going to work. There are few bullets left," Burns told CNBC.
US Treasurys rebuffed the downgrade of US debt by credit rating agency Standard & Poor's from triple-A to AA+ earlier this month as yields continued to fall and reached 2.03 within the last week before recovering to hover around 2.28 percent Tuesday. It is those lows, the result of a flight to safety, that have prompted speculation of a worsening economic climate.
"Some out there think we have never been out of a recession, I don't think the US can avoid it. Businesses are beginning to hunker down and are not hiring and it's a case of trying to shore up what they have just to keep their businesses running," Burns said. "Unemployment is likely to persist and we are in a frugal economy right now."
On Tuesday August 16, 2011, 2:36 pm EDT
With the 10-year Treasury yield reaching lows not seen since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, some experts argue that a volatile economic climate with a recession is now likely. "It is much more structurally worse now than in 2008. Back then it was about liquidity. Today we don't have much in the way of ammunition left at the Fed. We now have a better than 50 percent chance of the US economy entering a recession ," said JJ Burns, chairman at JJ Burns.
"Looking back, quantitative easing one worked and we needed it. I don't think QE2 worked and now we're up to quantitative easing three and it is not going to work. There are few bullets left," Burns told CNBC.
US Treasurys rebuffed the downgrade of US debt by credit rating agency Standard & Poor's from triple-A to AA+ earlier this month as yields continued to fall and reached 2.03 within the last week before recovering to hover around 2.28 percent Tuesday. It is those lows, the result of a flight to safety, that have prompted speculation of a worsening economic climate.
"Some out there think we have never been out of a recession, I don't think the US can avoid it. Businesses are beginning to hunker down and are not hiring and it's a case of trying to shore up what they have just to keep their businesses running," Burns said. "Unemployment is likely to persist and we are in a frugal economy right now."
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Chronicel for HE - Visa Applications Soar for Indian Students Who Want to Study in U.S.
http://chronicle.com/article/Visa-Applications-Soar-for/128466/
Visa applications from Indian students seeking degrees in the United States are up sharply, and international-education experts say a confluence of factors, from a booming economy to stricter immigration restrictions in other top destination countries, are fueling the growth.
Applications from prospective Indian students soared 20 percent in the 2011 fiscal year, compared with the previous year, according to figures from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. The State Department issued more than 24,500 visas to Indian students in the 2010 fiscal year.
It's too soon to know just how many of those students will show up on American campuses for the fall semester, as application numbers tend to exceed actual enrollments. Some students will choose to stay at home or go elsewhere; others won't meet consular approval.
But the visa-application figures suggest there is a resurgence of interest from India, the second-largest source of foreign students in the United States, after a couple of years in which enrollments stagnated or, at the graduate level, declined.
Indeed, the visa totals don't take into account applications processed in July and August, two of the busiest months for college-student submissions.
"The U.S. is becoming more attractive," said Rahul Choudaha, director of development and innovation at World Education Services, a nonprofit organization that specializes in foreign credentials and trends. Mr. Choudaha's group has seen a 24-percent increase in requests from Indian students during the first half of 2011 to have their credentials reviewed and verified.
Right now, American colleges are as popular in India, Mr. Choudaha said, "as a Harry Potter movie."
One of the biggest factors behind the growth, Mr. Choudaha and recruiters on the ground agree, is the tightening of immigration regulations in Australia and Britain, which could make it more difficult for international students to obtain visas and to remain in those countries after graduation to work. A series of high-profile assaults on Indian students in Australia also dampened interest in study there, and student-visa applications from India plummeted nearly 63 percent this past year, according to a new Australian government report.
The United States, Australia, and Britain are the three most popular destinations for Indian students going abroad.
"The UK has changed its rules, and students don't want to go there," said Gouri Shankar, the marketing head for Global Educational Consultancy, a Bangalore-based independent recruitment agency. As for Australia, after the 2009 attacks, "students are still scared of going," Mr. Shankar said.
EducationUSA at USIEF
Students learn about opportunities to study in the U.S. at an information session at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
Enlarge Image Visa applications from Indian students seeking degrees in the United States are up sharply, and international-education experts say a confluence of factors, from a booming economy to stricter immigration restrictions in other top destination countries, are fueling the growth.Applications from prospective Indian students soared 20 percent in the 2011 fiscal year, compared with the previous year, according to figures from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. The State Department issued more than 24,500 visas to Indian students in the 2010 fiscal year.
It's too soon to know just how many of those students will show up on American campuses for the fall semester, as application numbers tend to exceed actual enrollments. Some students will choose to stay at home or go elsewhere; others won't meet consular approval.
But the visa-application figures suggest there is a resurgence of interest from India, the second-largest source of foreign students in the United States, after a couple of years in which enrollments stagnated or, at the graduate level, declined.
Indeed, the visa totals don't take into account applications processed in July and August, two of the busiest months for college-student submissions.
"The U.S. is becoming more attractive," said Rahul Choudaha, director of development and innovation at World Education Services, a nonprofit organization that specializes in foreign credentials and trends. Mr. Choudaha's group has seen a 24-percent increase in requests from Indian students during the first half of 2011 to have their credentials reviewed and verified.
Right now, American colleges are as popular in India, Mr. Choudaha said, "as a Harry Potter movie."
One of the biggest factors behind the growth, Mr. Choudaha and recruiters on the ground agree, is the tightening of immigration regulations in Australia and Britain, which could make it more difficult for international students to obtain visas and to remain in those countries after graduation to work. A series of high-profile assaults on Indian students in Australia also dampened interest in study there, and student-visa applications from India plummeted nearly 63 percent this past year, according to a new Australian government report.
