Dave Meyer

Last Friday, India's main stock index suddenly experienced a 16% drop in value. $58 billion temporarily vanished in the blink of an eye thanks to a computer problem. 

Computer errors have also been blamed for Facebook's IPO troubles and 2010's infamous Flash Crash. Financial commentator Greg Heberlein and KPLU's Dave Meyer look at the world of computer driven, high-frequency trading on this week's Money Matters.

According to recent headlines, PC sales are sluggish.

But, if you include tablets and smartphones along with desktops and laptops, computer sales are exploding!

In this month's edition of The Digital Future, Strategic News Service publisher Mark Anderson tells KPLU's Dave Meyer that computing is evolving into two main areas: production and consumption. And you need to count both sides of the equation when looking at computer sales.

The numbers are staggering. Three-quarters of the population approaching retirement (aged 50 to 64) earns less than $53,000 a year. That group has saved an average of $26,000 in their retirement accounts. Even adding in social security, one forecaster estimates retirees will be able to pay only $5 a day for food.

Financial commentator Greg Heberlein and KPLU's Dave Meyer look at the looming retirement crisis on this week's Money Matters.

The Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium's 3-week old Sumatran tiger cub is now on public display. The 8 pound feline has been moved into the cub den at the zoo's Asian Forest Sanctuary. Visitors can watch him interact with zookeepers at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily.

You can help name the cub. Zoo staffers have proposed 6 names for the little guy, and you can vote for your favorite at www.pdza.org.

As legendary money manager Peter Lynch once said, "Insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy for only one; they think the price will rise."

On this week's Money Matters, financial commentator Greg Heberlein explains why you should pay attention when executives buy or sell shares in their own companies.

Officials at the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium have decided to take a newborn Sumatran tiger cub from its mother and rear it by hand.

The cub, born August 22nd, is losing weight and not getting enough milk from its mother, Jaya.

The Mars rover Curiosity has been making its first tentative drives on the surface of the Red Planet. Soon, it will make a quarter-mile journey away from Bradbury Landing to explore a site called Glenelg, where it'll examine rock formations.

On this month's edition of The Digital Future, Strategic News Service publisher Mark Anderson tells KPLU's Dave Meyer that the August 5th Mars landing is more than just another triumph for NASA; it's a reminder that science is reality. 

Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) are great for planning your financial future. But if you don't pay attention to the rules, you could find yourself in trouble.

Financial Commentator Greg Heberlein and KPLU's Dave Meyer look at IRA pitfalls to avoid on this week's Money Matters.

Last summer, financial commentator Greg Heberlein became more pessimistic about the economic recovery, predicting it would take 10 to 15 years to get back to "normal".

Now that a year has gone by, has anything changed?

Sadly, Greg says we have another 9 to 14 years left to go.

Greg and KPLU's Dave Meyer look at the prospects for a slow recovery on this week's Money Matters.

Ten years ago, Steven Spielberg's Minority Report gave us a glimpse into the future of computing interfaces. In the film, Tom Cruise's character interacted with a wall-sized display via hand gestures, rather than a mouse and keyboard.

In 2008, Strategic News Service publisher Mark Anderson predicted this sort of technology, which he calls Wall Computing, would soon make the leap into corporate conference rooms.

On this month's edition of The Digital Future, Mark tells KPLU's Dave Meyer that Wall Computing is becoming a reality, heralded in part by Microsoft's recent acquisition of Perceptive Pixel, which makes large, multi-touch computer displays. 

Have you ever received a letter from your bank stating "we have learned that some information from your credit card account may have been compromised at an undisclosed third-party location"?

Financial commentator Greg Heberlein and KPLU's Dave Meyer had their cards canceled and replaced by the same bank in recent weeks. They gripe about it on this week's Money Matters, and offer tips on how to minimize the damage.

One of the great debates among those approaching retirement is whether to take Social Security benefits at age 62, 66 or 70.  

There's no one-size-fits-all answer. Financial commentator Greg Heberlein and KPLU's Dave Meyer explore the options on this week's Money Matters.

Stock splits are often a sign of a booming economy. But these days, many companies are experiencing reverse stock splits. 

On this week's Money Matters, financial commentator Greg Heberlein tells KPLU's Dave Meyer that Seattle's Cell Therapeutics appears to be a prime candidate for a reverse split.

When Steve Jobs went on his third and final medical leave at the beginning of 2011, Strategic News Service publisher Mark Anderson advised his subscribers to get ready to sell their Apple stock.

Recently, Mark took his own advice and sold 75% of his Apple holdings. He explains why on this month's edition of The Digital Future.

The average annual wage in Washington grew by 3.6% in 2011. 

The state Employment Security Department says wages outpaced inflation by 0.9 percentage points.

The average annual salary in Washington was $49,894 last year, up from $48,162 in 2010.