Discussion: Economics of Technology Early Adoption

An interesting discussion over at Slashdot regarding the premium that people pay for being early adopters of technology. The discussion is done through the filter of the HD-DVD format which was recently declared dead; the casualty of the infamous "next generation format wars" between HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.

The Ineffectiveness of Labor Unions

Remember a few weeks ago when the United Auto Workers had their strike fiasco with Chrysler?

Now, just weeks after that, Chrysler is cutting 12,000 jobs and models from their inventory.

This is the effectiveness of irrational greed in the marketplace, or lack thereof.

It's a School Day: Do You Know Where Your Child Is?

“"From my own experience - this could get me in trouble - I think every single school district in the nation has at least one perpetrator. At least one," says Mary Jo McGrath, a California lawyer who has spent 30 years investigating abuse and misconduct in schools. "It doesn't matter if it's urban or rural or suburban."”

That is the most shocking statement from the entire article, in my opinion.

Sexual Misconduct Plagues US Schools

What the 2007 Nobel Prize for Economics Can Teach Us

The 2007 Nobel Prize for Economics

“Three Americans -- including the oldest-ever Nobel Prize winner -- will share award for creating mechanism design theory.”

“Mechanism Design Theory,” a subset of Game Theory in which we can learn several things to enrich our lives. Some key points to take away:

· Auctions are the most efficient form of market transaction: Think cheap items on eBay.

· Double auctions are the best type, in fact: Think the Google IPO.

· There is often no good market solution to providing some goods, like uncrowded roads

The Algorithm Vs. The Unpredictable

$2.2 Million Grant Calls for Designing Computer Software to Predict the Unpredictable

You ever have one of “those ideas” which, later, someone else is able to make come to fruition? It happens to me all the time, and is one of the more frustrating things about my existence.

Years ago, while serving on active duty as an Air Security Officer I came up with the notion of how to win the lottery or predict the weather. They both could be manifest of the same theory. I hypothesized that an algorithm—or series thereof—could be devised with which to emulate the behavior of certain complex systems with discrete outcomes, eventually “catching up” with the behavior of the system and then outpacing it. Once the algorithm learned the dynamics of the system it could not only tell you what it was doing at this instant, but also it could predict what it would do.

This system could be applied to the lottery and meteorology, I speculated at the time. It’s been years since that thought had occurred to me, but when I read this article I realized that this had boundless opportunities in other fields.

In the post-September 11^TH world we are faced with terrorists and unstable regions of the world that rival similar parts of history during the Cold War, but even more savage. The implications of a set of algorithms which could “predict the unpredictable” could revolutionize many, many areas of the world in which we live.

Something to think about.

Epilepsy: The Human Brain Overheats Like a Computer

Researchers have crafted a theory for a "brain radiator" that would help with epileptic siezures:

In severe epileptic fits, over-excited brain cells fire at such a rate they can raise the brain's temperature in that area. This causes more nerves to fire in a feedback mechanism that makes the fit even worse. One way of preventing such escalating fits is to cool the area of the brain that is susceptible.

So Takashi Saito and colleagues at Yamaguchi University in Japan have developed a heat pipe that is surgically implanted into the affected region of the brain and then connected to a heat sink on the outside of the skull. This device carries heat away from the affected area, keeping

Alan Greenspan: The Best Financial Authority of Our Times, Living or Dead?

John McCain made an interesting remark published today:

"If he's alive or dead it doesn't matter. If he's dead, just prop him up and put some dark glasses on him like, like 'Weekend at Bernie's,'" McCain joked. "Let's get the best minds in America together and fix this tax code."

Having served for 18 1/2 years as Fed Chairman, Greenspan is considered at the top of his field of central banking. Obviously some politicians consider him in even much higher regard.

Some recent video of Mr. Greenspan:

Follow-Up: Go Figure

Go figure. The previously-mentioned editor of a student-ran university newspaper in Colorado gets to keep his job.

The punishment was one of the least severe the board could impose. The only lesser penalty was to dismiss the allegations against McSwane.

America's Youth: What We Have to Look Forward to

This isn't indicative of all of them, just a subsect of the next generation which is frightful enough in and of itself.

A screaming 15-year old girl who is resisting arrest after violating a curfew law.

What Kind of World...

What kind of world do we live in when Britney Spears is ordered to give her kids to ex-husband Kevin Federline?

Come on, I know Britney is the role model for (among other things) being a bad parent...but Kevin Federline...better?

Wow.

The Fall of Languages

Some fascinating stuff about languages around the world.

