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Robert Reich

Naked Capitalism

Overcoming Bias

  • On UFOs-As-Aliens Priors
    A careful analysis of UFOs should consider lots of data, and consider it in much detail. I oft hear skeptics seek shortcuts, such as by declaring all testimony invalid, or insisting that only some long conjunction of encounter features could be ……
    - 13 days ago, 9 Jun 21, 12:30am -
  • Skirting UFO Taboos
    Since before I was born, elites have maintained a severe taboo against taking seriously the hypothesis that UFOs are aliens. As I’ve discussed, elite-aspiring UFO researchers have themselves embraced this taboo. They seem to figure that if we look…
    - 15 days ago, 7 Jun 21, 1:10pm -
  • UFOs and Status
    Status seems pretty central to the UFO phenomena. For example, reports have been filed on well over 100K encounters worldwide so far, but most of the books & movies on the topic focus on the same few cases. These cases … Continue reading →
    - 17 days ago, 4 Jun 21, 8:30pm -
  • Who Wants Curated Democracy?

    - 21 days ago, 1 Jun 21, 7:00pm -
  • Biologists Taboo Artificial Life
    Recently I’ve reviewed three new books by academic biologists on the future of life in the universe. All three books have gained high profile and prestigious reviews in major media and academia. (Which is how I heard of them.) And … Continue read…
    - 24 days ago, 29 May 21, 2:30pm -
  • Roemer’s Socialism
    Several times before I have posted on trying to figure out what just people mean when they propose “socialism”, and which variations seem how attractive. I just tried this exercise again, this time reading respected Yale economist and political s…
    - 25 days ago, 28 May 21, 12:12am -
  • The Biological Universe
    In his new book The Biological Universe: Life in the Milky Way and Beyond, evolutionary biologist Wallace Arthur predicts the life we will find in the galaxy and universe: Life forms are to be found across the Milky Way and … Continue reading →
    - 26 days ago, 27 May 21, 1:15am -
  • Views Aren’t About Sights
    Regarding window/patios with nice beach or city views, and days when those views are nice, in two polls respondents estimate that at any given time 1.3% and 0.8% of such places are actually occupied by people enjoying these views. Which … Continue…
    - 31 days ago, 22 May 21, 7:24pm -
  • “If We Win, You Win”
    One of the big wins of capitalism is that it creates strong private incentives for some kinds of social change. If someone has an idea for change, they can get investors and employees to work with them, in the hope of … Continue reading →
    - 32 days ago, 21 May 21, 2:50pm -
  • Panspermia Siblings
    The UFOs as aliens hypothesis is only as believable as the most a priori believable story for how it could be true. When I tried to find a story like that, I ended up relying heavily on the idea of … Continue reading →
    - 33 days ago, 20 May 21, 2:30pm -

Information Arbitrage

  • Recycling: The challenge and the opportunity for a Seed stage VC
    My recent post gave rise to a host of questions around the issue of recycling. What does it mean? How do you do it? And what are the implications for venture investors? I attempted to respond in a Tweetstorm, but recycling is a complicated issue that…
    - 5 Oct 16, 8:48pm -
  • The TTD Investment and the IA Ventures Model
    A Little HistoryIA Ventures began life a little less than seven years ago, just as the world was coming out of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The term “Micro VC” had yet to be coined. “Big Data” was still somewhat myste…
    - 29 Sep 16, 1:25am -
  • Welcoming John to IA
    Brad, Jesse and I are happy to announce that our friend and colleague, John Hadl, is joining IA Ventures as Venture Partner, effective immediately. We have personally gotten to know John over the past four years due to our shared investment in PlaceI…
    - 12 Mar 15, 8:29pm -
  • Crowdfunding for start-ups: A durable trend or a bull market phenomenon?
    Angel investing is red hot as is the concept of crowdfunding start up investment. Part of this phenomenon has been driven by the emergence of AngelList, the brainchild of Naval Ravikant. What started out as a way for a curated set of angels to inves…
    - 23 Nov 14, 10:44pm -
  • Financial interaction: the next generation
    I have spent over 25 years creating, processing and analyzing financial transactions. I like studying them - a lot - whether an outgrowth of my time on Wall Street helping sophisticated entities manage risks, or through IA Ventures’ investments in…
    - 25 Feb 14, 10:43pm -
  • IA Ventures: Reflections on 2013
    2013 was a very different kind of year for IA Ventures. While the years 2010-12 were characterized by 8-10 new investments per year, in 2013 we invested in only three new companies: Data Robot; Digital Ocean (DO) and Sight Machine (SM). Digital Ocean…
    - 3 Jan 14, 8:28pm -
  • “If you can’t do something willingly and joyfully, then don’t do it. If you give...
    “If you can’t do something willingly and joyfully, then don’t do it. If you give up drinking, don’t go moaning about it; go back on the bottle. Do. As. Thou. Wilt." - The late Peter O'Toole
    - 16 Dec 13, 1:05pm -
  • Venture Capital and "Innovation"
    Many have recently been critical of the role of the venture industry in financing “true innovation.” The narrative goes something like this: “VCs are like lemmings, flocking to the latest consumer wave (mobile chat, ride-sharing, etc.) in searc…
    - 16 Dec 13, 2:41am -
  • Evidence is mounting that people at the bottom are increasingly stuck without skills or pathways to...
    Evidence is mounting that people at the bottom are increasingly stuck without skills or pathways to rise. Research from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston shows that in the 1980s, 21 percent of Americans in the bottom income quintile would rise to…
    - 15 Dec 13, 1:51pm -
  • Soft is the new Hard
    I live in a world where engineering and technical talent is valued above all others, where the Holy Grail is a “coding ninja” who can crank out oodles of elegant code at a breakneck pace. These people speak a language that is distinct and only un…
    - 14 Nov 13, 4:32am -