Gorilla glass safeguards your TV from Wii accidents

Video gamers know about Wii damages involving TV glass, and now there’s a business that thinks they have an option. The AP reports that Chemcor, an old invention from the labs of Corning, is now about to hit the market as super-strong Gorilla glass. Soon, Corning will use Gorilla glass in high-end TVs and touch-screen tablets.

Gorilla glass first roared two years ago

After decades of nothing, Corning began to use Gorilla glass in cell phones in 2008. Using the product for cell phone screens started a $ 170 million per year business, but that’s small compared to what Corning could make in the flat screen TV and touch screen system market. In specific, Gorilla glass could possibly be used for frameless flat screen TVs that would look like artwork on a wall, rather than a television. Gorilla glass’ resistance to scratching, denting or other breakage would both preserve a high-end television’s elegance and cut down on broken glass from dreaded Wii accidents.

Strength times three, thickness divided by half

According to the AP, Gorilla glass beats standard glass by a mile. It is three times as strong – like a gorilla – but it is less than half as thick. A Gorilla glass flat screen can be thinner than a dime, which greatly decreases shipping costs. Thus, Corning hopes to get its Asian manufacturers to get Gorilla glass into the TV market by early next year. Share prices of Corning are already up, which is a good sign. Corning’s TV glass sales amounted to $ 5.4 billion last year, and Gorilla glass will take than number through the roof in 2011, experts predict. Adding Gorilla glass to TVs is forecasted to add only $ 30 to $ 60 per unit.

And what about other products?

Corning is confident that Gorilla glass is suitable for myriad products. For example, refrigerator doors, vehicle sunroofs and stationary touch-screen interfaces are all opportunities. For the moment, Corning is on the precipice of making large cash with Gorilla glass in high-end televisions.

Further reading

Associated Press

cbsnews.com/stories/2010/08/01/ap/tech/main6734387.shtml

Falling gold price could mean the gold bubble is about to burst

The rumors say a gold bubble burst is within the near future. Investors have perceived gold as a safe haven during the global financial crisis. The global financial crisis is ending which means the gold bubble might burst, although it rose since October 2008. If the markets continue to rally, the demand for so-called safe investments like gold will fall. Gold went down quite a bit already from June 21 from $ 1,266.50 to $ 1,185. Article resource – Falling gold price could mean the gold bubble is about to burst by Personal Money Store.

Knowing when the gold bubble will burst

It can be a sign of the gold bubble burst the gold prices are so unsteady. Brian Rezny at Seeking Alpha writes that India and China, the world’s first and second largest gold markets respectively, are purchasing a lot less gold. He said that gold is a commodity with a value based upon entirely on the assumption that it will increase in price. Gold became a safe haven during the global financial crisis based on perception. The only reason gold is valuable is because investors have believed it is valuable. A gold bubble burst would change that perception overnight.

Market in Europe changes because of credit crisis

One reason the gold bubble may be about to burst is since the markets may have exaggerated the effects of the credit crisis in Europe to the global economy, as outlined by Ron Acoba at Daily Markets. Acoba explains that there isn’t any effect on their business with the whole credit crisis. Rezny said the gold bubble is about to “end in tears,” and the recent decline in gold prices will get worse. Similar to what is happening now, gold peaked at $ 850 an ounce in 1980. Adjusted for inflation, that $ 850 was equal to $ 2,300. And then it tanked, falling to $ 253 by 1999.

A safe haven gets risky

Since many have bought gold, the gold bubble has gotten huge. Celebrities are endorsing gold. Hucksters like Glenn Beck are convincing average people to dump a large percentage of their investment portfolios into gold — even their life savings — to be safe when the global economy collapses into the stone age. Beating Broke is concerned about what will happen after the economy recovers. Gold buyers will be sad to see their investment of $ 1,100 or $ 1,200 an ounce change to be $ 800 or $ 900 an ounce instead. If these investors lose 30 percent of their savings or portfolio, the gold bubble will burst. The price of gold will drop even further as people rush to sell off their holdings. True believers in gold will lose even more.

More on this topic

Daily Markets

dailymarkets.com/forex/2010/07/28/did-the-gold-bubble-just-pop/

Beating Broke

beatingbroke.com/is-gold-the-next-bubble/

Auto dealer exemption means first time car buyers must be wary

An auto dealer exemption was signed into the financial reform bill. Auto dealers are more likely to deceive buyers since the auto lending regulation is no longer in place. To get a better deal, very first time car buyers have to know about these practices. You are going to want to know what you are getting into with auto financing as well. Post resource – Auto dealer exemption means first time car buyers must be wary by Personal Money Store.

