Wednesday August 10, 2005

"I don't drive; why should I care about oil prices?"

news.bbc.co.uk :

With crude oil prices topping $64 a barrel - up from $10 in 1999 - the sobriquet "black gold" has rarely seemed so apt. The impact on the drivers of the UK's 28 million cars is clear; less immediately obvious is how the rising cost of crude oil has ramifications for all.

"If you take buses, trains or planes, you will be paying more for your fare. And our shops are filled with plastics, which are oil-based products," says Roy Holloway, the director of the Petrol Retailers' Association. "When producing - and delivering - these household goods gets more expensive, consumers will bear the brunt."

So demand for oil is on the increase, and not simply because of the world's unwaning love affair with motor cars ...

(2005-08-10 20:52:46 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

"In Silicon Valley, Doing Good Is the New Thing"

"The firm" got a mention in the Washington Post.

washingtonpost.com :

Ten years after the Aug. 9, 1995, initial public offering of Netscape Communications Corp. set off the Internet boom and five years after the bust, venture capitalists are leading a push to remake Silicon Valley as a center for a new form of social entrepreneurship and venture philanthropy, a place where you can make good money by doing good.

While plenty of people here still are out to make fast bucks, there also has been a surge in investments aimed at solving some of the world's most formidable problems. Venture capitalists chastened by the bursting of the bubble say they want to make a mark that lasts beyond the next quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Life sciences, which includes biotechnology and medical devices, has been the dominant sector for investment for the past two years. Energy investments are also on the rise.

Ion America Corp., for instance, is working on technology to create a clean energy source from hydrogen that would reduce pollution and dependence on foreign oil. Savi Technology Inc. is making radio identification tags for container cargo that it hopes will help border security officials keep out bombs or other weapons. Satiety Inc. is fighting obesity by designing a tubed instrument that may reduce complications from stomach surgery. Former Homeland Security Department chief Tom Ridge said he recently joined the board of Savi because he is "very interested in any technology that can help create a safer and more secure America."

Venture capital firm RWI Group Inc. has invested in various health-related companies, such as DexCom Inc., which sells a continuous blood glucose monitor that helps people with diabetes manage their disease, and Paracor Medical Inc., which has designed a device that treats patients with heart failure ...

(2005-08-10 14:29:44 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

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