We're winding down the semester at Unknown University (only one exam to go, and I'm done). So, I was looking ahead to next semester (hey - I was on the train, and had little better to do for an hour and a half), and I realized that it will be the most interesting and varied teaching load I've ever ... Read more

One of the hot stories this last week was that the Obama Administration had supposedly pressured and/or threatened hedge fund managers who held Chrysler debt. ABC News reports: Thomas Lauria, Global Practice Head of the Financial Restructuring and Insolvency Group at White & Case, told ABC N ... Read more

I recently started reading Goldstein, Martin, and Cialdini's "Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive." It could easily be described as "Freakonomics for Social Psychology". It's a fun, easy, and very informative read, with each chapter only about 1500-2000 words long, and highlighting ... Read more

Chutzpah is typically defined as "brazenness, audacity, or shamelessness". One wag defined it as "killing both parents and then throwing yourself on the court's mercy because you were an orphan". I now have an updated definition. A colleague just forwarded me this ad on Craigslist in the city wher ... Read more

Once again, it's that happy time - the end of the semester at Unknown University. I teach my last classes tomorrow - in one, I hand back some assignments and talk about the final (that means today is all about the grading, and in the other (the student managed fund), I hand out stock assignments ... Read more

This guy (Dave) got married on May29 th almost 24 years ago. Since then, he's sent his wife three dozen roses on the 29 th of each and every month since then. I asked if he ever forgot, and he responded "no ... Read the full post ... Read more

Since I pretty much wear khakis and button down shirts every day (and khakis and polo shorts when it gets warm, this made me chuckle From PhDComics . ... Read the full post ... Read more

At the Unknown Alma Mater, some of the faculty preferred that students address them by their first name. With others, it was "Dr. So and So" until they graduated. At my current school, american PhD students go by first names, and international students go by "Dr. ___" (until I can break them of the ... Read more

I've been a bit busy lately. The slightly early arrival of the Unknown Baby Boy (about three weeks early) has come with the usual new parent sleep deprivation (he still only sleeps about 3-3 1/2 hours at a pop). As a result, any task (like making up an exam) takes about twice as long: it takes lo ... Read more

I'm by no means an expert on Jewish Law (in fact, I know almost nothing). But this caught my eye. I'm talking about repurchase agreements tonight. For the unitiated, a "repo" is a form of short-term borrowing where party A sells a security (or a good) to party B, and simultaneously agrees to buy ( ... Read more