Paul Kedrosky's Infectious Greed

The "Tilt" Thing and the Case for Journalist Entrepreneurs

Posted: 19 Mar 2011 01:11 PM PDT

People are all stirred up by my suggestion that the Valley is on "tilt". Lest anyone think otherwise, I'm not convinced it's entirely a bad thing. The Valley takes its biggest risks and does some of its wildest work when there is this "Everyone into the water" feeling about the place. More is more: More startups, more risk-taking, more experiments, more money -- more of more.

One of the puzzles my Kauffman colleague Dane Stangler and I have worried over in a few papers is why we're not seeing a significant increase in the rate of entrepreneurship in the U.S. Matter of fact, it has more or less flat-lined over the last few decades. Lowered barriers to company creation, more capital, and a broader understanding of the rewards -- personal and financial -- of starting companies has not led to a reset of the long-term rate at which such companies are created.

There are many reasons why this might be the case. It could be that the percentage of the working population interested in entrepreneurship and able to pursue it full-time is and will always be constrained. People have kids, families, mortgages, health issues, etc., and they aren't unable to change course to a career that makes all of those things more challenging. There is also the argument, one that Dane and I pursue in an upcoming paper, that other sectors have sucked entrepreneurial talent out of science, technology, and engineering and put it in other sectors where the societal benefits are much smaller, and arguably even negative.

Entrepreneurship is and should be irrational. You are taking on huge risks, showing immense ego, and trying something with an absurdly high failure rate. But it at these moments when it feels like you're nuts not to try being entrepreneurial -- the Valley being on "tilt" -- that we have an outside chance of resetting the base rate at which companies get created in this country. While I tease people about it on a regular basis, especially journalists-turned-entrepreneurs, I wouldn't have it any other way. Other than maybe the Harvard MBAs. (I kid. Mostly :-))

The Hardest Exam Ever: Has There Ever Been a Period That Was Not an Information Age?

Posted: 19 Mar 2011 12:52 PM PDT

From Harper's, the All Souls Exam. Some call this the hardest exam ever, with fascinating questions. Some particularly good ones bolded, but first the preamble:

From general subject questions included in the All Souls College examinations between 2005 and 2010. Often described as the hardest exam in the world, the test is given over two days in September to recent graduates of Oxford, with winners receiving an Examination Fellowship of seven years. Applicants take four examinations of three hours each, and in the two general subject tests must answer three questions from a list. No more than three fellowships are awarded in any year, and in some years none are given. Last September approximately one hundred people took the exam, and three fellowships were awarded.

What is war good for?
From where does a sense of community come?

Are there too many accountants and auditors?

Is there anything to be said for astrology?

Why should I tolerate?

Is exile always a misfortune?

If there are millions of other planets capable of supporting advanced life-forms, why haven't we seen or heard from them?

Is dark energy more interesting than dark matter?

What do extremes in dress and personal adornment signify?

Do historical novels harm historical study?

Has there ever been a period that was not an information age?

Why does truthfulness matter?

Should England declare independence?

Are universal human rights a form of cultural imperialism?

Have developments in electronic communications destroyed our personal space?

What can we learn from a century of sound recording?

Should we worry about the fate of the British red squirrel?

Is China overrated?

If modern politics is "managerial," should politicians be better managers?

What has happened to epic poetry?

What can we learn from Las Vegas?

Is "women's writing" a distinct category?

What difference should it make to feminism whether gender differences are natural or socially constructed?

Have any philosophical problems been finally solved?

Is it worse to be cruel to a fox than to a leaf?

Does business entertaining differ from bribery?

How many civilizations are there in today's world?

Do we work too hard?

Can happiness be measured?

What are the deprivations of affluence?