This video is a mash-up of 500 scenes selected from 11 Pixar feature films. It an amazing tribute to Pixar's animation and story-telling genius.
Here is the video.
via.
January 2011
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Capitalogix Commentary 01/17/11 – The Stat That Proves Bears Can’t Catch a Break
Beware What You Wish For …
Bears just can't catch a break.The Market is holding up well. By that, I mean it isn't going down well.
The Smallest "Biggest" Decline in 50 Years.
According to Bespoke, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hasn't had a 1% down day since before Thanksgiving; and Monday's 0.32% pullback is the biggest decline the index has had since the start of December.It is nearly unprecedented to go this long without having a one-day decline of at least one-third of one percent. Over the last 50 years, Bespoke found just three other 30-trading day periods where the index had a maximum decline of just 0.33%.
Back in April and May of 1965, the Dow went 30+ trading days without declining more than 0.15%. Later on that same year, the Dow had another 30-day period where its biggest down day was just 0.32%. And in 1963, the Dow's maximum one-day decline was just 0.33% over a 30-day period.Can you really blame investors for being bullish when it's hard to remember what a down day feels like?
Until the Markets have a meaningful correction, Smile … and stay watchful.
Business Posts Moving the Markets that I Found Interesting This Week:
- Top 10 Worst Moments in Fiscal Policy 2010. (CSMonitor)
- Algorithms Take Control of Wall Street (Wired)
- McKinsey Released Its Economic Conditions Snapshot. (McKQuarterly)
- John Bogle Warns That E.T.F.’s Are Risky for Market Timing. (NYTimes)
- RIM Thought iPhone Was Impossible In 2007. (iPhoneHacks)
- More Posts Moving the Markets.
Lighter Ideas and Fun Links that I Found Interesting This Week
- The Perils of the Prediction Game. (BusinessWeek)
- AI Defeats the Hivemind: How a Machine Learning Algorithm Beat the Masses. (TechReview)
- Extreme Fitness For a Hardcore Economy (Forbes)
- Check Out "If the Internet Had Always Existed". (CollegeHumor)
- Timelapse Video of the Recent Blizzard. See it all in 20 seconds (Vimeo)
- More Posts with Lighter Ideas and Fun Links.
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Comparing U.S. States to Countries, Based on GDP and Population
The Economist put together an interesting graphic that shows which countries match the GDP and population of America's states?
You probably know that California, on its own, would rank as one of the biggest economies of the world. As a result of its recession, these days, it would rank eighth (falling between Italy and Brazil).
But how do other American states compare with other countries?
Taking the nearest equivalent country from 2009 data reveals some surprises. Who would have thought that, despite years of auto-industry hardship, the economy of Michigan is still the same size as Taiwan's?
By the way, this is similar to a map I first saw in 2007 at "StrangeMaps". More on that here; and it gives you a chance to see how things have changed since then.
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Comparing U.S. States to Countries, Based on GDP and Population
The Economist put together an interesting graphic that shows which countries match the GDP and population of America's states?
You probably know that California, on its own, would rank as one of the biggest economies of the world. As a result of its recession, these days, it would rank eighth (falling between Italy and Brazil).
But how do other American states compare with other countries?
Taking the nearest equivalent country from 2009 data reveals some surprises. Who would have thought that, despite years of auto-industry hardship, the economy of Michigan is still the same size as Taiwan's?
By the way, this is similar to a map I first saw in 2007 at "StrangeMaps". More on that here; and it gives you a chance to see how things have changed since then.
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Outside the Box
If you've been thinking about ideas, planning, strategy or creativity to start the New Year, here is a short animated video about thinking.
It pokes a little fun at how hard some people try to think "outside-the-box" … or at least to make you think they did.
outside the box from joseph Pelling on Vimeo.
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Capitalogix Commentary 01/10/11 – A Look at the Bullish Case
Why are the markets going up? Does it matter? Clearly, there has been virtually no selling pressure; and it's been that way for months.
