Elementary Worldly Wisdom

A Lesson on Elementary, Worldly Wisdom As It Relates To Investment Management & Business Charles Munger, USC Business School, 1994 I'm going to play a minor trick on you today because the subject of my talk is the art of stock picking as a subdivision of the art of worldly wisdom. That enables me to start talking about worldly wisdom—a much broader topic that interests me because I think all too little of it is delivered by modern educational systems, at least in an effective way. And therefore, the talk is sort of along the lines that some behaviorist psychologists call Grandma's rule after the wisdom of Grandma when she said that you have to eat the carrots before you get the dessert. The carrot part of this talk is about the general subject of worldly wisdom which is a pretty good way to start. So, emphasizing what I sometimes waggishly call remedial worldly wisdom, I'm going to start by waltzing you through a few basic notions. What is elementary, worldly wisdom? What are the models?

Startup Insights From Paul English, Co-Founder of Kayak Startup Insights From Paul English, Co-Founder of Kayak I’m just wrapping up several weeks of attending conferences across both coasts. Of the ones I have been to recently, the Nantucket Conference has been my favorite. A great group of people and a small enough gathering that you can actually get to know many/most of them. One of the sessions at the conference was an interview with Paul English, founder and CTO of Kayak. The following are some notes I pulled from the interview. Or, you can download the MP3 directly 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. Full Transcript of Paul English Interview [applause 0:00:00] Larry Bohn: [0:05] So let me begin this way. Paul English: [0:14] That sounds right. 1989. Larry:[0:16] 1989. Paul:[1:16] It's all due to Larry; everything I learned working for Larry. Larry: [2:46] Great. Paul:[2:51] Interleaf, that's right. Paul:[5:27] Sometimes I give talks at local universities about starting companies. Paul:[10:57] Sure.

Drugs and the Meaning of Life (Photo by JB Banks) (Note 6/4/2014: I have revised this 2011 essay and added an audio version.—SH) Everything we do is for the purpose of altering consciousness. We form friendships so that we can feel certain emotions, like love, and avoid others, like loneliness. We eat specific foods to enjoy their fleeting presence on our tongues. Drugs are another means toward this end. One of the great responsibilities we have as a society is to educate ourselves, along with the next generation, about which substances are worth ingesting and for what purpose and which are not. However, we should not be too quick to feel nostalgia for the counterculture of the 1960s. Drug abuse and addiction are real problems, of course, the remedy for which is education and medical treatment, not incarceration. I discuss issues of drug policy in some detail in my first book, The End of Faith, and my thinking on the subject has not changed. I have two daughters who will one day take drugs. (Pokhara, Nepal) Ott, J.

Bordeaux bargains could be worth the wait Just two weeks ago we noted that Bordeaux is not the best place to find values. And so the annual springtime rite of wine critics, importers and brokers flocking to Bordeaux to taste and pronounce judgment on the latest vintage is typically, at best, a passing curiosity. Equally foreign to most value wine shoppers is the idea of buying Bordeaux “futures,” also known by the French “en primeur.” Just as the term suggests, buying futures means buying the wine before it’s even bottled, up to two years before it will arrive in stores, on the speculation that it will be cheaper now than when it’s released. The futures price is set by the individual chateaux, based on their own – and more importantly the critics’ – assessment of the quality of the vintage, plus factors such as the price and success of the prior vintage, current economic conditions, perceived demand and other variables. What, you ask, does all this talk of $5,000 cases and $400 bottles have to do with budget wine? Cheers!

The China Study: Fact or Fallacy? « Raw Food SOS Disclaimer: This blog post covers only a fraction of what’s wrong with “The China Study.” In the years since I wrote it, I’ve added a number of additional articles expanding on this critique and covering a great deal of new material. Please read my Forks Over Knives review for more information on what’s wrong with the conclusions drawn from Campbell’s casein/aflatoxin research, and if you’d rather look at peer-reviewed research than the words of some random internet blogger, see my collection of scientific papers based on the China Study data that contradict the claims in Campbell’s book. I’ve also responded to Campbell’s reply to my critique with a much longer, more formal analysis than the one on this page, which you can read here. When I first started analyzing the original China Study data, I had no intention of writing up an actual critique of Campbell’s much-lauded book. I’m a data junkie. First, let me put out some fires before they have a chance to ignite: Alright, Mr.