“a report, released a couple of weeks back by the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages in Oregon, on the alarming rate of extinction of the world's languages. While half of all languages have gone extinct in the last 500 years, the half-life is dropping: half of the 7,000 languages spoken today won't exist by the year 2100. The NY Times adds this perspective: "83 languages with 'global' influence are spoken and written by 80 percent of the world population. Most of the others face extinction at a rate, the researchers said, that exceeds that of birds, mammals, fish and plants."

A physics principle and a math principle applied to linguistics: Half lives and the 80/20 principle. Great stuff!

Freedom of Speech and Abusing the Right

Dateline Fort Collins, Colorado: The Colorado State University campus there. An editorial ran recently:

"Taser this ... F*** Bush."

The expletive was spelled out.

An article covering it reads: ""I think they went over the line a little bit, but it's free speech and they're allowed to write what they want," one student told 7NEWS."

Yes, because everyone has a right to free speech. I have nothing wrong with free speech or anyone practicing any other rights. But where do those rights end?

Two places:

1. When the practice of that right becomes something that inhibits someone else from living their life or pursuing liberty or happiness.

2. When they abuse that right.

I will stand up any day for any person to practice their rights, but when they violate one of the above I take a step back and take a look at the real character of the person practicing their right.

Moral of the story: Rights are only such because they don't infringe on everyone else or when it is an abuse.

Current Events: Better Not Fiddle With That Gizmo (in the U.K.)

A new law from the United Kingdom regarding cell phones...will it catch on in other western societies, namely the U.S.?

The Missing Bank Teller

This month the largest exercise to plan for pandemics in the United States will take place. Financial services firms—to the tune of 1,800—will be participating in this simulation for three weeks. The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association will learn, on paper, such pressing questions such as how many employees to expect calling in sick, telecommunications issues, service disruptions and, yes, even long lines at ATMs.

“Jim Binder, a spokesman for The Operations Clearing Corp., said the Chicago-based provider of derivatives clearing and settlement services will have 30 to 40 workers involved in the planning exercise. The full details of how the simulation will unfold are being kept secret until it starts Sept. 24, Binder said.”

The simulation reminds me, actually of when we used to play war games back in the Army. One thing that would happen is soldiers would be issued “casualty cards” which depicted what sort of injury one would have if they were shot and not killed. Medics, the solder’s units, and the soldier themselves, could react appropriately. In much the same fashion, firms participating in this simulation won’t be able to choose how many employees they will be losing for the duration: Depicting what events as they would be in a pandemic.

How will this affect the consumer, at least on the surface, though?

“[The U.K.-based Financial Services Authority] said [an equivalent exercise there] showed that some banks would be forced to close branches and reduce banking services, including ATMs. According to the FSA, the test also raised questions about whether the U.K.'s telecommunications infrastructure would be able to support large-scale teleworking for a prolonged period as staff shortages eroded the maintenance capabilities of service providers.”

In a world where catastrophe seems to be something occurring more frequently than in many other times in modern history, something like this seems prudent. And while some minor inconveniences could be experienced for consumers of these various financial service organizations, the long-term benefits will be if something happens catastrophic enough to warrant full implementation of the lessons learned for such an exercise.

Or, at the very least, the lessons learned from such an ordeal can go to help increase effectiveness and efficiency of the organization in peacetime. “Fight as we train, train as we fight.”

A Decade Apart: Subtle but Gaping Differences in 10 Years’ Time

[Note from Matthew: Due to the Labor Day holiday in the U.S., today's will be a shorter post.]

Relative to many out there, I’m a young fellow: Born in Montana in 1979, spending my formative years in the upper Midwest, I was exposed to a great mix of the culture of those from decades previous to me and I was able to see the cultures developing in those in decades younger than me. I don’t know if my upbringing was necessarily anything special, but it offered me a perspective that other people might not have. Every so often it seems that a quarrel between the generations arises: Which is better, which is worse, and where the starker of the contrasts lie. People like to compare; with that being said…

“The Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2011” offers insight into the worldview of people born circa 1989, who will graduate college in 2011. A few of the insights are covered below; for another perspective, try this Google News Search.

1. What Berlin wall?

I remember keenly when this happened, as well as when the Soviet Union…in fact…

15. Russia has always had a multi-party political system

I was on a vacation with my family in Red Lodge when this happened.

7. They have grown up with bottled water.

Remember when water was actually okay to drink from the tap?

23. Wal-Mart has always been a larger retailer than Sears and has always employed more workers than GM.

I didn’t even hear about Wal-Mart until years after these kids were born.

26. Katie Couric has always had screen cred.

I remember her early days before she anchored NBC’s morning program.

55. MTV has never featured music videos.

Gosh, I remember when they actually played music videos and it wasn’t something like “My Super Sweet 16.”

