schliz writes “Space flight planners have unveiled a new spaceship design for a joint EU/Russian trip to the Moon. The EU will be building the crew capsule, using technology developed for the automatic cargo system used to supply the International Space Station.” First one to link to decent pics (the article has none) wins undying gratitude and a warm feeling inside.

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Teancum writes “In an interesting show of the level of regulations private spacecraft designers have to go through, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has demanded that American participants of the Google Lunar X Prize obtain a license if their spacecraft are “capable of actively or passively sensing the Earth’s surface, including bodies of water, from space by making use of the properties of the electromagnetic waves emitted, reflected, or diffracted by the sensed objects”. What prompted NOAA to ask for this license came from a visit by the XPrize staff to the NOAA offices in Maryland. What’s going to happen when “space tourists” bring their private cameras along for the ride?”

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slatterz writes with an excerpt from a brief Personal computer Authority article: “Nasa is to make its big collection of historic photographs, film and video available to the public for the first time. A partnership with the non-profit Internet Archive will see 21 major Nasa imagery collections merged into a single searchable on the web resource. The Nasa Images website is expected to go live this week. The content of the site covers all the diverse activities of America’s space programme, including imagery from the Apollo missions, Hubble Space Telescope views of the universe and experimental aircraft past and present.” The site is working already, and it looks fantastic. Don’t hesitate to share any interesting photos or movies you find.

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That’ll be the day you raise £17,000 - Western Telegraph
The people of Pembrokeshire rose to the occasion and raised over £17,000 for charity during two sell-out concerts at Folly Farm earlier this month. Organised by Chevron, in association with Folly Farm, the charity weekend featured the very popular

Generating a Down Payment for Your First Home - The Ledger
Are you one of the contrarians who believes the present turmoil in the housing market creates an opportune time to move from your rental unit to a bargain-priced first home of your own? If so, you’ll need to think strategically about generating the

Activists fault two cities over sales-tax brochures - San Diego Union-Tribune
Taxpayer suggests are criticizing La Mesa and El Cajon for using public money to produce and send out brochures about the cities’ financial problems and potential tax increases. The San Diego County Taxpayers Association sent a letter to La Mesa

Slavery lived on well past what other history books wrote - Detroit Free Press
He was walking one evening from the train depot in Goodwater, Ala., when a white man appeared in the road. “N—–,” he demanded, “have you got any money?” The white man, Robert Franklin, was a constable. He claimed Davis owed him. This was news to

‘Money guy’ Leigh Bodden signs extension, continues to make plays at - Detroit Free Press
Two days of camp, two impressive interceptions for new Lions cornerback Leigh Bodden. “I just think he is kind of what we thought,” Lions coach Rod Marinelli stated. “He was a heck of a player coming out of Cleveland now, and I just think everybody’s

Payroll Mistakes Still Plague Polk Schools - The Ledger
Seven additional mistakes, including an $11,005 overpayment to an employee, have recently been found and are connected to 86 previous payroll errors that have been widely reported. The newly found blunders require the district to forgive $5,943 it

Doctor in bias suit was asked to resign - Boston Globe
Dr. Josef E. Fischer, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s controversial chief of surgery, was asked to resign because his management style was no longer appropriate for the hospital, chief executive Paul Levy said yesterday. Fischer’s resignation

Fight over funding taking shape - Baltimore Sun
As Baltimore officials and sports fans bask in the promise a new arena could bring to the city, a familiar battle is already taking shape among the say lawmakers who may be charged with finding a way to pay for it. Arena boosters state it’s not

Stewart last draft choice to sign with Panthers - ESPN.com
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — The Carolina Panthers signed running back Jonathan Stewart to a five-year deal that includes $10.8 million in guaranteed money, putting all their draft picks under contract early Saturday before the team’s first training camp

Precision on money - Herald News
JOLIET — Dave Shaff, the leadoff man in the Ken’s Beverage lineup, belted a shot deep to right field. But Torry Caniglia raced toward the corner, stretched out and made a spectacular running catch for the final out in Precision’s 22-19 victory

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Filed under: Forecasts, Bad news, Industry, Housing

The FDIC took over two more banks. According to The Wall Street Journal, “The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a division of the Treasury Department, revoked the charters of First National Bank of Nevada, based in Reno, Nev., and First Heritage Bank of Newport Beach, Calif. The FDIC was appointed receiver of both banks.” The Nevada bank had over $3 billion in deposits.

Current estimates are that less than 100 banks will fail during the current credit crisis, a much smaller number than closed during the saving and loan debacle of the late 1980s.

But, those estimates might be low. Bill Gross, an extremely prominent investor and head of Pimco, recently wrote that total losses related to the housing market will hit $1 trillion. About $450 billion of those write-downs have made it through the system. That leaves a potentially huge burden on the banking system going forward.

The idea that only 100 banks will fail in the next year is wishful thinking.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

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Bill Gates, Bloomberg to target smoking globally - Newsday
Microsoft founder Bill Gates and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg are pouring 375 million dollars into a global effort to cut smoking. The billionaire philanthropists say the money will help efforts in developing countries where tobacco use is

Retirees with mortgages are putting their investments and security at - Boston Globe
Q. My retired parents are looking for a home. They’re thinking about paying cash. They have almost $620,000 in savings and want a house for $200,000. They also have about $1,300 in Social Security income each month. Their combined monthly expenses

Squandering of money - Chicago Tribune
The Tribune’s investigation of dubious state-funded, after-school allows was shocking. The squandering of money and lack of oversight should cause every taxpayer to be outraged. However, I am worried that successful tutoring programs might get

HIV Patients Living Longer - Washington Post
Resize THURSDAY, July 24 (HealthDay News) — Since 1996, the life expectancy of HIV patients in developed countries taking antiviral therapy has increased more than 13 years, and deaths have dropped by almost 40 percent, researchers report. Despite

Money can’t fix Fannie and Freddie - Globe and Mail
Zimbabwe, wracked by hyperinflation, introduced a 100-billion Zimbabwean dollar bank note a week ago. As one of the most worthless bits of paper on the planet, the bill can’t purchase much - just one or two loaves of bread. But there’s always a chance, if

Scars, scratches and skateboarding on set - Miami Herald
OK, so it’s not Marley & Me. But our ears still always prick up when we hear a motion picture is being filmed in South Florida instead of say ( yawn ) Vancouver. They prick up even more when we hear some of the stars are locals. Called G.E.D. — standing for

AIDS funding binds millions to U.S. - MSNBC
WASHINGTON - President Bush plans to sign a bill next week that commits the United States to spending about $40 billion over the next five years to fight AIDS overseas, a major expansion of what many consider his most successful foreign policy

Are your bank accounts covered by the FDIC? - Seattle Times
Q: How secure is the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)? It’s supposed to insure bank deposits up to $100,000. Are all banks covered? I’m concerned that some of my savings may not be covered. A: The FDIC insures almost all banks and

House Passes Broader Plan to Fight AIDS - New York Times
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House voted Thursday to triple financing to fight AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis around the world, giving new life and new punch to a program credited with saving or prolonging millions of lives in Africa alone. The 303-to-115

Slavery lived on well past what other history books wrote - Detroit Free Press
He was walking one evening from the train depot in Goodwater, Ala., when a white man appeared in the road. “N—–,” he demanded, “have you got any money?” The white man, Robert Franklin, was a constable. He claimed Davis owed him. This was news to

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