Adam Katz is currently a partner at Marker Advisors, an independent firm providing technology research to a select group of institutional investors. Prior to Marker Advisors, he spent eight years at MS Howells & Co, an institutional brokerage firm that provided high touch research and prime brokerage services to the buy-side, and most recently served as the company's CEO.  

Katz lives in Scottsdale, Arizona and spends his free time avoiding golf courses, playing hockey, and generally worrying about stuff, particularly as they pertain to the global markets.

Mr. Katz welcomes your feedback at katz@minyanville.com.

Mr. Julian is the CFO and co-owner of Option Investments, Inc (OpVest). He is responsible for the overall organization of the company, oversees administration, compliance and finance, and acts as the liaison between the marketing staff, research and trade departments. Since joining OpVest, he has built an impressive list of accomplishments in the financial industry, including; co-authoring ‘House Odds’ and ‘Introduction to Commodities’, becoming a regularly featured analyst on investment radio and television, and actively writing educational and analytical articles related to the market. He has been instrumental in helping build OpVest into the industry leader it is today. Mr. Julian has been registered as a Series 3 commodities broker with the CFTC and NFA since September of 1996 and as a CTA since 2008.

Mr. Julian’s 13 years of commodity experience have made him incredibly well-versed in fundamental and technical analysis of the commodities markets, risk management, asset allocation, compliance and sales training. Since entering the commodities industry, Mr. Julian has proven himself to be a highly motivated and successful businessman. In the 90’s, he became one of the top brokers at one of the nation’s leading commodities brokerage firms. Soon after this, he made the move to become a co-owner of Summit Financial Services, Inc. DBA Opportunities in Options in 2001 (which became an Independent Brokerage, OpVest, in 2003). In addition to helping run OpVest and Avalon, Mr. Julian focuses on enlightening other investors by passing along the knowledge that he has gained over the years onto them through his work with the investment media.

In addition to his brokerage experience, Mr. Julian also has co-founded two asset management companies: Tempest Asset Management and Avalon Asset Management. He received his MA in Social Ecology from the University of California at Irvine in 1994. As part of his graduate study and thesis research, he worked along side Professor Henry Pontell for September 1991 to October 1993 on a government sponsored research grant at the University of California at Irvine managing a research team developing a book a book on the Savings and Loan Debacle of the 1980’s. He received his BA in Psychology from the University of California at Irvine in 1991.

Andreas Calianos is the president of Behavioral Capital Management LLC (www.Behavioral-Capital.com). His focus is managing assets based on principles of behavioral finance including the interaction of long-term macro trends with short-term price movement.

Calianos has 20 years of trading experience in stocks, futures, and options. He has also served as a portfolio consultant in the areas of economics, risk management, and real estate investment to some of the world’s largest investors, including GE Capital, Citigroup, and the CommonFund.

Calianos graduated from Boston College with a degree in Computer Sciences and Biology in 1985. He lectures in the graduate program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (CRE).

Calianos lives in Northampton, Massachusetts, with his wife and two sons.

Andrew Horowitz is a contributor for Minyanville.com.

Contributors are people within the Minyanville community who write for the site. They provide food for thought and opinion, and may be professional writers, freelancers, or are uniquely positioned to give a "boots on the ground" perspective on a particular issue.

Born and raised in California, Andrew Jeffery graduated from UC San Diego in 2001 with a degree in Economics and Political Science. Jobless and happy the ensuing summer, on a Monday he decided to move to New York and that Friday flew out to find work and a place to live. He hit the pavement to look for jobs and ended up in the bowels of a Manhattan restaurant through the winter, manning the phones in the takeout department and running the occasional delivery order. His knowledge of vulgar Mexican slang increased dramatically during this time.

Jeffery began his career in 2002 at a small mortgage finance firm, Wembley Asset Management, which Bear Stearns eventually purchased to help build their residential mortgage business. Unsatisfied and ready for a change after a couple years, Andrew spent the next nine months touring the country and the Baja California Peninsula, tallying over 40,000 miles behind the wheel and overstaying his welcome on the couches of many generous friends and relatives.

Coaxed out of retirement by a colleague from Wembley, Jeffery headed back to New York in 2004 to work at The Winter Group, another specialty mortgage finance firm. There, he built and ran a $500 million warehouse financing platform and witnessed the last gasp of the mortgage bubble.

In 2007, Jeffery again left the world of mortgages to travel and spent six months in upstate New York, fishing, gardening, relaxing, and generally enjoying being outside. As his interest in trading grew, Andrew stumbled upon Minyanville and joined the editorial team to spread the gospel of the 'Ville.

Earlier this year, Jeffery and two other partners formed a specialty real estate firm, Cirios Real Estate. Cirios provides property valuation consulting to hedge funds and investment companies picking through the carnage of the distressed mortgage market. The company offers the same in-depth analysis to Main Street, helping homeowners and prospective buyers navigate the minefield that is the current real estate market.

Ben is the director of McClure & Co., an independent research and consulting firm that specializes in investment analysis and intelligence. He works with a wide range of clients in the US, Canada, and Europe.

Ben was a highly-rated European equities analyst at London-based Old Mutual Securities, and spent several years as a business/technology journalist at the Economist Group and contributor to Forbes Digital.

Ben graduated from the University of Alberta's School of Business with an MBA. He now lives in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Bill Feingold began his Wall Street career in 1985 as a corporate-finance analyst with Dillon Read after graduating from Yale, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in economics. Feingold received Yale’s Hadley Prize for being the top graduating social-sciences major. He earned his MBA in 1991 with distinction in finance from the Wharton School.

Feingold was most recently responsible for managing a portfolio of convertible securities at Goldman Sachs. Before that, he was the senior partner and co-manager of the FrontPoint Convertible Arbitrage Fund from 2003 to 2005.

From 2000 to 2003, Feingold co-managed the Clinton Riverside Convertible Fund. Before going to the hedge-fund community Feingold was head of US convertible research at Lehman Brothers, traded convertibles for Credit Suisse First Boston, and traded convertibles, options, and structured products for PaineWebber.

Between FrontPoint and Goldman Sachs Feingold served as a consultant to Schaeffer’s Investment Research. Media quoting Feingold’s commentary included The New York Times and Forbes.com. Feingold has contributed to several anthologies and textbooks including The Handbook of Equity Derivatives (Francis/Toy/Whittaker) and The New Generation of Risk Management for Hedge Funds and Private Equity Investments (Jaeger).

Teaching has long been an important part of Feingold’s career. While at Goldman Sachs, Feingold lectured on convertible securities for Goldman Sachs University, the firm’s continuing-education division. In the fall of 1999 and 2000 Feingold co-taught the acclaimed Yale seminar “Market Psychology and the Truth About Derivatives.” Feingold’s objective with the seminar was to provide liberal arts students likely headed for policy-making careers the skills necessary to get behind the financial headlines and understand the real issues for themselves. His students went on to careers in the investment and regulatory fields.

A native of New York City, Feingold grew up in Berkeley, California. He lives in Westchester County, New York, with his wife and two daughters.

Bill Luby is a private investor whose research and trading interests focus on volatility, market sentiment, technical analysis, and ETFs. His work has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Barron’s, and other publications. Luby authors the VIX and More blog and an investment newsletter from just north of San Francisco. His first book, Trading with the VIX, is scheduled to be published by Wiley in 2009.

Prior to becoming a full-time investor, Luby was a business strategy consultant for two decades and advised clients across a broad range of industries on issues such as strategy formulation, strategy implementation, and metrics. When not trading or blogging, he can often be found running, hiking, and kayaking in Northern California.

Luby has a BA from Stanford and an MBA from Carnegie-Mellon.

Bill Simpson has been a trader and financial analyst for over decade. Focusing exclusively on the ipo market, Bill has written analysis pieces on every US ipo for the past 5 years for his website Tradingipos.com. Strengths are analyzing upcoming offerings with a focus on determining and estimating potential market fair value before an ipo opens for trading.

Bill is 42 and currently calls Seal Beach, CA home. He also has a lifetime love/hate addiction with the Philadelphia Philles and each summer can be found in the bleachers at Wrigley Field for the Phillies/Cubs series.

Bob Faulkner is currently the Managing Director of Cranbury Capital LLC. He wrote for RealMoney and authored the TheStreet.com newsletter The Telecom Connection. He’s been in the investment business for more that 20 years with an exclusive focus on technology stocks.

Bob started as a sell-side analyst with Wood Gundy and Alex. Brown & Sons. In 1990, he moved to the asset management side with portfolio management/analytical positions at 1838 Investment Advisors and Merrill Lynch. Bob has an MBA from Seton Hall and a BS from Waynesburg College.

Branden Rife has worked in the financial industry since 1996 and has over 13 years of portfolio management, financial analysis, hedging and trading experience. 

