Why are expenses so much higher in international stock funds than in U.S. stock funds?

One of the best ways we know to express our investment philosophy is to answer some of the questions we hear over and over in various forms from investors. From dozens of questions we heard at investment conferences last month, we picked five to answer now. If you're looking for magic-bullet answers or hot tips, the answers below will disappoint you. But if you'd like to be a better investor in the real world, read on.

I rolled over my 401(k) after I retired last February and put the money mostly into technology funds. It seems that I bought into the market almost at its peak early last March. I have now lost about 20 percent on paper. Do you think tech funds will come back, and if so, when? What should I do?

My mother, who is 60, has asked me to invest $7,000 for her. She is sure she will not need the money for at least five years. Obviously I would like to invest for the highest return possible in that five years. But preservation of capital is very important to her, so I do not want to take too much risk with this money. Considering the way the markets are behaving, I’m not sure how to do that. Is this the right time for me to be aggressive? Should I look instead for ways to preserve capital? And what specific funds would you recommend?

I have six grandchildren, ages 9 through 17. Can you suggest sources, including articles on your Web site, for them to learn about handling and investing money?

How should I allocate my portfolio based on my risk tolerance?