The United States, Australia, and Britain are the three most popular destinations for Indian students going abroad.
"The UK has changed its rules, and students don't want to go there," said Gouri Shankar, the marketing head for Global Educational Consultancy, a Bangalore-based independent recruitment agency. As for Australia, after the 2009 attacks, "students are still scared of going," Mr. Shankar said.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
The Scientist - Q&A: Debate Over Climate Panel Bias
http://the-scientist.com/2011/07/18/debate-over-climate-panel-bias/
By Jessica P. Johnson | July 18, 2011 ( also see January 2011 blog post -
In June, a working group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a report that reviewed options for mitigating climate change that limit greenhouse gas emissions—such as renewable energy technology—and enhance activities that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.
Over a month before the report’s publication, the IPCC highlighted an optimistic scenario for future renewable energy use—that it may comprise 77 percent of the total world energy supply by 2050—in press releases and summary reports issued to policy makers. But when the full report was released last month, it became clear that the scenario was based on data from a study by Greenpeace—a non-profit environmental campaign organization that supports renewable energy as a solution to energy shortages and dependence on foreign oil—and that the IPCC report chapter that included the data had been drafted in part by Greenpeace’s Renewable Energy Director Sven Teske.
This week, Nature Climate Change published two commentaries that argued whether this represents a conflict of interest and indicates bias by the IPCC. While Ottmar Edenhofer, co-chair of the IPCC working group that drafted the report, argues that all perceptions of bias are unfounded, climate policy journalist Mark Lynas says that prominence given to an unlikely prediction from a campaign organization is cause for concern. The Scientist spoke with Lynas about how the panel’s actions could undermine the public’s confidence in the IPCC and whether he thinks the report can be trusted.
A climate change writer is concerned over possible bias within an IPCC working group that assesses options for combating climate change.
Climate Heretic: Judith Curry Turns on Her Colleagues - Scientific American )
In June, a working group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a report that reviewed options for mitigating climate change that limit greenhouse gas emissions—such as renewable energy technology—and enhance activities that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.Over a month before the report’s publication, the IPCC highlighted an optimistic scenario for future renewable energy use—that it may comprise 77 percent of the total world energy supply by 2050—in press releases and summary reports issued to policy makers. But when the full report was released last month, it became clear that the scenario was based on data from a study by Greenpeace—a non-profit environmental campaign organization that supports renewable energy as a solution to energy shortages and dependence on foreign oil—and that the IPCC report chapter that included the data had been drafted in part by Greenpeace’s Renewable Energy Director Sven Teske.
This week, Nature Climate Change published two commentaries that argued whether this represents a conflict of interest and indicates bias by the IPCC. While Ottmar Edenhofer, co-chair of the IPCC working group that drafted the report, argues that all perceptions of bias are unfounded, climate policy journalist Mark Lynas says that prominence given to an unlikely prediction from a campaign organization is cause for concern. The Scientist spoke with Lynas about how the panel’s actions could undermine the public’s confidence in the IPCC and whether he thinks the report can be trusted.
A Sell Signal for the Stock Market?
http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/113156/sell-signal-for-stocks-barrons?mod=bb-budgeting%20&sec=topStories&pos=5&asset=&ccode=
A big drop in the transportation sector killed hope for a Dow Theory buy signal.
As the month of July began, the stock market was in the midst of a rather significant rally and the Dow Jones Transportation Average broke out to all-time highs.
But within a few days, the good times turned to bad as this economically-sensitive sector crumbled.
On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 94 points, though the index was trading even lower earlier in the day.
The bears have apparently resumed control of the stock market and that keeps the market on track to challenge its previous 2011 lows one more time.
When the transports reached their new high recently, followers of the century-old Dow Theory suddenly got excited. The theory states that a major new high in both the Dow Industrials and the Dow Transports means the market is in sync and ready to move even higher.
Of course, the composition of the industrials index has changed drastically and we can argue that truckers and railroads have less to do with transporting products in a service and information-based economy than in the past. But even with such changes, Dow Theory has still been able to keep investors on the proper side of the market for many years.
A Sell Signal for the Stock Market?
by Michael Kahn
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
provided byTuesday, July 19, 2011
A big drop in the transportation sector killed hope for a Dow Theory buy signal.
But within a few days, the good times turned to bad as this economically-sensitive sector crumbled.
On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 94 points, though the index was trading even lower earlier in the day.
The bears have apparently resumed control of the stock market and that keeps the market on track to challenge its previous 2011 lows one more time.
When the transports reached their new high recently, followers of the century-old Dow Theory suddenly got excited. The theory states that a major new high in both the Dow Industrials and the Dow Transports means the market is in sync and ready to move even higher.
Of course, the composition of the industrials index has changed drastically and we can argue that truckers and railroads have less to do with transporting products in a service and information-based economy than in the past. But even with such changes, Dow Theory has still been able to keep investors on the proper side of the market for many years.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Oil rises on Goldman forecast hike, but trade choppy
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil rose on Tuesday in choppy trading after Goldman Sachs raised its price forecasts for Brent crude, saying demand from economic growth will eat into stockpiles and OPEC spare capacity.
Goldman raised its Brent price forecast to $115, $120 and $130 a barrel on a three-, six-, and 12-month horizon and boosted its year-end target for Brent to $120 per barrel from $105 and its 2012 forecast to $140 from $120.
A weaker dollar also supported oil prices, which had declined 2 percent the previous session.
The euro edged up from a two-year low against the dollar on German data that was better than expected, though nagging fears about Europe's debt crisis were expected to check euro gains.