He's currently the Head Trader for Alaris Trading Partners LLC, where he provides market strategy and trading coverage to the firm’s institutional accounts. Before joining Alaris, he was the Head Trader for Granite Financial Group. During his four and a half year tenure at Granite, Rife was responsible for coverage of the firms top institutional accounts related to trading and market strategy.

Prior to Granite, Rife worked for Strome Securities L.P., where he was Head Trader of the domiciled hedge fund A.G.A.M. He was responsible for all aspects of the fund’s trading and risk management as well as identifying investment and trading opportunities through his personal research.

Branden was recruited to Wachovia Securities from Salomon in late 2000 where his responsibilities as Junior Portfolio Manager were primarily focused on enhancing a Senior Portfolio Manager’s overall performance through his research, market strategy, and hedging strategies.

Mr. Rife spent over four years working for Salomon Smith Barney where he transitioned from his initial role as a Research Associate to Junior Portfolio Manager. While at Salomon, he worked under a Portfolio Manager with discretionary assets under management of $100 million. His responsibilities were primarily focused on identifying future investments as well as the continuous researching of existing investments.

He obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from Pepperdine University. He holds Series 7, 63, 65, and 55 licenses.

Brendan Wagner is a research analyst at Spectrum Advisory Services in Atlanta. In addition to managing portfolios for private individuals, families and corporations, Spectrum is the advisor for the Marathon Value Portfolio (MVPFX) mutual fund.

After graduating with a finance degree from Boston College in 2000, Brendan has worked in equity research ever since. He is particularly interested in furthering the knowledge of (and respect for!) the oft-neglected common stock holder, versus other pieces of a company’s capital structure.

Brendan’s interests include tennis and golf, cooking, American history, his family’s yellow labs, and Lake Tahoe.

Feel free to contact Branden at bwagner@spectrumadvisory.com.

Carol Kopp is a veteran producer, developer, writer, and editor for Internet news sites including CBSNews.com and MSNBC. She was senior news manager of the pioneering Prodigy online news service.

Charles Lewis Sizemore, CFA is the founder and editor of The Sizemore Investment Letter, a monthly newsletter dedicated to finding high-quality growth and income investments supported by durable demographic and macro trends.

Prior to founding The Sizemore Investment Letter, he worked alongside famed economic strategist Harry S. Dent, Jr. in creating original research on the effects of changing global demographics on asset returns and economic growth and was a regular contributor to the HS Dent Forecast monthly newsletter and the HS Dent Blog -- one of the most widely read financial blogs in the world.

Mr. Sizemore has been featured in numerous publications, including Seeking Alpha, Stocks, Futures, and Options Magazine, The Daily Reckoning, and Investment International. He is also the co-author, along with Douglas C. Robinson, of Boom or Bust: Understanding and Profiting from a Changing Consumer Economy (iUniverse, 2008).

Mr. Sizemore holds a master’s degree in Finance and Accounting from the London School of Economics in London, United Kingdom and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance with an International Emphasis from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and as a Phi Beta Kappa scholar.

Mr. Sizemore maintains the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation in good standing and is the managing member of Sizemore Financial Publishing LLC and Sizemore Capital Management LLC, a registered investment advisor.

Charles V. Mangano is currently the Chief Marketing Officer for Minyanville Publishing and Multimedia, LLC.

He most recently was Managing Director and Global Head of Marketing and Communications for Deutsche Asset Management, the asset management arm of Deutsche Bank.

At DeAM he was a member of The Executive Committee and had worldwide responsibility for all marketing functions, media relations, and employee and investor communications for what was then the world’s fourth-largest asset manager.

Prior to joining DeAM he was worldwide Senior Director of Brand Management for Merrill Lynch and Co., Inc. At Merrill Lynch he was responsible for developing, implementing, and evaluating the company’s global brand strategy; ensuring that all marketing, research, internal and external communications and identity programs derived from and supported at the time, the nineteenth-most-valued brand in the world, according to Business Week magazine.

Mr. Mangano has been a frequent guest lecturer on brand management at the graduate schools of the University of Chicago, and the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.

In December, 2008, Mr. Mangano received an Emmy Award from The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for his role as Executive Producer of Minyanville's World In Review, the first (and only) animated business news show.

When not surfing or playing guitar for The Rolling Bones, the world’s greatest Rolling Stones cover band, Mr. Mangano lives in Stamford, Connecticut with his wife and two teenage daughters.

Christopher Dixon has over 30 years experience in operating and investing roles in the media and entertainment industry. He served as strategic advisor and managing director, media investments, for Gabelli Group Capital Partners where he focused on investing in privately held emerging media companies. Previously, he was managing director and global strategist for media at UBS, where he made investment recommendations and headed a top II research team that covered all aspects of the media landscape, from early stage Internet companies to global conglomerates. Prior to UBS he covered the entertainment, cable and broadcasting industries for Paine Webber.

He began his sell-side analyst career at Kidder Peabody where he covered entertainment, specializing in the motion picture industry. A ten time member of the Institutional Investor All America Research team, he was also ranked as a WSJ Best on the Street for the cable industry. He has advised NBC, DreamWorks, Time Warner, CBS, and Clear Channel and has appeared regularly on CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg, and other media outlets.

Prior to Wall Street he worked as a film editor and independent filmmaker.

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, Mr. Dixon received an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business, where he currently teaches as an adjunct professor in finance.

Christopher Galakoutis is an independent investor managing his own money, and since 2005, writing publicly about the markets. His commentaries can be found on his website, www.MurkyMarkets.com. He holds a Finance degree from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.

Cody Tafel is a trader for a Richmond, Virginia-based registered investment advisor.

Prior to this role, Mr. Tafel worked for Rapidan Capital LLC as the Director of Trading. Previously he was the Head Trader for a long/short equity hedge fund, where he managed proprietary funds and developed systematic trading programs. Cody is a Chartered Market Technician and member of the Market Technicians Association. In 2005, he learned the “Turtle” Trading method from original Turtle Russell Sands.

Mr. Tafel graduated from the University of Virginia with a BA in economics.

Conor Sen is currently a private investor, and spent the past 4+ years at a multi-billion dollar west coast-based hedge fund. His responsibilities there included risk management, macroeconomic research, and cross-asset class analysis. Prior to that he spent a little time at eBay in San Jose, CA and at a startup hedge fund in Los Angeles.

Sen has a bachelor's degree in computer science and economics from Harvey Mudd College (2003). He welcomes your feedback at conor@minyanville.com.

Cory Bortnicker is an Emmy Award-winning Writer/Producer of Hoofy & Boo's News and Views, the first (and only) animated business news show. 

Before moving to New York, Cory harvested oranges and operated a marmalade shop outside of Seville.

Craig Mellow is a freelance writer who covers emerging markets from New York.

Damien Hoffman, Esq. decided to launch an exclusive subscription-based newsletter in November 2008 after achieving a 63% return versus a -48% return for the S&P 500 over a nearly two-year time frame.

Hoffman is currently Editor-in-Chief of Wall St. Cheat Sheet and trades full-time. After graduating early with honors from Duke University, he raised private equity with friends during the late 1990s to launch a successful start-up. Mr. Hoffman went on to work for boutique sports investment bank Inner Circle LLP, where he worked on the sale of the NBA franchise New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn real-estate development firm Forest City Ratner Companies.

Hoffman also graduated with honors from the University of Miami School of Law as a Dean’s Merit Scholar. He clerked at the Florida Supreme Court for the Honorable Justice Kenneth Bell and Central Staff. In 2006, at Harvard Law School, he gave a guest lecture entitled, “Business and Law in the New Independent Music Industry.”

Visit his website at www.wallstcheatsheet.com.

Midwest native turned Texan, Dan Cofall is more than a gun loving, Federal Reserve-loathing, central bank-despising, big government-detesting, motorcycle-riding gold bug. He also hosts The Wall Street Shuffle on CNN 1190 AM from 4-6pm CST each weekday -- a place for compelling conversation about the day’s financial, economic and political news and insightful analysis. Click here for podcasts and to listen in live.

Dan earned a BBA in Accounting and Finance from Notre Dame and an MBA in Finance and Real Estate from Southern Methodist University and began his career in the Tax Department of Ernst & Young before working as Director of Finance for the Coca Cola Bottling Group.

Cofall later co-founded BrightStar Information Technology Group, successfully spearheading the company’s IPO in 1998, and currently serves as Co-Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of NorAm Capital Holdings, Inc., celebrating its 51 anniversary and one of only seven public companies in the debt-management business. NorAm was just selected as the fastest growing publically traded company in Dallas Ft. Worth by the Dallas Business Journal.

