Rare earth elements (REEs) are not really that rare in the earth’s crust, but unlike copper, gold or zinc for example they tend not to occur in concentrations sufficient to justify mining. But this group of chemicals is increasingly in demand for use in specialist glass technologies, solar cells, catalytic converters and many other new applications including military ones.

There was a time when succession planning was something only companies large enough to employ thousands of people did as part of an overall management development strategy. Since then screeds have been written on the evolution of succession planning, most of which points to the need for organisations to plan for the inevitable loss of key staff, irrespective of their seniority.

Created by the joint efforts of researchers at the University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) in Lima and advertising agency Mayo Peru DraftFCB, the panel produces water from humidity in the air via the use of filters.

UTEC says it wanted to put "imagination into action" and show that it is possible to solve people's problems through engineering and technology. So far, the billboard has produced over 9,000 litres of drinking water, the equivalent of 96 litres a day.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), home sales had gained 0.8 percent since January to reach an annual pace of 4.98 million units, with the rise all coming from sales of apartments and condominiums.

NAR economist Lawrence Yun said low interest rates, improvement in employment and pent-up demand still underpinned the market's continuing expansion. "Job growth in the improving economy and pent-up demand are causing both home sales and rental leasing to rise.

Mines and Money Hong Kong is where mining companies from around the world come to raise capital in Asia and meet with investors from Hong Kong and mainland China. The event has become a must go for everyone engaged in the industry at a time when every dollar has to be fought for.

With the Chinese New Year holidays historically skewing the data show in January and February, March’s numbers are seen as a true indicator for the sector.

The preliminary reading of HSBC's Purchasing Managers Index rose to 51.7, from 50.4 in February. The PMI is a key indicator of the activity in the sector and a reading above 50 shows expansion.

Against a background of rising fuel prices, restricted budgets, a changing regulatory landscape and spiralling customer expectations, field service businesses have endured a tumultuous environment over the last few years. The ability to meet customer demands and achieve cost goals has become a more difficult balance, leading many struggling to achieve more with less in the battle to deliver field service excellence.

Technology today moves at such a fast pace that it is easy for us to sometimes take for granted what we have now compared to what we had only a few years ago. Take for instance the fact, in a world where one can download a whole movie in a matter of minutes, that before the first cable modem was introduced in 1997 it would have taken the average computer user over 28 hours to download the same sized file using a dial-up internet connection.