Newmark's Door

"An Audacious Promise: The Moral Case for Capitalism"

James R. Otteson:

Even if we do not all get rich at the same rate, we all still get richer. To see the importance of this point, ask yourself: If you could solve only one social ill—either inequality or poverty—which would it be? Or suppose that the only way to address poverty would be to allow inequality: Would you allow it? This seems a no-brainer: poverty is a far larger factor in human misery than is inequality. If we could have steadily fewer people suffering from grinding poverty, is that not something to wish for, even if it comes with inequality? This appears to be the position in which we find ourselves. The only way we have discovered to raise people out of poverty is the institutions of capitalism, and those institutions allow inequality. Keeping people in poverty seems too high a price to pay in the service of equality. One is tempted to say that only a person who has never experienced poverty could think differently.

Three on Mitt Romney

"Meet the Real Mitt Romney".

"Mitt Romney, Community Organizer".

"The Men Who Love Mitt Romney".

"Lines from The Princess Bride that Double as Comments on Freshman Composition Papers"

“I do not suppose you could speed things up?” and eight others. 

Now we're talking!

L.A. retailer develops fried chicken and waffle ice cream.

So how is it? It's rich, buttery and slightly crunchy, with a distinctive tang of salt and maple syrup on the finish. If scientists invented a substance that could slap all the junk food-loving portions of your cerebellum at once, it might be something like this.

"Dude, this headline is so meta"

How "meta" transformed and became ubiquitous.

I ought to make a sweeping statement about the meta-ness of our current culture, where everything, it seems, can instantly become self-referential, self-conscious, and self-parodying. Observing the frenzied feedback loop of social networking and electronic communication can feel like looking through a dizzying hall of mirrors. Small wonder, then, that “#meta” has become a popular hashtag on Twitter—useful, for instance, when Alabama librarian Lauren Dodd tweeted, “Just saw a librarian shush other librarians at a library conference.” And then there is the “That’s So Meta” Tumblr blog, where one can find images like the “meta pug,” a pug dog dressed up by its owner in. . . a pug outfit.

"How One Response to a Reddit Query Became a Big-Budget Flick"

Cool story. You can get rich with this Internet thingy.

"Edward Van Halen Is Alive"

Nice to read: Mr. Van Halen is sober and having a fine time playing with his son (and, of course, his brother is still on drums). 

"Many hospitals, doctors offer cash discount for medical bills"

Little known. My parents' experience matches this discussion well. 

"One universe among many?"

"Research may open the way for a conceptual shift of Copernican proportions."

An astonishing concept has entered mainstream cosmological thought: physical reality could be hugely more extensive than the patch of space and time traditionally called “the universe.” We’ve learnt that we live in a solar system that is just one planetary system among billions, in one galaxy among billions. But there are signs that a further Copernican demotion confronts us. The entire panorama that astronomers can observe could be a tiny part of the aftermath of our Big Bang, which is itself just one bang among a potentially infinite ensemble. In this grander perspective, what we’ve traditionally called the laws of nature may be no more than parochial bylaws—local manifestations of “bedrock” laws that must be sought at a still deeper level.

Excellent advice

"Don’t give your children silly names just for the buzz".

Increasingly, names are being chosen not to suit the children, but as a vehicle for their parents’ self-expression – and it’s the children who will pay the price.

"Check Out The Amazing Contrasts In Shanghai Right Now"

Interesting photos.

(Link fixed now. Sorry.)

"8 Mind Games That Recruiters Play During Interviews"

I am soooo glad I don't have to go on job interviews.

"Monuments to Spanish Insolvency"

Short discussion of examples of horrifying waste. 

"Why Silicon Valley Isn't Creating Very Many Jobs"

An argument that the cause is excessive restrictions on development.

Moral: bad Liberal policies--even if "local"--affect us all. 

"I Went to Princeton, Bitch"

A problem you may not have known some of today's best and brightest have. 

(Evidently, it's not just Princeton.)

"Coffeeshoponomics"

Ten steps to fun and profit with a coffee shop. Here's one of them:

9. Serve booze.

“There are two types of coffee shops,” the saying goes. “The ones who sell alcohol, and the ones who lose money.” Most coffee is sold in the morning, so D.C. shops nearly always serve at least some beer and wine, which has much higher profit margins and lets them extend their hours into the evening—if they can put up with the hassle of getting a liquor license. . . . 

Link via my older daughter.

"The Lousy Anti-Virus Market Is Proof The Deregulation Doesn't Work"

Even leaving aside the title--which begs the question of how, exactly, regulation would have prevented the author's problem but which the author probably didn't write--this is one of the dopiest market failure arguments I have ever seen. (And, trust me, I've seen a lot.)

The author "had to take my computer in to an expert" because it was infected with malware despite his installation of anti-virus and anti-malware programs recommended "just a few years ago" by PC magazine and CNET users and others. He fears "that in a couple of years, I should go through the process of investigating anti-virus and anti-malware software again" and concludes:

. . . the outcome of this market is not one most of us would consider efficient. 

