you want fries with that?

I for one can't wait for this technology to become as ubiquitous as the cellphone. And it will happen, if only because all the nerds designing this just want to go one up on the jocks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/27/books/review/Saletan-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&nl=books&emc=booksupdateema3

Neuroscientists teaching math

Makes one wonder, doesn't it about all the potential squandered away. If only enough of us got this kind of focus.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/health/research/21brain.html?pagewanted=1&th&emc=th

Anti-China communism

This is mostly about the Vietnamese reaction to cheap Chinese labour being imported by Chinese contractors. Honestly, i was very surprised myself when the Indian govt announced that it was limiting work visas for Chinese nationals. My first reaction was 'why would a Chinaman want to come to India'? Other than to read in ancient libraries, i.e.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/world/asia/21china.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&th&emc=th

Hans Rosling playing to the galleries

As if 2048 is good enough

apparently pigs are smart, but not vain

that puts them in the top quartile of humans, quite comfortably too

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/science/10angier.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

For Runaways, Sex Buys Survival

scary stuff

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/us/27runaways.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

glad to see reality is catching

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/realestate/11cov.html?pagewanted=1

an idea

http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displayStory.cfm?story_id=14483896

TED Blog: How food shapes our cities: Carolyn Steel on TED.com

TED Blog: How food shapes our cities: Carolyn Steel on TED.com

Shared via AddThis

A nice anniversary performance

Economics videos

Someday the universities will put up all their lectures online. We live in hope.

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/10/free-ivy-league-lectures-on-the-economy/

Brain Candy: newyorker.com

Brain Candy: newyorker.com

Shared via AddThis

A beginner's guide to Islam

http://www.usnews.com/features/news/religion/secrets-of-islam.html

GDC | Economist Conferences

GDC | Economist Conferences

Posted using ShareThis

An Empirical Analysis of Street-Level Prostitution

A brilliant paper by Steven D. Levitt and Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh brings out some interesting facts.

"the willingness to absorb enormous risk for a small pecuniary reward, and the blurred lines between good and evil, where police extort sex and pimps pay efficiency wages."

http://economics.uchicago.edu/pdf/Prostitution%205.pdf

No green shoots here

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1212013/Revealed-The-ghost-fleet-recession-anchored-just-east-Singapore.html

Apparently the world's merchant fleet is moored off South East Asia, looks like it'll be slim pickings for Christmas in the West

Did we learn any lessons at all?

Looking around at fellow bankers a year after the crisis came to a head, i wouldn't bet my money on it.

Diamonds aren't forever, apparently

An excellent report on the worldwide diamond trade and the post-Lehmann effect

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601170&sid=adeU_YHAT0uQ

small steps to crime

http://bigthink.com/bigthinkeditor/do-prada-knockoffs-make-you-evil

Golden State

This song's been running through my head and i can't get it out, but i guess it could have been worse.

if you needed proof that all a government can do is waste away your taxes

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/15/technology/15speech.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

A brave new world

Us Now from Banyak Films on Vimeo.

Tales from the Crypt, indeed!

“I can’t sit home like this,” she continues, her voice rising. “I want to work. Lehman was who I was. I really loved it there. I was proud to be there.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/13/business/13lehman.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&th&emc=th

under the veneer of civility

we're all capable of extreme evil and glorious good

Lies, damn lies and statistics

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/96b4b086-9c10-11de-b214-00144feabdc0.html

Insufficient funds?

flee the country, you don't want to be in Dubai when the cheque bounces

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/12/world/middleeast/12dubai.html?th&emc=th

Malthus, here's looking at you

Luigi Zingales weighs in on the future of American capitalism

http://nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/capitalism-after-the-crisis

it's slightly longish but well worth the read

Go Africa, make Dambisa Moyo proud

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/08/african-entrepreneurs/

and what's the NHS staff up to now

and to think i had to wait 4 hours to see a doctor, maybe they were all 'lying down'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/wiltshire/8246197.stm

lupus and his ilk sure have come a long way

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/08/science/08dogs.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

Top clubs triumph on an uneven pitch

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8bb550b2-97f3-11de-8d3d-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

Chris Cook at the Financial Times makes an interesting point about immigration

Aa ante ... etc

this indecipherable song is strongly associated in my head with the mayhem that is the Ganesh festival in Maharashtra, you've been warned

Reach

This one is poignant.

