Even "angel" investors, the wealthy individuals who give seed money to entrepreneurs, have grown more cautious. After several years of 10% annual growth, angel investments rose only 1.8% to $26 billion in 2007 from the year before, says Jeffrey Sohl, director of the University of New Hampshire's Center for Venture Research. http://www.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/2008-04-15-survival-strategies_N.htm [1]