News from Matthew’s Browser

What makes 13-24 year olds happy? Spending time with family, friends, and significant others: In that order.

What this guy does to live frugally. Most of his suggestions are common sense, but it might just help you with saving a few more dollars at the end of the month.

Want to be more like the super-secret (squirrel) agent ala James Bond, the dude from Burn Notice, or Jason Bourne? This guy wrote a blog page that covers things from turning a $10 flashlight into a $100 “police torch,” to making a remote control detonator. Of course, many of these things are for educational purposes only, but something to keep in mind when you’re in that sort of particular bind.

Ever tried envisioning scales that are larger than that from your place to the local gas station? The larger they get, the more difficult it becomes to envision. This page offers analogies for some astronomical distances that might help you feel more accurately your place in the grander scale of things while upon this “blue marble.”

Milestone in the regeneration of brain cells: “The majority of cells in the human brain are not nerve cells but star-shaped glia cells, the so called “astroglia”. “Glia means “glue”, explains Götz. “As befits their name, until now these cells have been regarded merely as a kind of “putty” keeping the nerve cells together…Our results are very encouraging, because the generation of correctly functional nerve cells from postnatal glia cells is an important step on the way to be able to replace functional nerve cells also after injuries in the brain,” underlines Magdalena Götz..”

Twenty Investment Options: “Capital appreciation may be more important for the young investor, but once she enters her golden years, that same investor may place a greater emphasis on gaining income. Whatever your objective, knowing what investment options are out there is key.”

To become a success, it is often helpful to read about other people succeeding: How they did so, their motivators…the entire dynamics of the journey. In this article, CNet Staff Writer Stefanie Olsen interviews a teen Internet entrepreneur about MyYearbook.com.

A very cool new product from Microsoft has recently been released into the wild: Microsoft Home Server. Think the strengths of a corporate network made simple enough for the novice home user.

How do you differentiate yourself from your competitors in the market of online/mail movie rentals? Netflix has had price wars with Blockbuster and now they are going one step further: Expanding their customer service. The kicker—their customer service staff as some pretty good leniency in offering incentives to keep customers happy.

Fun and useful: How to deal with the scummy car deal salesman-type.

Have one of those old popcorn air poppers? Like coffee? Roast your own beans!

One of my passions is physics. As such, one of the questions that I’ve asked myself is about the elusiveness of the universe. This article explains some of that.

Of course, the top colleges in the United States for 2008.

My last road trip route, if you were interested. Photos soon at MatthewHetland.com!

Women and the Psychology of the Lie

Recently, 5,000 British women were questioned about their behaviors regarding lying to others. Ninety-six percent of them, or about 4,600 of them, admitted to lying. There were several interesting results that came from the survey, offering some keen insights into the psychology of women and why they lie.

Let’s start with one that is a shocker: Thirty-three percent of women would stay with their husband if they discovered that he was secretly a transvestite. By comparison, seventeen percent would tolerate him if their husbands refused to wash.

What is the reason? I pose that the predominant mentality of those surveyed sought personal harmony through harmony in the environment around them. While it could seem a controversial thesis at first, let’s continue to take a look at some of the other findings starting with the 45 percent of women surveyed that admitted to telling “little white lies” on a daily basis.

A quick web search shows the definition of a “white lie” as one characterized as an “often trivial, diplomatic or well-intentioned untruth.” Going on to say that, “however, the ethical ramifications of being in conflict with an otherwise consistent personal moral theory are far reaching and often involve self-deception.” While the white lie is the most common amongst this demographic, 83 percent of women surveyed in The National Scruples and Lies Survey said that they had told a large-scale, life-changing sort of lie at least once; about one in ten women, or 13 percent, admit to doing so on a regular basis.

What sorts of things can a woman say to make her environment a more harmonious place, though? About 1 in 4 women (27 percent) would tell a man if he was “hopeless in bed,” while a bit more than a third (36 percent) would tell their friends about his performance in the sack. More than half, or 54 percent, wouldn’t tell a man he was fat if asked—the remaining 46 percent would tell him the brutal truth. In contrast, they will expect the brutal truth in return: More than 6 in 10 (61 percent) want you to tell them the brutally honest truth, no matter how fat she looks in those pants.

Who is she most apt to be lied to?

“Partners (70%) are most likely to be lied to by women, with friends (65%), parents (64%), customers and clients (58%) and bosses (57%) also being deceived.”

The top fibs? “No, you don’t look fat,” or lying about shoes.