He was a Professor of Finance at the University of Dallas Graduate School of Management for more than 13 years. He is also the Managing Director of Square Rock, Ltd., a company he founded in 2004 to provide financial advice to U.S.-based debt buyers.

Dan is a member of Business Executives for National Security (“BENS”).

Cofall’s unmatched combination of experience and insight -- not to mention his plain-speaking and fittingly irreverent style -- make him the perfect market guide for seasoned investors and newly minted rookies alike.

Danielle Beurteaux is a Brooklyn, New York-based freelance writer whose work has appeared in several national magazines, including Alpha, Institutional Investor, and AR.

A refugee from the music business, she is a graduate of The New School’s MFA fiction program and holds a BA in Literature and Writing from Columbia University.

Danielle Sonnenberg is passionate about stories and people. One of the best words to describe her is curious. She loves asking the questions that other people only think about asking.

She has written for a number of publications including The New York Post, TheStreet.com, Institutional Investor and Lifestyles Magazine.

She holds a B.A. in Communications from Fordham University and an M.A. from the New School University.

You can view her work and follow her blog at www.daniellesonnenberg.com and email her at DanielleSonnenberg@mac.com.

David Nelson is a Chartered Financial Analyst. He founded DC Nelson Asset Mgmt. LLC in October 2000, where in addition to his duties as CEO and Chief Investment Officer, he is the Portfolio Manager of DC Nelson Partners LP, a long/short equity fund. His journey from “Rock to Stocks” has been a focus of media attention since he first came to the Street. After a long and successful career as recording artist and music producer, David made the switch from Bourbon Street to Wall Street in 1992 when he joined Merrill Lynch.

In 1995 he was invited to join Morgan Stanley where he played a role in management at their World Trade Center office. He took on the duties of Portfolio Manager at Lehman Brothers’s flagship office in New York City from 1997 to the inception of his firm in 2000.

Nelson's investment career follows his well-publicized success in the entertainment industry where he performed with recording artists The Turtles, David Johansen, and Nektar. He is a frequent commentator and guest on Fox News, Bloomberg TV and the BIZ Radio Network where he discusses markets, politics, and individual securities. David also frequently lectures on the financial markets, including several recent appearances before the American Association of Individual Investors (AAII).

Feel free to contact David with questions or comments at nelson@minyanville.com.

Dave Dispennette has over 20 years experience navigating the stock market. He has spent the past seven years managing his own portfolio, as well as the portfolios of friends and family. Prior to striking on his own, he was the Head Equity Strategist, Registered Options Principal, and Partner of Concord Equities' West Hampton, New York, office.

Earlier in his career, he developed his proprietary system designed to identify stocks and options poised for explosive moves while he managed high net worth and corporate accounts for a couple of Long Island investment firms. In 2005, he created The Stock Playbook, a daily investment newsletter that provides daily market analysis and high-quality stock research to help individual investors, stock brokers, traders, and other investment professionals navigate the stock market. In 2008 he released the interactive version of the newsletter in which subscribers can listen to what’s really going on in  Dispennette’s mind.

The Stock Playbook uses its proprietary system that combines CANSLIM techniques, technical and fundamental analysis, along with timing indicators, to present clear and concise instructions for each trade. He is currently in the process of starting his own hedge fund, which will follow the Playbook's methodology and invest primarily in equities, both long and short, and use an array of option strategies to boost returns.

Dispennette enjoys teaching others how to invest and guiding their investment decisions. Accordingly, he’s created The Stock Playbook to include both educational advice and real-time stock picks.

David Stockman was born in Ft. Hood, Texas in November 1946. He received his B.A. from Michigan State University in 1968. Afterward he pursued graduate studies at Harvard University, 1968-1970 and 1974-1975.

Stockman went to Washington in 1970 where he served as special assistant to U.S. Representative, John Anderson of Illinois, 1970-1972. He was executive director, U.S. House of Representatives Republican Conference, during 1972-1975.

He was elected to U.S. House of Representatives for the 95th Congress and was reelected in two subsequent elections, serving from January 1977 until his resignation January 1981.

He then became Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Ronald Reagan, serving from 1981 until August 1985. He was the youngest cabinet member in the 20th century.

In 1986 Stockman wrote a best-selling book, “The Triumph of Politics.”

After leaving government, Stockman joined Wall St. investment bank Salomon Bros. and later became a founding partner at New York-based private equity firm, The Blackstone Group. He left Blackstone in 1999 to start his own private equity fund, Heartland Industrial Partners, L.P., based in Greenwich, CT.

David Stockman lives in Greenwich, CT, with his wife Jennifer Blei Stockman. They have two daughters, Rachel and Victoria.

David W. Weigman, co-founder and managing editor of ThirdWave | Markets, has over 15 years of experience in the financial markets, serving as a stockbroker, portfolio manager and equity trader.

In 2009, he helped launch ThirdWave. This independent technical analysis research firm produces multiple subscription-based reports and delivers value-added research to clients in the equity, fixed income, currency and commodities markets. One of his firm’s key technical contributors is a Chartered Market Technician (CMT) with the Market Technicians Association. As managing editor, David ensures that subscribers receive timely and objective technical research, forecasts and advice regarding the major financial asset classes.

David graduated cum laude from Eckerd College in Saint Petersburg, Florida, with a B.A. in Economics and Management.

To contact David regarding the methods or conclusions in his work, or to inquire about ThirdWave research solutions, please call 561-310-1971 or email to david@thirdwavemarkets.com.

David Waggoner is a Chartered Market Technician (CMT) and member of the Market Technician's Association. He is the founder of TheMarketDetective.com and uses the Elliott wave principle and Fibonacci ratio analysis to uncover clues about the direction of the market. He then uses other forms of technical analysis to corroborate his findings in such a way as to assign a probability factor to them.

Waggoner has been a trader/investor full-time since 2000. He manages personal equity and provides professional market opinion to private and commercial clients.

Prior work history includes a successful career in information technology with AOL, KMPG, and the USMC.

Waggoner lives in San Diego, California, with his family. He spends his free time in the desert with a motorcycle.

Check out his Minyanville Exchange blog here.

Dennis Lamson has a financial services career spanning over twenty years. He has been employed as a registered representative with a number of large institutional broker-dealers including Dain Rauscher (1992-1998), where he was a Vice President and Manager, and Merrill Lynch (1998-2000), where he also served as a Vice President and Manager.

Since February 2000, Mr. Lamson has been principal of Geyser Futures, Inc., an NFA- and CFTC-registered Introducing Broker guaranteed by Vision Financial Markets. Additionally, since February 2008, Mr. Lamson has been principal of Lamson Capital Management, Inc., an NFA- and CFTC-registered Commodity Trading Advisor.

Mr. Lamson is the creator of Coby Lamson's proprietary trading indicator "The Lamson Grail." The Lamson Grail is an integral element of all trading models offered by Coby Lamson Capital Management.

Diane Bullock got her first paid writing gig in 2000 with a $25 satirical article in a weekly North Carolina newspaper. She's since written comedy for HBO, VH1, Modern Humorist, Fuse, Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update, and others. Diane served The Onion as a contributing writer for several years, wrote an original pilot for Comedy Central, authored a book in the Would You Rather...? series, and was featured in Cassette From My Ex: Stories and Soundtracks of Lost Loves. Diane is currently shopping around her first feature film script.

Don McPherson uses the power and appeal of sport to address complex social issues. His educational programs have reached more than 1 million people throughout North America, over the past 20 years. With testimony before the US Congress and national media appearances, including Oprah, Don McPherson is a highly recognized leader and voice on sports and social issues.

McPherson is the creator and host of “Training for Life,” a life skills program on MSG Varsity and a principal of G9 Turf, Inc. a synthetic turf company that brings unmatched innovation, maintenance and safety to the synthetic turf industry.

McPherson was a unanimous All-America quarterback at Syracuse University and is a veteran of the NFL and Canadian Football League. As captain of the undefeated 1987 Syracuse football team, McPherson set 22 school records, led the nation in passing and won more than 18 national “player of the year” awards, including the Maxwell Award as the nation’s best player, the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award and the inaugural Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. He was second in the Heisman Trophy voting. In 2008 McPherson was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.

Read more about Don at his site, donaldmcpherson.com.

Dr. Janice Dorn is believed to be the only Ph.D. (Brain Anatomist) and M.D. (Board-Certified Psychiatrist and Addiction Psychiatrist) and graduate of Coach University in the world who actively trades, writes commentary on the financial markets, and manages a subscription-based website. Dr. Dorn has been trading the gold futures markets full-time since 1993.

She has written over 1,500 articles on trader and investor psychology, and mentored/coached over 600 traders and investors. Her first book, Personal Responsibility: The Power Of You was published in 2008. She writes on all aspects of trading psychology/radical wellness and longevity and provides consulting and real-time trading services on her website: www.thetradingdoctor.com.

