In The News

UK Seabed Resources Joins Deep-Ocean Mineral-Mining Rush

David Shukman March 15, 2013
Technology, including robotics, is allowing more mining firms to explore the ocean floor for oil and minerals, as “surveys have revealed huge numbers of so-called nodules – small lumps of rock rich in valuable metals – lying on the ocean floor south of Hawaii and west of Mexico,” reports David Shukman for BBC News. Another method involves removing material near hydrothermal vents....

Growth Without Equity Roils South Africa

Haroon Bhorat, Morné Oosthuizen, Anne Kamau February 1, 2013
Labor unrest does not attract foreign investment. South Africa must subdue strikes in its mining industry before unrest spreads to other sectors while addressing the challenges of a high unemployment rate and dire poverty, argue researchers Haroon Bhorat, Morné Oosthuizen and Anne Kamau. South Africa is the world’s biggest producer of gold and platinum. The strikes are both reducing gold and...

US to Build $120m Rare Earth Research Institute

Katia Moskvitch January 16, 2013
Terbium, europium, neodymium – these are just a few of 17 rare earths that are factors behind the colors, sounds, power and endurance of cutting-edge technology in the medical, aeronautical, entertainment, communications, defense and transportation industries. China produces more than 95 percent of the world’s rare earths, and despite rapid technology turnover, only 1 percent of rare earths are...

As China Sneezes, Will the World Catch Cold?

Vikram Mansharamani September 17, 2012
The world became accustomed to double-digit growth in China. But such growth wasn’t sustainable, as Europe and the US struggle with debt. Analysts concede that China’s growth, fueled by easy credit, is slowing. Yale lecturer and author Vikram Mansharamani outlines the implications: In recent years, China has snapped up a lion’s share of commodities – steel, cement, aluminum, iron ore – and now...