Here’s How John Paulson Made $5 Billion Last Year

The secret to the spectacular returns  Paulson  and his employees  reported for 2010 is due to their keeping  much of their  personal money- $14.9 billion or 42% of the total assets under management($35 billion)– in the funds. That’s called putting your money to work alongside your clients. That $14.9 billion commitment is revealed in Paulson’s yearend letter to investors.

http://blogs.forbes.com/robertlenzner/2011/01/29/heres-how-john-paulson-made-5-billion-last-year/

Central Heating May Be Making Us Fat

Americans like to crank up the heat in the winter — and some scientists think it’s making us fat. Turn down the thermostat, they say, and you might lose a few pounds.
The link between ambient temperature and weight is not completely far-fetched. When we’re exposed to extreme cold, we shiver, an involuntary reaction that makes our skeletal muscles contract to generate heat, burning extra calories in the process.
And even in mildly cold conditions, like in a chilly room with the thermostat turned down to the lower 60s, people generate extra heat without shivering. The process, called non-shivering thermogenesis, may involve a substance called brown fat that adults carry in certain areas, like the upper back and side of the neck. Unlike regular fat, which stores excess energy and calories, brown fat acts like an internal furnace that consumes lots of calories, but it has to be activated first — and cold temperatures do that.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/26/central-heating-may-be-making-us-fat/

When $6 Million a Year Isn’t Enough

By Robert Frank

Nothing shines a light on the personal finances of the wealthy quite like divorce. Consider the acrimonious de-merger of billionaire value-fund manager Charles Brandes and Linda Brandes.
The couple divorced in 2005, after she accused him of keeping a “lady in waiting” and he accused her of losing interest in him. According to a detailed account of the divorce by Peter Rowe in the The San Diego Union-Tribune, the couple lived extra-large both before and after their split.
Consider:
* The couple owned six homes–including a $4 million home in Rancho Santa Fe and a penthouse in Manhattan–and had two more under construction. The total value of the homes was more than $40 million.
* At one home, Ms. Brandes began a landscape renovation that cost $1,365,130, not including tile work.
* Mr. Brandes owned 10 Ferraris (valued at more than $4.4 million) and an “extremely long driveway” to race sports cars, dirt bikes and ATVs.
* She had gambling bills of as much as $30,000 a month.
* Mr. Brandes paid Elton John somewhere from $1 million to $1.5 million to perform at his wedding when he remarried in 2006. He paid Christina Aguilera $1 million to perform at a Halloween party.

http://blogs.wsj.com/wealth/2011/01/25/when-6-million-a-year-isnt-enough/

What If Your BlackBerry Ran Android

Whoa, whoa, whoa. This latest BlackBerry rumor comes courtesy of BGR.com and it sounds so crazy that it just… might… work.
In the interest of not overly nerding up the story, the basic gist is that the upcoming BlackBerry PlayBook tablet—which we learned about back in September of last year—runs a new (for BlackBerry) operating system called QNX. Moving forward, BlackBerry phones will eventually run the same QNX operating system, too.
In the interest of making QNX backwards-compatible with applications built for current-generation and older BlackBerry phones, the new operating system will contain what's known as a "virtual machine." It's basically software capable of running older applications as though they're running on different hardware—in this case, older BlackBerry handsets.
Well apparently one of the virtual machines, or VMs, that BlackBerry's considering building into its QNX operating system is known as Dalvik. And wouldn't you know it, Dalvik is the same virtual machine used by the Android operating system. According to BGR.com:

"Here is the big news: we have been told RIM is very much considering the Dalvik virtual machine, and we ultimately expect the company to chose Dalvik. If that sounds familiar to you, it's because it's the same VM that the Android OS uses, and it would allow RIM's PlayBook and other QNX devices to run just about any application built for the Android platform.

There are various approaches to this situation — one where RIM uses the open source Dalvik VM and does not involve Google, and another (incredible) scenario where RIM and Google might reach an agreement (basically 'certify' the device/platform) that would provide official support to Android apps on RIM's QNX-based OS, and would feature the Android Market, Google's Gmail, Maps, and other apps."

This sounds too simple and too good to be true, but imagine the implications.

Read more: http://techland.time.com/2011/01/26/what-if-your-blackberry-ran-android-apps-it-might-happen/#ixzz1CDDjMsmA

The Fall of Wintel and the Rise of Armdroid

by James Allworth  |
Many people are complaining that this year's Consumer Electronics Show was a bore, but blogger Horace Dediu has a much more interesting spin on it.

