COMPANIES

Nomura Holdings (NYSE: NMR), Japan's number one securities firm, has appointed a woman to be its chief financial officer for the first time ever.

A list titled The Philanthropy 50: Americans Who Gave the Most in 2010 compiled by The Chronicle of Philanthropy includes names of some key tech honchos who have allocated portions of their fortunes for various philanthropic causes following Bill Gates' example.

A new world record for fastest car on ice was set at 206.05 mph (331.61 km/h) on the Gulf of Bothnia in Oulu, breaking an earlier record of 205.48 mph set by four-times world rally champion Juha Kankkunen.

The list of breathtaking designs delivered by Apple, which include the translucent Mac computers, iPod, iPhone and iPad, bear their genesis to the alchemy between Apple's star CEO Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive, Senior Vice President, Industrial Design.

A section of students at the University of Maryland are protesting the acceptance of research funds from Lockheed Martin, a Bethesda-based aerospace, security and defense technology company because of its engagement in arms manufacturing.

As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day, here is a peek into the top 10 employer organizations, in terms of proportion of women in the workforce.

The troubled actor Charlie Sheen has reportedly purchased the former Beverly Hills, Calif. home of Mike Medavoy, one of the producers of the Oscar nominated film Black Swan, for $7.5 million.

A partner at Foley & Lardner has sued the firm for discrimination and breach of contract, citing in his complaint that the firm treated younger, female and/or non-white employees more favorably.

At a time law graduates would sell their arms and legs and maybe something more to get into a BigLaw, a Sidley Austin associate has dumped his cushy job to go hiking from Delaware to California with a tent and his dog, Mabel.

The lawyers representing former Pennsylvanian judge Mark Ciavarella, who was convicted last month by a federal jury in Scranton of 12 of the 39 counts in the 'kids for cash' case, said he is innocent and are seeking an acquittal or a new trial.

The death knell for embattled BigLaw Howrey could ring as early as this week with firm partners reportedly set to vote on winding down its operations.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) said worldwide sales of semiconductors for the month of January rose 14.0 percent from last year to $25.5 billion on significant growth across all major end-use sectors. Sequentially, sales increased 1.5 percent.

Carmakers are fast developing cars that could use advanced WiFi signals and GPS systems, which would allow cars to communicate with fellow cars on roads, which would warn and prevent potential accidents.

China Overseas Land and Investment Ltd (0688.HK), one of the country's biggest developers, will focus on business in affluent first- and second-tier cities in the future, Chairman Kong Qingping said over the weekend.

Central Huijin Investment Co, the domestic arm of China's $300 billion sovereign fund, will give its full backing to its banking units if they need to cut dividends or raise money to meet tougher capital rules, a senior Central Huijin executive said on Sunday.

China's largest animal feed producer, New Hope Group, called on the government to stop its anti-dumping investigation against exports of U.S. DDGS, a by-product of corn-based ethanol used to substitute corn by feed mills.

What would it be like to have a big pirate ship right in your bedroom? Through a hole on the wall, one can slide down a slide that leads to this unique pirate inspired bedroom featuring a large pirate ship high on the ceiling.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating Kraft Foods Inc for possible corruption at an Indian facility of its Cadbury unit, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The Wind Explorer, touted as the world's first car that runs on wind-generated energy, was tested in Australia.

.Japanese car maker Mazda is recalling more than 50, 00 Mazda 6 cars in US after finding out spider web in the vents and another 15,000 vehicle in Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

General Electric will host an electric vehicle experience tour in seven U.S. cities that will bring GE experts together with local businesses, industry leaders, and public sector stakeholders for educational workshops, test drives, and dialogue on the business case for EV ecosystems.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc is being drawn into the criminal trial of one-time hedge fund billionaire Raj Rajaratnam, as prosecutors plan to show an insider-trading conspiracy involving a former director at the Wall Street bank.

Ford Motor Co has settled a lawsuit in which it accused Italian automaker Ferrari of infringing its trademark for the popular F-150 truck.

Corrects closing share price and day of the week, paragraph 2

This list of top ten world’s most overvalued homes is taken from the latest quarterly ranking of global house prices by The Economist based on a historical data of home prices to rents between 1975-2010.

Kia Motors America (KMA), an arm of South Korean automaker Kia Motors Corp., said its 2011 Sportage SX compact CUV is scheduled to hit dealer showrooms later this month.

Will Apple develop an iPhone that can run on China Mobile's TD-SCDMA 3G standard, a move that could boost the sales of iPhone in China? There is no word as yet from Apple on this, but the chairman of China Mobile said on Friday Apple's Steve Jobs has expressed interest in developing an iPhone for his network, Reuters has reported.

A sweeping insider trading case that shook the hedge fund world is finally set for trial, with onetime billionaire Raj Rajaratnam fighting to stay out of prison in a courtroom drama over corporate secrets, tapped telephones and friends-turned-government witnesses.

Foreign banks have not gotten the message when it comes to helping American clients avoid paying taxes, a top U.S. tax prosecutor said on Thursday.