Is the Star of David becoming the new swastika? - Judy Mandelbau Vandalized synagogue in Russia, 2006(Source: Crown Heights Info) Time was when Nazis used to slather swastikas on synagogues and Jewish businesses to prepare the local population for expulsion or much worse. It’s sad that this sort of behavior persists around the world, as a new study by Tel Aviv University shows. But it’s even sadder to see Israelis regularly defacing Palestinian property with Stars of David with equal glee and with what appears to be the same brain-dead mindset. Your local paper might not have covered it, but in the wee hours of Wednesday morning a gang of Israeli settlers attacked the West Bank village of Hawara. Defaced mosque in Hawara, West Bank, yesterday(Source: AP) In February of 2009, a Canadian writer by the name of Marcello Di Cintio witnessed how “earlier this week, the IDF raided Jayyous. A defaced Palestinian ambulance in Nablus, November 2008(Source: Daylife/Getty) Defaced Palestinian house in Hebron(Source: Time)

Stoicism for Modern Stresses: 5 Lessons from Cato The philosophical school of Stoicism is, I believe, the perfect operating system for thriving in high-stress environments. For entrepreneurs, it’s a godsend. Both Seneca and Marcus Aurelius have been extensively written about elsewhere. But what of Cato, about whom Dante said, “And what earthly man was more worthy to signify God than Cato?” One of my favorite anecdotes of Cato is from Plutarch. I quote it often (see “Practical Pessimism“): “Seeing the lightest and gayest purple was then most in fashion, he would always wear that which was the nearest black; and he would often go out of doors, after his morning meal, without either shoes or tunic; not that he sought vain-glory from such novelties, but he would accustom himself to be ashamed only of what deserves shame, and to despise all other sorts of disgrace.” The following article was written by Rob Goodman and Jimmy Soni. Both exemplify the power of Stoicism when applied to a world of modern noise. Enter Rob and Jimmy 3) Fear nothing.

Harmonic Acquires Video Storage Company Omneon For $306 Million The online video world has begun to consolidate. Broadcast and online video delivery giant Harmonic has acquired video storage company Omneon for approximately $306 million in cash and Harmonic stock. Harmonic will pay $190 million in cash and issue approximately 17.1 million shares of its stock, which is a total value of $306 million roughly. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2010. Backed by Accel, Omneon produces video server and storage infrastructure for companies that produce and distribute audio and video content for television and the web. The company has has impressive revenue numbers.

How to Build an App Empire: Can You Create The Next Instagram? Chad Mureta runs his seven-figure app business from his iPhone. (Photo: Jorge Quinteros). I first met Chad Mureta in Napa Valley in 2011. Two years prior, he had been in a horrible car accident. While in the hospital for a lengthy recovery, a friend gave him an article about the app market. “In just over two years, I’ve created and sold three app companies that have generated millions in revenue. After finishing rehab, Chad was able to leave his real estate company, where he’d been working 70 hours a week, to run his app business from his iPhone… in less than 5 hours per week. “Apps” are the new, new thing, thanks to major successes like Draw Something (bought by Zynga for $210 million) and Instagram (bought by Facebook for $1 billion), among others. In this post, Chad will discuss his step-by-step formula for rapid app development and sales optimization. Last but not least, don’t miss the competition at the end. Enter Chad Mureta I nearly couldn’t. The Opportunity for Appreneurs

Australian privacy groups target Google Street View The communications watchdog has threatened home insulation installers with fines of $2200 if they contact numbers listed on the Do Not Call Register. The register was launched in July 2006 under the Howard Government to allow consumers to remove themselves from telemarketer call lists, excluding political parties, charities and religious groups. Insulation installers garnered almost 400 complaints spurred by companies calling numbers listed on the registry – 43 per cent of the total received by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). Chairman Chris Chapman said the companies are disregarding consumer rights. “The ACMA is investigating this sudden spike in complaints about insulation installers, and will be taking action against those that have failed to comply,” Chapman said in a written statement. “If you don’t have procedures to comply with the register, then you should not be telemarketing – it’s that simple.”