These questions aren’t business-oriented, but they will make you look cooler by water cooler:
- What is the universe made of?
- Will forests slow global warming –or speed it up?
- Why do placebos work?
- Why don’t we understand turbulence?
Archive for January, 2007
Finally: The Answers
January 31, 2007Have We Learning Our Corporate Scandal Lessons?
January 31, 2007Enron’s history — to lawmakers. Are the stringent rules of Sarbanes-Oxley and other post-corporate-scandal laws starting to feel the results of a softening trend?
Here are 10 signs things are getting looser, among them: the SEC is looking to back off going after the Big Four accounting firms; a senator introducing legislation to protect attorney-(corporate) client privilege, and the SEC relegates Enron to, ahem, footnotes.
Can A New CEO Help Pier 1?
January 31, 2007I have a soft spot for Pier 1, which is only somewhat rewarded by its merchandise. Maybe it’s because I still remember the Indian-print bedspreads I got for the dorm room in the 70s, the baskets that collected all the dust in my apartments in the 80s, and the oddball file boxes and cheap ceramic masks that linger on after the 90s. The retailer’s recently taken a sharp turn into modern furniture (sorry, I’m not keeping up with this one), but it also has a new CEO named.
Alex W. Smith, an executive with Marshall’s and T.J. Maxx chain operator TJX Cos., looks to have all the right pedigree. Maybe he can rescue the evaporating profits and fend off the for-sale rumors.
The Closest Printer
January 31, 2007Just the other day, I was bemoaning the loooong walk to the printer to pick up my papers. I don’t print out much, but what I do is often sensitive, meaning if I want it, I gotta get up now and get it.
So here’s Zink, which is working on ink-infused paper that replaces the ulky ink-cartridge of the central printer. Bring it on.
The New Race for Internet Start-ups
January 31, 2007Venture capital money is rife — but it’s not going to last forever. Experts give the web’s newest contenders another year, but predict that 2008 will bring a harsh reality check.
A smart software and niche product can start off lean and mean, but soon staff and infrastructure costs rise. These ongoing costs need to be sustained. And search-engine marketing, which used to be seat-of-the-pants, is now a $20,000-month necessity.
So You Want to be a Venture Capitalist?
January 28, 2007Nifty 10-question quiz that tests your knowledge of the VC world. Answers are immediate, and you can see immediately whether you’ve got what it takes. (With only two correct answers, I wouldn’t even invest in me.)
Going Green and Getting Green
January 28, 2007Nine businesses in these miniprofiles are out to save the planet and to make themselves rich in the process. Included are: a way to make diesel (i.e., big trucks) engines to run on cleaner liquid natural gas; an inexpensive solar oven that eliminates the need to burn coal and wood; deep-sea fish farming, and an epidemic-tracking system designed for use in remote areas.
As Accounting Firms Shrink, Danger Rises
January 28, 2007Back in the day, there were lots of big accounting firms and lots of choice about which firm to use. Now, there’s the Big Four, and if one of them fails, an unfortunate consolidation is inevitable.
Such as scenario has a number of people worried, including the chief accountant for the SEC, Conrad Hewitt.
In a recent speech, Hewitt recommended that accountants consider asking Congress for new protections,
“Maybe we should get back to the ‘P’ in GAAP, instead of using rules for our standards,” Hewitt stated, referring to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, the guidelines used by American companies.
Those Who Can, Teach Here
January 28, 2007If you’re a believer in “Those who can’t do, teach,” then the new undergraduate entrepreneurship degree offered by Arizona-based Grand Canyon University might be for you. All of its four-year degree classes will be taught by honest (we hope)-to-god businesspeople, not academics.
Self-Destructing E-Mail; Secure Docs On-the-Go
January 25, 2007A roundup of neat products includes a company that offers e-mail senders “to send recallable, changeable, erasable, non-printable and self-destructing e-mails”; a digital security vault, and a digital-signature verification system that works from a cell phone.
