Thoughts about the markets, automated trading algorithms, artificial intelligence, and lots of other stuff

  • A Look Back at the Future

    My father used to warn me that whatever I made fun of him about, would happen to me too. 

    This seemed unlikely since he was overweight, while I was the athletic picture of health … and he was "technology-challenged" (to put it nicely), while I was the poster-child for early adopters.

    The practical realities of age and time have once again proven him right.  So I'll use this Father's Day message to remind my kids the same message.

     

    The world changes quickly.

     

    I remember when I was one of the youngest and most tech-savvy people in the room during business meetings.  Somehow, now, my kids seem to think I'm like 30 minutes away from needing them to set the VCR so it doesn't flash 12:00 AM all day.

     

    It's Not Rocket Science - Luckovich

     

    Don't get me wrong, most of my friends still think that I know a lot about technology. And what we do at work may not be rocket science, but it's pretty close. We use neural networks, machine learning, GPUs, and lots of cool technology … and, yes, I still love gadgets. 

    Technology has always been my friend, and it still is. I love finding a new piece of software that makes me more efficient, more effective or simply makes life a little bit easier. Same with gadgets … I've waited in my share of lines to be among the first for plenty of stupid products. Apparently, however, I'm a little over the hill – and in danger of losing my "early adopter" pin.

     

    The Bigger Picture Is Better

    (Or Perhaps I'm Just Jealous I  Can't Read The Fine Print Anymore?)

    150621-A-Father's-HugIt is true, lots of the technology heavy-lifting is done by others at this point. That is progress. 

    As my father said, not worrying about all the little details helped him see the bigger picture and focus on what was possible.

    My father never used a computer in business. He did buy one later in life, but I think it was only to shut me up – so I'd stop telling him that he needed one.

    On the other hand, I wish my mother never got one. She actually makes me feel sorry for tech support workers around the globe.  If I wasn't worried about how soon my sons say the same about me, I'd joke that if the military could figure-out what she does — and weaponize it — we could crash enemy computers at will.

    So it is funny when one of my sons asks me to move away from the computer so he can fix something or make something work a lot easier than to tell me how to do it.  It is the circle of life.

     

    A Little Extra Proof of My Age.

     

    I was in a meeting this week with some people (and my 21-year-old son). We were looking at a picture that appeared to have been altered, and I said "that sure looks like it's been Facebooked to me." I'm pretty sure my son still hasn't stopped laughing. Yes, I meant "Photoshopped", and I do know the difference … yet it only adds to the growing proof.

    At least I'm good for something, even if (sometimes) it's just a laugh. 

    Still, it's only a matter of time until his kids think that he is behind the times.  And that will be a sure sign of progress too.

    Happy Fathers' Day.

  • A Look Back at the Future

    My father used to warn me that whatever I made fun of him about, would happen to me too. 

    This seemed unlikely since he was overweight, while I was the athletic picture of health … and he was "technology-challenged" (to put it nicely), while I was the poster-child for early adopters.

    The practical realities of age and time have once again proven him right.  So I'll use this Father's Day message to remind my kids the same message.

     

    The world changes quickly.

     

    I remember when I was one of the youngest and most tech-savvy people in the room during business meetings.  Somehow, now, my kids seem to think I'm like 30 minutes away from needing them to set the VCR so it doesn't flash 12:00 AM all day.

     

    It's Not Rocket Science - Luckovich

     

    Don't get me wrong, most of my friends still think that I know a lot about technology. And what we do at work may not be rocket science, but it's pretty close. We use neural networks, machine learning, GPUs, and lots of cool technology … and, yes, I still love gadgets. 

    Technology has always been my friend, and it still is. I love finding a new piece of software that makes me more efficient, more effective or simply makes life a little bit easier. Same with gadgets … I've waited in my share of lines to be among the first for plenty of stupid products. Apparently, however, I'm a little over the hill – and in danger of losing my "early adopter" pin.

     

    The Bigger Picture Is Better

    (Or Perhaps I'm Just Jealous I  Can't Read The Fine Print Anymore?)