Brent crude for July delivery rose $1.01 to $111.11 a barrel by 12:33 p.m. EDT (1633 GMT), swinging between 109.50 and $112.65.
Oil pushes above $99 per barrel on weaker dollar, bullish forecast from investment banks
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Oil-rises-above-99-gas-pump-apf-2290513575.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=
NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil rose to around $100 per barrel Tuesday after the dollar weakened and major investment banks predicted that crude prices will rise later this year.
Benchmark West Texas Intermediate for July delivery added $1.74 at $99.44 per barrel Tuesday morning on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude rose $2.30 to $112.40 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Prices climbed early in the day as the dollar fell against other currencies. Oil, which is priced in dollars, tends to increase when the dollar falls and makes crude cheaper for investors holding foreign money.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil rose to around $100 per barrel Tuesday after the dollar weakened and major investment banks predicted that crude prices will rise later this year.
Benchmark West Texas Intermediate for July delivery added $1.74 at $99.44 per barrel Tuesday morning on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude rose $2.30 to $112.40 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Prices climbed early in the day as the dollar fell against other currencies. Oil, which is priced in dollars, tends to increase when the dollar falls and makes crude cheaper for investors holding foreign money.
CSPAN - Jack Lew back at OMB
http://wwww.c-spanvideo.org/program/BudgetandDef
Jaccob Lew spoke about the federal budget, spending levels, and deficit reduction. Among the issues he addressed were his role in budget negotiations, the extent of the debt crisis, tax policy, entitlement programs, and the state of teh economy. He also responded to questions from the audience.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Reinventing Management Requires Systemic Change
http://blogs.forbes.com/stevedenning/2011/05/12/reinventing-management-requires-systemic-change/
Why is hierarchical bureaucracy still so pervasive? Thousands of business books and articles are published each year. Many of them are full of promising ideas for improving management. So why does hierarchical bureaucracy appear to be as strong as ever in Fortune 500 companies and in government?
One key comes from Albert Einstein:
Why is hierarchical bureaucracy still so pervasive? Thousands of business books and articles are published each year. Many of them are full of promising ideas for improving management. So why does hierarchical bureaucracy appear to be as strong as ever in Fortune 500 companies and in government?
One key comes from Albert Einstein:
“The significant problems we have cannot be solved at the same level of thinking with which we created them.”
In management, there is a need to move beyond single fixes and to think in terms of systemic change.Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Would Oil Prices Really Fall If Speculation Was Reined In?
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Would-Oil-Prices-Really-Fall-cnbc-227169437.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=
If raising the margin requirement-or downpayment-on silver contracts helped cool speculation in the metal this week, could it do the same thing for runaway oil prices?
Silver has plunged 20 percent in recent days, in part due to the sharp increase in the amount of money investors are required to put down to buy the metal.
The whole commodity sector, in fact, is going through a major pullback this week as worries about a slowdown in the global economy are prompting investors to scale back on risky trades.
But while the selloff in silver, at least, is being linked partly to higher margins, oil prices move on more fundamental reasons such as supply and demand. Oil was lower on Wednesday, for instance, because of a bigger-than-expected increase in US crude supplies.
On Wednesday May 4, 2011, 4:05 pm EDT
If raising the margin requirement-or downpayment-on silver contracts helped cool speculation in the metal this week, could it do the same thing for runaway oil prices?
Silver has plunged 20 percent in recent days, in part due to the sharp increase in the amount of money investors are required to put down to buy the metal.
The whole commodity sector, in fact, is going through a major pullback this week as worries about a slowdown in the global economy are prompting investors to scale back on risky trades.
But while the selloff in silver, at least, is being linked partly to higher margins, oil prices move on more fundamental reasons such as supply and demand. Oil was lower on Wednesday, for instance, because of a bigger-than-expected increase in US crude supplies.
Charter Cities
http://www.chartercities.org/
“There‘s no impediment, other than a failure of imagination, that will keep us from delivering on a truly global win-win solution.” —Paul Romer
Charter cities are special reform zones. They let governments quickly adopt innovative new systems of rules. A charter city’s formal rules, and the norms that they encourage, can differ markedly from a country’s prevailing system of rules. The concept is very flexible, but three elements are common to all charter cities:
- An uninhabited piece of city-sized land, provided voluntarily by a host government.
- A charter that specifies the rules that will govern the new city.
- The freedom for would-be charter city residents to move in or out of the reform zone.
Pakistan did its part
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/pakistan-did-its-part/2011/05/02/AFHxmybF_story.html
Although the events of Sunday were not a joint operation, a decade of cooperation and partnership between the United States and Pakistan led up to the elimination of Osama bin Laden as a continuing threat to the civilized world. And we in Pakistan take some satisfaction that our early assistance in identifying an al-Qaeda courier ultimately led to this day.
Let us be frank. Pakistan has paid an enormous price for its stand against terrorism. More of our soldiers have died than all of NATO’s casualties combined. Two thousand police officers, as many as 30,000 innocent civilians and a generation of social progress for our people have been lost. And for me, justice against bin Laden was not just political; it was also personal, as the terrorists murdered our greatest leader, the mother of my children. Twice he tried to assassinate my wife. In 1989 he poured $50 million into a no-confidence vote to topple her first government. She said that she was bin Laden’s worst nightmare — a democratically elected, progressive, moderate, pluralistic female leader. She was right, and she paid for it with her life.
