Nobody really understands gold prices and I don't pretend to understand them either.

Nobody likes to fail but failure is an essential part of life and of learning. If your uniform isn't dirty, you haven't been in the game.

Both humanity's capacity to innovate and the incentives to innovate are greater today than at any other time in history.

There's no denying that a collapse in stock prices today would pose serious macroeconomic challenges for the United States. Consumer spending would slow, and the U.S. economy would become less of a magnet for foreign investors. Economic growth, which in any case has recently been at unsustainable levels, would decline somewhat. History proves, however, that a smart central bank can protect the economy and the financial sector from the nastier side effects of a stock market collapse.

I am very proud of my nerd-dom.

It's true that the Federal Reserve faces a lot of political pressure and is unpopular in many circles.

Although low inflation is generally good, inflation that is too low can pose risks to the economy - especially when the economy is struggling.