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Saturday, December 28, 2013

Glide Path to Retirement

From a financial, longevity demographics and keeping mentally fit standpoint, early retirement looks like a worse and worse idea. In fact, I think most people will need to work past even the current "full" retirement age of 65. What we really need is more labor-market flexibility, where people slowly ramp down. Maybe work 32 hours a week for 3-4 years after 65, then 25, 20, 15 and maybe out around 75-80.

Big(ger) Data for Hiring: Beyond Experience and Degrees

This NPR report on data-based hiring practices made a couple of important points. The correlation of a college degree in computer science, to job success, was nil. I have no doubt that applies to other fields as well. Also, the correlation between experience and success is not at all obvious. Certain kinds of experience transfers very well, but very specific experience is much less critical than you would think. I.e., for entry-to-mid-level positions, hire for aptitude, not  experience.  

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Is there a word for terms that are created for one thing and applied where they don't make sense?

Example that comes to mind “hedge fund”. It was originally a fund that pursues hedging strategies, but has come to be used nearly synonymously with "private equity".

Another example is “clipless pedals”. Bike pedals used to have toe clips (aka "rat traps") that covered the toe of your shoe, to help hold your foot against the pedal, and more importantly, provide the ability to get some power from the upstroke, not just the downstroke.

20 years ago, they were replaced with a far superior mechanism, involving a cleat on your shoe that locks in to a receptacle on the pedal. Since the new, cleated mechanism replaced toe clips, they were referred to as "clipless". Thing is, the act of locking in the cleat is very much a process of "clipping in". So when people new to cycling see clipless pedals demonstrated, they find it confusing.