By Asif Ali Zardari, Monday, May , 7:53 PM
Pakistan, perhaps the world’s greatest victim of terrorism, joins the other targets of al-Qaeda — the people of the United States, Britain, Spain, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Yemen, Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Algeria — in our satisfaction that the source of the greatest evil of the new millennium has been silenced, and his victims given justice. He was not anywhere we had anticipated he would be, but now he is gone.Although the events of Sunday were not a joint operation, a decade of cooperation and partnership between the United States and Pakistan led up to the elimination of Osama bin Laden as a continuing threat to the civilized world. And we in Pakistan take some satisfaction that our early assistance in identifying an al-Qaeda courier ultimately led to this day.
Let us be frank. Pakistan has paid an enormous price for its stand against terrorism. More of our soldiers have died than all of NATO’s casualties combined. Two thousand police officers, as many as 30,000 innocent civilians and a generation of social progress for our people have been lost. And for me, justice against bin Laden was not just political; it was also personal, as the terrorists murdered our greatest leader, the mother of my children. Twice he tried to assassinate my wife. In 1989 he poured $50 million into a no-confidence vote to topple her first government. She said that she was bin Laden’s worst nightmare — a democratically elected, progressive, moderate, pluralistic female leader. She was right, and she paid for it with her life.
Farewell to bin Laden
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/04/opinion/04friedman.html?ref=opinion
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Published: May 3, 2011
We did our part. We killed Bin Laden with a bullet. Now the Arab and Muslim people have a chance to do their part — kill Bin Ladenism with a ballot — that is, with real elections, with real constitutions, real political parties and real progressive politics.
Yes, the bad guys have been dealt a blow across the Arab world in the last few months — not only Al Qaeda, but the whole rogues’ gallery of dictators, whose soft bigotry of low expectations for their people had kept the Arab world behind. The question now, though, is: Can the forces of decency get organized, elected and start building a different Arab future? That is the most important question. Everything else is noise.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Fed seen signaling no rush to exit
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Fed-seen-signaling-no-rush-to-rb-1013634684.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=
By Mark Felsenthal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve kicked off a two-day meeting on Tuesday that is expected to conclude with a signal that it is in no hurry to scale back its massive support for the economic recovery.
The U.S. central bank, which began meeting at 10:30 a.m. EDT, is expected to use a post-meeting statement to confirm that it will complete its $600 billion bond-buying program by the end of June and renew its commitment to maintain rock-bottom borrowing costs for "an extended period."
The Fed launched the bond-buying program, dubbed QE2 because it is the second round of so-called quantitative easing of monetary policy, in November to support a flagging recovery. The Fed had already cut interest rates to near zero in December 2008 and bought $1.4 trillion in longer-term securities to pull the economy out of recession and spur growth.
Fed officials say the latest program has helped buoy growth and point to a stepped up pace of hiring by businesses and stock market gains as evidence. However, the program has stirred harsh criticism from some U.S. lawmakers and international finance officials who fault it for fueling inflation.
"We see no chance of an expansion of the program at this time, as the political backlash following the announcement of 'QE2' was significant, and no one on the (Fed) has publicly made the case for an expansion," Goldman Sachs economist Andrew Tilton wrote in a note to clients. "Likewise we see essentially no chance that the (Fed) will end the program early."
By Mark Felsenthal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve kicked off a two-day meeting on Tuesday that is expected to conclude with a signal that it is in no hurry to scale back its massive support for the economic recovery.
The U.S. central bank, which began meeting at 10:30 a.m. EDT, is expected to use a post-meeting statement to confirm that it will complete its $600 billion bond-buying program by the end of June and renew its commitment to maintain rock-bottom borrowing costs for "an extended period."
The Fed launched the bond-buying program, dubbed QE2 because it is the second round of so-called quantitative easing of monetary policy, in November to support a flagging recovery. The Fed had already cut interest rates to near zero in December 2008 and bought $1.4 trillion in longer-term securities to pull the economy out of recession and spur growth.
Fed officials say the latest program has helped buoy growth and point to a stepped up pace of hiring by businesses and stock market gains as evidence. However, the program has stirred harsh criticism from some U.S. lawmakers and international finance officials who fault it for fueling inflation.
"We see no chance of an expansion of the program at this time, as the political backlash following the announcement of 'QE2' was significant, and no one on the (Fed) has publicly made the case for an expansion," Goldman Sachs economist Andrew Tilton wrote in a note to clients. "Likewise we see essentially no chance that the (Fed) will end the program early."
Saturday, April 23, 2011
The Burma Monitor
http://burmamonitor.blogspot.com/2011/04/library-and-full-moon-murders.html
http://starting-points.blogspot.com/
John McDougall
http://starting-points.blogspot.com/
John McDougall
Myanmar set to sign contracts with foreign firms for oil and gas exploration, state media say
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/myanmar-set-to-sign-contracts-with-foreign-firms-for-oil-and-gas-exploration-state-media-say/2011/04/23/AFNyBXVE_print.html
The state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper noted the upcoming deals in a report on a “special projects implementation meeting” headed by President Thein Sein on Friday in the capital, Naypyitaw. The report cited Energy Minister Than Htay saying Myanmar will cooperate with foreign companies for oil and gas exploration.
The newspaper said Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise will sign contracts with China’s North Petro-Chem Corporation Ltd for onshore oil and gas exploration.
It will also sign agreements with Korea-Myanmar Development Co. Ltd and Brilliant Oil Corporation Pte Ltd of Singapore for oil and gas exploration offshore in northwestern Rakhine state and the Tanintharyi region in southeastern Myanmar.
In addition, agreements will be signed with Singapore’s SNOG Pte. Ltd and UPR Pte. Ltd for the mining of shale in eastern Karen state, the report said.
The report did not say when the contracts would be signed or when work on any of the projects would start.
Natural gas is Myanmar’s largest export earner. Myanmar has huge gas reserves and is conducting oil and gas exploration with local and foreign companies in 49 onshore blocks and 26 offshore blocks.