Jim Cramer said: "Really bad markets go down on the same news over and over again. Really good markets just keep going up on news that is well-known and is, well, hardly, news." By that definition, we are in a good market.
Respect the Trend.
The primary trend is higher. Higher highs and higher lows is the definition of an up-trend. Until price tells you otherwise, the key message is that Bulls control the market.
Imagine how frustrating it has been to be a Bear (because they simply haven't caught a break, and classic bear setups just aren't working). Will there come a time when Bears control the market again? Of course there will. Before that there will probably be a few nasty selling episodes. For now, though, all they know is that the market simply won't fall, no matter what the readings say, and no matter how overbought the daily index charts happen to get.
The Markets are a harsh teacher … and the hard lesson to learn is to avoid front-running a move. Over the long-term, it is safer to respect the primary trend.
A Condensed Restatement of the Bullish Case.
One of the StockTwits columnists posted this excerpt from a post in Barron's written by Michael Santoli.
The reasons the bulls are bullish are also pretty universally agreed upon. The industrial economy has gathered some momentum, the emerging markets are surging, companies are flush, profits look set to rise decently again, the Federal Reserve is seeking new ways to penalize risk aversion, taxes won't go up and the market tends to do well in the year after a midterm election.
And we can add to the list the likelihood that another financial-engineering cycle is just getting into gear, so expect lots of equity-friendly refinancings by stretched companies, re-leveraging by cash-rich ones and buyouts hither and yon.
The thing is, it's all pretty much true. And because of that, and given that stock valuations are not excessive, it's tough to think a likely pullback or worse would signal some major top.
That pretty much says it … Hope you have a great week.
Business Posts Moving the Markets that I Found Interesting This Week:
- Birinyi's S&P 500 Prediction a Jaw-Dropper. (InvestmentNews)
- Byron Wien's Ten Surprises for 2011. (CreditWriteDowns)
- Wealth & Fitness Secret: Success is Often a Matter of Getting the Ratios Right. (Forbes)
- Machines Are Taking Over: Electronic Trading Creates a New Financial Landscape. (NYTimes)
- Goldman Invests in Facebook at $50 Billion Valuation. (Dealbook)
- More Posts Moving the Markets.
Lighter Ideas and Fun Links that I Found Interesting This Week
- The Selfish Secret to a Happy Marriage (TheWeek)
- Using Google to Tell Real Science from Fads. (BigThink)
- Amazon Reveals the Most Popular Products of 2010. (Mashable)
- Six Apple iOS Exercise & Dieting Apps Worth Checking-Out For The New Year. (TUAW)
- Read "What Matters Now" – a Great Way to Start the Year. (SethGodin)
- More Posts with Lighter Ideas and Fun Links.
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Capitalogix Commentary 01/10/11 – A Look at the Bullish Case
Why are the markets going up? Does it matter? Clearly, there has been virtually no selling pressure; and it's been that way for months.
Jim Cramer said: "Really bad markets go down on the same news over and over again. Really good markets just keep going up on news that is well-known and is, well, hardly, news." By that definition, we are in a good market.
Respect the Trend.
The primary trend is higher. Higher highs and higher lows is the definition of an up-trend. Until price tells you otherwise, the key message is that Bulls control the market.
Imagine how frustrating it has been to be a Bear (because they simply haven't caught a break, and classic bear setups just aren't working). Will there come a time when Bears control the market again? Of course there will. Before that there will probably be a few nasty selling episodes. For now, though, all they know is that the market simply won't fall, no matter what the readings say, and no matter how overbought the daily index charts happen to get.
The Markets are a harsh teacher … and the hard lesson to learn is to avoid front-running a move. Over the long-term, it is safer to respect the primary trend.
A Condensed Restatement of the Bullish Case.
One of the StockTwits columnists posted this excerpt from a post in Barron's written by Michael Santoli.
The reasons the bulls are bullish are also pretty universally agreed upon. The industrial economy has gathered some momentum, the emerging markets are surging, companies are flush, profits look set to rise decently again, the Federal Reserve is seeking new ways to penalize risk aversion, taxes won't go up and the market tends to do well in the year after a midterm election.
