Archive for the 'Economy' Category
PFGBest Founder Attempts Suicide as $200m Goes Missing from Accounts
July 10th, 2012Via: Guardian: The founder of the US broker PFGBest is said to have attempted suicide as it emerged that more than $200m (£130m) appeared to be missing from clients’ accounts. Russell Wasendorf Sr, a 40-year veteran of futures markets, was found in his car near the company’s Iowa headquarters and is in a critical condition […]
LIBOR Rate Fixing: ‘The Most Egregious Crime in a Generation’
July 9th, 2012Now with no 9/11! Via: Time: The 21st has been a banner century for financial and accounting scandals. Enron, the dotcom bust, the subprime-mortgage crisis and the bank bailouts have all contributed to the very low esteem in which the American public holds Corporate America in general, and high finance in particular. So it is […]
Pentagon Contractor Caught Illegally Selling Military Technology to China
July 9th, 20122002: U.S. satellite maker Loral Space & Communications Ltd. has agreed to pay a $14 million fine for passing missile technology to China. The satellite and communications company will pay the fine over seven years to the U.S. State Department, through its Space Systems/Loral Inc. subsidiary. The subsidiary neither admitted nor denied the charges but […]
Drone Hijacking? That’s Just the Start of GPS Troubles
July 7th, 2012Via: Wired: On the evening of June 19, a group of researchers from the University of Texas successfully hijacked a civilian drone at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico during a test organized by the Department of Homeland Security. The drone, an Adaptive Flight Hornet Mini, was hovering at around 60 feet, locked […]
The British Airways ‘Know Me’ System
July 7th, 2012Via: Telegraph: British Airways staff will be able to identify customers by using a new computer system that searches Google to find images of them. Cabin crew and staff at check–in desks and first–class lounges will be equipped with technology to help them meet and greet selected travellers. The aim is to give the airline […]
Swarms of Maple Seed Drones
July 6th, 2012Via: Talking Points Memo: Imagine a cheap, tiny, hovering aerial drone capable of being launched with the flick of a person’s wrist and able to provide manipulable 360-degree surveillance views. It’s real, it’s inspired by maple seeds, and the company behind it, Lockheed Martin, envisions a future in which swarms of the new drones can […]
Drought Hits 56 Percent of Continental U.S.; ‘Significant Toll’ on Crops
July 6th, 2012Via: MSNBC: The prolonged heat across the Midwest has not only set temperature records, it is also expanding and intensifying drought conditions — and relief isn’t on the horizon for most areas, the National Weather Service reported Thursday. Drought conditions are present in 56 percent of the continental U.S., according to the weekly Drought Monitor. […]
The Bank of England Told Us To Do It, Claims Barclays
July 5th, 2012Via: Telegraph: The Deputy Governor of the Bank of England encouraged Barclays to try to lower interest rates after coming under pressure from senior members of the last Labour government, documents have disclosed. A memo published by Barclays suggested that Paul Tucker gave a hint to Bob Diamond, the bank’s chief executive, in 2008 that […]
Job Insecurity: It’s the Disease of the 21st Century
July 5th, 2012Via: Alternet: Remember Dilbert, the mid-level, white-collar Cubicle Guy of the ’90s who could never seem to get ahead? In the 21st century, his position looks almost enviable. He has been replaced by Waiting-For-the-Other-Shoe-to-Drop Man. Across America, freaked-out employees are coping with sweat-drenched nights and heart-pounding days. They’re reaching for the Xanax and piling on […]
Women Could Delay Menopause Indefinitely with Ovary Transplant
July 5th, 2012Or, the women can have it all crowd could figure out that they’re on a hamster wheel designed by vampire states to extract taxes from them while their children suffer the consequences. Via: Telegraph: A technique to remove pieces of ovary, store it for decades and then replace it with delicate surgery could effectively put […]
