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What small business owners want out of retirement, how employees feel about work-life balance, what countries are driving global e-commerce sales, and other intriguing statistics. Retirement Share of small-business owners who plan to retire before 65: 25% Portion who don't plan to ever retire: 17% After retirement, small-business owners would like to: Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute Work-Life Balance Portion of employees who say they would lose their jobs if they adopted more flexible work schedules: 16% (down from 28% in 2006) When conflicts arise between work and family, employees typically blame: 2011 Work+Life Fit Survey; Elizabeth Poposki, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Global E-commerce Portion of the world's Internet users who are Americans...

Last week, Mark Zuckerberg shook things up at the social media/news interface when he announced Facebook's upcoming partnerships with a number of major news organizations. The Washington Post's Social Reader already looks like a slick piece of work , and apps such as that from other news organizations could dramatically change the way 750 million people (give or take) encounter and read news on the web.

Distractions at work are nothing new. Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) wrote about strategies for dealing with work distractions way back in the 1300s. In his Life of Solitude , Petrarch offers the following advice for the medieval scholar: "Close the doors of your senses in order to achieve solitude in the presence of other people." Today, you will find many people doing exactly that in coffee shops and other public places.

In an extended interview, astronaut Ron Garan speaks with Fast Company about his nerve-wracking return to earth, what technology startups should develop for space travel, and life on the International Space Station. "We really need to start not just exploring space," Garan says, "but utilizing space." NASA astronaut Ron Garan has an amazing story to tell.

While a quick source of capital, cash advances can be a gamble. Ask yourself these four questions before tapping into this source

Introducing TrendWatch, a weekly video series in which Inc.com editors explore the most important topics you need to know to run your small business now. Welcome to TrendWatch , a new weekly video series in which Inc.com editors examine the latest small-business regulations, economic forecasts, fundraising opportunities, innovative ideas, and product launches in conversations with small-business experts, owners, advisors, professors, and economists.

It's certainly looking that way—and Apple's iPad is the victor. The latest casuality appears to be Research in Motion's Blackberry Playbook. It's still on the market, but sales have been lackluster to say the least

While the United States might be done with the Space Shuttle, the rest of the world is picking up the slack. Iranians are planning new space capsules, China is launching Martian satellites... and India wants to put a man on the moon

Have you ever been primed?

What's a concerned citizen to do? In an effort to reduce the amount of water the state imports, it's now producing an incredibly powerful greenhouse gas while it cleans its wastewater. Here’s a conundrum

(PhysOrg.com) -- Stony Brook University researchers,

No longer content to let the U.S. and Europe dictate the pace and direction of innovation, countries around the world are funding their own R&D to solve their own problems. The United States and Europe have long been the center of scientific and technological innovation, and the story of the day is how China may be usurping their place.

Really? Is this a strategy that will backfire on the mobile industry? If true, I think this way lies madness, HTC! In an interview with China's Economic Observer, HTC Chairwoman Cher Wang confirmed her company is possibly in the market for an operating system

Look out below! A defunct satellite the size of a school bus is falling back to Earth. NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS , is expected to reenter the atmosphere at the end of September.

The iPad starts at $499. While most every device maker has mimicked Apple's price point, none have been able to mimic Apple's sales. At last count, Apple had sold 28.7 million iPads, making the iPad the clear industry leader.