By Associated Press, Saturday, April 23, 11:11 AM
YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s state oil firm is set to sign contracts with companies from China, Singapore and South Korea for oil and gas exploration, state media reported Saturday.The state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper noted the upcoming deals in a report on a “special projects implementation meeting” headed by President Thein Sein on Friday in the capital, Naypyitaw. The report cited Energy Minister Than Htay saying Myanmar will cooperate with foreign companies for oil and gas exploration.
The newspaper said Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise will sign contracts with China’s North Petro-Chem Corporation Ltd for onshore oil and gas exploration.
It will also sign agreements with Korea-Myanmar Development Co. Ltd and Brilliant Oil Corporation Pte Ltd of Singapore for oil and gas exploration offshore in northwestern Rakhine state and the Tanintharyi region in southeastern Myanmar.
In addition, agreements will be signed with Singapore’s SNOG Pte. Ltd and UPR Pte. Ltd for the mining of shale in eastern Karen state, the report said.
The report did not say when the contracts would be signed or when work on any of the projects would start.
Natural gas is Myanmar’s largest export earner. Myanmar has huge gas reserves and is conducting oil and gas exploration with local and foreign companies in 49 onshore blocks and 26 offshore blocks.
The Future of Myanmar Without Sanctions
The Future of Myanmar Without Sanctions
http://dissidentvoice.org/2011/04/the-future-of-myanmar-without-sanctions/There is a lot of conjecture lately about the efficacy of lifting Western imposed economic sanctions and engaging with the Burmese Junta. Especially relevant in many conversations is whether or not Aung San Suu Kyi should have any effect on the matter. The bigger question seems to be about the direction of action she will take, along with the National League for Democracy (NLD). At the heart of the problem is a military led government who has thumbed its nose at the West for decades. Conventional wisdom indicates that it will continue to do so no matter what Aung San Suu Kyi does.
The western media likes to play up the idea that Myanmar’s government is more brutal and disgusting than any other on earth except for Iran. The ironic truth with both Myanmar and Iran is that the people of both nations love everything about the West but their governments have chosen not to fall under the influence of economic colonization of the World Bank, IMF, and all of the other Western economic schemes that renders poor nations in debt to the West, thereby opening their lands for “development” and “civil society” as western corporations plunder every available natural resources at bargain basement prices. The governments of Myanmar and Iran do business their own way. It looks like there will be few opportunities for Western influence in Myanmar and no matter how much the Western powers try, they may never play an important role in the economic viability of Myanmar.
The western media likes to play up the idea that Myanmar’s government is more brutal and disgusting than any other on earth except for Iran. The ironic truth with both Myanmar and Iran is that the people of both nations love everything about the West but their governments have chosen not to fall under the influence of economic colonization of the World Bank, IMF, and all of the other Western economic schemes that renders poor nations in debt to the West, thereby opening their lands for “development” and “civil society” as western corporations plunder every available natural resources at bargain basement prices. The governments of Myanmar and Iran do business their own way. It looks like there will be few opportunities for Western influence in Myanmar and no matter how much the Western powers try, they may never play an important role in the economic viability of Myanmar.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Fed officials signal policy to stay on course
HELENA, Montana (Reuters) - The recent surge in oil prices is no prelude to broader price increases that would force the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates, top Fed officials said on Thursday in what appears to be the predominant view at the central bank.
The comments, from Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota and Fed Board Governor Elizabeth Duke, echoed recent remarks by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, adding to expectations the central bank will stay on course with its $600 billion debt-buying program through the end of June and will not look to reverse its super-easy monetary policy any time soon.
Daniel Tarullo, also a Fed governor, identified himself as in the same camp, saying there are no signs that higher overall inflation, spurred by surging energy and commodity prices, will translate to underlying inflation. Tarullo, answering questions while speaking on a panel in Washington, said commodity prices are notoriously volatile.
Even a policymaker who is viewed as an inflation hawk at the central bank, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser, said he saw no imminent danger that inflation would take off.
However, Plosser, who has questioned the Fed's bond buying program, said there is no guarantee higher energy prices will not pass through to overall inflation, particularly with Fed monetary policy operating at full throttle.
He said that in light of the solid recovery, the central bank must begin to consider when to start withdrawing the unprecedented support to the economy to weather a financial panic and deep recession.
"The apparent strengthening of the U.S. economy suggests that, in the not-too-distant future, monetary policy will begin reversing course from a very accommodative policy stance," he said.
Plosser's views suggest the timing of the exit strategy will be a part of the debate at the Fed's next policy meeting April 26-27.
The comments, from Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota and Fed Board Governor Elizabeth Duke, echoed recent remarks by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, adding to expectations the central bank will stay on course with its $600 billion debt-buying program through the end of June and will not look to reverse its super-easy monetary policy any time soon.
Daniel Tarullo, also a Fed governor, identified himself as in the same camp, saying there are no signs that higher overall inflation, spurred by surging energy and commodity prices, will translate to underlying inflation. Tarullo, answering questions while speaking on a panel in Washington, said commodity prices are notoriously volatile.
Even a policymaker who is viewed as an inflation hawk at the central bank, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser, said he saw no imminent danger that inflation would take off.
However, Plosser, who has questioned the Fed's bond buying program, said there is no guarantee higher energy prices will not pass through to overall inflation, particularly with Fed monetary policy operating at full throttle.
He said that in light of the solid recovery, the central bank must begin to consider when to start withdrawing the unprecedented support to the economy to weather a financial panic and deep recession.
