said Cyrus Hirjibehedin, a scientist at IBM's Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California

"If you can keep that magnetic orientation stable over time, then you can use that to store information. That is how your hard drive works,"

Understanding and manipulating the behavior of atoms is critical to harnessing the power of nanotechnology, which deals with particles tens of thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair. "One of the most basic properties that every atom has is that it behaves like a little magnet,"

BM colleagues in Zurich, Switzerland, meanwhile, have stumbled on a way to manipulate molecules to switch on and off, a basic function needed in computer logic

Heinrich, who is familiar with the work, said the discovery is especially important because the switching action did not alter the framework of the molecule

Switches inside computer chips work like a light switch, turning on and off the flow of electrons that ultimately make up the electrical circuits of computer processors.

Molecular switches could be used to store information and would lead to super-fast, super-tiny computer chips.

being hosted by The Handlebar Club which was set up

60 years ago in a London theatre.

Categories include Dali moustache, goatee and full beard freestyle.

he contest's aim is to "encourage and celebrate standards of excellence in the growth, design and presentation of facial hair"

Germany's Federal Court of Justice

argued that the legal reasoning used to allow telephone surveillance and other electronic eavesdropping techniques should also be applied to evidence gathering over the Internet.

Perhaps if Apple used a spokesperson that was more humble and self-deprecating Windows users would be less offended.

John Francis, who owns the McDonald’s in Sidney, Mont., said he tried advertising in the local newspaper and even offered up to $10 an hour to compete with higher-paying oil field jobs.

“I don’t know what the answer is,” Francis said. “There’s just nobody around that wants to work.”

Unemployment rates have been as low as 2 percent this year in places like Montana, and nearly as low in neighboring states.

The state approached double-digit unemployment levels in the 1980s and began the slow crawl back in the early 1990s.

The U.S. Department of Labor reports the mountain West region — covering eight states along the Rocky Mountains — has the lowest overall unemployment rate in the nation. The region hit an all-time low of 3.4 percent in May.

The effects are everywhere. Logging equipment in Idaho sits idle as companies have a tough time finding workers. A shortage of lifeguards has forced Helena to shorten hours at children-only pools. A local paper in Jackson, Wyo., has page after page of help wanted ads.

Established baby boomers, including retirees, have been moving into Montana for the mountain views and recreation, bringing with them money for new homes that fuel construction job growth,

Montana wages have historically been among the lowest in the country, and still rank near the bottom.

Now, workers with more options in some places are unwilling to take $12-an-hour jobs.

The problem could get worse as more baby boomers retire, Swanson said. By 2030, Montana and Wyoming are predicted to have among the oldest populations in the U.S., with about 26 percent of residents 65 and older,

til 2012, bu