This year's batch of Beaujolais nouveau goes on sale across the world today - but poor harvests could make it harder to get your hands on a bottle. The first cases of the simple, some would say bland, French red wine are traditionally delivered on the third Thursday in November.Due to their time zone, Japanese wine buffs will be the first to raise their glasses of the drink, which is made from Gamay grapes in Beaujeu, Burgundy.But the region's producers have suffered their worst harvest since 1975, meaning that only a few hundred thousand bottles have been shipped to the UK."Bad weather in August affected a quarter of our vines, and some producers lost all of theirs," said Dominique Capart of the trade group Inter Beaujolais.
The first cases of the simple, some would say bland, French red wine are traditionally delivered on the third Thursday in November.
Due to their time zone, Japanese wine buffs will be the first to raise their glasses of the drink, which is made from Gamay grapes in Beaujeu, Burgundy.
But the region's producers have suffered their worst harvest since 1975, meaning that only a few hundred thousand bottles have been shipped to the UK.
"Bad weather in August affected a quarter of our vines, and some producers lost all of theirs," said Dominique Capart of the trade group Inter Beaujolais.
You can have all the bottles you want for export! Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed. Gandhi
Eighty-five percent of companies are already using open-source software, with most of the remaining 15 percent expecting to do so within the next year, according to analysts at Gartner. However, only 31 percent of companies surveyed by the analyst house had formal policies for evaluating and procuring open-source software (OSS). Gartner conducted its survey of 274 end-user organizations across the Asia/Pacific, Europe and North American markets in May and June, and announced the results on Monday. Respondents to the survey consistently pointed to cost as a prime motivator for their adoption of open source, with some also suggesting OSS provided some protection against single-vendor lock-in. Other reasons for adoption included fast time to market and the avoidance of complex procurement rules and procedures, Gartner said. However, according to Gartner, a lack of formal policies could open companies up to intellectual-property violations. The analyst house's survey put governance issues at the top of the list for barriers to OSS adoption. "Just because something is free doesn't mean that it has no cost," said Gartner research director Laurie Wurster in a statement. "Companies must have a policy for procuring OSS, deciding which applications will be supported by OSS, and identifying the intellectual property risk or supportability risk associated with using OSS. Once a policy is in place, then there must be a governance process to enforce it."
However, only 31 percent of companies surveyed by the analyst house had formal policies for evaluating and procuring open-source software (OSS). Gartner conducted its survey of 274 end-user organizations across the Asia/Pacific, Europe and North American markets in May and June, and announced the results on Monday.
Respondents to the survey consistently pointed to cost as a prime motivator for their adoption of open source, with some also suggesting OSS provided some protection against single-vendor lock-in. Other reasons for adoption included fast time to market and the avoidance of complex procurement rules and procedures, Gartner said.
However, according to Gartner, a lack of formal policies could open companies up to intellectual-property violations. The analyst house's survey put governance issues at the top of the list for barriers to OSS adoption.
"Just because something is free doesn't mean that it has no cost," said Gartner research director Laurie Wurster in a statement. "Companies must have a policy for procuring OSS, deciding which applications will be supported by OSS, and identifying the intellectual property risk or supportability risk associated with using OSS. Once a policy is in place, then there must be a governance process to enforce it."
"Dieu se rit des hommes qui se plaignent des conséquences alors qu'ils en chérissent les causes" Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet
World Publics Strongly Favor Requiring More Wind and Solar Energy, More Efficiency, Even If It Increases Costs Most Think It Will Save Money in the Long Run A new WorldPublicOpinion.org poll of 21 nations finds very strong support for the government requiring utilities to use more alternative energy, such as wind and solar, and requiring businesses to use energy more efficiently, even if these steps increase the costs of energy and other products. Fewer than half of the nations polled favor putting more emphasis on nuclear energy or on coal or oil. In all nations most people reject the view that shifting to alternative energy sources would hurt the economy, believing instead that it would save money in the long run.
A new WorldPublicOpinion.org poll of 21 nations finds very strong support for the government requiring utilities to use more alternative energy, such as wind and solar, and requiring businesses to use energy more efficiently, even if these steps increase the costs of energy and other products. Fewer than half of the nations polled favor putting more emphasis on nuclear energy or on coal or oil.
In all nations most people reject the view that shifting to alternative energy sources would hurt the economy, believing instead that it would save money in the long run.