"The apparent strengthening of the U.S. economy suggests that, in the not-too-distant future, monetary policy will begin reversing course from a very accommodative policy stance," he said.
Plosser's views suggest the timing of the exit strategy will be a part of the debate at the Fed's next policy meeting April 26-27.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Playing the Return of Risk - end of QE2 by Barrons
With the end of the Fed's QE2 in sight, anticipate rising volatility, and profit from it.
The coming end of QE2 continues to dominate global markets, even though you're probably as tired of reading about it as this columnist is of writing about it. But, just as risk markets began to rally months ahead of the actual start last November of the Federal Reserve's program to purchase an additional $600 billion of Treasury securities, these same markets may be beginning to anticipate the end of the central bank's buying.
Commodities, notably crude oil, fell Monday despite the Fed's Vice Squad coming out to reassert the official line that their effect on inflation will be "transitory." Those vice officers consisted of Janet Yellen, vice chairman of the Fed's Board of Governor, and William Dudley, the New York Fed president who acts as vice chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee, the central bank's policy-setting panel. Both continued to argue in favor of the current accommodative policy, contrary to some Fed district presidents who would cut QE2 short.
The coming end of QE2 continues to dominate global markets, even though you're probably as tired of reading about it as this columnist is of writing about it. But, just as risk markets began to rally months ahead of the actual start last November of the Federal Reserve's program to purchase an additional $600 billion of Treasury securities, these same markets may be beginning to anticipate the end of the central bank's buying.
Commodities, notably crude oil, fell Monday despite the Fed's Vice Squad coming out to reassert the official line that their effect on inflation will be "transitory." Those vice officers consisted of Janet Yellen, vice chairman of the Fed's Board of Governor, and William Dudley, the New York Fed president who acts as vice chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee, the central bank's policy-setting panel. Both continued to argue in favor of the current accommodative policy, contrary to some Fed district presidents who would cut QE2 short.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Hinode-rise~ Hinode-set~ Swiftly flow the days~
Read about the latest discovery made by Hinode which observed "fountainlike jets of hot gas" that shoot into the sun’s outer atmosphere which may explain why this outlying region is millions of degrees hotter than the sun’s roiling surface http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/68449/title/Superhot_solar_mystery_may_be_solved
Friday, January 14, 2011
Climate Heretic: Judith Curry Turns on Her Colleagues - Scientific American
Why can't we have a civil conversation about climate?
Monday, October 25, 2010 | 261
In trying to understand the Judith Curry phenomenon, it is tempting to default to one of two comfortable and familiar story lines.For most of her career, Curry, who heads the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has been known for her work on hurricanes, Arctic ice dynamics and other climate-related topics. But over the past year or so she has become better known for something that annoys, even infuriates, many of her scientific colleagues. Curry has been engaging actively with the climate change skeptic community, largely by participating on outsider blogs such as Climate Audit, the Air Vent and the Blackboard. Along the way, she has come to question how climatologists react to those who question the science, no matter how well established it is. Although many of the skeptics recycle critiques that have long since been disproved, others, she believes, bring up valid points—and by lumping the good with the bad, climate researchers not only miss out on a chance to improve their science, they come across to the public as haughty. “Yes, there’s a lot of crankology out there,” Curry says. “But not all of it is. If only 1 percent of it or 10 percent of what the skeptics say is right, that is time well spent because we have just been too encumbered by groupthink.”
What do the 2010 election results mean for federal science budgets?
An article from Scientific American.
November 2 midterm elections marked a shift of power in Washington, D.C. The Republican Party wrested control of the U.S. House of Representatives from the Democrats, who had held power across both houses of Congress and the White House since President Barack Obama's election in 2008.
Just days after the midterm elections, a report from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and a related story in The New York Times examined what would happen to federal science agencies if the GOP carried through on their planned budget cuts. The 2010 Republican agenda, "A Pledge to America," proposed rolling back discretionary spending to 2008 levels, with exceptions for seniors and the military. (Discretionary spending makes up roughly one third of the federal budget; the rest goes to mandatory programs such as Social Security and Medicare.)
The plan, if executed, would cut more than $8 billion in federal research and development from what Obama had proposed for 2011, according to the AAAS analysis. Nearly $3 billion of that would come from the National Institutes of Health (NIH); NASA, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy would lose more than $1 billion apiece.
But how realistic are those kinds of cuts, considering that Democrats still control the Senate and the White House? To find out what the coming years have in store for science agencies, we spoke to Allen Schick, a professor of public policy at the University of Maryland, College Park.
[An edited transcript of the interview follows.]
Just days after the midterm elections, a report from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and a related story in The New York Times examined what would happen to federal science agencies if the GOP carried through on their planned budget cuts. The 2010 Republican agenda, "A Pledge to America," proposed rolling back discretionary spending to 2008 levels, with exceptions for seniors and the military. (Discretionary spending makes up roughly one third of the federal budget; the rest goes to mandatory programs such as Social Security and Medicare.)
The plan, if executed, would cut more than $8 billion in federal research and development from what Obama had proposed for 2011, according to the AAAS analysis. Nearly $3 billion of that would come from the National Institutes of Health (NIH); NASA, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy would lose more than $1 billion apiece.
But how realistic are those kinds of cuts, considering that Democrats still control the Senate and the White House? To find out what the coming years have in store for science agencies, we spoke to Allen Schick, a professor of public policy at the University of Maryland, College Park.
[An edited transcript of the interview follows.]
Why Haiti Remains Poor - the Root
By: Yves Savain
Posted: January 13, 2011 at 12:10 AM
A revolt of young Haitian intellectuals 65 years ago inadvertently opened the door for a black nationalist ideology that continues to dominate -- and hold back -- Haiti.
