| 2p won't buy Brown a ticket to No 10
We really should have seen it coming. Those of us who have watched and charted the progress of Gordon Brown's political philosophy could easily have predicted it. The 2p tax cut, the centrepiece of this Chancellor's last Budget, which has shaken the pieces in the kaleidoscope of British politics and thrown a different coloured prism across our view of the political parties, was always an inevitable next step for Mr Brown to take. The clues were all there. Gordon Brown has laid them himself over the past few years, during which acute observers will recall that he has consistently sought to reclaim the considerable reputation of the philosopher Adam Smith - Margaret Thatcher's favourite economist - as a bulwark for his "New Labour" economics. It is, of course, a wonderfully appropriate claim for him to make, not only because of their shared enthusiasm for prudence and a strong sense of the importance of what Smith called "moral sentiments", but only because of the pleasing symmetry provided by their shared home town of Kirkcaldy in Fife.
Govt lifts ban on SEZs but ruins big dreams
NEW DELHI: The government has overhauled its policy on special economic zones (SEZs), making large, multi-product SEZs virtually impossible to build. The empowered group of ministers (eGOM) headed by foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee, which met in the political shadow of the Nandigram violence, on Thursday lifted the freeze on approving new SEZs but changed several parameters to make the policy more acceptable. As per the new norms, the size of an SEZ cannot exceed 5,000 hectares (12,500 acres). Earlier, there was only a lower limit of 1,000 hectares for multi-product SEZs. Now, state governments can impose a lower ceiling, if they want to. More importantly, state governments can no longer acquire land for a special economic zone on behalf of private developers; nor can state governments form joint ventures with private developers if they do not already have land in possession to offer the project.
How to solve a problem like the dollar
So Ben Bernanke has been called in by worried congressmen to explain US monetary policy. The wording of the statement accompanying the March Open Markets Committee meeting has been pored over in minute detail and time and again by financial market Kremlinologists seeking to get to the bottom of what Mr Bernanke's coterie really mean. We agree with the Financial Times leader article (27th March) which draws attention to the scope for confusion implicit within the absence of an official inflation target and where, as a nominal demand manager, senior Fed officials have constantly to walk the tightrope between concern over inflation and concern over growth and its impact on employment. But whilst we accept the statement's opacity we have a strong view as to which side Fed officials should be leaning.
Fresh faces looking to boost economy
Mike Dever, the top vote-getter in Tuesday's City Commission election, said city commissioners, Douglas County commissioners and leaders with the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce need to meet soon to discuss ways to boost economic development. “We need to figure out how to prime our economic development engine and get it running down the road," Dever said. Dever said he wants to ensure that the city, county and chamber — the three groups that provide funding for economic development operations — believe that the proper system is in place to attract jobs. He said the three must discuss what each can do better. He also said he would like the Lawrence-Douglas County Economic Development Board to become more prominent and meet more often. Once everyone is on the same page, Dever said, clear goals must be set, with an expectation that they'll be met.
Tweaking the roots of intelligence
Genetic inheritance and other biological factors strongly influence the ability to "overcome obstacles by taking thought."
The current science, as neuroscientists Jeremy Gray and Paul Thompson review it, suggests that at least 40 percent of variability in intelligence results purely from genetic inheritance. Another 20 percent of intelligence measured by IQ (Intelligence Quotient) tests stems only from differences in the fetal environment.
In our lifetime, these hard-wired limitations may no longer be destiny - think "Gattaca." Even now, scientists are developing ways to improve upon our natural intellects, to bust the genetically privileged minority's monopoly on smarts by building better brains.
"Enhancing intelligence is not science fiction," writes psychology professor Michael Gazzaniga in the October 2005 issue of Scientific American Mind.
Nigeria: As Citizens Vote
As Nigerians move towards elections that mark the first time one elected civilian government has handed over to another, Chippa Vandu provides an historical overview of military and civilian rule in Nigeria and assess the probable outcome of the April elections. As a nation, Nigeria has come a long way. 1999 was meant to be its year of hope--the return to democratic rule after a decade and a half of military dictatorships. Of all military rulers in Nigeria's history, only one voluntarily gave up power to a democratically elected government. His name was Olusegun Obasanjo and the year was 1979. General Obasanjo became a military ruler by chance in 1976, having inherited the seat of power when the then Head of State, General Murtala Muhammed, was assassinated in Nigeria's second bloody coup.
Urgent need for Aussie eyes in the skies
Australians are inspired by human space flight, but more importantly we are one of the world's great observers of planet Earth from space. During the past decade, we have opened our eyes in space and learnt to use a variety of satellites to forecast cyclones, spot bushfires, measure soil moisture, foretell our weather, prospect for minerals, measure rising sea levels, monitor the Great Barrier Reef and predict the "ocean state" for everyone from recreational fishermen and surfers to the Royal Australian Navy. The economic and security value of this information is untold. These remote observations are our best means of tracking the extraordinary changes occurring on our golden soil and girding seas. We benefit greatly from data collected from a host of satellites flown by other countries.
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