Car payments down with more interest

There isn’t nearly as much money in auto sales as there is in auto financing for dealerships according to AOL Autos. Car dealers do not even give choices for interest rates; they want to know what kind of payment you are looking for. The dealership bases anything off that info. An rate of interest that is lower for a car loan will conserve people thousands of dollars. Car buyers have to be careful working with an auto dealer on car loan for their next vehicle.

Get your credit score before learning about interest rate deals

Bankrate.com reports that dealers are middlemen working with lenders who give them wholesale interest rates. Dealers mark up those rates by up to 3 percentage points. Numerous dealers hope the consumers do not know what interest rates they qualify for so higher interest rates could be charged. You need to know what interest rates you are able to get.

Discover your loan approval before looking at cars

A good way to know for certain what type of rate of interest you qualify for is to get approved for a loan before you even set foot on the car lot. However, The New York Times reports that if a car buyer shows up already approved for a loan, dealers will make an effort to discover some other way to make money off them. Some things they try to sell are window etchings, disability, or other kinds of insurance. Many dealers tell the customers that they can only get their loans with extra add-ons, although this is illegal.

Don’t sign anything that says loan approval is a condition of the sale

”Yo-yo” is what the Times article calls it Buyers can get their cars and leave just to get an annoying phone call just a little later saying the loan didn’t go through and needs to be changed so it is a higher rate. This won’t happen if you get your loan approved beforehand. Before you get your automobile, make certain the dealer gets your financing approved, Bankrate.com suggests doing. You may have to wait a few days longer than before, but it is worth it.

Find more details on this subject

AOL Auto
autos.aol.com/article/car-finance-interest-data/
Bankrate.com
bankrate.com/finance/auto/3-tips-on-getting-a-car-loan-at-the-dealer.aspx
The New York Times
nytimes.com/2010/07/17/your-money/17money.html

Deadly bear attack in Montana just outside Yellowstone

Just outside Yellowstone National Park on Wednesday, two people were injured and one was killed when a female bear rampaged through Soda Butte Campground. This Montana bear attack seems to have been unprovoked, though the National Park Service is investigating. While camping is normally very safe, this attack highlights that wild animals could be very dangerous.

Bear attack in Montana’s Soda Butte

At about 2 a.m. on Wednesday morning, a bear attacked in the Soda Butte Campground in southern Montana. One man was killed, a teenager was left with calf wounds and one woman was badly mauled. The bear attacked three separate tents, and rangers evacuated the campground as soon as the dead man was found.

An anchor in the car aisles

Avoiding bears is usually a very essential part of camping in the backcountry. It appears how the Montana bear attack, though, was unprovoked. All of the campers at the Soda Butte campground had their food in bear boxes, and no bear attractants appear to have been left out. The area was very busy with campers, and it is possible that the attacking bear could have felt her cubs were confronted.

Previous attacks at Soda Butte campground

Soda Butte Campground, in the Gallatin National Forest, has been the location of bear attacks in the past. Yellowstone National Park is about 10 miles away from the 27-campside Soda Butte Campground. In 2008, a grizzly bear attacked one man in a tent. That bear was captured and transported to Washington State University in Pullman.

Avoiding a bear attack

Protecting yourself from bears is relatively simple. First of all, make sure your food is kept in a bear-proof container, your automobile trunk, or hung up and out of reach. Keep any and all trash in wildlife resistant containers. Lastly, sleep at least 100 yards away from cooking areas and food storage.

New Colorado payday loan company laws to go into effect

New laws intended to limit the short term money loans offered in Colorado are likely to go into effect. In August of this year, Colorado payday advance direct lenders can have the interest rates and repayment terms of their products capped. The bill is very centrist, weaker than some legislators had hoped for but stronger than industry lobbyists had pulled for.

Limiting interest rates

The interest rates of personal debt loans in Colorado will now be limited to 45 percent annual interest. Like most instant loans advance loan products, the term of the loan is much shorter than a year, but interest rates are often calculated on an annual basis. The current cap on these loans in Colorado is 300 percent annual interest. Some lenders said that a 36 percent rate cap was good, but lenders argued that high administration costs and default rates make that rate practically extremely hard to operate under.

The longer terms required on loans

Short term installment loans in Colorado presently have terms between seven and thirty days. As of August, this term can be stretched out. There could be a minimum term of six months or longer on all these loans. The lenders are also required to offer the ability to repay the loan in less than six months.

Fees for origination and carrying

The newest bill in Colorado allows fees for both carrying the loan and originating the loan. The lender can be able to charge $ 75 to originate the loan.

The whole payday advance debate

On the Senate floor and in the Governor’s office, the debate over cash till payday loans has been heavy. Some legislators want to pass even stronger regulations on the payday advance industry. The current bill, though, passed with a very slim one-vote majority. Most state legislatures will probably end up reconsidering this controversial issue time and time again.

