But in France, the home of literary theory, and Germany, the fatherland of textual analysis, free-ranging study of the Koran continues.

ECONOMIST: Muslims and the Koran

One starting point in any analysis of failed countries is the theory of Max Weber, the father of social science.

ECONOMIST: Failed states

The algorithm could be of great interest to Twitter, which could charge a premium for ads linked to popular topics, but it also represents a new approach to statistical analysis that could, in theory, apply to any quantity that varies over time: the duration of a bus ride, ticket sales for films, maybe even stock prices.

FORBES: Twitter Trending Prediction Algorithm: Possibly Of Most Use To Journalists