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Market News

TEMPE, AZ -- Manufacturing failed to grow for the third consecutive month in April as the PMI registered 48.6%, flat with March.

WASHINGTON -- The EPA is proposing a major reduction in allowable airborne lead. The new proposal is expected to come into affect in mid-September. The new EPA proposal lowers allowable concentrations of lead in the air to a range 0.10 to 0.30 micrograms per cubic meter, compared to the current human health standard of 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter.

The current lead health standard remains unchanged since it was originally enacted 30 years ago. While lead contamination in the environment has been on the decline, lead emissions largely from industrial sources remain an air quality issue. The new proposal would reduce allowable airborne lead by up to 93% from current standards.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said the proposed requirement still "would leave children in harm's way."

1,300 tons of lead is released annually in the U.S.

STONEY BROOK, NY - The nanotechnology of engineering atomic layer interfaces to produce desired properties, called “improper ferroelectricity” reportedly holds promise for a technological revolution that may compare to the development of modern electronics.

SAN JOSE, CA and RABAT, MOROCCO – Tessera Technologies, Inc. and Nemotek S.A. have announced that Nemotek has licensed Tessera’s Shellcase MVP technology, which will reportedly allow OEMs and camera module manufacturers the ability to build smaller and thinner consumer devices, such as camera phones, digital cameras, PDAs and laptops.

“We are making the transition from traditional packaging technology to... through-silicon via wafer-level packaging technology by offering [our] high-volume capabilities to image sensor makers around the world.” said Youssef Benmokhtar, Nemotek’s director of marketing.

“Both Nemotek and their customers will reap the benefits of higher yield and lower production costs, which will be passed on in the form of cost savings throughout the manufacturing supply chain,” said Bents Kidron, Tessera marketing VP.

GURGAON, INDIA - Indian technical graduates are increasingly choosing to find work at home, rather than take jobs in western countries, a new survey finds.