A $ 45 investment in Ansel Adams negatives returns $ 200 million

If Ansel Adams were alive today he would probably be pleasantly surprised at this return on investment. A song Rick Norsigian did used a whole box of negatives he found in a garage sale. After 10 years of trying, he finally convinced experts that the negatives were taken by legendary photographer Ansel Adams. Now he’s poised to reap a crazy return on his $ 45 investment. All the photos are being appraised for more than $ 200 million now.

Ansel Adams work in a garage sale

Ansel Adams died in 1984 and created black and white pictures of the American West. Some of probably the most famous by Ansel Adams are pictures which were taken in Yosemite National Park in California. The sellers wanted Norsigian to pay $ 70 for the two boxes of glass negatives, but he talked them down to $ 45, reports CNN. Art expert Robert Moeller told CNN that after six months of study, he concluded “with a high degree of probability, that the images under consideration were produced by Ansel Adams”.

Ansel Adams photos called ‘missing link’

Norsigian’s Ansel Adams garage sale photographs are a “missing link” within the history of the photographer’s career; appraiser and art dealer David W. Streets told CNN. The Beverly Hills gallery had the photos shown for the very first time July 27. He also thinks the return on his investment could be at least $ 200 million. 5,000 plates were destroyed in a 1937 darkroom fire although these 65 negatives seem to have made it.

Zone system set up by Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams’ Yosemite photos didn’t become famous until the 1940s, while these photos were taking between 1919 and the 1930s. A Wikipedia page on Adams reports that he co-developed a way to determine proper exposure and adjust the contrast of the final print, and he called it the Zone System. The resulting clarity and depth of Ansel Adams’ Zone System defined the classic Ansel Adams images. Adams used big, heavy, expensive high-resolution large-format cameras to ensure sharpness in his images.

Finding numerous Ansel Adams negatives

The Ansel Adams garage sale photographs still have their doubters, despite the endorsement of art experts. The blog, Croanca, wonders if the dealers within the CNN article are really qualified to say this is Ansel Adams photos. Those who like Ansel Adams wonder if reproduction will be a bad thing. Someone at visualjournalism.info wonders if the Ansel Adams photographs could be produced good enough.

Find more information on this subject

CNN
cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/07/27/ansel.adams.discovery/?hpt=Sbin
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansel_Adams

Microlending blooms as banks refuse for making small business loans

An answer to the small company loan crisis may be microloans. Microloans are more commonly associated with developing nations. But microlending is on the rise in the United States as more smaller businesses are applying for microloans when the bank says no.Congress made a halfhearted try to create a small business lending bill, but the fact that it perished amid partisan backstabbing could mean continued good business for microlenders. Article resource – Microlending blooms as banks refuse for making small company loans by Personal Money Store.

Microlending: what’s good for Bangladesh is good for America

One of probably the most effective solutions to finance growth in the 3rd world has been making small loans to the poor-otherwise known as microlending. But then the Americas economy fell and cannot seem to get up. A New York Times report said that U.S. demand for small loans during the recession and subsequent credit crunch is increasing. The buzz on microlending is getting louder as more companies succeed with the help of microloans. A pilot program for U.S. business owners has been launched by Kiva, which has microlent more than $ 150 million in 53 nations. Grameen Financial institution — a microfinance group based in Bangladesh that was started by Muhammad Yunus, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his groundbreaking work in microlending — has also widened its lending to Americans.

Partisan politics thwart small company lending

Microlenders are taking up the slack in small company credit as Congress plays partisan games. Bloomberg reports that because senate Democrats failed to get the votes required to advance beyond debate, a bill written to loosen small company credit perished July 29. To jump start small business lending, the bill would have provided banks with less than $ 10 billion in assets $ 30 billion. As their level of lending rose, the cost for those banks to pay back the money would fall. The potential results of the small company lending bill were estimated at up to $ 300 billion in loans. But Republicans wanted to tack extending the Bush tax cuts to the bill while they said it would encourage more risky lending.

Microloans are getting results

Smaller businesses are succeeding with microloans when the Senate quarrels. The Times article features a Silicon Valley restaurant owner whose business was saved with a $ 6,500 microloan with a three-year term at 6 percent interest.The Miami Herald reports that a Miami microlender called OUR MicroLending has underwritten 764 loans adding up to $ 4.5 million. OUR MicroLending customers normally have less than five employees and $ 100,000 or less in annual sales. The lenders microloans average about $ 5,000 in a $ 1,500 to $ 12,000 range.

More on this topic

nytimes.com

bloomberg.com

miamiherald.com