The ninth wave

New, all-pervading technologies, such as the web and genomics, are like the 'ninth waves' of surfboard riders, washing over our culture with sudden, transforming power. The danger is that quality is reduced as we deal with the flood of data

When bubbles burst

In the current financial crisis, the house-price 'bubble' has burst with spectacular effects. Big science projects in biology may be on their way to becoming the next scientific bubble