How could Merrill have got the scale of its exposure to losses so wrong? Was it not conservative enough the first time round, factoring in instead some sort of price recovery in these illiquid instruments? Or was it simply unaware of the true depth of its problem?" How could Merrill have got the scale of its exposure to losses so wrong? Was it not conservative enough the first time round, factoring in instead some sort of price recovery in these illiquid instruments? Or was it simply...

Excellent encryption research is being carried out at a number of major universities, though it's still at a nascent stage. College campuses can effectively serve as proving grounds for new encryption technology given the mobile, itinerant nature of their user base, influxes of visiting users, their tight IT budgets and the fact that they have been relatively early adopters of large-scale wireless networks. College campuses can effectively serve as proving grounds for new encryption...

Like House legislation that passed in July, the Senate measure would largely continue price supports for commodity crops such as cotton, peanuts and rice that drive the region's agriculture economy. Although the bill would hold peanut price supports roughly flat for another five years, it includes payments for storage costs in bad years. It also would help farmers cover the costs of extending their planting rotations, allowing their soil more time to recuperate. Opponents say the $280...

Georgia (default) Verdana Times New Roman Arial (10-18) 04:00 PDT Washington - -- Senate Democrats announced a breakthrough in a long-stalled farm bill Wednesday that would provide billions of dollars for California fruit and vegetable marketing, farm conservation and food stamps - but would maintain costly, traditional crop subsidies for corn, wheat, cotton, rice and soybeans. SFGate HomeBusinessSportsEntertainmentTravel Classifieds Jobs Real Estate Cars SFGate Web by California could...

Prices are being pushed up by bad weather in a host of countries, surging world demand and a drive in the USA and abroad to devote more acres to corn for ethanol production, which has tightened supplies of some grains and tied crop prices more closely to energy prices. Prices are being pushed up by bad weather in a host of countries, surging world demand and a drive in the USA and abroad to devote more acres to corn for ethanol production, which has tightened supplies of some grains and...

Much of the money will go to growers of crops such as the cherries, asparagus, beans and other products that make up more than half of Michigan's agricultural income. Stabenow has pushed for months for the provisions, lining up senators to back her plan to shift agriculture policy away from the traditional commodity crops -- wheat, corn, soybeans, cotton and rice -- that still get the most federal funding. But that became unattainable when senators made clear they would not, for now at...