The weekend is a great time to catch up on some long form items that we passed up on during the week. Thanks for checking in.
Investing
Markets feel like an unwinnable game at the moment. (Reformed Broker)
Questions for investors at the year’s halfway mark. (Big Picture)
A dozen things learned about investing. (25iq)
Gold was a horrible investment from 1500-1965. (The Atlantic)
Why do investors still put so much weight on Sharpe Ratios? (the research puzzle)
Stocks that investors search for together, move together. (Turnkey Analyst)
Has Charles Schwab ($SCHW) cracked the code for the use of ETFs in 401(k) plans? (IndexUniverse)
Research
A white paper on the case for the use of index funds vs. active funds in asset allocatino. (Rick Ferri)
How not to invest in dividend-paying stocks. (Forward Investing via @mebfaber)
Economy
A history of financial crises: 1620-1920. (New York Fed)
How is that the ratings agencies survived the financial crisis largely intact? (Rolling Stone)
Four trends that are going to boost the US economy going forward. (Economix)
An interview with Daniel Kahneman author of Thinking Fast and Slow. (Motley Fool)
Business
How to succeed in the legal marijuana business. (NYTimes)
Can a “bossless” company really work? (New York)
Startups
How entrepreneurship has become “gradually de-risked” over time. (Richard Price)
Should entrepreneurs, i.e. Snapchat, cash out part of their stakes early? (Dan Primack contra Felix Salmon also Hendry Blodget)
Technology
Why does everyone, except Google ($GOOG), want to build an RSS reader? (GigaOM)
Another example of how the open web is dying: disappearing links. (Felix Salmon)
Health
On the science behind the “minimalist workout” trend. (Well)
Lyme disease is a surprisingly controversial topic in medicine. (New Yorker via @longreads)
Is this a possible treatment for stroke? (Scientific American)
Is the ‘quantified self’ movement just a preview of the future of healthcare? (Newsweek)
Science
The physics behind traffic jams. (Smart Motorist via @longreads)
What is the best predictor of unhappiness? (Priceonomics via @frankvoisin)
We were not alone. A third humanoid species coexisted with humans and Neanderthals. (National Geographic via @digg)
Society
Is wine bullsh*t? If so aren’t all foods? (Priceonomics)
The job of “extreme weather architect” is now a thing. (Quartz)
Portugal’s birth rate is plummeting. (Washington Post also Quartz)
Entertainment
What makes for good serialized television? (The American Reader via @longreads)
An oral history of the greatest Wall Street movie ever: Trading Places. (Business Insider)
What it is like to be Huey Lewis these days. (Grantland)
Why does this action figure still stink after 30 years? (Fast Company via @timharford)
Books
Is it time for an update to Graham and Dodd’s Security Analysis? A look at Martin Whitman and Fernando Diz’s Modern Security Analysis: Understanding Wall Street Fundamentals. (Minyanville)
A review of Anita Raghavan’s The Billionaire’s Apprentice: The Rise of The Indian-American Elite and The Fall of The Galleon Hedge Fund. (NYTimes)
Using money to buy happiness: a discussion with Michael Norton co-author of Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending. (Scientific American)
An excerpt from David Lefer’s The Founding Conservatives: How a Group of Unsung Heroes Saved the American Revolution. (Pando Daily)
Mixed media
How successful people talk. (Pando Daily)
How to put on a “kick ass” conference. (Medium)
Some insight into how Barry Ritholtz thinks. (Pieria, Financial Advisor)
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