This is an abbreviated linkfest. Be sure to check out The Reformed Broker for more links from this morning. 

Quote of the day

Susan Pinker author of The Village Effect, “In a short evolutionary time we have changed from group-living primates skilled at reading each other’s every gesture and intention, to a solitary species, each one of us preoccupied with our own screen..”  (FT)

Markets

By this measure investor sentiment has not been this bullish since Feb. 1987.  (Ryan Detrick)

Facebook’s ($FB) run since its messy IPO is breathtaking.  (Stefan Cheplick)

Strategy

“Passive investing” is not passive.  (Pragmatic Capitalism)

Why you need to stretch yourself out of your comfort zone.  (TraderFeed)

Companies

Where have all the shoppers gone?  (Fortune)

Lego is now the world’s biggest toy company.  (Quartz)

Finance

The stock market is not broken.  (Fortune)

Now bond traders have a dark pool to muck about in.  (WSJ)

Global

Why are German Bund yields so darn low?  (FT)

Europe’s Zappo’s is going public.  (WSJ)

Housing

An examination of the boom in multi-family housing.  (Enterprising Investor)

The housing stock in the US is not built for a rapidly aging population.  (Wonkblog)

Economy

The labor economy, per ADP, is looking up.  (Capital Spectator)

Three common and (big) misconceptions about the American economy.  (Morgan Housel)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

What you might have missed in our Wednesday linkfest.  (Abnormal Returns)

Mixed media

No online service is 100% safe.  (Daring Fireball)

What universities do high school seniors prefer?  (The Upshot)

A review of John Brook’s Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street.  (Aleph Blog)

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