This year's show, Dediu argues, marks the end of the PC-era: it's finally being disrupted. The basic concept of disruption is that a low-end offering (in this case, tablets) emerges to displace existing solution (PCs). The reason this takes place is that the current solution has improved to such an extent that it provides more performance than a majority of users able to usefully employ.

This means that the iPad and its many clones were not really the main story of the show. The main story — which almost nobody covered — was that this year's CES marks the beginning of the end for Microsoft and Intel.
This transition has been a long time coming in the PC industry. Ironically enough, both of these two big players have seen the writing on the wall for almost a decade. But as is so often the case, incumbents find it immensely hard to disrupt themselves.

 http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/01/the_fall_of_wintel_and_the_ris.html

Oil is the new gold

For half a decade investors’ love affair with gold has been steadfast. The precious metal caught the tailwind of the commodities boom in the mid-2000s and acted as a hideout during the financial crisis. Recently, it has lured investors as an inflation hedge, reaching a record above US$1,400.
But with the mighty U.S. economy revving up, there’s a new girl in town. As gold’s rally falters, oil is beginning to catch the eye of investors again, driving the price toward US$100 a barrel and providing a potential new driver for a stock market rally that is looking a little faded.
“As the world seemed to be falling apart, investors headed to traditional safe havens and gold went up,” said John Stephenson, a portfolio manager at First Asset Investment Management in Toronto. “Now, the world still isn’t a perfect place, but it’s improving and there’s better growth and investors are starting to look at assets that have lagged, oil especially.”
Like all commodities, oil is an investment that is largely dependent on the state of the global economy. But where gold and other precious metals such as silver benefit from economic weakness and uncertainty, oil thrives best when economic conditions are stable and growing.
Both these attributes, stability and growth, have been in short supply since the financial crisis ended in late 2008, particularly in the developed world, where the United States and Europe have struggled to sustain their recoveries.
With two of its major markets underperforming, oil has depended almost entirely on emerging markets to fan its demand. While that has been far from negative for oil, which fell 48 cents to US$89.11 at Friday’s close, it has prevented it from gaining any sustained momentum with investors.
“If you look at oil it has almost entirely been a China story,” Mr. Stephenson said. “But now the U.S. economy is improving, Europe is improving and it’s looking more like a global growth story and a story of increasing fundamentals than it has in a long while.”
While gold’s surge sparked a rush into gold ETFs and bullion funds by retail and institutional investors alike over the past few years, oil prices are likely to be a primary driver on commodity markets this year. Barclay’s Capital Markets expects the value of commodity funds to reach almost half a trillion dollars by the end of 2011, up from a record US$360-billion in 2010.
Over the last month or so, Mr. Stephenson has reduced his exposure to gold and has started to increase his weighting in oil with a focus on producers as well as oil services companies.

Read more: http://www.financialpost.com/news/energy/gold/4147058/story.html#ixzz1BxQjvmwr

NHL Star Accused of Punching Woman in Nightclub

Toronto Maple Leafs all-star Mike Komisarek is on thin ice with the LAPD -- after the hockey player allegedly punched a woman in the face at an L.A. nightclub earlier this month ... TMZ has learned.



Law enforcement sources tell us ... the 28-year-old defensive powerhouse was named in a police report filed by a woman who claims the whole thing went down after Komisarek decided to lift her up in the air at a Hollywood nightclub.

We're told the woman claims she demanded Komisarek put her down -- but he refused -- so she slapped him in the face.

The woman claims Komisarek immediately set her down ... and then punched her in the face, causing her to bleed. 

The woman claims Komisarek left the club ... so she went to the cops. We're told investigators are hoping to speak with the NHL star as soon as they get the chance.

So far, no comment from Komisarek's camp.

