First Habitable Planet, Oct 09, 2010

How many habitable planets are there in our galaxy, worlds that can sustain liquid water and support life? A great many suggests Steven Vogt, professor of astronomy at the University of California Santa Cruz and co-leader of the Lick-Carnegie Exoplanet Survey. According to Vogt, 10 to 20 percent of planetary systems in our galaxy could contain at least one habitable planet. “When you multiply that by the hundreds of billions of stars in the Milky Way, that’s a large number. There could be tens of billions of these systems in our galaxy,” he mused.
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Chang'E 2 launches to the Moon

Congratulations to China! Chang'E 2 successfully lifted off at 10:59:57 UTC today, October 1, 2010 aboard a Long March 3C rocket. Unlike its predecessor, Chang'E 2 rocketed directly to a lunar transfer orbit and will arrive at the Moon only 112 hours after launch (according to the Xinhua news agency). That would put its lunar arrival at about 03:00 on Wednesday, October 6. Here is some really terrific video coverage of the launch from CCTV. I'm sorry that it autoplays; I can't figure out how to prevent it from doing that.

IMF Warns of Slower Growth As Currency War Rages On, Oct 09, 2010

By Don Miller, Associate Editor, Money Morning

Meetings of the Group of Seven (G-7) countries in Washington this week could feature a clash of views that have sparked an international currency war even as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that growth in developed economies is slowing.

A way out, at last, for Chile's 33 trapped miners

Sixty-six agonizing days after their gold and copper mine collapsed above them, 33 miners were offered a way out Saturday as a drill broke through to their underground purgatory.

Rescue drill reaches 33 trapped Chilean miners - CNN.com

Drillers reach trapped miners
Copiapo, Chile (CNN) -- Anxious family members and exhausted rescue workers reveled in joyful relief after a drill pierced the roof of an underground mine in Chile where 33 men have been trapped since August 5.

The Technology That Will Replace 148 Billion Barrels of Oil

By Horacio R. Marquez, Contributing Editor, Money Morning

Not many investors noticed in September 2008 when Warren Buffet took a 10% stake in Hong Kong-based battery maker BYD Co. Ltd. for $230 million.

Three Ways to Profit as China Causes Gold Prices to Spike

By Martin Hutchinson, Contributing Editor, Money Morning

When recently gold sold off and fell as much as 8% below its record high level of $1,260 an ounce, investors had to be more than a little concerned.

With the huge debt loads top world economies have taken on to rebound from the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, investors have grabbed onto gold as the best way to hedge against the inflation and other financial calamities they felt were certain to come. So far, those calamities haven't materialized.

Profit Plays For Canada – The World’s “Safest Economy”, Oct 09, 2010

I’ve said it once, and I’ll doubtless say it a few dozen more times before the U.S. economy returns to health: Just because you have to endure recessionary conditions doesn’t mean that your money has to.
That’s the argument I make when I urge Americans to search for investments outside U.S. borders. Ironically, your money doesn’t have to travel all that far: What’s arguably the world’s “safest economy” is actually located just north of the border.
I’m talking, of course, about investing in Canada.  

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More Investors Betting Ireland Will Go the Way of Greece

By Don Miller, Associate Editor, Money Morning

The cost to insure Irish bonds against a government default jumped to a record yesterday (Tuesday) after Standard & Poor's said the cost of bailing out nationalized lender Anglo Irish Bank Corp. could exceed $47 billion.

Japanese Economy Threatened by China Rare Earth Metals Ban, Oct 09, 2010

By Jason Simpkins, Managing Editor, Money Morning

Japanese authorities last Friday released from detention the captain of a Chinese fishing boat that was found in disputed waters. However, China continues to withhold exports of rare earth metals to its island neighbor.info@als-alexander.org or interalex1@yahoo.com