what's in a (stock) name

Princeton psychologists release findings that stocks of companies with 'simple' names outperform those with 'complex' names. the psychologists first furnished a list of fictional names with would-be investors expressing more positive outlooks for 'simple' stocks. given these initial results, an analysis of real world performance yielded similar results.

while this analysis would suggest a KISS investing philosophy, the princetonians sum up with a disclaimer

"It's a very large effect," says Oppenheimer, who reports the work in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. But so far the researchers have only trialled one bunch of stocks, so it is unclear how robust this trend really is. "I'd caution people not to change their portfolio on this basis."

in this investing environment with frothiness, outta control compensation and questionable investing philosophies, companies that come up with wacky names may indicate other problems

¶ - nitish @ 9:35 AM | 0 comments

  "i hope that's not a hostage..."

trading places... breakfast club... die hard...
roles in these movies made paul gleason a staple gen x circles (and a place on my tivo wishlist as a stamp of good entertainment, along with william atherton)
unfortunately, gleason passed away from mesothelioma-lung cancer.

the loss of faves and icons makes one value the entertainment of one's childhood

¶ - nitish @ 3:12 PM | 0 comments

  politics entering google-plex

google is pretty much my search engine of choice.
periodically, google customizes its home page "Google" graphics to acknowledge some significant dates.

however i hadn't noticed something about the may 29th 2006 google graphics until
media watchdog newsbusters (is it 'conservative watchdog' due to its POV or is it 'liberal watchdog' for its typical targets?) points out google makes no acknowledgement of memorial day.

when an astronomer and persian new year make the cut, a federal holiday in remembrance of the troops should make the list too. also noted is the lack of such biggies as christmas and easter which also have secular impact.

¶ - nitish @ 3:45 PM | 0 comments

  tv predictions, addendum

being the first network outta the shoot, the struggling nbc decides to 'adjust'
(initially found via the futon critic) its line-up only 10 days after the initial announcement.

the 'adjustment', as termed in nbc's pr, really amounts to massive changes involving 8 outta the 22 hours of broadcast programming. the advertisers are probably lining up, filled with faith in these guys.
looking at the updated primetime network tv grid, nbc actually looks worse off. deal or no deal gets the tough thursday 9pm slot, the L&O gets disrespected...
it'll be ugly

¶ - nitish @ 2:39 PM | 0 comments

  around the dial

note: all found via tv tattle
- i'd rather have one less week of repeats than these two hour finales
- how does "cha-chunk" translate? the law & order franchise goes to russia
- why is oprah so happy here? [note: my disdain for oprah has been established]

¶ - nitish @ 2:55 PM | 0 comments

  maybe the ACLU can defend them

the ACLU may 'suggest' board members keep any dissent quiet (found via memeorandum)
that's priceless...

¶ - nitish @ 12:31 PM | 0 comments

  more fake antiwar critics

with michelle malkin's hot air possibly de-bunking another fake anti-war lefty, milblogger greyhawk assembles a list of bogus stories the antiwar left and press periodically run with

there's enough bad going on out there that you don't necessarily need to make stuff up

just more 'fake but accurate' everywhere - cause

¶ - nitish @ 2:56 PM | 0 comments

  what can the nsa do for you?

with all the (politically-motivated) critiques of NSA efforts, the cleveland plain dealer tells the tale (printer-friendly version found via lucianne.com) of network analyst Valdis Krebs. 9/11 prompted Krebs to plug in information about the 9/11 terrorists into a network analysis program he developed to 'connect the dots'

By mid-October 2001, linkages began to appear on his screen like the wispy strands of a spider's web -- a pattern called the "emergent organization."
Mohamed Atta, one of those who commandeered American Airlines Flight 11, the first jet to hit the World Trade Center, was clearly a ringleader. Atta's "node" -- geek speak for an individual's position within the network -- had the most and the closest connections to the other terrorists. It looked like the map of an airline hub, with dozens of routes passing through a central city. That marked Atta as an information broker and a key to the 9/11 operation.

network analysis has long been used in the business world as well as conventional law enforcement. however evidence mounts that the government agencies utilize the tool to protect america. the article continues with applications, none confirmed since the agencies will not (and should not) publically comment

¶ - nitish @ 9:19 AM | 0 comments

  long time coming

the ascendance of amd continues with dell finally adding amd to its server product line-up. the long-rumored move comes after a less than stellar quarter for the previously intel-only company.

