Quote
February 27, 2011
"The City, a bigger financial centre than Paris, is keen on French workers, especially traders—products of an educational system that turns out mathematics whizzes in droves."

— The French community in London: Paris-on-Thames | The Economist

Quote
February 18, 2011
"

The statement underscored concerns in some quarters that Mr. Liu cut corners in his all-out push to extend the rail system and to keep the project on schedule and within its budget. No accidents have been reported on the high-speed rail network, but reports suggest that construction quality may at times have been shoddy.

A person with ties to the ministry said that the concrete bases for the system’s tracks were so cheaply made, with inadequate use of chemical hardening agents, that trains would be unable to maintain their current speeds of about 217 miles per hour for more than a few years. In as little as five years, lower speeds, possibly below about 186 miles per hour, could be required as the rails become less straight, the expert said.

"

— China Rail Chief’s Firing Hints at Deeper Problems - NYTimes.com

Link
February 08, 2011
Book Chat: A Conversation With Tobias Moskowitz - NYTimes.com

Key Snippet:

“As you said, fan attendance is actually far more sensitive to beer prices at Wrigley than it is to wins and losses (the opposite is true of the White Sox by the way).

As a result of fans’ feast-or-famine interest in the Cubs, the team has little incentive to win. When the owners are not threatened by fan boycott or weak ticket sales, what reason do they have to go that extra mile to gain the sought-after free agent, to hire the top manager, to design state-of-the-art facilities and training, all of which may be required to win a championship? If you are offered a 10 percent bonus if you put in 10 percent more hours, would you do it? Maybe. Would you put in 10 percent more hours for a 1 percent bonus? Less likely. The “stickiness” of attendance does not provide ownership with much incentive to produce a winner. And winning a championship is no easy feat in professional sports, where competition is fierce. This attitude certainly trickles down through the organization. The players and coaches feel it. When you take all of this into account, it suddenly isn’t so surprising that the Cubs haven’t won in over a century.”

Quote
January 06, 2011
"I am not a politician, just a teacher,” she said, “I want my pupils to live in a civilized country. I don’t want them turning into people without honor and conscience."

— A Russian woman stands, alone, for her rights

Link
January 06, 2011
What does one TRILLION dollars look like?

Very cool.

Link
December 15, 2010
Mapping America — Census Bureau 2005-9 American Community Survey - NYTimes.com

Amazing.

Quote
December 14, 2010
"In Washington, the view is that the banks are to be regulated, and my view is that Washington and the regulators are there to serve the banks."

— Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL), the incoming chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, in an interview Wednesday. (via officialssay)

Link
October 22, 2010
Geithner Urges G-20 Set Limits on Trade Imbalances - NYTimes.com

Highlights:

  • “Mr. Geithner called for the biggest industrialized economies to keep their current-account balance — whether a surplus or a deficit — below 4 percent of gross domestic product.”
  • “Officials from Britain, Canada and Australia quickly expressed support for the idea, but Germany expressed resistance and Japan seemed ambivalent. China, whose currency battle with the United States has threatened to derail the process of global economic cooperation, had not formally weighed in.”
  • “The United States, Canada and Britain have trade deficits, while China, Germany and Japan have surpluses. China’s current-account surplus is currently 4.7 percent, and the United States’s deficit is 3.2 percent. Of the G-20 countries, Germany (6.1 percent) and Russia (4.7 percent) also have sizable surpluses.”
  • “The proposal in essence tries to set a numerical target to achieve the broad but vague mantra of “strong, sustainable and balanced growth,” to which the G-20 countries agreed in September 2009 in their meeting in Pittsburgh.”
Link
October 13, 2010
BBC News - Chile miners: Lift to the surface

Great infographic on the rescue mission for miners in Chi!-Chi!-Chi!, Le!-Le!-Le!.        

Link
September 17, 2010
Another headache for Philippine Airlines: rival Cebu plans $730m IPO | beyondbrics | FT.com