This only is the tip of the iceberg, though, when it comes to the depth that women will lie to get what they want. If they’re married and have acquired a sexually transmitted disease, 59 percent of women would tell their partners and future partners about it. If they were single, this number nearly flips: Sixty-five percent would not tell partners about it. Once they’re married, about 4 in 10 women—42 percent—would lie about contraception in hopes of getting pregnant, regardless of input from their partner. Once pregnant, if the child was not his and she wanted to stay with him—there is a 1 in 2 chance that she would not tell their significant other.

What these numbers really show is something that psychologists, and anyone with some life experience, has known all along: While men are often competitive and overtly approach things to be overcome, women have a propensity to be more secretive and covert about their competitive nature and wily about accomplishing their personal ambitions. Whereas the classic man is likely to confront someone else, by the time the woman confronts another person, it is often too late.

One could go into an examination of how this has evolved into modern culture from how girls, young ladies, and women were brought up in centuries past, but the cynic in me is likely to boil the matter down to a piece of wisdom from a wonderful poster.

Potpourri: A Couple Current Relevant New Stories

Today I thought I would share some news items currently filling up my “Blog Content” bookmarks folder in Firefox. Aside from the news, I might just have a perspective or other opinion to offer on the matter. Read on to find out!

Australian Survey Shows That Men Are Happiest With Educated Wives

From a survey reported in the Sydney Morning Herald reports:

“Every extra year of education a wife has under her belt significantly increases the chances her husband will report being highly satisfied with life. But Shane Mathew Worner, of the Australian National University’s economics program, says it may be that an educated woman’s earning power is her biggest asset.”

This only goes to reinforce a point that I’ve been making for years regarding men and women: Men—you don’t necessarily want to marry the hot girl that doesn’t have a clue what she’s talking about. Sooner or later any novelty or benefit of her “hotness” will wear off. When you get past that, you may want to carry on a civilized conversation about something, I don’t know, educated. While you can certainly set your sights on the beautiful woman in the room, it might be wise to make sure that she hasn’t checked her gray matter at the door.

Why Slim People Dislike the Overweight

This is an interesting one from the University of British Columbia:

“Antipathy toward obese people is a powerful and pervasive prejudice in many contemporary populations. Our results reveal, for the first time, that this prejudice may be rooted in multiple, independent mechanisms. They provide the first evidence that obesity serves as a cue for pathogen infection.”

And the reaction from one half of the “Two Fat Ladies,” show that aired in the late 1990s on BBC and the Food Network, Clarissa Dickson Wright:

“In the 1960s there were a lot of bigoted people who were anti-black, anti-Jewish, anti-everything but when they couldn't get away with that any more they turned into food-Nazis instead and began attacking people who were fat.”

People tend to take on the traits and habits with those which they socialize. Does it really matter if it is a behavioral or biochemical matter?

Personal Responsibility and When Kids have Kids

Kids should not have kids.

Nevada Couple Blame Internet for Neglect.

From the article:

"Michael Straw, 25, and Iana Straw, 23, pleaded guilty Friday to two counts each of child neglect. Each faces a maximum 12-year prison sentence.

Viloria said the Reno couple were too distracted by online video games, mainly the fantasy role-playing "Dungeons & Dragons" series, to give their children proper care.

"They had food; they just chose not to give it to their kids because they were too busy playing video games," Viloria told the Reno Gazette-Journal."

Weekend Bonus: The Salaries of a Good Education

Once upon a time, when I was standing at a point where I was researching and mapping out my educational landscape and my future, I figured that my salary potential could essentially double with each subsequent degree: Whereas an Associate’s degree could earn me a potential of $25,000 USD per year, a Bachelors degree could earn me $50,000 USD. Going up the “degree ladder” offers initial diminishing returns, but higher potential in the long-term: Whereas the non-Ivy League MBA, for example, can earn you 35 percent more and an Ivy League MBA can earn you up to an immediate six figure salary with the potential for a five figure sign on bonus. The amounts earned by Ph.D.s vary based on discipline and sector.

A recent study shows that earnings have been increasing for college graduates: “The results suggest that the increased hiring is translating directly into higher average starting salary offers.”

Leave it to free market economics to increase the salaries of job seekers with the right qualifications in a booming economy. While salary trends multiple disciplines increased, business degrees warranted some of the best earnings increases: New economics graduates earned $47.239, new accounting graduates earned $46,718, new management graduates earned $43,701 annually, while the highest increase was to new marketing graduates who earned $40,161. The second highest increase that was able to be measured was a 4.2 percent increase in management information systems, with a salary of $47,648.

Engineering majors posted an average salary of $54,698 across all sub-disciplines: Mechanical, chemical, civil, electrical, and computer engineering.

Others:

Discipline	Salary	Percent Increase
Psychology	$31,631	3.5
Political Science	$34,590	5.9
English	$32,553	5.3
Sociology	$32,033	3.5
History	$33,768	3.3