amd has attacked behemoth intel every which way--legally as well as technologically--and it is working...

update: the register maintains the move is largely a move to placate investors--it's a bit 'too little, too late' and made a product announcement in a financial release

Companies almost never reveal products in this manner with good reason. Data center managers don't spend as much time as Wall Street poring through a company's financial figures.

and wall street responded accordingly

¶ - nitish @ 8:59 AM | 0 comments

  what's all the hubbub

people supposedly much smarter than me regularly chime into the illegal immigration debate, but that doesn't stop me from chipping in about vicente fox, manpower at the borders, mexican hypocrisy, bogus conventional wisdom

but ultimately, it comes down to the elected officials in washington.
the houston chronicle helpfully boils down the House and Senate immigration bills. some observations and opinions:
- the <5 year provisions in the senate bill probably mean forgers will be working overtime to prove everyone's been here over 5 years
- the house bill has some unrealistic, unlikely-to-be enforced provisions
- tighter borders, the occassional employee crackdown and felonious deportations would not be bad

¶ - nitish @ 9:12 AM | 0 comments

  what has a guy gotta do

the committee looking into colorado professor ward churchill found alotta wrongdoing

Among the violations that the committee found Churchill had committed were falsification, fabrication, plagiarism, failure to comply with established standard regarding author names on publications, and a 'serious deviation from accepted practices in reporting results from research.'

while 3 committee members find dismissal-worthy behavior, only one recommends dismissal, while the other 4 suggest varying lengths of of suspension without pay. colorado governor bill owens favors the very unlikely churchhill resignation. [note: links found via memeorandum] the suspension without pay route is toothless as churchhill's silly rhetoric will likely keep his speech making schedule full among the anti-american/america-hating crowd.

increasingly, the world of academia frowns upon opinion outside 'academic mainstream' (including the right words helps), with a hint of anti-americanism and out-and-out political correctness, all while watching their numbers

¶ - nitish @ 8:49 AM | 0 comments

  carpal tunnel can be a killer

an online survey reveals techies believe their job to be pretty stressful

Indeed, four-fifths of IT consultants "feel stressed before they even enter the workplace", while a quarter of the poor buggers "are under such enormous pressure to perform at work they have taken time off suffering with stress".

i'll stipulate that there can be some ergonomic issues with the job, but this bears striking resemblance to an earlier 'woe is us' piece by a reporter.
but to put it in perspective, how about jobs where life-and-death is on the line?
like ER doctors, military men, first responders...

¶ - nitish @ 8:49 AM | 0 comments

  fun with (tax) numbers

the WaPo's (finance-economics) columnist Sebastian Mallaby tries to dispute [bugmenot login] the 'lower taxes is good' argument of conservatives-republicans derived from the laffer curve. unfortunately, mallaby suffers from the typical leftist trap i've dubbed paul krugman disease, whereby the writer seemingly starts with one point but veers off course (a coincidental symptom often includes faulty stats)

mallaby starts: "Nobody serious believes that tax cuts pay for themselves"
unfortunately for Mallaby, none of the 5 republicans he cites really says that, as angle biting pundits notes

Mallaby dismisses a notion—that tax cuts pay for themselves—that none of his straw men actually articulates. Each of Mallaby’s putative victims argues only that revenues increase when the economy is stimulated through tax cuts. And each argument is left standing when Mallaby is through. Not only that, but they are left standing by Mallaby’s own accord: each of his experts asserts that revenues in fact increase when taxes are cut, they just don’t agree that it’s worth it.

realclearpolitics' John McIntyre sums up

Why is it so hard to explain the concept to many "intellectuals" that the idea is to grow the pie as big as possible, and that taking a smaller percentage of a bigger pie can yield more than a higher percentage of a smaller pie? Mallaby can quote all the economists and studies he wants to justify his attack on the economic wisdom of lower tax rates.
[snip]
Growth produces wealth, which leads to higher tax revenues and a more prosperous nation. Less growth produces less wealth and in turn lowers tax revenues. High tax rates retard economic growth; low tax rates encourage more growth. It really isn't that complicated.
Seriously.[emphasis in original]

while bullwinkle blog provides a blistering rebuttal to mallaby's column, american prospect's ezra klein takes mallaby's cue and changes the subject to rebut a rebuttal (with some krugman-esque number games to boot), and libertarian QandO sticks with substance

i'll stick with the [pdf-adobe acrobat reader needed] increase in federal revenues as % of gdp as evidence of tax rate cuts being stimulative to federal coffers

