A note to all of our readers. Abnormal Returns will be on hiatus until Feb. 20th. Please feel free to peruse our archives in the interim. Now on to the linkfest.

All About Alpha asks, “…what is the appropriate hurdle rate for a hedge fund in an alternative beta world?”

FT Alphaville on how “long-only active management” is a dying breed in a world of cheap beta and hedge funds.

Alistair MacDonald and Margot Patrick in the Wall Street Journal on hopes that economic volatility will ignite global macro fund returns.

Has the term “hedge fund” lost all of its meaning? (via FT Alphaville)

Justin Lahart in the Wall Street Journal on the drop in corporate profit margins.

The cost of credit default insurance on subprime mortgage securities has soared. (via MarketBeat)

Barry Ritholtz at the Big Picture on how he approaches the market from “several distinct perspectives.”

Brett Steenbarger at TraderFeed on what relative (and absolute) volatility tell us about the market at the moment.

James Picerno at the Capital Spectator on the importance of diversification and rebalancing in light of the capital markets’ uniformity of performance.

Michael Kahn at Barrons.com thinks the “underpinnings on the market remain strong…”

DealBook on whether private equity be interested in acquiring an independent Chrysler, or is it really worth less than nothing?

David Andrew Taylor at dismally.com makes the case for a pickup in currency volatility.

James Hamilton at Econbrowser on the market coming around to Bernanke’s way of thinking on the economy.

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