MoreNotesToSelf

Technology, Finance, and Life

  • RSS Articles I’ve Read…

    • Bureaucratic fantasy of the day December 30, 2009
      Emanuel Derman wins the day with this: I had a fantasy in which the Fed and the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) switched roles. If a bank failed at 9 a.m. one morning and shut its doors, the TSA would announce that all banks henceforth begin their business day at 10 a.m. And, if a terrorist managed to get on board a plane between Stockholm and W […]
    • Did You Get A Magic Mouse This Holiday? Download MagicPrefs Immediately. December 30, 2009
      Back in November, I wrote up a review of the new Magic Mouse, noting that it was “Apple’s best mouse ever, but…” Essentially, the problem is a software one. Apple gave its new mouse multi-touch capabilities, but only takes advantage of a fraction of what it can do. (And yes, it’s fully multi-touch capable.) A new third-party program called MagicPrefs, enable […]
    • The ethics of walking away, cont. December 30, 2009
      Yesterday, I asked Megan McArdle how much of one’s life’s savings should be given to the bank before they take one’s house. She answers, gratifyingly, that in the particular case I was writing about, “obviously he should have walked away immediately.” Good, we’re in agreement on that. If you’re going to lose your house, best just to lose your house, rather t […]
    • Those evil synthetic CDOs December 30, 2009
      Yves Smith has another long broadside today against Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and any other bank which made money on synthetic CDOs. She links approvingly to yesterday’s NYT editorial, which concludes: Unsavory and dangerous practices like firms betting against their clients need to be thoroughly investigated. They won’t end until Congress adopts ambiti […]
    • Don’t trust those servicers December 30, 2009
      Michael Powell has real-world examples of why it’s really just better to walk away than it is to try to deal with evil and/or incompetent mortgage servicers: Aurora, which has a $116 billion loan portfolio, was a subsidiary of Lehman Brothers before that firm went bankrupt… Tom Vellucci, 54, is one of the four plaintiffs in the lawsuit, and a soldier in this […]
    • National Geographic reprints every issue to an external drive December 30, 2009
      National Geographic Magazine has been one of the most important publications ever printed. From the insightful articles to the brilliant photography, NatGeo has been the benchmark that other magazines compare themselves to. Now, you can own a copy of every single issue without having to build a new addition to your house to store it. What you get is a digita […]
    • The Apparent Cost Of Nexus One Freedom: $530. Why It Still Matters. December 30, 2009
      After our earlier post on the Nexus One, there was a lot of debate surrounding how much the thing would cost. It appears that this information is out there now. According to some leaked documents sent to Gizmodo, the Nexus One will be $529.99 unlocked and $179.99 if you sign up for a two-year T-Mobile contract (which runs $79.99 a month). This information is […]
    • Save Yourself the Reach by Installing an A/C Socket in Your Desk [Cord Management] December 29, 2009
      If you're an occasionally traveling laptop user, you know it's annoying to plug your system in, and back out, before and after every trip. Blogger Pat Hartl solved this annoying issue by installing a wall socket right in his desk. The project isn't very expensive or difficult, but it does involve cutting into the desk's surface. Make sure […]
    • TC50 DemoPit Company Row27 Launches iPhone App for University Sports Teams December 29, 2009
      Everybody has a damn iPhone app nowadays, and why should NCAA programs be any different? Row27 Studios, a design firm that has 58 NCAA clients including the Cal Bears, UNC Tar Heels and Florida Gators, has begun to fill that void. They’ve created an iPhone app that is perfect for University sports programs, and provides them with a way of reaching their fans […]
    • Why hasn't the Fed been targeting two or three percent inflation? December 29, 2009
      I've been thinking about this question more and I've come up with a speculative possibility.  Right now banks are earning their way back into profitability by playing the spread.  They're paying close to zero on deposits and earning fair sums on long-term loans.  Perhaps this term structure is sustainable because people are expecting little in […]
    • The World's Biggest Bond Fund Is Moving Aggressively Into Corporate Holdings, Away From Government-Insured Risk December 29, 2009