    150621-A-Father's-HugIt is true, lots of the technology heavy-lifting is done by others at this point. That is progress. 

    As my father said, not worrying about all the little details helped him see the bigger picture and focus on what was possible.

    My father never used a computer in business. He did buy one later in life, but I think it was only to shut me up – so I'd stop telling him that he needed one.

    On the other hand, I wish my mother never got one. She actually makes me feel sorry for tech support workers around the globe.  If I wasn't worried about how soon my sons say the same about me, I'd joke that if the military could figure-out what she does — and weaponize it — we could crash enemy computers at will.

    So it is funny when one of my sons asks me to move away from the computer so he can fix something or make something work a lot easier than to tell me how to do it.  It is the circle of life.

     

    A Little Extra Proof of My Age.

     

    I was in a meeting this week with some people (and my 21-year-old son). We were looking at a picture that appeared to have been altered, and I said "that sure looks like it's been Facebooked to me." I'm pretty sure my son still hasn't stopped laughing. Yes, I meant "Photoshopped", and I do know the difference … yet it only adds to the growing proof.

    At least I'm good for something, even if (sometimes) it's just a laugh. 

    Still, it's only a matter of time until his kids think that he is behind the times.  And that will be a sure sign of progress too.

    Happy Fathers' Day.

  • Here Are Some Links For Your Weekend Reading

    Here are some of the posts that caught my eye. Hope you find something interesting.

     

    Lighter Links:

     

    Trading Links:

  • Here Are Some Links For Your Weekend Reading

    Here are some of the posts that caught my eye. Hope you find something interesting.

     

    Lighter Links:

     

    Trading Links:

  • The Economic Roller Coaster

    Where do you believe major economies are in their economic cycle?

    Here is a chart that tries to make sense of current economic data and trends in growth rates.

     

    150620 The Economic Roller Coaster

     via Financial Sense.

    It shows the Eurozone, Japan, and India in the beginning phase of an expansion, the US and the UK near the peak; Australia and Canada decelerating, and China, Russia, and Brazil near a trough.

    Although this chart uses the metaphor of a roller coaster in terms of the ups and downs, peaks and troughs, of an economic cycle … it should be noted that these are slow moving trends that typically last for years.

    Moreover, unlike a roller coaster where each car is separated on the track and moving at the same speed (thankfully, to prevent collision), there is no predictable or constant velocity for each nation as they move from one phase to another.

    It also pays to remember that the market doesn't equal the underlying economy. 

  • The Economic Roller Coaster

    Where do you believe major economies are in their economic cycle?

    Here is a chart that tries to make sense of current economic data and trends in growth rates.

     

    150620 The Economic Roller Coaster

     via Financial Sense.

    It shows the Eurozone, Japan, and India in the beginning phase of an expansion, the US and the UK near the peak; Australia and Canada decelerating, and China, Russia, and Brazil near a trough.

    Although this chart uses the metaphor of a roller coaster in terms of the ups and downs, peaks and troughs, of an economic cycle … it should be noted that these are slow moving trends that typically last for years.

    Moreover, unlike a roller coaster where each car is separated on the track and moving at the same speed (thankfully, to prevent collision), there is no predictable or constant velocity for each nation as they move from one phase to another.

    It also pays to remember that the market doesn't equal the underlying economy. 

  • What Languages are the Most Spoken – The Results Might Surprise You

    There are over 7,100 known languages actively spoken in the world today. Of those, just twenty-three of them act as a mother tongue for more than 50 million people.  Collectively, those 23 languages make up the native tongue of more than half the world (4.1 billion people).

    This infographic represent each language within black borders and then provide the numbers of native speakers (in millions) by country. The coloring shows how the languages have taken root in many different regions.

     

    150620 A World of Languages

     via Alberto Lucas López .

     

    As you can see, Chinese is by far the most dominant language on the planet right now, with almost 1.2 billion people speaking dialects. Comparatively, pretty much every other language on Earth is an also-ran: Spanish (399 million speakers), English (335 million), Hindi (260 million), and Arabic (242 million) take up the next four positions. Only when you add them up do they come close to the reach Chinese has.

