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Charity de Meer for The New York Times Christopher Swinney connects a Prius to his home’s backup power unit to help provide electricity. By JIM MOTAVALLI WHEN Hurricane Frances ripped through Gainesville, Fla., in 2004, Christopher Swinney, an anesthesiologist, was without…

Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print edition  Can Taddy Blecher's combination of cheap business education and meditation transform South Africa? IN HIS early years there was little to suggest that Taddy Blecher would end up in Johannesburg's inner city, surrounded by youngsters from…

Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print editionA floating university prepares for its maiden voyage THE Oceanic II has been cruising the oceans under various guises for more than 40 years, but her next voyage will be her most unusual. From September 5th the liner will become home to about 200…

Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print editionThe PC industry is proving to be surprisingly lively    WHEN the personal computer (PC) turned 25 last year, many anniversary articles read like obituaries. There was general agreement that the PC had become a commodity product, its makers…

Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print editionA new car and six potential buyers signal hope for Jaguar EMOTION is said to play a part in many car purchases, but it is less likely to be a factor when buying a car company. Even so, the reaction this week to the first pictures of Jaguar's new XF…

Aug 30th 2007 | SEATTLE From The Economist print editionAmerican cities' plans for ubiquitous internet access are running into trouble IT WAS supposed to democratise the internet and turn America's city-dwellers into citizen-surfers. In 2004 the mayors of Philadelphia and San Francisco unveiled…

Aug 30th 2007 From The Economist print editionThe world's internet superpower faces testing times    Get article backgroundRARELY if ever has a company risen so fast in so many ways as Google, the world's most popular search engine. This is true by just about any measure: the growth in…

Aug 29th 2007 | ATHENS From Economist.comFirefighters are overstretched and reasons to start blazes abound AP  AS RECENTLY as two years ago, a forest fire came close to burning down the home of Costas Karamanlis. The Greek prime minister’s seaside villa outside Athens escaped the…

Aug 23rd 2007 From The Economist print editionThe former KGB men who run Russia have the wrong idea about how to make it great Magnum/AP  Get article background“OUR pilots have been grounded for too long. They are happy to start a new life.” So said Vladimir Putin as he sent…