This photograph from early 1946 is a rare record of a gathering of the intellectual vanguard of Haiti's postwar generation. Fiercely idealistic, they had weeks earlier incited five days of massive street protests that caused Haitian President Elie Lescot to resign and flee into exile. They had overthrown, they believed, the cabal of mulattoes and U.S. bureaucrats who had been denying them their rightful share of power, and put on notice the small commercial-and-industrial sector dominated by Arabs, Europeans and a few U.S. immigrants.
But instead of the leftist democracy they hoped for, their moment of change ushered in a doctrinaire black nationalist political force that has ruled Haiti for more than six decades -- including 30 years of Duvalier dictatorship. An important reason that Haiti remains poor is the stranglehold of a pernicious ethnic provincialism that now permeates all sectors of society. It is a mentality allergic to talent and merit and, today especially, fearful of the vast, wealthy and well-educated Haitian diaspora.
But instead of the leftist democracy they hoped for, their moment of change ushered in a doctrinaire black nationalist political force that has ruled Haiti for more than six decades -- including 30 years of Duvalier dictatorship. An important reason that Haiti remains poor is the stranglehold of a pernicious ethnic provincialism that now permeates all sectors of society. It is a mentality allergic to talent and merit and, today especially, fearful of the vast, wealthy and well-educated Haitian diaspora.
Aging China offers silver lining for investors
By Jane Lanhee Lee and Lucy Hornby
SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - Retired professor Chen Chongyu and his wife Liu Zhenjuan dreamed of coming back to China from their daughter's home in France, but until last year the couple had nowhere to go.
That changed when they found Cherish-Yearn, an upscale retirement community on the fringes of Shanghai and a pioneer in catering to China's prosperous elderly.
Businesses are just starting to tap the rapidly expanding senior citizens' market -- China's new silver industry.
"Every year we would come back to China, and we would visit retirement homes. But we couldn't find anything," said 79-year-old Chen, a history professor who specialized in the French revolution.
"When we finally found this place we felt we could return."
China's traditional model of children living with their elderly parents is under siege, thanks to 30 years of the one-child policy and rapid urban migration.
Leaving their daughter's home in France, Liu, 74, and Chong paid 690,000 yuan (US$104,545) to move into a three-room apartment on Cherish-Yearn's beautifully sculpted campus.
An annual fee of 88,000 yuan covers basic medical and cleaning services, and various activities.
China had 169 million people over 60 by the end of 2009, or 12 percent of the population. That number will jump to 250 million people by 2025.
SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - Retired professor Chen Chongyu and his wife Liu Zhenjuan dreamed of coming back to China from their daughter's home in France, but until last year the couple had nowhere to go.
That changed when they found Cherish-Yearn, an upscale retirement community on the fringes of Shanghai and a pioneer in catering to China's prosperous elderly.
Businesses are just starting to tap the rapidly expanding senior citizens' market -- China's new silver industry.
"Every year we would come back to China, and we would visit retirement homes. But we couldn't find anything," said 79-year-old Chen, a history professor who specialized in the French revolution.
"When we finally found this place we felt we could return."
China's traditional model of children living with their elderly parents is under siege, thanks to 30 years of the one-child policy and rapid urban migration.
Leaving their daughter's home in France, Liu, 74, and Chong paid 690,000 yuan (US$104,545) to move into a three-room apartment on Cherish-Yearn's beautifully sculpted campus.
An annual fee of 88,000 yuan covers basic medical and cleaning services, and various activities.
China had 169 million people over 60 by the end of 2009, or 12 percent of the population. That number will jump to 250 million people by 2025.
China's Research Culture - Science Magazine, Editorial
Science 3 September 2010:
Vol. 329 no. 5996 p. 1128
DOI: 10.1126/science.1196916
Vol. 329 no. 5996 p. 1128
DOI: 10.1126/science.1196916
Although scientific merit may still be the key to the success of smaller research grants, such as those from China's National Natural Science Foundation, it is much less relevant for the megaproject grants from various government funding agencies, which range from tens to hundreds of millions of Chinese yuan (7 yuan equals approximately 1 U.S. dollar).
Defying Critics, China’s Science Ministry Defends Research Culture
In a 3 September editorial in Science, two prominent Chinese scientists alleged that China’s mega-science funding system is corrupt and antithetical to innovation. The Chinese scientific establishment has at last issued a public response. On Monday, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) issued a sharp rebuttal that claims the editorial’s assertions “are contrary to facts” and highlights a slew of recent Chinese-born S&T advances.
In the editorial, Shi Yigong, dean of the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University in Beijing, and Rao Yi, dean of the School of Life Sciences at Peking University in Beijing, singled out for criticism the funding mechanism for mega science projects in China, alleging that to procure grants, “it’s an open secret that doing good research is not as important as schmoozing with powerful bureaucrats and their favorite experts.” They said a societal dependence on interpersonal connections instead of rules for conducting business is partly to blame and called for the creation of a “healthy research culture” such that “new funds are distributed based on merit.”
The editorial caused a big stir in China and even came to the attention of Premier Wen Jiabao,
In the editorial, Shi Yigong, dean of the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University in Beijing, and Rao Yi, dean of the School of Life Sciences at Peking University in Beijing, singled out for criticism the funding mechanism for mega science projects in China, alleging that to procure grants, “it’s an open secret that doing good research is not as important as schmoozing with powerful bureaucrats and their favorite experts.” They said a societal dependence on interpersonal connections instead of rules for conducting business is partly to blame and called for the creation of a “healthy research culture” such that “new funds are distributed based on merit.”
