The Lottery Curse

The Lottery Curse

Jasmine Rawson
Personal Finance, Microeconomics

In March 1995, a used car trader named Lee Ryan won the lottery for £6,527,880. At the time, he lived in public housing built by local authorities in Braunston, England with his girlfriend and their three children. After getting married that summer, he spent £1 million on a country mansion and a variety of cars including a Bentley, Ferrari, Porsche, and BMW. He also bought two Ducati superbikes, a £125,000 plane, and a £235,000 Bell JetRanger helicopter. His entire life had been turned around. He had “prayed to God to make him a millionaire” while he had been serving a prison sentence for stealing cars, and it seemed that his desires had come to fruition. However, his life of joyful lavishness later faded as he and his wife split in 2003, and he lost about £2 million in failed business ventures and property investments. After countless losses, he eventually chose to reside in a rented flat in South London with homeless lodgers. In regards to the lottery, he claimed “the money was cursed” (Charlton 2014).

Private Equity’s J-Curve and Its Mitigation

Private Equity’s J-Curve and Its Mitigation

Ethan Wildes
Finance

Within private equity, a fund’s returns often resemble a J-Curve where there exists a small loss before a continued gain. This image would resemble a “J” when charted. This is especially common for private equity firms that purchase struggling companies and attempt to turn them around. These firms will take on unprofitable businesses, and tag along management fees that keep investor returns low or negative until their investments begin to mature, and the purchased businesses become profitable. This creates a period wherein traditional private equity investment is unprofitable and returns are low, or the dip at the beginning of the “J”. These cash flows depend on the “timing of cash flows, timing of performance, and market performance” (Diller, 20). By pulling these levers one way or another, the J-curve can be manipulated. With research indicating that funds with at least 15% private investment outperform their peers, the benefits of seeking these investments are clear. But how can we reduce the time in which these investments underperform?

Viewing the World Through Complex Adaptive Systems

Viewing the World Through Complex Adaptive Systems

Samuel Jaffe
Science & Nature

Small differences can lead to large consequences or change outcomes. A popular example of this is that a butterfly could flap its wings in New York and the next day in Tokyo there will be rain instead of sunshine. This phenomenon is commonly known as the ‘Butterfly Effect’ and it highlights the relationship between minute conditions and ending outcomes within a system. Although interesting, the Butterfly Effect is only a piece in the puzzle of understanding our greater world. A larger piece to the puzzle, but by no means the complete picture, are Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). If the Butterfly Effect represents the relationship in a system, then a CAS is the system itself.

Diamonds Aren't Forever

Diamonds Aren't Forever

Michael Provvisionato
Business Current Events

Diamonds have undoubtedly become the most prominent gemstone in popular culture, with 86% of engagement rings in the United States being diamond. The popularity of diamond-studded jewelry in American hip-hop culture has also exploded, leading to an even further glorification of diamonds as a status symbol. However, demand for diamonds was not always so high and De Beers, which until recently held arguably the strongest monopoly in history, was able to utilize brilliant marketing techniques in order to embed diamonds into everyday life around the globe and set market prices to make incredible profits. Recently, a slew of antitrust laws against the company has diversified the market and growth in the efficiency of lab-made diamonds promises to benefit consumers.

Cognitive Anthropology A Primer

Cognitive Anthropology A Primer

Savannah Hinson Rivas
Science & Nature

Are anthropologists necessary to the great hunt for a unified theory of mind? Will cognitive anthropology decisively confirm whether anthropology as a whole is part of the humanities or the sciences? Are cognitive anthropological methodologies compatible with the research methods of other subfields of cognitive science? These are the big questions, of course, and to address them exhaustively is a near-impossible task for any researcher, and there is indeed conflict among anthropologists, even those who identify specifically as cognitive anthropologists, as to how this field can and should proceed. The goal of this brief article is to act as a primer, an introduction to this colorful and, I will argue throughout this series, necessary pillar of human cognitive studies.

The Challenges of Giving Up Fossil Fuels

The Challenges of Giving Up Fossil Fuels

Samuel Jaffe
Environmental Policy

Even if fossil fuels were not affecting our climate, fossil fuels are a finite resource and will eventually run out. If there is no alternative energy infrastructure in place, there will be a severe global struggle when they do run out. Fortunately, through renewable energy sources, we could avert such a global catastrophe while also ensuring a healthy future. However, given our current energy infrastructure is primarily fossil-fuel-based, and such a transition away from fossil fuels will take time, it is important to consider now what kind of new infrastructure we would need to convert to a renewable energy base.

From Treetops to Engineered Wood

From Treetops to Engineered Wood

Sarah Waddell
Agriculture

Wood has been a valued material in construction for centuries. We build our homes and furniture using this naturally available resource, its presence often evoking feelings of nostalgia and comfort. As versatile and lightweight as it is, wood has never been seen as a high-performance material since it’s relatively soft compared to metals. Recently however, there has been a growing interest in new processing methods that may elevate the performance of wood even further.

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Explained

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Explained

Chioma Azubuike
Science & Nature

In modern times, lupus is a general term for diseases that affect the skin. Lupus, also called SLE(Systemic Lupus Erythematosus), is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks its own tissues. More specifically, the immune system sees itself as foreign to the body and fights against itself, thereby causing widespread inflammation and tissue damage in the affected organs. It is known to affect the joints, skin, brain, lungs, kidneys, and blood vessels. The skin, especially. It is a systemic disease and it affects a wide variety of organs, but notably causes red lesions on the skin.

Direct Listing’s Potential Effect on Investment Banks

Direct Listing’s Potential Effect on Investment Banks

Jack Geiger
Finance

The fundamental definition of capitalism provides opportunity in the form of wealth to those who make certain investments. Despite some of their practices coming under scrutiny, investment banks have long played a crucial part to the US economy, and especially to capitalism. Investment banks have provided capital raising services to companies in search of capital to expand by acting as a middleman between entrepreneurship and public investors. One drawback to investment banks engaging in capital raising is that they pertain large fees, and at times high risk to their clients. Recently, a new form of capital raising called “direct listing” will eliminate the need for underwriters and allow firms to go immediately to the New York Stock Exchange, receiving capital from the public directly. But, this newly added capital raising program poses a major threat to many investment banks.

Natural Language Processing and Oncology: Unlikely Allies in the Fight Against Cancer

Natural Language Processing and Oncology: Unlikely Allies in the Fight Against Cancer

Savannah Hinson Rivas
Science & Nature

Natural Language Processing (NLP) refers to the ability of computers to parse spoken, written, and visual speech acts with the ultimate goal of human-level performance. Applications of this technology range widely, from text message prediction to automatic translation, but, perhaps surprisingly, NLP systems have increasingly been adapted to medical research. The focus of this piece will narrow in on oncological research, which, to one new to the field of artificial intelligence, may seem incongruous with computational linguistics. However, there is a rich application of NLP in several studies from around the world, and it has become clear that computational linguists have a necessary skill to contribute in the fight against cancer.

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