Business & Entrepreneurship

Jeri Sedlar, author of “Don’t Retire, Rewire!” will lead an interactive session to help people define what kind of work is best for their retirement given their passions and interests, and how to go about obtaining it. The talk will take place Friday, Oct. 5, 2007 at 4 p.m. in Simon Hall’s May Auditorium on the Danforth Campus of Washington University in St. Louis.

The stock market might be nervous now due to the subprime loan mess, but Stuart Greenbaum, former dean of the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis, is bullish on the situation.

After what seems like a never-ending cycle of firms recalling their products, Congress jumped into the ring with an oversight hearing to determine what is going on. But the complexity of sending an effective message to assure the public the products are safe is made all the more difficult when an executive speaks to a congressional committee. The verdict is out on the credibility of Mattel’s message.

Mortgage woes could get worse thanks to easy credit.If it seems as though sub-prime mortgage loans stirred up trouble in the financial markets, just wait until debt problems spill over onto household spending. America’s love affair with spending could trigger the most severe downturn in economic activity seen since at least the 1980s — and possibly since the Great Depression.

Just as rising gasoline prices are forcing many Americans to tighten their financial belts, new research suggests higher fuel costs may come with a related silver lining — trimmer waistlines. “An additional $1 in real gasoline prices would reduce obesity in the U.S. by 15 percent after three years,” said Charles Courtemanche, an economics doctoral student in Arts & Sciences.

Could higher gas prices mean trimmer waistlines?Just as rising gasoline prices are forcing many Americans to tighten their financial belts, new research suggests higher fuel costs may come with a related silver lining — trimmer waistlines. “An additional $1 in real gasoline prices would reduce obesity in the U.S. by 15 percent after three years,” suggests Charles Courtemanche, an economics researcher at Washington University in St. Louis.

In their quest to reduce air pollution, states are implementing new and easier ways to ensure that automobiles are both safe and environmentally friendly. Some states, like Missouri, allow private repair shops to conduct both safety and emissions tests simultaneously, making it easier for car owners to renew their license plates. But there’s a potential problem with the new plan, according to a business professor at Washington University in St. Louis: repair shops have very strong incentives to cheat, but not in a way that helps reduce pollution.

Below is a link to the Washington University news release about the U.S. News & World Report undergraduate rankings for 2004-05: http://news-info.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/3627.html To view a full listing of U.S. News magazine, book and Web-only rankings for 2004-05, please visit the U.S. News & World Report site: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php

Banks with sound portfolios will be fine, says a WUSTL expert.The stock market might be nervous now due to the subprime loan mess, but Stuart Greenbaum, former dean of the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis, is bullish on the situation.

Mattel and Ford are just the latest in a long line of companies to enact a product recall. Whether it’s lead paint or tainted dog food, every manufacturer faces the potential that its product needs to be taken off the shelf. How a firm handles its logistics and marketing after and before a recall can make or break a company’s success in the long run.