Are universities obsolete?
So I’m sure you’ve heard about the MOOCs – massively open online courses? There’s a bunch of them now like Udacity and Coursera. Many universities are adding new online course offerings powered by them. So the MOOCs are already doing a little to disrupt the university scene. But so far they haven’t had a fundamental impact, notwithstanding […]
Being overweight is not your fault – and how to cure it
So yep a majority of people are either overweight or obese. And it’s a commonplace that they need to diet and exercise to fix the problem. The subtext is that for such people it’s their own fault. If they only had the willpower they wouldn’t have the problem. I beg to differ. Sure, for many […]
Robo-Etiquette by Emily Roast
Have you noticed the recent explosion of robots? There are robo-soldiers, robo-advisers, robo-vacuums and so on. To my great shame I’ve even added to the clutter (Robo-coaches), so I’m part of the problem too. We have a rapidly-emerging existential crisis, namely how to communicate with these robos. I mean no-one teaches you at school or even at work. That’s […]
Head transplants – body optional?
So you haven’t heard of head transplants? Get with the times, dude! Believe it or not an Italian medical research team is planning to do a head transplant in 2017. And yep, they even have a volunteer. Takes all types. There’s considerable skepticism however that the operation can go ahead let alone succeed. Most mainstream surgeons […]
Earth’s clouds expose us to ET!
Dr. Stephen Hawking has just warned us against contacting aliens. I’m sure you have heard of him? He’s the famous cosmologist who has ALS and a doughty approach to life notwithstanding. He’s also known for being an iconoclast. He believes (as do I) that it is certain that there are numerous ETs out there. And he thinks […]
Leadership gurus lose to Robo-Coaches!
Did you know that the classic book “Moby Dick” has been translated into emojis? Yep, to wit, “Emoji Dick”. What’s the world coming to? I guess like almost everyone in the world you use messaging on your phone. Maybe you have even been known to use emojis, but only with your kids, right?. Same here, […]
Do you have Pre-Alzheimer’s?
It being Presidential silly season, what better than to write a post about past presidents. So I read the latest magnum opus on said topic recently (The American President: From Teddy Roosevelt to Bill Clinton 1st Edition by William E. Leuchtenburg). Warning: it’s a bit of a slog, but it’s worth the trek. The chapter […]
Can we unify traditional and behavioral economics?
So active investing is dead. Even the investment literati have finally figured that one out even though the writing has been on the wall for quite some time. I’ve been heralding the issue (“An Inconvenient Truth – Alpha Financial Styles Beget Ginormous Returns” and “Less Algebra More Fudge Brownie – What Will Managed Investing 2.0 Look Like?”). […]
“Happy Feet” – can animals fall in love?
OK so I went whale-watching recently, my token conversion to greenery. I actually saw several whales! Humpbacks actually. The interesting thing is that all the ones I saw were in pairs. Our helpful guide told us that these were always couples, male/female. But, she added disapprovingly, the male escort was always temporary; they have their […]
ECB Should Push Issue of Refugee Bonds to Turbocharge EU Growth!
Useless factoid for the day: the European Central Bank (ECB) recently let it be known that it will likely start buying equities as part of its radical approach to quantitative easing. Apparently there aren’t enough bonds around for it to be able to buy. Mario Draghi, its head, really meant it when he said the ECB will […]