Before the Bust, These CEOs Took Money Off the Table The credit bubble has burst. The economy is tanking. Investors in the U.S. stock market have lost more than $9 trillion since its peak a year ago. But in industries at the center of the crisis, plenty of top officials managed to emerge with substantial fortunes. Fifteen corporate chieftains of large home-building and financial-services firms each reaped more than $100 million in cash compensation and proceeds from stock sales during the past five years, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. Four of those executives, including the heads of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Bear Stearns Cos., ran companies that have filed for bankruptcy protection or seen their share prices fall more than 90% from their peak. The study, which examined filings at 120 public companies in such sectors as banking, mortgage finance, student lending, stock brokerage and home building, showed that top executives and directors of the firms cashed out a total of more than $21 billion during the period.
The credit bubble has burst. The economy is tanking. Investors in the U.S. stock market have lost more than $9 trillion since its peak a year ago.
But in industries at the center of the crisis, plenty of top officials managed to emerge with substantial fortunes.
Fifteen corporate chieftains of large home-building and financial-services firms each reaped more than $100 million in cash compensation and proceeds from stock sales during the past five years, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. Four of those executives, including the heads of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Bear Stearns Cos., ran companies that have filed for bankruptcy protection or seen their share prices fall more than 90% from their peak.
The study, which examined filings at 120 public companies in such sectors as banking, mortgage finance, student lending, stock brokerage and home building, showed that top executives and directors of the firms cashed out a total of more than $21 billion during the period.
EU urges action to exploit Arctic oil and gas By Tony Barber in Brussels European Union policymakers called for a carefully managed international effort to exploit the Arctic's oil and gas resources and said that its vast untapped reserves could enhance Europe's energy security. The European Commission demanded observance of the highest environmental standards and appealed for full protection of the rights of indigenous Arctic people. The Commission's initiative reflected concern about the risk of sharp rivalries among global powers in a region that is not governed by a specific international treaty regime and where no single country has sovereignty over the North Pole or the ocean around it. According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic accounts for about 22 per cent of the world's undiscovered, technically recoverable resources, including 30 per cent of natural gas and 13 per cent of oil.
European Union policymakers called for a carefully managed international effort to exploit the Arctic's oil and gas resources and said that its vast untapped reserves could enhance Europe's energy security.
The European Commission demanded observance of the highest environmental standards and appealed for full protection of the rights of indigenous Arctic people.
The Commission's initiative reflected concern about the risk of sharp rivalries among global powers in a region that is not governed by a specific international treaty regime and where no single country has sovereignty over the North Pole or the ocean around it.
According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic accounts for about 22 per cent of the world's undiscovered, technically recoverable resources, including 30 per cent of natural gas and 13 per cent of oil.
Apple's Greatest Idea Yet There is an Apple (AAPL) story that I don't want you to miss. It's bigger than the Mac, it's bigger than the iPod, and it's bigger than the iPhone. Steve Jobs briefly mentioned it in the quarterly conference call and it deserves repeating, "We've never seen anything like this in our careers". Of course, I'm talking about the App Store. This store is causing a sea change in both the mobile phone industry and the gaming industry that threatens the viability of all competitors. (...) Apple has brought the Internet to the next level. That level that everyone expected during the tech bubble has arrived. The efficiency of distribution is impossible for the traditional model to compete with. Consumers are eating this thing up. During a quarter in which consumers supposedly quit spending, Apple grew real revenue by 54.5% and grew net income by a staggering 81.2%. That kind of growth is absurd for a company as mature as Apple. That kind of growth is absurd during an economic collapse. But it happened. And it's just beginning. The $199 price tag on the iPhone was a brilliant move by Apple as it allows them to fly below the radar of the economic downturn.
There is an Apple (AAPL) story that I don't want you to miss. It's bigger than the Mac, it's bigger than the iPod, and it's bigger than the iPhone. Steve Jobs briefly mentioned it in the quarterly conference call and it deserves repeating, "We've never seen anything like this in our careers".
Of course, I'm talking about the App Store. This store is causing a sea change in both the mobile phone industry and the gaming industry that threatens the viability of all competitors.
(...)
Apple has brought the Internet to the next level. That level that everyone expected during the tech bubble has arrived. The efficiency of distribution is impossible for the traditional model to compete with. Consumers are eating this thing up. During a quarter in which consumers supposedly quit spending, Apple grew real revenue by 54.5% and grew net income by a staggering 81.2%. That kind of growth is absurd for a company as mature as Apple. That kind of growth is absurd during an economic collapse. But it happened. And it's just beginning. The $199 price tag on the iPhone was a brilliant move by Apple as it allows them to fly below the radar of the economic downturn.