¶ - nitish @ 2:44 PM | 0 comments

  the once and future governator

last year was a tough year for california governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
despite taking on some tough issues and petty special interests that value politics over progress.

schwarzenegger has regained footing (via mickey kaus--2nd item) against hapless political opponents. la weekly's bill bradley highlights

The Democratic campaign is taking place in something of a time warp, in which the historic bipartisan infrastructure bonds package and the huge revenue windfall allowing Schwarzenegger to keep his old bargain with the teachers unions and pay down state debt are scarcely recognized.
[snip]
The only campaign that looks like a real campaign is that of Schwarzenegger, who appears in public far more often and, despite a well-documented penchant for secrecy, provides much more information.

don't count him out

¶ - nitish @ 10:01 AM | 0 comments

  tax-ing reportage

a MSM-liberal hobbyhorse is the 'rich don't pay their fair share' bit. the ny times tried [bugmenot login] (and failed) to prove drug company cheating on taxes.
now, the WaPo plays up tax cut critiques [bugmenot login]. a handy chart, right outta the critics' playbook, describes 'savings' from the tax cuts. unfortunately, it neglects to mention that, according to the joint economical committee (found via the taxprof) nearly 40% of tax filers not only don't really pay federal income tax (in fact they often get money back via credits)
but the lib/MSM coalition don't necessarily like all the facts coming out

¶ - nitish @ 12:24 PM | 0 comments

  the spy agency MSM and libs want

conservative satire specialist ScrappleFace suggests a new spy agency that would comport to the sensibilities of war on terror critics

"Just because the enemy is among us, using our telecommunications infrastructure to plot the next major attack, doesn’t mean the government can sneak around doing secret stuff simply to save a few thousand, or million, lives. We have rights."

i'm a fan of ScrappleFace which previously aimed its satire at persistent negativism, political convenience, nagin's chocolate city and illegal immigration protests

¶ - nitish @ 9:13 AM | 0 comments

  ready for my close-up

NASA releases "the most detailed and accurate portrait of Earth"

helpfully the pix featured on wired.com feature my two countries, america and india


explore NASA's visible earth catalog

¶ - nitish @ 8:44 AM | 0 comments

  past as prologue

the bankruptcy filing of Silicon Graphics prompts a solid a register case study, similar to its solid analysis of the intel-amd dynamic.

back in the good ole days, thinks looked good for SGI

At its peak SGI turned over $4bn a year, and employed around 10,000 people.
The company was additionally blessed by having customers across the economy. Two thirds of SGI's business was split evenly across two cyclical sectors - defense and manufacturing - but as manufacturing spending along came another splurge in defense-related spending.

SGI squandered opportunities to diversify, adapt and capitalize on its intellectual property. the reg also notes some microsoft related shenanigans.

while the rise and fall of a former hi-flier may seem interesting, it serves as a cautionary tale to current (bubbly) companies...
yeah i'm talking about you netflix, if adaptation to big media moves to embrace peer-to-peer technology doesn't prove nimble enough.
the company already plays in perhaps a niche market in which it strategically alienates some of its 'best customers' who may be likely, as early adopters, to try new methods of delivery.
btw, if you feel 'alienated', check out the netflix throttling settlement

¶ - nitish @ 9:33 AM | 0 comments

  idol by the numbers

- billions?: the american idol empire starts with fox, but several companies benefit big time including superagent firm CAA, text message specialists cingular, (payola) sponsor coca-cola among other licensor/ees. variety breaks it down by industry (via tvtattle)

- #1: britain's original pop idol will young tops a radio listener popularity poll, beating out such luminaries as the beatles (#34), rolling stones (unlisted--while i think they're overrated, that's ridiculous), and even the spice girls (#4).

personally, AI jumped the shark for me when i saw mr young knee-bend (a la the bradys) as he crooned a pretty lame song during the kelly clarkson cycle. ever since, i've been shocked that a show with relativelypoor music product could maintain such interest...i've even rooted against it

¶ - nitish @ 3:38 PM | 1 comments

  cnn's great white haired hope

struggling news network cnn (which has even been the target of north korea's ire) anointed anderson cooper, who 'owns' emotional (if not always accurate) reporting, as their rising star.

however despite glowing coverage, cooper is not cutting it (via drudge, via mickey kaus) in the ratings department

don't worry...i think the fawning media may have already moved on from some failed lib outlets to future failed media figures like olbermann and colbert

update: apparently the reward for the less-than-stellar performance is a spot on 60 minutes

