PHP in the news: Why PHP 5 Rocks!

Adam Trachtenberg wrote a nice article on the benefits of PHP5. If you use MySQL/PHP based technologies, it's worth the read.
Excerpt:

In this article, I highlight seven of my favorite PHP 5 features. These features allow your PHP 5 code to frequently be shorter, more elegant, and more flexible than ever before.

Diamonds in the news: Miner digs up 182-carat gem.

This is a sad story....

Excerpt:

THERE'S lucky: Finding a diamond when you're a young miner sweating it out in the west African forests of Guinea.

And then there's too lucky: finding a 182-carat stone that everyone - starting with the government of Guinea - wants a piece of.
Result: the stone, four times the size of the famous Hope diamond, was tucked away today deep in the vaults of Guinea's Central Bank. No pictures, please.
And the 25-year-old miner who found it, if not exactly in hiding, was making himself scarce. No interviews, please.
State radio in impoverished, mineral-rich Guinea announced the find Thursday. Guinea mining industry officials confirmed Monday that the newly dug-up stone - though not flawless - was a fortune in the rough.

Diamonds in the news: Sunrise jewelry firm Odimo files initial public offering.

Excerpt:

Online diamond and jewelry retailer Odimo of Sunrise filed an initial public offering Friday to sell an estimated $57.5 million in stock.
The filing comes two months after Seattle-based Blue Nile -- another diamond and jewelry retailer on the Internet -- and investors sold $76.7 million of shares in an IPO.
Blue Nile's shares are up 65 percent since debuting at $20.50 on May 20. The stock closed at $33.94 on Friday.
But David Menlow, president of IPOfinancial.com, a research firm that studies public offerings, doesn't expect Odimo's IPO will be greeted with the same fanfare. Odimo operates the websites Diamond.com, Ashford.com and WorldofWatches.com., selling brand-name luxury goods at as much as 60 percent off retail.

Jewelry in the news: Your jewelry can be one of a kind.

Excerpt:

Olathe residents who want jewelry designed specifically for them need look for farther than Niche Jewelry in Olathe.
Custom-designed jewelry created in gold, silver or platinum is one of several offerings at Niche Jewelry. The store also sells artwork by area artists, including pottery, pastels, custom lamps and frames and hand-blown glass.
Jewelry and glasses repair is also offered at the store, at 2143 E. 151st St. It is owned and operated by William and Wendy Elkins of Olathe.

Diamonds in the news: Nguesso vows to put diamond trade in order.

Excerpt:

The president of Congo Republic on Friday pledged to restore order in the country's diamond trade after a global "blood diamond" watchdog excluded the Central African state from mainstream trade in the gems.

The Kimberley Process - which aims to keep track of diamonds to stop them being used to fund wars - struck Congo off its membership list last week, saying authorities could not account for the origin of large official diamond exports.

Diamonds in the news: De Beers to Plead Guilty; Return to U.S.:

Excerpt:

De Beers, the world's top diamond producer, will plead guilty in a U.S. court to a 10-year-old price-fixing charge, opening the way for it to resume business in America after nearly 60 years, a court official said on Monday.
The return of the venerable South African company is likely to spark a battle in the luxury goods market when it opens a store on Fifth Avenue this year to rival Tiffany and Co. Inc., as well as Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, both owned by Swiss luxury goods group Richemont-.