The future of U.S. electric utilities became a prominent topic in the posts that Utility Dive readers looked at the most this week. Our features on the industry's biggest changes and how utilities are dealing with solar proved to be popular, while a Department of Homeland Security warning and Direct Energy's Bounce Energy purchase also ranked high.

Get caught up with the links below:

• Dynamic pricing pilots: 5 utilities' programs, technology and results: What are utilities doing to shave peak load and save customers money?
• The 10 greatest challenges the utility industry faces today: Panelists at this year's National Town Meeting on Demand Response and Smart Grid shared opinions on everything from dynamic pricing to the evolution of the utility business model. 
• Homeland Security warns utility CEOs: Hackers use basic tools to attack you: In one case, attackers obtained “all the information needed to access the industrial control systems environment,"  the Department of Homeland Security warned in its second alert to utility CEOs since May.
• Direct Energy to buy Bounce Energy for $46M: The deal will make Direct Energy the largest retail energy company in North America.
• The solar sea change—and what U.S. utilities are doing about it: With the U.S. officially cracking the 10-GW mark for installed solar PV capacity, utilities are entering a new era of collaboration with the solar industry.

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