Thinking & Writing: CIA’s Guide to Cognitive Science

Thinking & Writing: CIA’s Guide to Cognitive Science

by VW StaffMay 21, 2014, 9:03 pm

This CIA Monograph (re-released in 2010 by Robert Sinclair) presents “the implications of growing knowledge in the cognitive sciences for the way the intelligence business is conducted – in how we perform analysis, how we present our findings, and even its meaning for our hiring and training practices”. In other words, this paper is about, “thinking and writing [and] the complex mental patterns out of which writing comes, their strengths and limitations, and the challenges they create, not just for writers but for managers”. Via simoleonsense.com Read more of this post

Charlie Munger’s Favorite Human Misjudgment

Charlie Munger’s Favorite Human Misjudgment

May 21, 2014, 3:15 pm

Notes on Charlie Munger’s favorite human misjudgment by Whitney Tilson Via Value Investing World

Charlie Munger’s Opening Remarks

I feel a duty in these later years to talk a little bit because so many of you have come so far and therefore I’m going to talk a little about current change conditions in corporate governance, the investment world, how we’re adapting at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) (NYSE:BRK.B) and WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC), and how you might face these challenges. Read more of this post

Joseph Finder Explores the ‘Alien Worlds’ of Business and Drugs; Joseph Finder’s latest novel ‘Suspicion’ juxtaposes the world of posh private schools with drug cartels

Joseph Finder Explores the ‘Alien Worlds’ of Business and Drugs

Joseph Finder’s latest novel ‘Suspicion’ juxtaposes the world of posh private schools with drug cartels

STEVE DOUGHERTY

May 21, 2014 2:24 p.m. ET

To write his thrillers, author Joseph Finder usually does a lot of research. Best known for suspense novels set in the business world, he’s never worked for a large company, but sees himself as “an anthropologist exploring an alien world.” Read more of this post

Child of Light a shining example of indie innovation

Child of Light a shining example of indie innovation

May 11, 2014

Calum Wilson Austin

Chances are, if you take a look at any bricks-and-mortar video game store, you’re going to find a lot of death, destruction and explosions. So many explosions they soon become meaningless. On the other hand, online game distribution platforms such as Steamare inundated with simpler – but no less effective – indie experiences usually created on a budget of paint fumes and dreams. The indie development scene is generally limited to a certain type of game, often side-scrollers, due to their financial situation. It’s strange that, until recently, large publishers have not taken advantage of the relatively smaller budgets, (compared to most AAA top releases)and potentially larger profit margins, these games afford. Read more of this post

Read, Kids, Read: It’s not a chore. It’s a path to fulfillment that fewer are traveling

Read, Kids, Read

MAY 12, 2014

Frank Bruni

As an uncle I’m inconsistent about too many things.

Birthdays, for example. My nephew Mark had one on Sunday, and I didn’t remember — and send a text — until 10 p.m., by which point he was asleep. Read more of this post

The Problem With Confidence: The best advice for self-confidence is not “believe in yourself” but rather “look at what you’ve done in the world.”

The Problem With Confidence

MAY 12, 2014

David Brooks

The current issue of The Atlantic carries a fascinating summary of “The Confidence Code” by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman. The essay runs through the evidence suggesting that women tend to have too little self-confidence. When asked how well they did on tests, women tend to estimate that they got fewer answers correct than they actually did. In one British study, a business school professor asked students how much they would deserve to earn five years after graduation. The women’s estimates were 20 percent lower than the men’s. Read more of this post

Scientists Warn of Rising Oceans From Polar Melt

Scientists Warn of Rising Oceans From Polar Melt

By JUSTIN GILLIS and KENNETH CHANGMAY 12, 2014

A large section of the mighty West Antarctica ice sheet has begun falling apart and its continued melting now appears to be unstoppable, two groups of scientists reported on Monday. If the findings hold up, they suggest that the melting could destabilize neighboring parts of the ice sheet and a rise in sea level of 10 feet or more may be unavoidable in coming centuries. Read more of this post

The Trust Agenda: CEOs are increasingly seeking “good growth,” aligned with business ethics and sustainability

Published: May 5, 2014 / Summer 2014 / Issue 75

The Trust Agenda

CEOs are increasingly seeking “good growth,” aligned with business ethics and sustainability.

by Dennis Nally

As the global economic recovery gathers momentum, optimism among CEOs is increasing. The postrecession period challenged many companies, and their chief executives focused their attention on survival. But they are now switching into growth mode. This drive for growth is shaped by fundamental external forces that are transforming business and society. Read more of this post

Michael Gerson: Americans’ aversion to science carries a high price

Michael Gerson: Americans’ aversion to science carries a high price

By Michael Gerson, Tuesday, May 13, 7:45 AM

Americans have something of a science problem. They swallow, for example, about $28 billion worth of vitamins each year, even though the Annals of Internal Medicine recently concluded that “[m]ost supplements do not prevent chronic disease or death, their use is not justified, and they should be avoided.” Americans often fear swallowing genetically modified plants (and Vermont recently required labeling of food containing genetically modified organisms, known as GMOs), though GMOs have “been consumed by hundreds of millions of people across the world for more than 15 years, with no reported ill effects,” according to theJournal of the Royal Society of Medicine. Read more of this post

2014 Money Masters: Profiting in a Slow-Growth Economy

MAY 08, 2014

2014 Money Masters: Profiting in a Slow-Growth Economy

The winners of our fifth annual U.S. Investment Management Awards have an uncanny ability to make money regardless of the strength of the economy. Read more of this post

Crony Capitalism and the Oracle of Omaha

Crony Capitalism and the Oracle of Omaha

08 MAY 2014 – VITALIY KATSENELSON

I am back from the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, and my brain is still spinning from the dozens of meetings and stimulating conversations. In a series of articles over the next few weeks, I’ll try to download the thoughts that were triggered by this trip, a lot of them unrelated to the main event — the Warren Buffett & Charlie Munger show — but rather by-products of the conversations I had. Read more of this post

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting ‘Full Notes’

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting ‘Full Notes’

by VW StaffMay 10, 2014, 4:36 pm

Notes from Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) (NYSE:BRK.B)’s annual meeting 2014. We have previously covered more from the annual meeting, Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting extensive notes can be found here. Read more of this post

Tilson Angry At NY Times For Calling Buffett ‘Ordinary’; Confirms ATHN Short

Tilson Angry At NY Times For Calling Buffett ‘Ordinary’; Confirms ATHN Short

by Jacob WolinskyMay 12, 2014, 2:03 pm

The following is from an email which Whitney Tilson sent to ValueWalk. He attacks the NY Times for stating that Buffett was ordinary. He also confirms that he is short ATHN and briefly mentions his FNMA long, which we first reported. Read more of this post

Mastering the Soft Skills: How to “bend” time, keep the boss happy, say “no” to budget requests (gently) – and more

May 12, 2014

Mastering the Soft Skills

How to “bend” time, keep the boss happy, say “no” to budget requests (gently) — and more.

CFO Staff

Some years ago, CFO published a story on the “essential skills” that a finance chief needs to be effective — in particular, the skills that go beyond core corporate finance and accounting training. Little has changed since 2007, when the article first appeared. The abilities the story describes are rarely taught in business school or in a corporate setting. In the eyes of veteran CFOs, though, they are just as critical as the ability to forecast earnings, value an acquisition or weigh an investment opportunity. Read more of this post