January 22, 2012
An academic review of 21 books on the financial crisis
Andrew Lo reviews 21 books on the financial crisis. In a 41-page paper, Andrew Lo, from the MIT Sloan School of Management, does a comparative review of 21 books about the financial crisis - some from academics and some from journalists and Secretary Paulson, looking for common threads. Tyler Cowen comments.
"I really love to discover other people."
Zapatou is a video editor who likes to make audio-visual mashups, such as World Covers of Adele's Rolling in the Deep, a a 10th anniversary 9/11 memorial in pictures, quad-screen HD eye-candy of the Fast and the Furious, and Mellencamp's Hurt So Good, lip-synched by the Ice Age 3 crew.
Refining companies face $7M in fines for not adding nonexistent additive to fuels
"a killing spree of staggering proportions"
Amnesty International believes that Iran has executed at least 600 people in 2011 in what it calls "a killing spree of staggering proportions". [more inside]
“Maybe you should never transition."
"We are seeing the emergence of a new variation on an old, cissexist theme: 'No, it’s not a good time for you to transition. This is going to be so hard on us. Oh won’t you wait or reconsider this choice for us normal people?'. Their subtext is plain and unambiguous to nearly every trans person: 'Maybe you should never transition.'" [more inside]
RIM jobs
After 20 years together at the helm of Research In Motion Ltd. [previousy, previously], Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, the company's co-chief executives, turned over the top job late Sunday to a little-known insider as part of a board and management shuffle.
"You won't often see a billfold like that."
"I can't seem to wipe this smile off my face"
Life's a Happy Song sung by Kermit the Frog and Flight of the Conchords' Bret McKensie, who wrote the song [NYT].
Diary of an Author: Woke up. Googled self.
Kappa Beta Phi evening of racous fun
John Frankenheimer's "Seconds"
Seconds (John Frankenheimer, 1966) is a disturbing film to watch. With its unresolved, horrific ending, it’s possibly one of the most depressing films ever made [SPOILER]. [more inside]
A dance for spring
Here's a dance performed by Yang Liping and her niece Cai Qi at a Chinese New Year gala recently. It's called "Spring" and will likely mark the end of a celebrated career. Yang Liping (杨丽萍) is perhaps most famous for her gorgeous arm movements in the Peacock Dance (雀之灵), and here's one more dance performed entirely in silhouette called "Moon". (MLYT)
Fun at work
Chris Dodd threatens Obama over SOPA/PIPA
With surprising candor, Chris Dodd tells Obama that the Hollywood purse strings are about to get tight. Angry over the Obama administration's siding against SOPA and PIPA, Dodd says openly that the money the Democratic party regularly counts on Hollywood for might not be there this election cycle. One view is that Hollywood considers that it bought something very specific with it's money, and it's angry it's not getting it.
Should Obama be worried about this? Perhaps not. The guys from Freakanomics say that our assumption that money is the most important factor in deciding elections is a fallacy.
Finland votes, round 1
Finland votes – as visualized by national broadcasting company, click Sivakoikaa! (Ski!). (About the candidates). First round of Finland's presidential elections has finished with Sauli Niinistö (conservative) and Pekka Haavisto (green) winning 36.7% and 18.7% of votes. If no-one wins over 50% in the first round, the second round will be held amongst the top two candidates two weeks later. Haavisto has steadily doubled his share in polls, where Niinistö has halved his share from his best polls. Among his other achievements in international peace and being green, Haavisto could be the first openly gay elected head of the state.
The Digital Blue Ridge Parkway
Driving through Time features roughly 2700 photographs and 76 interactive maps of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The website allows students, researchers, and digital tourists to uncover hidden stories, hear forgotten voices, and understand the often wrenching choices that the construction and preservation of a scenic parkway in a populated region have necessarily entailed. [more inside]
Twilight of the Yahoo-Yahoo Boys
You may have never heard of them, but they definitely have your email address. They are the Yahoo-Yahoo Boys; the young Nigerian men who cut wide swaths of cash by preying on the naiveté of moneyed Westerners vis a vis their dreaded 419 emails.
...But if you check your spam folder right now you might notice that it is slightly lighter these days. That's because it's been a tough week for Nigeria’s most infamous internet enthusiasts. Due to the week-long strike action that took place in response to the government’s decision to remove a national fuel subsidy, it has become increasingly difficult for the Yahoos to extract funds from their “clients”.
[...]
The Yahoos' disposition towards #OccupyNigeria is also worth paying attention to because 419 culture is essentially a street-level microcosm of the institutional corruption that has plagued Nigeria for the past forty years. And although the Yahoos are often blamed for distorting Nigeria’s image abroad, they've also become part of the cultural fabric.
USA! USA! USA? Deutschland, Deutschland über alles.
Germany has the economic strengths America once boasted. 'Germany with its manufacturing base and export prowess is the U.S. of yesteryear, an economic power unlike any of its European neighbors. As the world's fourth-largest economy, it has thrived on principles America seems to have lost.' 'Germany's economy looks like that of the U.S. a generation ago. In 1975, manufacturing accounted for about 20% of the United States' economic output, or gross domestic product, about the same as in Germany today. Since then, U.S. manufacturing's share of GDP has slid to about 12%.' [more inside]
Happy Gung Haggis Fat Choy!
What does the dancing Chinese lion eat at Gung Haggis Fat Choy? Not lettuce.. but haggis of course [SLYT with bagpipes, be warned] (The lion breaks out into a bit of highland fling for extra fun). [more inside]
Did Gordon Ramsay “nightmare” kill off Austin’s El Greco?
Kitchen Nightmares shows Gordon Ramsay helping restaurants make miraculous turnarounds. Ramsay helped relaunch Austin, Texas's El Greco, but the restaurant still ended up closing. Some people are saying that Ramsay's interference may have been the final nail in the coffin for the restaurant.
May no act of ours bring shame...
Paterno, Joseph Vincent (Joe Pa)
Born: December 21, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York.
Died: January, 22, 2012 in State College, Pennsylvania.
Vocation: Football Coach
Employer:Penn State, Retired.*
Born: December 21, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York.
Died: January, 22, 2012 in State College, Pennsylvania.
Vocation: Football Coach
Employer:
Firedance Through The Night
Light your torch and wave it for the lunar event tomorrow with the full 17-minute-long video for Duran Duran's New Moon On Monday (Part 1, Part 2).
The Leading Indicator of Laughter
Look at what you did, Internet, you made Ralph Fiennes blush
Tony Award winner, BAFTA winner, and multiple Oscar nominee Ralph Fiennes reads briefly aloud from a Voldemort/Harry slashfic entitled "Broken Innocence," by Jaden Kelly. (SLYT for nerds, no redeeming social value) (via)
Napoleonland
In one of the strangest new bids to get tourism dollars, Yves Jégo, the current veep of France's Radical party and the former Overseas Secretary of State, has announced plans to start raising funds for a new theme park dedicated to Napoleon. [more inside]
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