And we can add to the list the likelihood that another financial-engineering cycle is just getting into gear, so expect lots of equity-friendly refinancings by stretched companies, re-leveraging by cash-rich ones and buyouts hither and yon.
The thing is, it's all pretty much true. And because of that, and given that stock valuations are not excessive, it's tough to think a likely pullback or worse would signal some major top.
That pretty much says it … Hope you have a great week.
Business Posts Moving the Markets that I Found Interesting This Week:
- Birinyi's S&P 500 Prediction a Jaw-Dropper. (InvestmentNews)
- Byron Wien's Ten Surprises for 2011. (CreditWriteDowns)
- Wealth & Fitness Secret: Success is Often a Matter of Getting the Ratios Right. (Forbes)
- Machines Are Taking Over: Electronic Trading Creates a New Financial Landscape. (NYTimes)
- Goldman Invests in Facebook at $50 Billion Valuation. (Dealbook)
- More Posts Moving the Markets.
Lighter Ideas and Fun Links that I Found Interesting This Week
- The Selfish Secret to a Happy Marriage (TheWeek)
- Using Google to Tell Real Science from Fads. (BigThink)
- Amazon Reveals the Most Popular Products of 2010. (Mashable)
- Six Apple iOS Exercise & Dieting Apps Worth Checking-Out For The New Year. (TUAW)
- Read "What Matters Now" – a Great Way to Start the Year. (SethGodin)
- More Posts with Lighter Ideas and Fun Links.
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Hans Rosling – The Health and Wealth of Nations
The Joy of Stats is spreading.
You can watch a history of the modern world, in less than five minutes.
I'm surprised by how many people have sent links to this YouTube preview of The Joy of Stats.
Somehow, with nothing more than animated bubble charts, Hans Rosling has become quite famous.
This four-minute clip shows Rosling presenting world development in the context of income versus lifespan. Rosling uses Gapminder, the software he and others had developed, to show multiply varying statistics as animations.
The material is more or less the same as his TedTalks; but this time around, the motion chart isn't projected on a screen. The data is CGI'd into the air where Rosling can pluck and grasp at points as he highlights the significance of specific points in history.
Until you’ve seen Hans Rosling in action you can have no idea just how moving a bunch of blue bubbles moving down a screen can be.
The BBC writes that:
Despite its light and witty touch, the film nonetheless has a serious message – without statistics we are cast adrift on an ocean of confusion, but armed with stats we can take control of our lives, hold our rulers to account and see the world as it really is. What’s more, Hans concludes, we can now collect and analyse such huge quantities of data and at such speeds that scientific method itself seems to be changing.
"I kid you not, statistics is now the sexiest subject on the planet" says Hans Rosling, presenter of The Joy of Stats.
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Hans Rosling – The Health and Wealth of Nations
The Joy of Stats is spreading.
You can watch a history of the modern world, in less than five minutes.
I'm surprised by how many people have sent links to this YouTube preview of The Joy of Stats.
Somehow, with nothing more than animated bubble charts, Hans Rosling has become quite famous.
This four-minute clip shows Rosling presenting world development in the context of income versus lifespan. Rosling uses Gapminder, the software he and others had developed, to show multiply varying statistics as animations.
The material is more or less the same as his TedTalks; but this time around, the motion chart isn't projected on a screen. The data is CGI'd into the air where Rosling can pluck and grasp at points as he highlights the significance of specific points in history.
Until you’ve seen Hans Rosling in action you can have no idea just how moving a bunch of blue bubbles moving down a screen can be.
The BBC writes that:
Despite its light and witty touch, the film nonetheless has a serious message – without statistics we are cast adrift on an ocean of confusion, but armed with stats we can take control of our lives, hold our rulers to account and see the world as it really is. What’s more, Hans concludes, we can now collect and analyse such huge quantities of data and at such speeds that scientific method itself seems to be changing.
"I kid you not, statistics is now the sexiest subject on the planet" says Hans Rosling, presenter of The Joy of Stats.
