This week, we looked at how Obama’s Middle East policy is sending dangerous mixed signals to Iran, which now believes the U.S. will blink: Iran isn’t afraid of Barack Obama. The Ayatollahs have looked at the clues, added up the numbers, and come to the conclusion that the President will not use military force as Iran presses […]

In 2010, Michigan battery maker LG Chem was given $150 million by the US Department of Energy, but it has yet to produce any batteries. A report released last Wednesday by Energy Department Inspector General Gregory H. Friedman sharply criticized the battery-maker, General Motors, and the Energy Department itself for the waste of millions in […]

Sanctions are taking their toll on Iran, but Iranians appear ready to pay the price. A recent Gallup poll of public opinion in Iran found that while 56 percent believe sanctions have hurt Iranians’ livelihoods, and 48 percent say sanctions have hurt them personally, 63 percent think Iran should continue to develop its nuclear program […]

Consumers in Europe are revolting against their countries’ green energy policies. For over a decade, the governments of Germany and Spain have been funding their subsidies for solar and wind energy by passing on large costs to the consumer. In Germany, an extra charge is added to household electricity bils, and that charge nearly doubled […]

By now, everyone has seen the meteor that spread a shockwave over Russia last week, and watched the footage of bright lights and blown-out windows. But while the physical impact of the blast is well understood, the the light from the meteor explosion over Chelyabinsk also illuminated some realities in international politics.Apparently at least some Russians’ first […]

When China’s Lieutenant-General Ren Haiquan took the podium in front of an audience filled with representatives from various Asian militaries in Melbourne, Australia, last month, he attacked “some people” who were threatening to repeat the mistakes of WWII. “Flames of the war ignited by fascist countries engulfed the whole region, and many places, including Darwin in Australia, […]

Self-healing materials; energy-efficient water purification; drug delivery through nanoscale engineering—these are just a few of the top ten technologies to watch in 2013, according to the World Economic Forum. The WEF believes these ten innovations are almost at the point where they can be widely distributed and used, transforming all our lives dramatically. David King over […]

The Western love affair with cars may be over. The FT reports that the number of UK teenagers taking driving tests has fallen by about 18 percent since 2007. For 20-somethings, the drop is about 10 percent. Even licensed drivers are driving less: many don’t have cars, and those who do are clocking less miles. The US, […]

If you listen closely you can hear slow fade out of the funeral bells announcing America’s decline. The growth of nanotechnology—a vital piece of varied industries like aerospace and medicine—may just be centered on American soil. Reuters reports via Yahoo News: Inventors based in the United States led the world in nanotechnology patent applications and grants in […]

A strain of a new SARS-like virus has just infected its fourth British victim, suggesting that SARS didn’t go away after its deadly 2002-3 outbreak. The virus, which experts are calling NCoV (novel coronavirus), has now infected 12 people globally, five of whom have died. Most of those sick with NCoV are from the Middle […]