Study Points to Windfall for Goldman Partners

Goldman Sachs executives have long been among the most richly paid on Wall Street in the best of times. They are now poised to reap a windfall that was sown in the dark days of the financial crisis in 2008.
Nearly 36 million stock options were granted to employees in December 2008 — 10 times the amount issued the previous year — when the stock was trading at $78.78. Since those uncertain days, Goldman’s business has roared back and its share price has more than doubled, closing on Tuesday at nearly $175.
The options grant is among the many details that emerge from a study of regulatory filings and internal partnership documents by The New York Times and Footnoted.com, a division of Morningstar that scrutinizes corporate disclosures. These filings provide a much fuller picture of both Goldman’s compensation and its elite partnership of 475 people who run the firm.
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/study-points-to-windfall-for-goldman-partners/?src=dlbksb

Google Voice Is About To Take Off

We’ve been huge fans of Google Voice for quite a while now — it makes screening calls and managing multiple phones a breeze — but there’s always been a huge thorn in its side: it didn’t allow people to port their existing phone numbers over. In other words, in order to take advantage of all of Google Voice’s benefits, you’d have to get a new phone number. Now, after years of waiting, that’s finally changing: Google has quietly enabled number porting for Google Voice.
Update: Google tells us that this is currently just a test available to some users and is not rolling out to everyone yet. However, it seems likely that a wide scale launch is coming soon.
Here’s a statement from Google:

“We’re continually testing new features to enhance the user experience. For a limited amount of time, we’re making the Google Voice number porting process available to users. We don’t have any additional details to share at this time, but plan to offer this feature to all users in the near future.”

The feature was first noticed by Engadget, and I’m seeing it in my Google Voice account as well. The process appears to be fairly straightforward (and yet terrifying at the same time): tell Google your existing cell phone number, agree to some strongly worded warnings, pay $20, and you should be in business.

http://techcrunch.com/2011/01/19/google-voice-is-about-to-take-off-number-porting-enabled-for-20/

Apple Earnings Set New Record: Revenue Hits $26 BILLION

A day after Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced he would be taking a medical leave of absence, Apple posted stunning results for the first quarter of 2011.
Apple's revenue and profits both set new records for the company. Revenue reached $26.74 billion for the quarter that ended December 25, 2010 (a 71% increase over last year), and net quarterly profit hit a high of $6 billion.
Expected earnings help put the magnitude of those numbers in perspective: TechCrunch notes, "Well, coming off its best quarter ever in terms of revenue ($20.34 billion in Q4), Apple was projecting $23 billion in revenue for the quarter. The Street, meanwhile, recognizing that Apple always lowballs these numbers, thought revenue would be more like $24.38 billion. The actual number? $26.74 billion."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/18/apple-earnings-q1-2011_n_810623.html

Where is the green revolution?

DETROIT • You have to wonder where this green revolution is. It has to be out there somewhere. After all, the media is reporting it’s burgeoning, the tree huggers are proselytizing an uprising and the automakers are marketing environmentalism with an incredible fervour. But actually finding said revolution? That’s proving elusive.
The most recent U.S. automobile sales number are in and, in top place among all light vehicles, the best-seller is — it’s no surprise as it’s still the perennial leader — Ford’s F-Series. What you might find surprising is that sales of the big pickup grew by a whopping 27.7% last year. Ditto for Chevy’s Silverado almost-as-whopping 16.9% uptick. Toyota’s environment-loving Prius? Well, it’s stuck way down in 15th spot and sales increased but a paltry 0.9 % over a dismal 2009.

Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/cars/Where+green+revolution/4088355/story.html#ixzz1BEPGQpQS

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

Berlusconi Faces Inquiry in Prostitution Case

 ROME — Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi faces investigation in a prostitution case involving an under-age nightclub dancer, prosecutors announced Friday, a day after Italy’s highest court weakened a law that had shielded him from prosecution while in office.

The office of the Milan prosecutor, Edmondo Bruti Liberati, asserted in a statement that Mr. Berlusconi had illegally compensated the minor for sexual relations during encounters at the prime minister’s private villa outside Milan. 

 
http://nyti.ms/hPjZEY

The Irrational Awe of China

By DAVID LEONHARDT

With China’s President, Hu Jintao, coming to the United States next week, Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center reports:
Almost half (47%) of Americans say China is the world’s leading economic power, while just 31% name the U.S.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/the-irrational-awe-of-china/?src=busln

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior

By AMY CHUA

A lot of people wonder how Chinese parents raise such stereotypically successful kids. They wonder what these parents do to produce so many math whizzes and music prodigies, what it's like inside the family, and whether they could do it too. Well, I can tell them, because I've done it. Here are some things my daughters, Sophia and Louisa, were never allowed to do:


• attend a sleepover
• have a playdate
• be in a school play
• complain about not being in a school play
• watch TV or play computer games
• choose their own extracurricular activities
• get any grade less than an A
• not be the No. 1 student in every subject except gym and drama
• play any instrument other than the piano or violin
• not play the piano or violin.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704111504576059713528698754.html?KEYWORDS=AMY+CHUA