Mason is a graduate of the Wharton School and worked on Wall Street for fifteen years. He is a member of Miles Franklin, a boutique bullion house that has focused exclusively on trading, market making, and delivery of physical metals to institutional and retail clients for over twenty years. His views do not necessarily represent those of the firm.

Evan Lazarus is the Chief Knowledge Officer of T3 Live. He leads the company’s strategic vision for trader education and manages all of T3 Live’s intellectual property. Mr. Lazarus employs a technical swing trading strategy. Experience: Mr. Lazarus has been in the equity trading business for 11 years. After three successful years at Freelance Equity Trading, LLC, he took a managing director position at Sperling Enterprises, LLC. At Sperling Enterprises, Mr. Lazarus, along with Scott Redler, managed the firm’s traders and developed its highly successful training program. His core competency lies in understanding the difficult psychological aspect of trading, and his ability to mentor other traders drove much of the firm’s consistent success. Mr. Lazarus became a partner in Sperling Enterprises in 2006 and stepped into the role of Chief Operating Officer for the company. In 2007, he helped facilitate the merger between Nexis Capital and Sperling Enterprises. Mr. Lazarus now manages all trading content at T3 Live.com and T3 Capital Management.

Education: Mr. Lazarus received a B.A. in Communications from the University of Miami. Personal Statement: We created T3 Live to start a revolution. At the heart of our revolution is one simple philosophy: A great organization must not only accommodate the fact that each trader is different, it must capitalize on these differences. It must watch for clues to each trader’s natural talents and then position and develop each trader so that his or her talents are transformed into bona fide strengths. By changing the way we select, measure, develop and channel the careers of our traders, our revolutionary organization will build its entire enterprise around the strengths of each person.

“Do it because you Love it.” –Fortune Cookie

Gary Stern collaborated on Minority Rules: Turn Your Ethnicity into a Competitive Edge (Harper Collins) and The Trouble with HR (Amacom). He's also written for Investor's Business Daily, The Wall Street Journal, and New York Observer.

Glenn Curtis started his career in the 1990s as an equity analyst at Cantone Research -- a regional broker/dealer in New Jersey. There, he covered companies in entertainment and gaming.

At Prudential Securities he was responsible for building out the financial content of that company's website. Curtis has also worked as a financial writer at a series of both web and print publications, including TheStreet.com/RealMoney.com, Worldlyinvestor.com, IndividualInvestor.com, Registered Rep Magazine, and Advanced Trading Magazine.

In addition, he has also provided market-related commentary and research for some of America's largest hedge funds. Curtis has held his series 6, 7, 24, and 63 securities licenses.

Hervé is a veteran of 30-year of market activity on the official sector side (central banks, International Financial Organizations) with first hand experience of FX and fixed income markets. He is now consulting for official and private institutions, targeting International financial organizations, sovereign wealth funds, central banks, commercial and investment banks, hedge funds.

In parallel to his professional career, he has a successful track record as a personal investor in stocks, bonds and commodities over several decades.

His market experience from an unusual perspective (the nexus between policy making and investors/traders) gives him unparalleled insight into the post-crisis world of capital markets.

Holmes R. Osborne III is a private money manager, founder of investment newsletter StockRoyalty.com, and frequent author of financial columns.

He has a degree in finance from the Martin J. Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University and is a CFA charter holder. Osborne is a member of the Pacific Council on International Relations, Malibu Rotary, Business Forum International, Applied Behavioral Finance, and was formerly on the board of the LA National Association of Business Economists. He spoke this year at the fifth annual Value Investor Conference.

He can be reached at www.holmesosborne.com.

Howard L. Simons, President of Rosewood Trading, Inc. (AKA Simons Research), and strategist to Bianco Research has a broad and deep background in financial markets. He has served as an economist, oil trader, trading systems designer, director of research, and professor of finance. Simons writes on macroeconomic and financial market topics including fixed-income, commodities, currencies, derivatives and equity markets.

In addition to more than 800 articles published in various journals and financial Websites, Simons is the author of The Dynamic Option Selection System: Analyzing Markets & Managing Risk (John Wiley & Sons, 1999).

Mr. Simons' educational background includes as BA in international relations from the Johns Hopkins University, a MA in international economics from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and a MBA in finance and econometrics from the University of Chicago.

Jack Lavery is Chairman, CEO, and Chief Economist of Lavery Consulting Group, L.L.C. (LCG), an economic and public policy research firm specializing in client presentations. LCG focuses on serving financial institutions, money managers, and corporate clients, including those seeking to impact high net worth individuals.

Lavery had an extraordinary 20-year career at Merrill Lynch & Co., from which he retired in 2000 to become Visiting Professor and Executive in Residence at Seton Hall University. In mid-2001 he launched LCG.

He built and orchestrated Merrill Lynch’s Global Securities Research & Economics complex for eleven years as SVP. Lavery also was the executive running Merrill Lynch’s worldwide Global Equities business for three years, and served as Director of Corporate Strategy for ML & Co. for one year. Lavery created and ran the Firm’s Public Policy Research Group.

Lavery joined Merrill Lynch in 1981 as Chief Economist and Director of Economic Research of Merrill Lynch & Co. before assuming broader management responsibilities as head of the then-merged Securities Research & Economics Division in September 1984. He was a member of the Institutional Investor “All America Research Team” in Economics in each of his four years as Chief Economist of Merrill Lynch.

Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, Lavery was Senior Vice President, Chief Economist, and Director of Investment Research at Provident National Bank (now PNC) in Philadelphia.

Lavery began his career as an economist with the Western Electric Company and later joined Aetna Life and Casualty where he rose to be Assistant Director of Economic and Corporate Planning.

He has taught full-time at Niagara University and was an adjunct member of the graduate school MBA faculties of the University of Hartford and LaSalle University in Philadelphia. In academic year 2000-01, Lavery taught on the undergraduate and MBA faculty of the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University.

Lavery served for five years on the Advisory Board of the Center for Economic Policy Studies (CEPS) at Princeton University. Lavery is a member of the Advisory Board of the Financial Markets Research Center of the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. Lavery also serves as Chairman of the Board of Advisors to the Business School of the University of Maine. Lavery is a lifetime member emeritus of the Board of Directors of the National Council on Economic Education. Lavery has been a member of the National Association of Business Economics for 40 years, and hosted NABE’s 1976 annual meeting in Philadelphia.

Lavery served for three years on the Board of Governors of the National Association of Securities Dealers. Lavery has served as Chairman of the Board of the Lupus Foundation of America (LFA) and also on the Board of the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) Foundation. Lavery’s vision led to the creation of the Lupus Research Institute (LRI), an organization dedicated to finding the cause and cure of lupus. Lavery is Co-Chairman of the LRI.

After graduating from the University of Connecticut with a Ph.D. in X-ray Crystallography, Jim joined Advest, Inc. in Hartford, Connecticut as a biotechnology analyst in 1981. In 1987, he moved to The Travelers Insurance Company where he invested in alternative energy projects and telecommunications. In 1998, he started the venture capital program at Travelers which he managed until 1997. In 1997, he founded Lantern Hill Capital which provides management consulting services to start-up companies.

He has been an active trader since 1998, taking occasional breaks from daily trading when he returned to his academic roots to serve as a part-time Adjunct Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of Connecticut from 2001-04.

James Kostohryz has accumulated almost two decades of investment and trading experience that has spanned a variety of asset classes across the entire globe.

Kostohryz got started in the investment business working as an emerging markets analyst for one of the US’s largest asset management firms. There, he covered sectors as diverse as banking, energy, construction, and metals and mining. Later, Kostohryz became head of international investments for a major investment bank in Brazil, working out of Rio de Janeiro and New York.

For the past several years, Kostohryz has been devoting his time to various entrepreneurial and personal ventures outside of the capital markets arena. However, recognizing a once-in-a-lifetime trading and investment opportunity, Kostohryz started shorting and buying puts on banks and oil companies in September 2008 and had covered his bearish positions by October of 2008. In March 2009, he went long a portfolio of stocks, effectively identifying a trough in the financial crisis.

Kostohryz's background, experiences, and interests are quite varied: Born in Mexico, he grew up between south Texas and Colombia, has lived and worked in nine different countries, and has traveled extensively in more than 50 others. Kostohryz actively pursues various intellectual interests and is currently working on a book that explores the role of culture in economic development. He is a former NCAA decathlete and has stayed active in a variety of sports.

Kostohryz graduated with honors from both Stanford University and Harvard Law School.

Jared Woodard is the principal of Condor Options, a New York-based research firm focusing on market neutral trading strategies. Condor Options publishes an educational newsletter teaching iron condors and volatility-based options trading, with a focus on risk management and quantitative analysis.