A human failing to overstretch, an unnecessary desire for the ephemeral, and the seeker falls by the wayside while the prize flies away. Could have been a motion picture.

Voodoo Sacrifice

Awesome video, truly worth a watch.

Hard to question award, considering the overall story, theme, content and quality.

I could go on, but i'd rather you really watch this.

One world, one idea, one market

Go forth and globalize! 

All hail Alex Tabarrok

the man's a genius

and you've got to love the custom of currency being showered on him.

IE is dead, all hail the Chrome

There's really no other way to be getting online

Guinness Rugby

Truly worth watching.

Risque Beer

Excuse the French!

Don't you just love the financial crisis

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Tata-Group-hits-Bond-St-with-mega-floats/articleshow/4461586.cms

a good old genuine bond issue, backed by a bank guarantee no less

Rock on Dr.C

HT: Merrill

A good basic test

This was much fun and must admit i was more than a little apprehensive about taking this one.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/04/19/education/edlife/20090419EdlifeQuiz.html?scp=1&sq=economics%202009%20ap&st=cse

Thanfully, didn't do too badly.

War Games!

So West Point graduates are going to have to train on PlayStations now.

This is scary.

A desired future

Some people should be scared, very scared.

Ouch!

Even once is too often for an act like this.

Good ideas

This talk needed to be a lot longer.

No one wants to hear the truth, ever!

All hail Scott Adams, now!

Britain's got talent

Way to go, Susan Boyle!

Listen to her sing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

the future of the phone

Its a long video, but it actually gets more interesting as it goes on and even ends really well. If you have the patience to get there, it'll be worth your while. Cheers!

http://www.youtube.com/user/tedtalksdirector?blend=1&ob=4

indian ocean

many a drunk evening in college was spent singing along to this

Roti with Chicken Curry

1/2 kg chicken breast (marinated in curd and spices for 3 hours)

1 onion

3 cloves garlic

3 cardamom pods

spices (season to taste)

1 can tomato paste

1 tsp sugar

1/2 glass milk

3 rotis

Cobra would have been perfect, but the case of Heineken's still there.

Shepherd's Pie

1/2 kg beef mince

4 potatoes (mashed)

3 carrots

1 onion

250g peas

250g corn

2 tbsp worcestorshire sauce

1/2 cup broth

salt, pepper and butter

the only bit missing was some Guinness, so Heineken would have to do.

Curry and Rice

Dinner!

I totally want one of these

I'd be comfortable, warm and look like Obi-wan too. Could there be a better way to lounge?

Give the dog a bone

or the hope of some. I wonder why all and sundry seem so interested in Pak's latest dismissal of some 'dossier' put together by a few Indian mandarins. Its basically a question of realigning their goals.

We recognise that country's broke or is getting there soon enough. Why not offer them a performance linked bonus? The top income tax bracket in India is 33%; I suggest we offer them the top 3%, provided there are no terrorist attacks by their co-religious fundamentalists on Indian soil during the financial year.

Personally, i don't see how bad it could be. Currently I pay taxes and receive crappy government service and worse roads. Giving Zardari and gang a few financial incentives in addition to the largesse from the Pentagon may or may not change the situation; can't be much worse than it is now. For the Pakis, it'll be like getting paid twice from two masters for doing essentially the same job.

Eye off the ball

The wife was in town all of last month, hence the quiet on the blog and the absence of spread analysis. But the break seems to have done some good, took a 100 punt on the angels of anfield at 2.5 to beat the residents of stamford bridge. The pay-off cancelled out all previous losses for the season. God bless the Spaniard.

The weekend could have been better with the correct call of the Super Bowl winners but laziness to workout the right spreads was a refresher course in opportunity cost.

Am betting against the grain for tomorrow and have 10 down on the Lankans beating Dhoni's men at 2.2.

Cheers!