      As we pointed out two weeks ago, PIMCO has been preparing for 2010 by selling out its legacy "safe" MBS and Treasury holdings, and shifting largely to cash. Furthermore, the recent hirings of corporate and distressed asset managers indicates that the traditionally Treasury heavy asset manager is set to become the world's biggest fixed income h […]
    • The Rise and Fall of Raj Rajaratnam, the "King of Kings" in Silicon Valley [Crime] December 29, 2009
      The WSJ just published this excellent and colorful profile of Raj Rajaratnam, hedge fund manager being investigated for insider trading. They interviewed over 75 sources and looked over his handwritten notes to write the story. [WSJ]
    • Prism Makes $1 a Watt Unique Solar Hybrid of Holographic Thin-film Strips AND PV December 29, 2009
      Here is an innovation borne of the need to make solar modules that are more able to capture more sunlight in regions like New York (or Germany) that have relatively low level insolation. Normally that means that it takes more panels to make the same power, which means it simply costs more to make the same electricity in upstate New York than in the Southern […]
    • MyFoodapedia Serves up Nutritional Stats on Hundreds of Foods [Nutrition] December 29, 2009
      If you need a quick rundown on the nutritional content of a particular food, MyFoodapedia is a comprehensive food database brought to you by the USDA Center for Nutrition. Put the food you're searching for in the search box and MyFoodapedia will give you a list of potential matches to choose from, it will even show you recipes that commonly include the […]
    • When to Buy Apple Products [Apple] December 28, 2009
      If you're even thinking about buying an Apple product, wait until after you've read this guide to product cycles and refreshes. It's not always a good time to buy—and now might be an especially bad one for some. We've taken a good look at the handy Buyer's Guide over at MacRumors and given you some background and our own recommendati […]
    • Behind the Secret Service [Secret Service] December 28, 2009
      LIFE Magazine, as it is wont to do, assembled yet another of its utterly interesting photo essays. The topic this time? The Secret Service. A few of the more interesting photos showcase the agents performing their other important duty, that being what LIFE writes is "taking down counterfeiters, fiscal gangsters, and ID thieves." For this they shed […]
    • Holiday Flowchart: Inappropriate Times To Use Your Smartphone (Around Family) [Humor] December 26, 2009
      By now you're probably wise enough to know when not to whip out your smartphone around your significant other, but what about when you're bored at home for the holidays? Follow this flowchart to determine when you've crossed the line: Click the image to view a larger version. Based in New York City, Shane Snow is a graduate student in Digital […]
    • Giz Explains: The Best of 2009 [Giz Explains] December 25, 2009
      Is there a burning question you have about tech? Like what's the difference between $100 and $100,000 headphones? Or why every country has a different f@%#ing plug? We explained all that, and a whole lot more this year. Photography What Everybody Should Know About Cameras The essentials of digital camera knowledge, from all the different types of camera […]
    • Whence the Deficit? December 23, 2009
      A couple of weeks ago I did a a basic calculation to see why the medium-term national debt picture has gotten so much worse in the last two years. There’s no new data I created; it’s just the difference between the January 2008 and August 2009 Congressional Budget Office projections. Here’s the chart, once again: The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (h […]
    • Black-Market Breast Milk December 23, 2009
      Australian mothers pay up to $1,000 for it on the Internet due to the country's shortage of breast-milk banks, the Courier Mail reports.
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Run Your Own Stress Test

Posted by DK on June 11, 2009

This impressive spreadsheet by RortyBomb is making the rounds. It attempts to approximate the banking stress tests applied by the Treasury and allows you to make your own assumptions. He recognizes many of the obvious objections to his methodology, but it’s all very transparent, so I don’t see how you can fault him for anything. Man, that guy is smart AND funny. What the heck?

This entry was posted on June 11, 2009 at 9:14 pm and is filed under Finance. Tagged: . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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