¶ - nitish @ 9:21 AM | 0 comments

  the questions that must be answered

similar to slate's (hit-or-miss) explainer series manned by Daniel Engber, the register (which usually focuses on tech, biz and science, along with the occassional compelling tangential story) chimes in with some burning questions in a series dubbed the odd body:
- Could Drew Barrymore's memory loss in 50 First Dates really happen?
possible, but not bloody likely
- Why do we say 'um', 'er', or 'ah' when we hesitate in speaking?
they're 'fillers' to try to keep talking
- Why we are not naked even in the womb?
as a bit of a clean freak, this one was a bit disgusting

while .
hopefully these first few entries continue as an interesting series

¶ - nitish @ 6:32 PM | 0 comments

  we don't need no stinkin elections

hugo chavez, hero the the american left, suggests political machinations which would give himself a 25 year reign

now that would be job security..

¶ - nitish @ 10:18 AM | 0 comments

  too much to handle

having already commanded the tardis in the successful new doctor who, christopher eccleston takes on another sci-fi classic in an update of the prisoner

personal note: showbiz has become too lame and/or uncreative to continue following every sequel, adaptation and remake

¶ - nitish @ 3:06 PM | 0 comments

  communism pays

forbes magazine estimates fidel castro's worth at nearly one billion dollars, beating even the queen of england.
not bad for a people's revolutionary!

speaking of places in need of change...
the continent of africa suffers from mind-boggling corruption so pervasive it extends to sports. despite noble efforts to help the continent, its leaders regularly live it up at the expense of the population

Africa's Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, president of Equatorial Guinea, made the list of wealthiest leaders for the first time. He is estimated to hold up to $600 million, the magazine said, although an oil boom has not prevented his country's slide down the United Nations' development rankings.

meanwhile, while the ruler of dubai (yes that dubai) Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum certainly increased his wealth, the country has benefited as well

Forbes estimates the renowned racehorse breeder also helped raise Dubai's gross domestic product from about $8 billion to nearly $40 billion since 1994 by diversifying its industries outside of oil and making successful investments overseas.
"He would probably be the shrewdest of the bunch," said Luisa Kroll, associate editor at Forbes.

for the complete list, check out forbes' Kings, Queens And Dictators

¶ - nitish @ 9:27 AM | 0 comments

  further evidence of the roe effect

wall street journal editor james taranto--whose best of the web today column i read daily--developed "the roe effect" theory, by which the roe v wade decision impacted the political leanings of the general population.

results of a harris interactive poll (via lucianne.com) bear out the 'roe effect' with support for roe v wade at decadal lows. despite the personal preference though, most do not anticipate or want a significant change in abortion rights.
[note: i believe it's easy to play with polls, surveys, etc]

¶ - nitish @ 8:35 AM | 0 comments

  bringing wall st to main st

with his passing, zap2it provides a worthy profile of financial advice pioneer louis rukeyser. his impact remains undeniable

At its peak in the 1980s, "Wall Street Week" was carried on more than 300 public television stations and boasted a weekly audience of 4.1 million viewers. The 30-minute program was public television's longest-running weekly prime-time series, second only to CBS' venerable "60 Minutes" in overall TV tenure.

his efforts changed the financial press

Rukeyser's ability to translate economics into compelling television talk helped make investors out of millions of Americans: "In essence, what he did was bring Wall Street to Main Street -- he made Wall Street understandable in terms of Main Street," says Frank Cappiello, a money manager who appeared as a panelist on Rukeyser's first PBS telecast in 1970 and his last in 2002, as well as his first and last on CNBC.

cnbc and the future fox business channel could not exist without louis rukeyser

¶ - nitish @ 5:21 PM | 0 comments

  whacko enablers unite

christopher hitchens doesn't suffer (liberal) fools gladly--like michael moore and george galloway to name a few. now hitchens trains his sights on university of michigan professor-turned blogger juan cole, particularly cole's apologist tone on iranian whacko-in-chief mahmoud ahmadinejad's destructive rhetoric.
about a week ago, the wall street journal's john fund, who tracked the taliban at yale story, questioned [bugmenot login] cole's scholarly nature, especially considering some of his unscholarly rhetoric.

similar to cole's defense against fund--in which he focuses on one line with a 'distinction without a difference' defense before weakly disputing the substance, cole attempts to rebut by whining that hitchens including a discussion group post (apparently its only OK to reveal private stuff some of the time), further lamenting "attack journalism" just before he attacks hitchens' "debilitating drinking problem".
this is a problem with the angry left: personal attacks with those with whom they disagree come before addressing the underlying disagreement.

cole then goes into anti-war fantasy land implying war with iran unnecessary despite the impotence of kofi, iaea, and complicity of the MSM

speaking of apologists for whackos, an (essentially) internal bbc study
[note my personal opinion: it's easy to play with polls, surveys, etc]
finds the same media outlet which refuses to call terrorists "terrorists", is too pro-israel
but, of course, there is no media bias...

