The central predicament of human life is that we neither possess completely free will, nor are we completely determined by external circumstances. We set and pursue goals, only to become waylaid by habits and distractions. Often we know the patterns in our lives that we would love to change–from overeating to taming our tempers–but still find ourselves falling into…
I used to think that those that ran hedge funds got rich because of their incredible returns. Then I heard about the 2 and 20 fee structure that most hedge funds charged. The typical hedge fund fee structure (historically) is 2% of assets under management and 20% of all positive returns. Therefore, if you gave…
A recent report found that 259 people died between 2011 and 2017 while stepping in front of the camera in often dangerous destinations. Our writer went deep on the psychology of selfies to figure out what’s behind our obsession with capturing extreme risk-taking. More here – Outside Online PS: I could be churlish and say…
In the debate over whether human beings should set off to other worlds beyond Earth, one of the most compelling cons is this: Our bodies don’t like it. Few people know this better than Scott Kelly, the NASA astronaut who spent nearly a year on the International Space Station from 2015 to 2016. Like other…
The chart below flashed across my screen this morning, ostensibly it is related to a story on the potential seasonal nature of earnings. What the authors haven’t realised is that it highlights a completely different point – analysts dont have a clue what they are doing yet financial journalists write stories around the rubbish data…
One of the things that has always fascinated me about technical analysis is the capacity of people to argue over the irrelevant. I am quite certain there are blokes in little clubs all over the world arguing that the RSI should be set to 12 and not 9 because that makes all the difference. It…
Phillip Teo of TraderWave (our breakfast friend Singapore) talks to Ray Barros. I have always enjoyed listening to Ray. In the dim dark recesses of my mind I have a recollection of us sharing a stage decades and decades ago. He sees parts of the world a little differently to me but there is always…
Ed Boyden builds the tools and technologies that help researchers think about and treat the brain, an organ we still know surprisingly little about. When it comes to how our brains make decisions, form emotions, and exhibit consciousness, there is still a lot we can learn. But just as fascinating as the tools Boyden and…
Brad Stulberg is a writer, performance coach, and coauthor (with Steve Magness) of an intriguing new book on the role of passion at the workplace in beyond—specifically, the ways in which it can be a double-edged sword. The book, The Passion Paradox, draws on scientific research and personal stories to illuminate how to discover and cultivate…
In a crumbling edifice, a farce plays out. The hapless central character fawns on an aristocrat who turns out to be a conman. He then fails to disguise his unease when confronted with his European neighbours, doesn’t bother to mask a thorough contempt for the Irish, and enters a love-hate relationship with ostentatiously wealthy Americans.…
Another chance to listen to the comedian, Ricky Gervais speaking to Kirsty Young in 2007. In just twelve episodes, his show The Office changed the face of British television comedy. At its centre was the comic monster, David Brent, a middle-manager being filmed for a mock-documentary who saw the ever-present cameras as his route to…
This undoubtedly has implications for the both the data set of stocks you trade and any ETF you select to represent a market. It is probably indicative of the fact that the Dow is an outmoded anachronistic index that is still rooted in the 20th century. For example Boeing makes up 9.6% of the index…
Survivor bias is a perennial problem in systems testing. Put simply survivor bias is the logical fallacy of ascribing a value to something that has past a given bench mark or hurdle by virtue of longevity. In doing so you overlook those things that have disappeared along the way. For example lets assume I was…
“Forecasting: the attempt to predict the unknowable by measuring the irrelevant; this task employs most people on Wall Street.” (Brilliant description – wish I had thought of it) The words of Jason Zweig, author of the Devil’s Financial Dictionary, are particularly apt at this time of year. We hear a lot from financial forecasters every…
