Catherine Bertini was appointed the U. N.'s top administrator by U. N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. According to Annan, Bertini, in her new position, will work to improve communication and information technology with a particular focus on improving efforts to recruit more women to the U. N. staff and to rework the budget processes.
Bertini worked for ten years feeding the hungry as executive director of the U. N. World Food Program, based in Rome. Her efforts and leadership have enabled the organization to feed tens of millions more people than ever before. She stresses the role of women in the feeding of hunger and, in her term, doubled the number of high ranking women in the agency.
Catherine Bertini was born and raised in upstate New York where her grandparents settled when they emigrated from  Italy. She has studied at the University of Albany and Harvard's John F. Kennedy school of government and holds honorary degrees from seven universities in four countries.

In Catania, Sicily, STMicroelectronics is a laboratory paving the way in the field of fiber optics and other innovations in the computer industry, according to the New York Times. STMicroelectronics is the world's third-largest chip maker and is a major supplies of devices that control motors and other systems in cars. The company has several research centers throughout the region of Sicily. Recently, the company announced a breakthrough in light-emitting silicon products which could revolutionize the technology industry. By improving the timing and efficiency of light-emitting silicon in electronic devices, STMicroelectronics has improved the overall speed of information transfer between chips.