The editorial caused a big stir in China and even came to the attention of Premier Wen Jiabao,
Avoiding a U.S.-China cold war - WaPo
Avoiding a U.S.-China cold war
By Henry A. Kissinger
Friday, January 14, 2011;
Care must be taken lest both sides analyze themselves into self-fulfilling prophecies. The nature of globalization and the reach of modern technology oblige the United States and China to interact around the world. A Cold War between them would bring about an international choosing of sides, spreading disputes into internal politics of every region at a time when issues such as nuclear proliferation, the environment, energy and climate require a comprehensive global solution.
By Henry A. Kissinger
Friday, January 14, 2011;
The upcoming summit between the American and Chinese presidents is to take place while progress is being made in resolving many of the issues before them, and a positive communique is probable. Yet both leaders also face an opinion among elites in their countries emphasizing conflict rather than cooperation.
Most Chinese I encounter outside of government, and some in government, seem convinced that the United States seeks to contain China and to constrict its rise. American strategic thinkers are calling attention to China's increasing global economic reach and the growing capability of its military forces. Care must be taken lest both sides analyze themselves into self-fulfilling prophecies. The nature of globalization and the reach of modern technology oblige the United States and China to interact around the world. A Cold War between them would bring about an international choosing of sides, spreading disputes into internal politics of every region at a time when issues such as nuclear proliferation, the environment, energy and climate require a comprehensive global solution.
Political reform: China's next modernization? - WaPo
Political reform: China's next modernization?
By Daniel Twining
Thursday, January 13, 2011;
By Daniel Twining
Thursday, January 13, 2011;
China boasts the world's second-largest economy, delivering double-digit economic growth on a seemingly permanent basis. It pursues the world's most ambitious program of military modernization, emphasizing the projection of power beyond its borders. It is the planet's biggest steel producer, car market, commodity consumer and exporter. As President Hu Jintao prepares to visit Washington next week, his country's model of authoritarian development looks unstoppable - with troubling implications for American primacy in world affairs.
Yet China may soon bump up against the model's limitations. An aging demographic profile means the population's share of prime workers has already peaked. Resource constraints and environmental devastation will increasingly complicate economic development. Worried neighbors across Asia are moving closer to America and each other, challenging China's room to maneuver in its region. Monday, January 10, 2011
Who Wins If Fewer Foreign Grad Students Come to U.S.? ScienceInsider
Who Wins If Fewer Foreign Grad Students Come to U.S.? on 7 January 2011
What will happen to U.S. universities if the flood of foreign graduate students becomes a trickle? And if they stopped coming, would it mean that other nations can now match the quality of U.S. institutions, which provides the basis for U.S. preeminence in science?The new director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), Subra Suresh, took a shot at answering those questions today in a presentation to the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). And while Suresh admits his informal survey of mobility patterns in his native India is not up to the rigorous standards that NSF would demand of its grantees, he says the results suggest "the beginning of a potentially rapid shift" of talent, with a possible "huge" impact on the U.S. scientific enterprise.
Patching up our alliance with Japan - WaPo
Patching up our alliance with Japan
By Fred Hiatt
Monday, January 10, 2011;
When the Obama administration first looked to Asia, China was the grand opportunity. Korea was a problem to be managed, and Japan, at best, a declining ally you could take for granted.
By Fred Hiatt
Monday, January 10, 2011;
When the Obama administration first looked to Asia, China was the grand opportunity. Korea was a problem to be managed, and Japan, at best, a declining ally you could take for granted.
Two years in, South Korea is, improbably, President Obama's best friend in Asia. China is a disappointment. And Japan has cycled from afterthought to headache to, at least potentially, useful ally again.
The relationship "became shaky for a moment," Japan's foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, told me during an interview last week. But "we have been working hard to restore" an alliance which, he said, "is of extreme importance." Maehara, 48, is a telegenic and popular politician, a possible future prime minister, who has spoken with unusual candor since becoming foreign minister in September. Shortly after assuming office, he asked how a nation can defend its interests abroad when the home front is "marked by a shrinking population, a declining birthrate, an aging society and a massive fiscal deficit." Last week he added another challenge: "young Japanese, who have become inward looking these days."
A chilling tale of justice in Russia - WaPo
A chilling tale of justice in Russia
By Kathy Lally
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, January 9, 2011; 7:47 PM
After the oil tycoon was convicted of tax evasion in 2005 and his company, Yukos, was dismantled and taken over by the state under President Vladimir Putin, she had her narrative arc:
The dissolution of the Soviet Union yields to unbridled capitalism and new freedoms before the state once again consolidates its control over people and property.
By Kathy Lally
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, January 9, 2011; 7:47 PM
When Russia's robber barons emerged in the mid 1990s, buying up the property of the former Soviet Union and making themselves billionaires many times over, the panorama of intrigue, profiteering and improbable communism-to-capitalism conversion captivated Cathryn Collins, far away in the world of New York design.
Those implausible post-Cold War developments would transform not only Russia but also Collins, who became a director and producer so she could tell that story, settling on the life of Mikhail Khodorkovsky as her vehicle. After the oil tycoon was convicted of tax evasion in 2005 and his company, Yukos, was dismantled and taken over by the state under President Vladimir Putin, she had her narrative arc:
The dissolution of the Soviet Union yields to unbridled capitalism and new freedoms before the state once again consolidates its control over people and property.
Collins calls her film "Vlast," which means power but also is how Russians refer to their rulers, freighted with an aggressive and slightly ominous overtone. The documentary, which already has been shown at several film festivals, opens with the events of October 2003, when rough-looking agents seize Khodorkovsky from his private plane and push him into a white van on a dark Siberian night.
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