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The map of the solar system may be due for a little updating.

In the not-too-distant future broadband speeds will be measured in gigabits per second rather than megabits per second, the former being 1,000 times faster than the latter. Such blazing fast data transmission will vastly improve the quality of streaming high-definition video, playing online video games, participating in video conferences and using voice over IP, all of which struggle with latency at today's average data transfer rates, which range from less than one megabit per second (Mbps) to 10 Mbps (pdf) . The sticking point over gigabit-per-second broadband: who will pay for it?

The idea is simple: supply people with smart meters that give real time information on electricity use and price. Armed with the new information, consumers might opt to plug in their laptop in the middle of the night instead of, say, the middle of the day. As a bonus, the system would lead to more use of renewable energy sources like the wind and sun

If the full name of any germ could be a household word, it would be Escherichia coli O157:H7, a bacterium that has in the past caused severe food poisoning linked to Jack in the Box hamburgers, Taco Bell lettuce and prepackaged spinach. Now E

On February 17 former Chicago Bears football player Dave Duerson killed himself with a gun shot to the chest. [More]

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Three large explosions from the Sun over the past few days have prompted U.S.

The threat of a “double dip” back into an economic recession looms, but if this comes to pass, the reasons would be much different from the body blow the U.S. [More]

By Amy Maxmen of Nature magazine Some patients with Lyme disease still show symptoms long after their treatment has finished. [More]

By Amanda Mascarelli of Nature magazine Three coastal-restoration projects intended to rescue Louisiana's rapidly shrinking wetlands have failed to restore marsh during the past two decades. Instead, the schemes -- which involve diverting fresh water from the Mississippi River in the hope of carrying sediment to marshes and aiding plant life -- have made these regions more vulnerable to hurricanes, according to the authors of a study published by Geophysical Research Letters . Louisiana's coastal wetlands are up against a host of natural and anthropogenic factors

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Third in a three-part series . KANGERLUSSUAQ, Greenland--In her knitted ski hat, parka and hiking boots,

* Polar bear kills 17-year-old camper on Arctic island * Four injured as bear bursts in on school group tent camp [More]

By Gerard Wynn and Nina Chestney LONDON (Reuters) - Carbon offsets neared all-time lows Friday, confirming their status as the world's worst performing commodity, as slumping demand meets rising supply of the U.N. instrument traded under the Kyoto Protocol.

By David Fogarty SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Creating crops with deeper roots could soak up much more carbon dioxide from the air, help mankind fight global warming and lead to more drought-tolerant varieties, a British scientist says in a study. [More]

Dear EarthTalk : As I understand it, “debt-for-nature swaps” are arrangements by which countries can erase debt by preserving land.