Today's readings 01/08/12

Is Depression Inherited?

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/opinion/sunday/is-depression-inherited.html?hpw
... I have been thinking about such matters lately because of the comedian Sarah Silverman’s remark on a TV talk show that she didn’t want to have a child of her own and preferred to adopt for fear of passing on her depression. ... So how heritable is depression? There is no single genetic marker for it; current research shows that multiple genes probably contribute simultaneously to its chances of being transmitted. ...

Strong Yen Is Reinforced by Japan’s Generation Gap

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/02/world/asia/strong-yen-is-reinforced-by-japans-generation-gap.html?hpw
One big reason, analysts and some politicians say, is simple, if generally left unsaid: A high yen benefits Japan’s rapidly expanding population of elderly residents, even if it hurts other parts of the country. ... Kyouwa’s second-generation owner, Ryuji Usuda, said he has been watching the rising yen with growing alarm and finally decided, after he lost an important Japanese customer last year to a Korean rival, that he had no choice but to move his production line to a new factory in Vietnam. He says the plant will allow him to make machines for 30 to 4o percent less than in Japan.“Pretty soon, nothing will be made in Japan anymore,” said Mr. Usuda, 40, who noted that many of the Japanese factories he supplied were also moving to Southeast Asia. ...

Power Is Restored Across Most of India After Blackout

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/02/world/asia/power-restored-after-india-blackout.html?hpw
On Tuesday (31/07/2012), India suffered the largest electrical blackout in history, affecting an area encompassing about 670 million people, or roughly 10 percent of the world’s population. By Wednesday morning, power had been almost completely restored to all the affected areas, utility officials said. ...

... Sushil Kumar Shinde, the power minister, who spoke to reporters in the afternoon, did not specify what had caused the grid breakdown but blamed several northern states for consuming too much power from the national system. ...