Short notes from what I read or what pops up in my head when I am in front of my task, walking out side, taking subway or waiting for someone.
“Annuities” are not often discussed in personal finance comparing with 401K. Based on a WSJ article, major providers like Vanguard have started offering annuity payouts along with their 401k plans. Annuities still don’t seem to be a mainstream retirement vehicle in the US, and I’m very curious about the historical and societal reasons behind that. - 2025.12.04
I recently noticed that the word “algorithm” has lost its original meaning in daily life: most non-tech people use “algorithm” as a synonym for recommendation system in conversations or in the news media. Unfortunately, recommendation systems are so pervasive and addictive nowadays, that it makes “algorithm” a native word. - 2025.12.03
“Alternative data offers the opportunity to work with truly unique,hard-to-process datasets. Remember, data that is hard to store, manipulate, and operate is always the most promising. You will recognize that a dataset may be useful if it annoys your data infrastructure team.Perhaps your competitors did not try to use it for logistic reasons, gave up midway, or processed it incorrectly.” - 2025.12.01
“你一个人？她没有回答。在装有日光灯的理发铺子前，你于是看到了她的脸，年纪轻轻，却有点憔悴，倒更显得楚楚动人。你望着套上电吹风头罩烫发的女人，说现代化就数这最快。她眼睛动了一下，笑了，你也跟着就笑。她头发散披在肩上，乌黑光亮，你想说你头发真好，又觉得有点过分，没有出口。你同她一起走着，再没说什么。不是你不想同她亲近，而是你一时找不到语言。你不免尴尬，想尽快摆脱这种窘境。” - 2017.07.31
“谈谈你的童年，谈谈你自己。她不要听你的那些故事了，她要知道你的过去，你的童年，你的母亲，你的老祖父，那怕那些最细小的事情，你摇篮里的记忆，她都想知道，你的一切，你最隐秘的感情。你说你都已经遗忘了。她说她就要帮你恢复这些记忆，她要帮你唤起你记忆中遗忘了的人和事，她要同你一起到你记忆中去游荡，深入到你的灵魂里，同你一起再经历一次你已经经历过的生命。” - 2017.07.31