The U.S. just dropped down to the seventh position in the Networked Readiness Index Rankings for 2006. The Rankings were included in a report submitted by the World Economic Forum, which attributed the sinking to the "deterioration of political and regulatory environment" - whatever that means.

The report took into consideration the technological advancements in general business, the infrastructure available for production or use, and the initiative and gravity of the national government's policies on economic development and improving local and global competitiveness. With that said, the top 10 countries in the Index Rankings of 2006 are:

1. Denmark (3)
2. Sweden (8)
3. Singapore (2)
4. Finland (5)
5. Switzerland (9)
6. Netherlands (12)
7. US (1)
8. Iceland (4)
9. UK (10)
10. Norway (13)

With strong emphasis with cooperative development and college education, the U.S. is the leader in innovation. But also noticeable is Singapore's strongest points of innovation and network readiness.

Denmark now leads the world in technological innovation and application, because of constant support given from the government for the thriving e-businesses, strict regulatory policies and a quick and early liberalization of the telecommunication sector.

If you're feeling bluer than blue, if you feel that every day is a black Sunday, if you feel that the world is out to get you, if you're just waiting for the earth to open up and swallow you whole, then you're most probably depressed. To alleviate that feeling, you just might want to get prescription drugs, or more particularly, antidepressants.

Here's the catch, though. Use of these drugs, like Celxa, Paxil, Prozac, and Zoloft, increase the risk of suicide attempts. But, the bright side to it is that they actually lessen patients' risk of dying by suicide. Yup, what it does increase is attempted suicide, and not the completed kind.

How about a ray of sunshine and a sprinkle of fairy dusts to complete the scene, eh?

This is what Finnish researchers found out in their study regarding the actual correlation of the use of antidepressants of risk for suicide. Apparently, the risk, while still there, does not necessarily equate to actual damage. Just a couple of slashed wrists or OD'd patient, but no wake to go to, at least.

But although this article chose to take the lighthearted path, this is, in truth, a highly serious matter. Depression, after all, is no small joke. The Finnish researchers from the University of Kuopio found that 15,000 people have been hospitalized in Finland for suicide attempts spanning the years 1997 to 2003.

Following up on these people for an average of 3.4 years to see if they tried suicide again, failed or not, they found out that among 7,466 men and 7,924 women in the study, 602 suicides were committed. There were 7,136 who attempted, and 1,583 deaths from other causes during the follow-up period.

Apparently, the kind of antidepressant a person takes has an effect on the kind of suicide the person would most likely go for. For example, those taking Prozac had a 48% lower risk of suicide compared with those not under medication. Meanwhile, those taking Effexor had a 61% increased risk.

According to Robert D. Gibbons, director of the Center for Health Statistics and a professor of biostatistics and psychiatry at the University of Illinois, Chicago, the people undertaking antidepressant medications are apparently depressed. Hence, although they may be taking medications, they remain to be at a higher risk of attempting suicide.

However, for those who have been depressed and killed themselves, they most probably did not seek treatment. "This is the big concern about 'black box' warnings...They increase the rate of untreated depression and can ultimately increase the rate of completed suicide."