And yet, the market seems to be characterized by most of the factors that a libertarian or conservative economist look for to produce an optimal outcome. It is relatively easy and inexpensive to enter and exit the market for anti-bad things software, the market is literally global (you can buy software made anywhere and download it from your desk in minutes), the cost of such products is low (many are given away free), there's a heck of a lot of information out there, and there's virtually no government involvement in the process. 

So why are the outcomes of this market so poor?

Three points:

1. If the author buys a new car and finds he has to change the oil a couple of times a year is the auto market inefficient?

2. But wait . . . how did the malware get into his computer in the first place? A better analogy is this: if the author drives his car recklessly--too fast--down a dimly lit street and hits a pedestrian, is the auto market inefficient?

3. From what I understand, typewriters and HP calculators and the US mail are not subject to malware. The author can switch anytime he wants. 

I recommend to the author readings on the "Nirvana Fallacy". Original here; short summary here. 

Will the last person leaving Detroit please turn out the lights?

Oops, never mind. They already are. 

Here are a few pictures of the Motor City in better days. 

"UNC system health insurance costs to rise for students"

Hey kids, how's that hope and change a lot of you voted for working out?

On top of rising tuition and fees, those UNC system students who buy the university-sponsored health insurance plan will face steep premium increases in the next academic year.

The cost of health insurance will climb from a range of $61 to $77 monthly to a range of $118 to $133 monthly, according to a memo sent from UNC President Tom Ross to the UNC Board of Governors. On an annual basis, most students will pay about $500 to $700 more in 2012-13, depending on the campus. . . . 

[UNC vice president for academic and student affairs Bruce] Mallette said the insurance increases are due to the health care usage of UNC system students during the past couple of years, plus federal regulations on preventive care and pharmacy services issued in March. The process is complicated, he said, by the new provisions of the Affordable Care Act.

More teenagers like this, please

"Fifteen-Year-Old Creates Non-Invasive Pancreatic Cancer Detection Tool".

Jack Andraka, 15, of Crownsville, Md. was awarded first place for his new method to detect pancreatic cancer at this year's Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, a program of Society for Science & the Public. Based on diabetic test paper, Jack created a simple dip-stick sensor to test blood or urine to determine whether or not a patient has early-stage pancreatic cancer. His study resulted in over 90 percent accuracy and showed his patent-pending sensor to be 28 times faster, 28 times less expensive and over 100 times more sensitive than current tests. Jack received the Gordon E. Moore Award, named in honor of Intel co-founder and retired chairman and CEO of $75,000.

And this one, too: "Schoolboy 'genius' solves puzzles posed by Sir Isaac Newton that have baffled mathematicians for 350 years".

Four on losing weight: three discouraging, one encouraging

Discouraging;

"Why dieting makes you FAT: Research shows trying to lose weight alters your brain and hormones so you're doomed to pile it on again".

"The Real Cause Of Obesity Is Beyond The Reach Of Weight Loss Drugs".

Related: this article that the New York Times amazingly ran. 

Encouraging:

"Eating Well Without the Flavor of Shame". It makes a lot of sense: try to get as much flavor per calorie as you can.

Four on global warming

Or "climate change" or whatever they're calling it now.

"RDU’s paint by numbers temperature and climate monitoring".

"Climate Science Humor: What if Your Model Predicts Wrongly".

"What Nordhaus gets wrong about climate change".

"How I Learned Not to Deny Climate Change".

"The Best Of Prom 2012"

Too good.

"Experts Share How To Get Through Peak Rental Season In NYC Alive"

I've never rented in NYC and it's been a long time since I rented anywhere, but this article looks like it might be helpful to those who do. 

"The Mysterious Case of the Vanishing Genius"

The strange, sad story of Margie Profet.

Evolution's It Girl: In 1993, Margie Profet received a MacArthur "Genius" grant tor her work in Evolutionary Biology. She was 34. 

Margie Profet was always a study in sharp contradictions.  A maverick thinker remembered for her innocent demeanor, she was a woman who paired running shorts with heavy sweaters year-round, and had a professional pedigree as eccentric as her clothing choices: Profet had multiple academic degrees but no true perch in academe. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Profet published original theories about female reproduction that pushed the boundaries of evolutionary biology, forcing an entire field to take note. Indeed, back then it was hard not to notice Margie Profet, a vibrant young woman who made a “forever impression” on grade school chums and Harvard Ph.D.s alike. Today, the most salient fact about Profet is her absence. Neither friends, former advisers, publishers, nor ex-lovers has any idea what happened to her or where she is today. Sometime between 2002 and 2005, Profet, who was then in her mid-40s, vanished without a trace.

"What’s Wrong With the Coffee Mortality Study? You Tell Us"

Commenters look for an omitted variable. 

"25 Tostitos Recipes That Are Delicious For The Party"

Hmmm . . . Tostitos!