This baseball player is smarter than you

Ross Ohlendorf is probably smarter than you are. He's certainly way smarter than I am.

It isn't just because he went to Princeton... but this entire story by Tim Kurkjian at ESPN shows that he is a very intelligent guy. Who happens to play professional baseball (even if it is only for the Pittsburgh Pirates).

Here's a sample:

Ohlendorf majored in Operations Research and Financial Engineering at Princeton, a major that combined mathematics, engineering and economics. His thesis was written on the June amateur draft, which will be held on Tuesday. Ohlendorf examined the top 100 picks from 1989 to 1993, tracked the progress of each player for a 12-year period, starting with the draft, to determine the value of the picks. Ohlendorf studied the investment (signing bonus) and the financial return from signing the player.

Peter Sagal talks about running, music

Peter Sagal, the host of the NPR show Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, spoke to Runner's World about music and, of course, running.

A pretty interesting read, and it includes a picture of Sagal. I think this is the first time that I have ever seen a picture of Sagal, and he looks nothing like what I thought he would look like.

And what does he listen to when he's running? Well, not music anymore, he says, but he is a fan of podcasts:

"When I do have a run on my own, nowadays I listen to podcasts. Without question, my favorite is Dan Savage's Savage Lovecast. It's an advice podcast on love, sex and relationships–and it can be extremely graphic, so warn your readers. But it's also amazing to listen to, because people are so straightforward about their problems, and Dan is so no-nonsense yet compassionate in his answers. It's a very interesting look into some exotic elements of our social behaviors."

I've never listened to the Savage Love podcast, but others I know have.

How rich New Yorkers are dealing with the recession

The New York Times delves into a topic that is surely on everyone's mind at this time of economic troubles nationwide: How trust-funders in New York are dealing with the recession:

Luis Illades, an owner of the Urban Rustic Market and Cafe on North 12th Street, said he had seen a steady number of applicants, in their late 20s, who had never held paid jobs: They were interns at a modeling agency, for example, or worked at a college radio station. In some cases, applicants have stormed out of the market after hearing the job requirements.

Heartbreaking, isn't it?

Bret Michaels stage malfunction

This is pretty damned funny (h/t to Steve Terrell).



So what happened? From MTV:

On Monday (June 8), a spokesperson for Michaels told The Associated Press that the Poison frontman/ "Rock of Love" superstud/ "Super Bowl" prognosticator suffered a fractured nose and a contusion to his lip after being hit in the head by a descending set piece at the Tonys, and that he's undergoing a CAT scan as a precautionary measure, since he's had a previous neck injury.