Woodard has over a decade of experience trading options, equities, and futures, and has been quoted in various media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The Chicago Sun-Times, and Stocks, Futures, and Options Magazine. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in philosophy, and thinks that the unexamined life is no more worth living than the unexamined security is worth trading.

Jarrod Dicker is an Editor at Minyanville Multimedia, Inc.

Born and bred in New Jersey, Jarrod spent half his collegiate tenure at the University of Colorado where he majored in harvesting oranges. As a result of an abysmal cropping season, the other half of his bachelors was spent at Rutgers University, New Brunswick where he majored in English Studies.

While away from Minyanville, his time is spent writings articles for music themed publications. Jarrod has interviewed musicians for Staythirsty Magazine, Ultimate Guitar, Jambase and more. He also loves art, the Yankees and more importantly, eating.

www.sentimentrader.com

Gold Stock Trades Editor Jeb Handwerger is a highly sought-after stock analyst syndicated internationally and known throughout the financial industry for his accurate and timely analysis of the equities markets, particularly the precious metals sector. Subscribe to his free newsletter right now at: http://goldstocktrades.com.

Jeff Harding is a real estate investor and former lawyer in Santa Barbara, California. He is a principal of Montecito Realty Investors, LLC. He has many years of experience in business cycles related to real estate investments and finance. He also was financing director of a home builder. He writes the economics blog, The Daily Capitalist.

Jeff Cooper is the writer of Jeff Cooper's Daily Market Report.

After graduating from New York University, Cooper moved to Los Angeles where he and a partner started Dogtown Skates. He began his trading career at Drexel Burnham in 1981 in Beverly Hills.

After a few years there, he left to work for his father's private hedge fund. In 1986, Cooper went out on his own, choosing to trade exclusively for himself. After establishing a successful career as a private trader, he went on to write two best-selling books: Hit and Run Trading, The Short-Term Trader's Bible, and Hit and Run Trading 2, Capturing Explosive Short-Term Moves In Stocks, as well as a course, Jeff Cooper On Dominating The Day Trading Market. Buy them here.

In addition to his books, Cooper has also released a DVD, Intra-Day Trading Strategies: Proven Steps to Trading Profits and a DVD course, Unlocking the Profits of the New Swing Chart Method (with David Reif) which presents the first unified market theory and a practical explanation of the Gann Square of Nine Calculator, one of the most powerful tools for forecasting time and price.

After co-founding a financial markets Internet site in 1999, Cooper moved on to write a column and a trading service at TheStreet.com until 2006.

Today, Cooper consults and trades for himself from his home in Malibu, California where he lives with his wife and daughter.

Jeff welcomes comments and feedback at cooper@minyanville.com.

To register for a free trial to Jeff Cooper's Daily Market Report, click here.
To purchase any of Jeff's books or DVDs, click here.

Jerry Slusiewicz has over two decades of professional investment experience. He has worked with individuals and institutions to manage monies for both short and long-term investment horizons. This extensive experience through various stock and bond market cycles enables him to offer a unique blend of professional investment counsel and personal service.

Jerry's engineering background has helped him develop investment methods that combine both fundamental and technical analysis. He uses a "defensive style" when it comes to investing, as he believes that it is not what you make but rather what you keep that counts.

Jerry uses humor and analogies when writing to attempt to communicate on all ...More levels of investor sophistication. He was the former host of his own call-in radio program where listeners asked on-air questions about investing. He also writes about life issues including retirement, inheritance, estate planning, money management, divorce, financial abuse, and children's education.

Very active in his community, Jerry serves on the Orange County Treasurers Advisory Committee, which oversees $7 billion in county funds, was the former Chair of the City of Laguna Niguel's Investment, Banking, and Oversight Board, and currently serves as the Chair of the Laguna Niguel Planning Commission. He also coaches and referees for his local youth sports leagues.

Jesse H. Thompson is the chief market strategist and principal for a global macro hedge fund. He is a global markets analyst, trading strategist,and a developer of proprietary trading algorithms and analytical software. His 30-year career has been entirely devoted to applied technical analysis.

From 1978 to 1981, he was a top commodities & futures broker for EF Hutton. In 1982, he founded Thompson & Price, where he spearheaded a 12-year research & development project focused on applied technical analysis.

From 1994 to 2004, he was President of Trend Dynamics, Inc. and Editor-in-Chief of Trend Dynamics, a monthly professional journal devoted to applied technical analysis. Trend Dynamics, Inc. also served as a trading consultant for proprietary traders and investors world-wide.

From 2004 to 2007, he spearheaded a three-year research & development project on real-time detection of market inefficiencies in variable timeframes. In 2008, he founded Decimal Three Software LLC, where he continues to develop and refine proprietary trading algorithms based on non-linear market dynamics.

Thompson's writes a daily stock market briefing, Chart News Daily, which is religiously read by fund managers, CTAs and professional traders world-wide. Published by Axis Analytics, Chart News Daily also appears frequently in the Buzz & Banter.

Thompson holds a bachelor's degree in Economics from Cal State University, at Fresno.

Thompson resides in the central coast of California where he is married to Kristie; they have two daughters, Anna and Grace.

Please feel free to contact Jess at thompson@minyanville.com.

Jill Jacinto is an assistant editor at Minyanville. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst with degrees in journalism and history. While at UMass, Jacinto was a member of Delta Zeta as well as resident weather girl for UMass TV. She also studied abroad in Florence, Italy, where she focused on art history, Italian wine, and Italian foods.

She was born and raised in Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, and now resides in New York City.

Jill enjoys traveling around the world and hopes to visit every country on the map. She works closely with the Taglit Birthright Israel Organization. Also, Jill serves as the Events Manager for the Ruby Peck Foundation for Children's Education.

Jim Letourneau is a motivational speaker, geologist, communications specialist, and the editor of an investment newsletter living Calgary, Alberta. With the unique perspective of geologist and investor, his expertise is sought all over the world. Letourneau has served as an expert witness in front of Canada's National Energy Board and is frequently quoted and interviewed in national media including the CBC, Resource World Magazine and HoweStreet.com. You can read Letourneau's blog at www.jimletourneau.com and contact him at jletourneau@minyanville.com.

John Cassimatis has been managing his own capital for 14 years. Starting at day trading pioneer Datek Securities in 1995, Cassimatis’s first exposure to the market was trading technology shares. In 1998 he opened up a Tradescape branch in Denver, Colorado.

Eager for a break, Cassimatis took a few years off around the turn of the millennium to relax and recuperate. Concerned about the dollar, Cassimatis reemerged as a commodity futures trader in 2002, specializing in gold and silver. He won Kitco’s writing contest, ”So You Think You Can Rant,” having demonstrated his keen understandings regarding the metals markets, their pricing, psychology, and driving determinants. Cassimatis also trades currency, agricultural, interest rate, and energy futures for his one-man fund.

A graduate of Bucknell University in 1994 with an Economics degree, Cassimatis now lives outside of Philadelphia with his wife, Jessica, and housemate, Matty, among six cats and dogs. He has recently taken to architecture and interior design. A house music DJ for 10 years, Cassimatis shows he's not your ordinary economist.

His other main project is a series of three memoirs, which he has written over the last eight years, about the trials of his life. A lover of any hot debate, Cassimatis keeps a blog, The Midnight Rambler, at www.johnnysrambler.blogspot.com, focusing on discussions of current economic and political malaise. He's a published poet, and regularly writes gold commentaries for Bullion giant Kitcon. He's also had appearances on Korelin economics report. He is excited to be joining the Minyanville team.

John Mauldin is a prolific writer and investment advisor. He is a two-time New York Times best-selling author with Just One Thing: Twelve of the World’s Best Investors Reveal the ONE Strategy You Can’t Overlook and Bull’s Eye Investing. He is also editor of the Internet e-letter, Thoughts from the Frontline, which goes to over 1,000,000 readers each week. He is president of Millennium Wave Investments, and primarily focuses on helping high-net-worth investors analyze and invest in hedge funds and private offerings.You can visit his website at www.johnmauldin.com or email him at mauldin@minyanville.com.

John F. Wasik is the author of 13 books, including the Audacity of Help: Obama's Economic Plan, the Remaking of America (www.audacityofhelp.net), and The Cul-de-Sac Syndrome (www.culdesacsyndrome.com).

Jon Markman provides daily investment commentary in his Strategic Advantage and Trader's Advantage advisory services and weekly column at MSN Money. A pioneer in the development of stock-rating systems and screening software, Markman is co-inventor on two Microsoft patents and author of the best-selling books Swing Trading and Online Investing. He was portfolio manager and senior investment strategist at a multi-strategy hedge fund from 2002 to 2005; managing editor and columnist at CNBC on MSN Money from 1997 to 2002; and an editor, investments columnist, and investigative reporter at the Los Angeles Times from 1984 to 1997.

