The single currency, euro, may become the world’s leading currency in the next decade if leaders of the single-currency bloc succeed in tightening fiscal integration. European Central Bank policymaker Christian Noyer made this statement in an article to be published in the Journal du Dimanche.

On December 9, leaders of Europe struck a historic deal at an emergency summit in Brussels to draft a new treaty for deeper economic union, in an attempt to stem the debt crisis that is threatening to cause collapse of the euro.

“If we implement all the decisions taken at the Brussels summit we will emerge stronger,” Noyer said in the article, due to be published to coincide with the 10-year anniversary of the euro on January 1. “In 10 years, maybe the euro will be the world’s number one currency.”

Tags: debt crisis, Euro, European Central Bank, single currency

1. AIDS first became widespread in the 1980s and the Soviet Union blamed the United States. Many former Soviet citizens still believe this to be the origin of HIV!

2. There is still no known cure for AIDS.

3. The largest population of HIV infected people is in the Sub-Saharan region of Africa.

4. HIV and AIDS is not the same thing. HIV is the virus strand that causes the disease and AIDS is the 4th and final stage of the disease that leads to death.

5. People with a certain type of immune cell known as CD8+T are immune to the disease.

6. FIV vaccination for cats could one day provide a solution to HIV of human beings.

7. Ninety-five of the world’s HIV-infected population lives in the world’s poorest countries.

8. The HIV virus is fairly large in size that makes it easier for the virus to become immune to antiretrovirals.

9. HIV is not transmitted by any and all fluid contact.

10. Eleven people are infected with this terrible disease every minute and symptoms of HIV could remain dormant for almost 10 years.

Tags: AIDS, cure for AIDS, FIV vaccination, HIV, HIV virus, symptoms of HIV

On Saturday, the Central Bureau of Investigation conducted searches at Vodafone’s Indian unit and Bharti Airtel’s offices to seek details on spectrum allocation by the government to operators between 2001-02.

CBI’s spokeswoman Dharini Mishra told Reuters that the searches were in regard to possible irregularities in allotting spectrum during the previous government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), now in opposition.

From in.news.yahoo.com:

“All our documents are in complete compliance with the governing laws and regulations. Vodafone India is completely co-operating with the officials and will provide them all the required details as part of their checks,” Vodafone said in a statement.

The CBI conducted raids at Vodafone’s Mumbai and New Delhi offices and Bharti Airtel’s office in Gurgaon, near New Delhi.

“We would like to categorically state that all the spectrum allotted to us from time to time has been strictly as per the stated government policy,” Bharti Airtel’s spokesman said in a statement.

“We are providing all details and correspondence to the authorities and shall provide complete support as needed in the matter,” Bharti Airtel’s spokesperson said.

Tags: Bharti Airtel, spectrum allocation, Vodafone

The final gadget unveiled during Apple co-founder Steve Jobs‘ lifetime, the iPhone 4S, hit store shelves in India on Friday with a starting price of 44,500 rupees.

Indian mobile operators do not subsidize cost of phones unlike their western peers.

From in.finance.yahoo.com:

Airtel and Aircel are selling the 16 GB model for 44,500 rupees, with the 32 GB version priced at 50,900 rupees and the 64 GB model available for 57,500 rupees.

Media reports last week said Indian fans were unhappy that the smartphone will be more expensive in India than anywhere else in the world.

Both mobile operators, which started selling the iPhone 4S from midnight on Friday, are offering discounted data plans.

The final gadget unveiled during lifetime of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is more expensive that the iPad 2 in India.

Tags: Apple, iPad 2, iPhone 4S, mobile operators, smartphone, Steve Jobs

On November, Google paid tribute to Polish sci-fi author Stanislaw Lem with an interesting new doodle.

Lem is best known for his 1961 novel Solaris that has been made into a film three times, including Steven Soderbergh’s 2002 version starring George Clooney.

From in.news.yahoo.com:

Google came up with its first doodle in 1998 when it’s creators Larry Page and Sergey Brin added a Burning Man from the famous festival in Nevada when they attended the event.

Back then the firm was so small that it was designed to show that the two were not in the office to answer the phone.

The design team of Google has come up with more than 300 doodles for its US website and another 700 worldwide.

Tags: George Clooney, Google, Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Solaris, Stanislaw Lem

As the debt crisis shows alarming signs of spinning out of control, the European Union has warned that the 17-country eurozone could slip back into recession next year.

The European Commission, economic watchdog of the European Union, said its central forecast is that the eurozone will grow by only a paltry 0.5 percent in 2012.

From news.yahoo.com:

The sharp cut in the forecast comes as the eurozone’s debt crisis has spread alarmingly to Italy, the single currency bloc’s third-largest economy. The interest rate on Italy’s ten-year bonds has reached the same levels that forced Greece, Portugal and Ireland to request multibillion euro bailouts.

Speculation that Premier Silvio Berlusconi will officially resign within days and be replaced by leading economist and former Commissioner Mario Monti has helped calm the market mood somewhat Thursday.

Greece, meanwhile, remains in political chaos as party leaders have failed for several days to appoint an interim governments, putting the country in serious danger of defaulting on its massive debts before the end of the year.

“This forecast is in fact the last wake-up call,” the EU’s Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn warned. “Growth has stalled in Europe, and there is a risk of a new recession.”