¶ - nitish @ 9:10 AM | 0 comments

  who bears more blame?

with the standard "it's easy to play with polls, surveys, etc" stipulation...

a poll conducted for national geographic finds that many people cannot, among other things, locate louisiana on the map.

but this cannot be...
the media congratulated itself so heartily for its wonderful job of informing the public during hurricane katrina. but the media isn't the only blameworthy institution, sharing the blame with the apparently failed education system. you know the one that appears institutionally opposed to improving

other troubling tidbits
- the dismissal of the 'need to know', especially with regard to international events and geography.
- "30% thought the most heavily fortified border was between the United States and Mexico"
and yet ~500,000 still sneak across that border, i wonder how many cross the korean dmz?
- the poll itself seems set-up to expose these failings in order to plow more money and effort into a "multimedia campaign"
- a coupla of the orgs that would be involved in the campaign include the American Federation of Teachers and National PTA which actually bear some of the responsibility of these woeful results

¶ - nitish @ 12:24 PM | 0 comments

  keeping abreast

anna nicole smith going to court, the supreme court brings out the snarkiness--me included, but to a lesser degree...

reuters has a pretty straight forward article, while cnn.com has a thorough description

as i predicted, the 9th circuit got overruled and ms smith may have alotta money coming her way

¶ - nitish @ 8:58 AM | 0 comments

  the last bastion of a failed entertainer

today's wsj's best of the web [bugmenot login] regarding the White House Correspondent Dinner finally spurs me to air what i had previously thought:

it appears comedians fall back to political comedy as a retreat from failed 'traditional' show biz careers. since the left is rather humorless, the bar of success is much lower

- al franken: never to be forgiven as perhaps the worst part in the otherwise classic trading places, the bomb stuart saves his family and failed tv series lateline prompted a retreat solely to the angry left angle.

- bill maher (who dubs himself libertarian): after show biz credits like dc cab and cannibal women in the avocado jungle of death (i've never seen them but how good could they be?), maher went the 'politically incorrect route

- similarly, keith olbermann after his fallout with espn, had several attempts at tv, while jon stewart had failed effort after failed effort (and i actually like his syndicated late nighter) before they found the cozy confines of leftist media

[note: i magnanimously absolve dennis miller--i'm nice, i know--since snl weekend update was his 'big break']

¶ - nitish @ 5:18 PM | 0 comments

  all 24 post

fox's compelling 24 has fans in high places--sometimes even on screen because its compelling television.
however, sometimes plot holes are somewhat ignored--or left behind--in service of the compelling action. usatoday compiles 10 questions closing with the seemingly contradictory but relevant

9. Why does anyone oppose Jack?
10. Why does anyone support Jack?

meanwhile zap2it profiles the last two characters other than jack who have survived 5 bloodbath days of 24 thus far

¶ - nitish @ 2:57 PM | 0 comments

  hollywood can't seem to help itself

with planned remakes of underdog, transformers (although this fanvid is good), and even tv shows
the madness continuees with plans for a remake of clash of the titans, another childhood favorite of mine
(disclosure: i proudly own the dvd)

¶ - nitish @ 2:42 PM | 0 comments

  espn's draft coverage fumble

watching the exhaustive draft coverage by espn, i felt a bit shortchanged withsomething lacking.
i realize the weekend is a selection draft...
but as essentially the mid-point of the NFL offseason, espn could have taken the opportunity to re-cap the offseason for each team with more of an outlook going forward.
instead of focusing mostly on players even some pretty big football fans may not know, stress impact of big moves like TO, edgerrin, culpepper, brees, jon abraham, even vinatieri and vanderjagt

unfortunately, the lack of coverage even extends online where espn.com lacks a player movement chart(!)--which cbs sportsline helpfully tracks

¶ - nitish @ 8:25 AM | 0 comments