Markman won a Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Financial Journalism for his columns explaining market chicanery in 2002; Society of Professional Journalists awards for his 2001 reporting on Enron and the post-September 11 investment environment; and was a news editor on Los Angeles Times staffs that won Pulitzer Prizes for spot-news reporting in 1992 and 1994. A graduate of Duke University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, he speaks frequently on investment topics at conferences nationwide as well as on TV and radio.

Josh Lipton is a Staff Writer at Minyanville, where he covers Business & Markets. Josh joins Minyanville from Forbes.com, where he was a Staff Writer reporting on stock market activity and trends. Previously, he was an Assistant Editor for The American Lawyer magazine.

His work has been published in Rolling Stone, New York, and the Wall Street Journal, among other publications.

Josh is a 1997 graduate of Colgate University. He received dual Masters from the London School of Economics and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Justin Rohrlich is the Emmy Award-winning Head Writer of Minyanville's World In Review, the world's first (and only) animated business news show.

Rohrlich began his career in 1992 as a junior copywriter at McCann-Erickson Worldwide, where he cut his teeth on the Manufacturers Hanover Trust and Coca-Cola accounts and helped launch the General Motors credit card.

After gaining experience creating campaigns for a diverse roster of clients including Electronic Data Systems, Pepsi-Cola, DuPont, Smith Barney, Crain’s New York Business, Domecq Brands’ Sauza Tequila, Tanqueray, Fast Company Magazine, Citizen Watches, Little Caesars Pizza, and Staples, Inc. at agencies such as Deutsch, BBDO, Grey Global, and Cliff Freeman & Partners, Rohrlich rejoined McCann as a Senior Creative Director and one of the youngest Senior Vice Presidents in the company’s history.

While there, he was responsible for creating and overseeing $40 million worth of television and print advertising.

Seeking something different (but not quite sure what), Rohrlich left for Rome without a return ticket or an understanding of one word of Italian. While sitting in a café, he resolved to communicate solely in Italian and force the issue of learning the language. He started a casual conversation with another diner who turned out to be Tamara Gregoretti, the then-chairwoman of La7, the third major network in Italy, currently owned by Telecom Italia and known for its cultural offerings.

Over fruit and espresso, Rohrlich was hired on as Consulente Esterno to help create a documentary series called “ Americana ” which was hosted by Gianni Riotta, a highly-regarded journalist with Corriere della Sera, Italy’s most widely-read daily newspaper. With just over two weeks to air and as the only American on the staff, Rohrlich was charged with structuring, arranging, and researching interviews for hour-long profiles on figures from George W. Bush to Eminem to Stephen King to Kobe Bryant.

He returned to the States a year later, fluent in Italian and 30 pounds heavier.

Rohrlich’s dispatches from the field now are financial in focus and often cut through the spin that his years in the advertising trenches taught him how to perform himself.

Justin has been cited for creativity in advertising by The Cannes Advertising Festival, The One Show, Communication Arts, Luerzer’s Archive, the New York Festivals, and the Radio Mercury Awards. He has been quoted and interviewed in Creativity Magazine and the New York Times. Justin has also been represented as a screenwriter by the William Morris Agency and ICM and has had two screenplays optioned.

Justin Sharon authors our Minyan Morning Memo. He has extensive experience on Wall Street, most recently at the Private Client unit of Merrill Lynch. A 12-year spell in its research department encompassed the eras of Blodget, boom, bust, and Bank of America. Outside interests include British soccer, the legacy of schooldays spent in Scotland. In the spirit of client service, he welcomes your comments and suggestions.

Keith Fitz-Gerald is the Investment Director of the Money Map Press, the Money Map Report, and Editor of the New China Trader. He began his career 20 years ago at Wilshire Associates, one of the world’s premier financial consulting firms.

Since joining Money Map Press in 2007, Fitz-Gerald and the Money Morning Team have helped over 170,000 subscribers in 25 countries successfully capture profits, generate income, and weather the current financial storm despite extremely challenging market conditions.

A frequent traveler who lives part-time each year in Asia, he believes in "boots on the ground" when it comes to identifying opportunities, Fitz-Gerald is a popular, highly sought-after speaker at financial conferences around the world.

He’s also a recognized pioneer of using non-linear theory for market prediction, risk management, and portfolio construction, and recently was named a founding member of the Kenos Circle, a Vienna-based think tank whose members work with institutional, corporate, and government clients worldwide to predict future economic and financial events.

Kevin A. Tuttle (KAT) is the CEO and Chief Equity Strategist of Tuttle Asset Management, LLC, which serves as the General Partner and Manager of long/short equity hedge funds. Tuttle is also the President and Co-founder of the Orlando-based retail asset management firm Church Street Capital, LLC, where he manages a fee-based long only growth portfolio for high net worth clientele.

As an industry-recognized technician, Tuttle has been in the financial profession since 1991, where he graduated from Colorado State University  with a Bachelors of Science degree in Economics and a minor in Statistics. Prior to opening his own firm in 2004, he was employed by Wachovia Securities Financial Network, LLC. Tuttle has been a market technician since 1996 and has used quantitative analysis in his investment process starting in 1998. Mr. Tuttle has distinguished himself throughout the financial industry with his signature 100-year long-term market theory (100 Year Dow Chart) and unique quantitative and technical approach to managing assets.

All stock charts provided courtesy of WONDA.

Mr.Tuttle welcomes your feedback at tuttle@minyanville.com. 

www.tuttleassetmanagement.com

Kevin Grewal is the founder, editor and publisher of ETF Tutor and serves as the editor at www.SmartStops.net, where he focuses on mitigating risk and implementing exit strategies to preserve equity. Additionally, he is the editor at The ETF Institute, which is the only independent organization providing financial professionals with certification, education, and training pertaining to exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Prior to this, Grewal was a quantitative analyst at a small hedge fund where he constructed portfolios dealing with stock lending, exchange-traded funds, arbitrage mechanisms and alternative investments. He is an expert at dealing with ETFs and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California along with a MBA from the California State University, Fullerton.

Kevin Wassong is President of Minyanville Publishing & Multimedia, LLC.

Kevin Wassong is an Emmy Award winning Executive Producer and President of Minyanville Publishing & Multimedia, a next-generation digital network that creates branded business content to entertain, inform, and educate all generations about the world of business and finance.

Wassong joined the start-up in March 2005 after creating and building one of the first "new media" agencies, "digital@jwt" within the major global advertising agency, J. Walter Thompson.

During his seven years as President and then CEO, Kevin grew digital@jwt into a top-10 digital marketing and advertising agency, boasting a roster of blue-chip clients serviced by more than 200 specialists in technology, database marketing, design, and production throughout eight offices in North America. He was named to MediaPosts 50 Most Influential People in Online Advertising.

With a diverse background in marketing, communications, technology, and entertainment, Wassong spearheaded the development of various digital communications firsts. He was instrumental in creating Sotheby’s first website; Mercedes-Benz’s first networked kiosk system; and the first-ever user-generated commercial website for Unilever’s Lever 2000. At Minyanville, Wassong has been instrumental in building the world's first financial "Theme Brand" and bringing the first animated financial news show to TV and the web, “Hoofy and Boo’s News & Views."

Prior to his career in marketing management, Wassong worked as an assistant to the Chairman of Creative Artists Agency, as well as a television development executive on shows such as The Golden Girls, Empty Nest and a host of others.

Wassong has been on the cover of the Wall Street Journal and featured on FOX Business Network, CNN, CNBC, the New York Times, BusinessWeek, Wired Magazine, Adweek, and Advertising Age.

Wassong resides in Westchester, New York and graduated with from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University.

Mr. Wassong welcomes your comments and/or feedback at kevin@minyanville.com.

Kristin Graham is an analyst at Evalueserve, a leading Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) firm. She is a former analyst and financial editor for The Motley Fool, where she frequently wrote columns highlighting the consumer sector on Fool.com and specialized in global equities on the Fool’s international newsletter.

Kristin currently resides in Shanghai, China, and has extensive global experience after sailing around the world on the Semester At Sea study abroad program. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Duquesne University School of Business with a dual degree in Finance and Investment Management in 2006. Kristin is a Level 3 candidate in the Chartered Financial Analyst program.

Please feel free to contact her at kristin@minyanville.com.

Lance Lewis is the principal of Lewis Capital, a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) in Dallas, Texas. He is responsible for portfolio management and investment research for all of the company's managed assets.

Lewis is a value-oriented investor that has been trading and analyzing financial markets for the past 15 years. He has been sourced in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, US News & World Reports, and the New York Post. In addition, Lewis writes a daily market letter at www.dailymarketsummary.com.