    Although Chinese is the most popular language on Earth, it's worth noting that its influence wanes greatly outside of Asia.

    If you take the geographic diversity of where a language is spoken into account, English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese are the most influential languages on Earth, because of colonialism.

    For more, here is a link to the Washington Post's article: The world’s languages, in 7 maps and charts.

  • What Languages are the Most Spoken – The Results Might Surprise You

    There are over 7,100 known languages actively spoken in the world today. Of those, just twenty-three of them act as a mother tongue for more than 50 million people.  Collectively, those 23 languages make up the native tongue of more than half the world (4.1 billion people).

    This infographic represent each language within black borders and then provide the numbers of native speakers (in millions) by country. The coloring shows how the languages have taken root in many different regions.

     

    150620 A World of Languages

     via Alberto Lucas López .

     

    As you can see, Chinese is by far the most dominant language on the planet right now, with almost 1.2 billion people speaking dialects. Comparatively, pretty much every other language on Earth is an also-ran: Spanish (399 million speakers), English (335 million), Hindi (260 million), and Arabic (242 million) take up the next four positions. Only when you add them up do they come close to the reach Chinese has.

    Although Chinese is the most popular language on Earth, it's worth noting that its influence wanes greatly outside of Asia.

    If you take the geographic diversity of where a language is spoken into account, English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese are the most influential languages on Earth, because of colonialism.

    For more, here is a link to the Washington Post's article: The world’s languages, in 7 maps and charts.

  • How Big Is America? So Big!

    Sometimes it helps to employ unconventional perspectives when thinking about the size of things.

    Here's a map that shows how massive and productive America's $16.7 trillion economy is on a global scale.

    The map compares the gross domestic product of each US states with the national GDPs of other nations.

    America's largest state economy is California. For 2013, the Golden State's GDP was about $2.05 trillion, roughly the same as Brazil's GDP ($2.25 trillion). But Brazil's population is about 200.4 million, while California's is just 38.8 million — meaning California produces about the same as Brazil with about 80% fewer people.

    To put it in a global perspective, if California were its own country in 2013, it would have been the 10th-biggest economy in the world, close behind Russia, whose GDP was $2.096 trillion that year.

    Check out the rest of the states in the map below:

     

    150613 State GDPs vs Country GDPs

     via Business Insider.

    Based on population, the US is the third-largest country in the world.

    To put that in perspective, below is a a map that renames each state with the country that has the closest population to it.

     

    150613 Countries and States by Population

    via Business Insider.

     

    The map, below, is interesting in a different way.  I'm sure you've heard that "a picture is worth a thousand words."  Here, a couple dozen words capture the world.

     

    150613 The World In Words

    by Michael Tompsett via Fine Art America.

  • How Big Is America? So Big!

    Sometimes it helps to employ unconventional perspectives when thinking about the size of things.

    Here's a map that shows how massive and productive America's $16.7 trillion economy is on a global scale.

    The map compares the gross domestic product of each US states with the national GDPs of other nations.

    America's largest state economy is California. For 2013, the Golden State's GDP was about $2.05 trillion, roughly the same as Brazil's GDP ($2.25 trillion). But Brazil's population is about 200.4 million, while California's is just 38.8 million — meaning California produces about the same as Brazil with about 80% fewer people.

    To put it in a global perspective, if California were its own country in 2013, it would have been the 10th-biggest economy in the world, close behind Russia, whose GDP was $2.096 trillion that year.

    Check out the rest of the states in the map below:

     

    150613 State GDPs vs Country GDPs

     via Business Insider.

    Based on population, the US is the third-largest country in the world.

    To put that in perspective, below is a a map that renames each state with the country that has the closest population to it.

     

    150613 Countries and States by Population

    via Business Insider.

     

    The map, below, is interesting in a different way.  I'm sure you've heard that "a picture is worth a thousand words."  Here, a couple dozen words capture the world.

     

    150613 The World In Words

    by Michael Tompsett via Fine Art America.