Brian Gongol
Investing in water
Iceland's GDP: $14 billion. Its banking liabilities: $100 billion.
Iceland hardly comes to mind as the kind of place where one might expect near-total economic meltdown. But it certainly looks like the small country has some huge problems. The US should take heed: In an effort to get the situation under control, the country is facing interest rates of 15% and higher, and a huge spike in inflation. Those are perhaps the two biggest risks the US faces as the rest of the world loses faith in our fiscal responsibility. We just happen to be outrageously lucky that at this very moment, the world economy has grown by leaps and bounds and there's lots of excess capital with few places to go...except here. That won't last forever. Related: If Iceland's problems sound disproportionate, consider that Citigroup is suing for $60 billion over a $2.16 billion deal to buy out Wachovia -- a deal which was trumped by a $15.1 billion offer from Wells Fargo.
DARPA wants an ultrasound tool to stop major bleeding within 18 months
A review of changes to the Chicago Tribune