Before founding Lewis Capital in February of 2002, Mr. Lewis was with David W. Tice & Associates, where he was an analyst with a primary focus on technology and gold mining equities. He was also a trader for the Prudent Bear Fund and Safe Harbor Fund and author of the Prudent Bear's popular daily web column, “Market Summary.” Prior to that, Mr. Lewis was an auditor with Arthur Andersen LLP.

Lewis received a Bachelor of Arts from Baylor University and graduated as a University Scholar with a focus in accounting, finance, economics, history, and English. He also has a Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas School of Law in Austin.

Email address: llewis@dailymarketsummary.com.

Lawrence G. McDonald has written a book on the fall of Lehman Brothers, with Patrick Robinson, the #1 New York Times best selling author of Lone Survivor.

�A Colossal Failure of Common Sense - the Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers,� was published by Random House 7/21/09, and hit the New York Times bestseller list in its first week. It is now one of the bestselling business books in the world, translated into 12 different languages. Mr. McDonald is a Managing Director at Pangea Capital Management LP, based in New York City.

Mr. McDonald has been a guest and or contributor on CNBC, MSNBC, the New York Times, Fortune, CNN, CCTV China, France 24, BBC World, BBC America, Barron�s, Channel 4 News London, Bloomberg TV, Fox TV, Fox Radio, CBS, PBS Frontline and NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, CBC News Canada, Business Week, The Economist, Die Zeit Germany, Tokyo TV, the Financial Times, Time Magazine, NPR, and the New York Post.

From July 2004 through September 2008, Mr. McDonald was a Vice President of Distressed Debt and Convertible Securities Trading at Lehman Brothers. In early 2006, Mr. McDonald was part of a faction that called the subprime crisis, then he made over $46 million for the firm during its implosion.

Leonidas (Leo) Isaak began investing in 1988 at age 13 when he bought 100 shares of Price Club.

Leo graduated from Millsaps College in 1997 with a BBA in Finance, while doing his grunt work at Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch. After graduation, Leo became an independent investment advisor and has spent much of the last 13 years developing his trading and portfolio management ideology which is based upon global macroeconomic fundamentals.

In 2009, he founded Axios Capital Advisors, LLC, a Texas Registered Investment Advisor, with the desire to bring hedged investment management to non-accredited investors. "Axios" is a Greek word meaning "worthy".

Lila MacLellan is features editor at Minyanville.com. Before joining Minyanville, she was senior health editor at Natural Health magazine for two years. She has also worked as articles editor at Institutional Investor magazine in New York, and as associate editor at Western Living and Vancouver magazines in Vancouver, Canada. She is the past winner of two Western Magazine Awards and is currently completing an MFA in Creative Writing (Non-fiction) at The New School. She can be reached at lila@minyanville.com.

Lisa Caccioppoli has a master’s degree in the Fine Arts, making her as adept at stocking shelves on the night shift at Petsmart as she is at teaching art theory at Northwestern University (both of which she’s done in her career -- fortunately, in that order).

If you can’t find her copy editing or writing, she’s either in her painting studio preparing for another exhibition, or eating oranges.

Lisa welcomes your feedback at caccioppoli@minyanville.com.

Lisa LaMotta is a Staff Writer at Minyanville, covering Business & Markets.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Lisa had a dream of pursuing a career in journalism; which was only overshadowed by her passion for making marmalade and a love of oranges.

In a pursuit to combine both interests, Lisa obtained a degree in Magazine Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. (Go Orange!)

She joined Minyanville from Forbes.com, where she was a Staff Writer reporting on market trends in the health care sector. She also spent part of her time with Forbes.com covering entrepreneurs and small business. Previously, Lisa worked for PRWeek magazine reporting on a variety of topics in the public relations sector.

Her work has appeared in the New York Press, Fast Company, Oncology & Biotech News, and Genomics & Proteomics.

Readers can send comments and questions to Lisa at lamotta@minyanville.com or follow her on Twitter at BioWriterChik.

Marc Eckelberry, founder and CEO, is a professional trader based in Los Angeles with 18 years of experience trading futures and options. Through his writings -- in both public and paid services on the Web since 2004 -- he has enabled traders around the world to get a better grasp of the markets. His e-mini trading system and the accuracy of his entries and exits has gained him a loyal following throughout the years.

Marissa Carl is a Copy Editor with degrees in Journalism and Women's Studies from Penn State University. She thoroughly enjoys knitting for activism, independent films, water sports, and reading newspapers.

Marissa has previously contributed her efforts to the Wall Street Journal, Family Circle magazine, and La Mujer Obrera.

Marissa welcomes your feedback at mcarl@minyanville.com.

Mark Bloudek graduated from Gonzaga University with a BS in civil engineering in 1996. Upon graduation, he went to work as a structural engineer for The Boeing Company in Everett, Washington.

After more than five years with Boeing, Bloudek began working with his current business partner in early 2002. He has specialized in Arbitrage trading in the FX market, private venture funding, gaming, and alternative investments for five years. He is also Managing Director at Armada Capital Partners in Seattle, Washington, heading up all alternative and strategic investments.

In his spare time, he volunteers as a youth running coach and is an avid distance runner with numerous accomplishments, including winner of the Seattle half marathon. He currently calls Seattle, Washington his home.

Mark Goulston is a psychiatrist, business consultant, executive coach, and trained hostage-negotiators for the FBI. A bestselling author whose books include Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone, Get Out of Your Own Way, Get Out of Your Own Way at Work, and The 6 Secrets of a Lasting Relationship: How to Fall in Love Again...and Stay There.

He writes a column on leadership for Fast Company as well as a syndicated column, "Solve Anything with Dr. Mark," for Tribune Media Services. Mark blogs for The Huffington Post, Daily Speculations, Basil and Spice. Frequently called upon to share his expertise with the media, he has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Newsweek, Time, and Reuters. He has offered commentary on NPR, CNN, and Fox News; and has appeared on the Oprah and Today shows. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

In 1976, after several years as a research chemist for Monsanto, Mark Wolfinger moved to Chicago to become a CBOE market maker. Over the next 23 years, he was a market maker, risk manager, and coach for new traders.

Mark left the CBOE in 2000 and began writing, publishing 3 books and numerous magazine articles. He stresses conservative methods, as detailed in his newest book, The Rookie’s Guide to Options. He can be reached via email at blog@mdwoptions.com and on Twitter as MarkWolfinger.

Matt Ford is an associate professor of management in the Haile/US Bank College of Business at Northern Kentucky University.

Since the venture’s early days, Ford has been helping to develop Minyanville’s presence in the university community, which has led to his unofficial title of "Dean of University of Minyanville." Part of this effort has involved research into the relationship between web-based learning technologies and development of financial market awareness among college students.

Ford has been recognized for both outstanding teaching and scholarship, including six college-level teaching awards and two conference best paper awards. His research has been published in peer reviewed journals such as Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Quality Management Journal, Business Horizons, Journal of Education for Business, and Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education.

Ford holds a BS in applied science from Miami University and a PhD in operations management from the University of Cincinnati. He is a member of the Omega Rho International Honor Society.

Prior to his academic career, Ford spent 12 years in operations and corporate management at Consolidated Papers, Inc., now part of NewPage Corporation.

He is a member of the Academy of Management, Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, Decision Sciences Institute, American Society for Quality, and American Financial Association.

Matt Theal is an Editor at Minyanville Media.

Raised in Rancho Cucamonga, CA , Matt graduated from college in three years earning a Bachelors in Finance from California State Polytechnic University Pomona. Throughout college he worked as an assistant on the trading desk of Western International Securities.

While a Junior in college, he attended a seminar where Todd Harrison was speaking. Todd gave him career advice and the two remained in contact through various emails. Theal accepted the job, packed his bags and left beautiful sunny Southern California for cold & cloudy New York City.

Matt is an avid sports fan who’s been known to gamble on almost anything (even preseason WNBA). When not trading or gambling away his rent money, Theal can be found at the gym sipping on orange flavored protein shakes.

Matthew Mallon is a writer and editor who has lived and worked in Vancouver, Tokyo and Bangkok. Currently he resides in Paris.

Melanie Lindner is a New York City-based freelance writer. She was formerly a reporter at Forbes covering entrepreneurs, small businesses, stock market activity and trends. Previously she worked at Atlanta Peach Magazine.

She has appeared on Fox News' Fox & Friends, as well as radio programs including South Florida's On The Money Radio and The United Arab Emirates' Dubai Nightline Radio. Her work has been published in Atlanta Intown Paper and New Hampshire Magazine, among other publications.

Melanie is a 2006 graduate of Emory University with a bachelors degree in Political Science and Comparative Literature.

Michael Brush is the editor of the stock newsletter Brush Up on Stocks and a weekly market columnist for MSN Money. He has also covered business and the markets for the Economist Group, the New York Times, and Money magazine. He studied business at Columbia Business School in the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship program, and he is author of the investment book Lessons From the Front Lines published by John Wiley.

