May 9, 2014 | San Francisco Chronicle

Crowdfunding is risky by nature. How do you know what the public will want to invest in? Are they more into wearable technology or a shirt that cleans itself? That risk seems well worth it for some San Francisco-based Kickstarter campaigns, which met and comfortably exceeded their fundraising goals. (Others have not been as successful.) Here's a look at some of the most successful San Francisco-based Kickstarters so far this year:

May 13, 2014 | New York Ties

A large section of the mighty West Antarctica ice sheet has begun falling apart and its continued melting now appears to be unstoppable, two groups of scientists reported. If the findings hold up, they suggest that the melting could destabilize neighboring parts of the ice sheet and a rise in sea level of 10 feet or more may be unavoidable in coming centuries. Global warming caused by the human-driven release of greenhouse gases has helped to destabilize the ice sheet, though other factors may also be involved, the scientists said.

May 12, 2014 | Washington Post

IBM is making its own wager. In January, the company funneled about $1 billion into a new business unit dedicated to selling the software behind Watson, rebranding it from a sci-fi novelty act to an analytics engine capable of transforming a multitude of established industries. As part of that shift, Watson is headed to Washington: IBM is aggressively marketing the technology to the federal government, in addition to hospitals, retailers and other potential customers.

May 12, 2014 | Crowdfund Insider

One of the benefits of helping launch and continuing to work with the global equity and debt crowdfunding movement is the innovative companies that show up at our door. These organizations are changing a number of industries and none of them are kids in garages with gadgets. The future of crowdfunding will include a variety of asset-backed platforms and consumer-feedback plays.