Michael Comeau is a writer based in Brooklyn, New York. He blogs at LongShortTrader.com and VideoGameStocks.net.

Michael spent 2004 through 2008 at TheStreet.com, starting out as a member of the research team. Before long, he became a featured columnist across the company's network of sites, and managed an investment newsletter service.

Prior to TheStreet.com, Michael worked as a Research Analyst for Toyota Motor North America, studying the US auto industry and emerging automotive technologies.

His primary market interest is consumer electronics, particularly video games, and he has been quoted by the The New York Times, CNN Money, MacDailyNews, and GamePro, among many others.

In his spare time, he enjoys photography, cooking, and exploring his neighborhood of Sunset Park.

Michael Davis has been an independent trader for 19 years. He is a Chicago Board of Trade member, trading treasury futures since 1990. After a brief career as an attorney, Mike wanted to try his luck on the trading floors . He originally started as a market maker; standing, shouting, and shoving his way to a successful career in the trading pits of Chicago. He's been trading mostly electronically since 2003 as the action in the pits has gone the way of the cotton gin.

Along the way Mike has also run a treasury trading group, training and coaching young traders to profitability. He's also been a contributing broadcaster for a once thriving Internet market news service called "livefloortrader.com" offering market updates and opinions on the daily events or the treasury market.

Michael McCarty is the founding partner of Differential Research, LLC, an independent derivatives research firm whose focus is making the understanding and use of derivatives available for a broader audience. Mr. McCarty was previously the Chief Equity and Option Strategist at Meridian Equity Partners, where he was best known for pointing out the unusual options activity that preceded exceptional stock price moves in individual equities including Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as identifying noteworthy call buying preceding the public announcement of takeovers for companies including Barr Labs and EDS. Mr. McCarty is a frequent guest on Bloomberg TV, Fox Business News, and CNBC, in addition to being quoted regularly by the financial press.

Born in the Republic of Panama and raised in Central Florida, Mr. McCarty’s fascination with the financial markets came early on, first studying finance and history at Emory University, then obtaining a Masters Degree in Finance from New York City’s Baruch College – Zicklin School of Business. His vast knowledge and deep understanding of the equity and derivative markets as sales-trader, analyst and market strategist has accumulated a significant following of the most respected and accomplished investors worldwide.

Michael Paulenoff is author of MPTrader.com (www.mptrader.com), a real-time diary of his trading ideas and technical chart analysis of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that track equity indices, metals, energy commodities, currencies, Treasuries, and other markets. It is for traders with a three to 30-day time horizon, who use the service for guidance on both specific trades as well as general market direction.

Paulenoff graduated from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in 1979. He went on to be an analyst for Smith Barney, Harris Upham, and for Drexel Burnham Lambert. From 1988 to 1993 he was President of MJ Capital Inc., a market analysis and trading firm. In 1992-93, he co-authored, The Business-One Irwin Guide to the Futures Markets (with Stanley Kroll).

Republic National Bank recruited Paulenoff in January 1994 for the position of strategic trader, and market analyst on the bank's trading floor. In February 1999, Paulenoff founded MJP Market Strategies, Inc., a financial market advisory firm, and developed www.mjpstrategies.com in October 1999. In addition, from August 2000 through August 2001, he was the chief on-air market consultant and strategist for JAGfn, a live, daily eight-hour financial market Webcast and cable TV show produced by Jagnotes, Inc.

Paulenoff has been a contributing analyst to Harry Boxer's The Technical Trader since June 2002, and in February 2003 launched MPTrader.com.

Michael Pollaro writes a column called THE CONTRARIAN TAKE at www.trueslant.com, its mission statement to present thoughts and ideas on important financial market and economic trends from the perspective of a free-market, Austrian economist.

Michael Pollaro is a retired Investment Banking professional, most recently Chief Operating Officer for the Bank's Cash Equity Trading Division. He is a passionate free market economist in the Austrian School tradition, a great admirer of the US founding fathers Thomas Jefferson and James Madison and a private investor.

Michael C. Thomsett is an investment author with dozens of published books. His projects include the best-selling Getting Started in Options (John Wiley & Sons) currently in its eighth edition and with over 250,000 copies sold. He also wrote Investment and Securities Dictionary which was named by Choice Magazine as an Outstanding Academic Book of the year. More recently he completed a book on the topic of using candlestick charts as a technical confirmation tool, to be published later this year by FT Press. Thomsett lives in Nashville and writes fulltime.

Michelle Leder first became interested in SEC filings early in her career, while writing about a small Florida bank that was engaged in aggressive accounting during the last real estate boom.

As a reporter, and later an editor, she spent 10 years at daily newspapers in Florida, Connecticut, and New York. As a freelance business journalist, her work has appeared in BusinessWeek, The New York Times, Portfolio, and Slate, among others. Leder has appeared on Bloomberg TV, CNBC, the Today show, and has been quoted in dozens of newspapers both in the US and abroad, about digging into SEC filings. Financial Fine Print (John Wiley & Sons, 2003) is her first book.

She holds a degree in Economics from Brandeis University. She blogs from footnoted.org world headquarters in Peekskill, New York, where she lives with her husband, Scott, and dog, Kumara, whom she has trained to dig through SEC filings.

Mike Shedlock, or Mish, is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management, an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance, low volatility, regardless of market direction. Shedlock, along with partner Brian McAuley, are editors of a monthly stock newsletter called The Survival Report. Shedlock has his own blog called Mish’s Global Economic Trend Analysis, currently the fourth-top-rated economic blog in the country. Mish also does weekly podcasts on Market Matters Radio, Canada's number-one economic radio program.

When he's not busy writing or talking about stocks or the economy, Shedlock is typically gardening, golfing, traveling with his wife Joanne, or taking photographic images. In regards to the latter, he has over 80 magazine/book cover credits. Some of Mish’s Wisconsin and gardening images can be seen at http://www.michaelshedlock.com.

Feel free to contact Mish Shedlock at MikeShedlock@gmail.com.

Born and raised in North Jersey, Mike Schuster has somehow molded a lifelong proclivity of crackin' wise into a steady paycheck. He spent five and a half years as a Contributing Writer for The Onion and had his work featured in Long Island Pulse, FriendSpaceBook, and other defunct ventures.

Mike also co-wrote a pilot for Comedy Central and a book in the Would You Rather... series.

Drawing upon three decades of watching sitcoms, sketch shows, and Twilight Zone reruns, he now works as a Staff Writer for Minyanville and is always on-call for any writing project in its not-fully-fleshed-out, pre-funding stages -- no matter how closely those harbingers of disaster resemble the oranges in The Godfather.

He is currently a resident of Jersey City and a survivor of chronic petulance. Find more of his witty bon mots on Twitter here and here.

Mr. Practical is truly a man of the world, traveling freely to any country, for he has access to some special sort of visa, spending from only a few weeks or months to several years in any one place.

His resources are limited, although I hear that they have become quite substantial. He is known to take almost obsessive care in his finances. In fact, rumor has it that he inherited a small sum from an uncle at a young age and since hasn't worked a day in his life, earning all he needs from his investments. His opinions and methods in this area, although well respected, are quite unique, so I was quite interested in what he had to say about the current environment.

Mr. Practical travels to and lives in a country in which he believes the currency will strengthen against the other world currencies. Wherever he goes, because almost all of his assets are liquid, he transfers these assets into the currency of that country. 

Naresh is a third-year Renée Crown University Honors Program student at Syracuse University, majoring in Finance, Accounting and Broadcast Journalism at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management and S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. A former Business & Financial Columnist for the “Daily Orange” newspaper and previous Executive Board member of the South Asian Students Association, he is a Junior Analyst for the Orange Value Fund (OVF). Known as "the Ivy League within the Whitman School," OVF students take MBA-level finance classes, learn the ins and outs of value investing philosophies, and help research, report and manage more than 1.1 million dollars of investor money.

Naresh produces – and during summer 2009, co-hosted – one of the top-rated financial talk shows in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, “The Wall Street Shuffle.” As producer, he books guests everyday and seeks media and business development opportunities to increase branding and overall listenership. Regular guests include Congressman Ron Paul, CNN Chief Business Correspondent Ali Velshi, Senate candidate Peter Schiff and Girls Gone Wild Founder Joe Francis. With more than a year’s worth of experience producing more than five business shows at the BizRadio Network and CNN Radio, Naresh has booked more than 400 guests in the fields of finance, economics, business management & consulting, self-help, leadership, sales and marketing.

A sports fanatic turned financial fledgling, Naresh has had stints with Chapwood Capital Investment Management, the Houston Rockets, Houston Astros, American Junior Golf Association, Institute for Energy Research (IER), and several other smaller companies. He serves as a member of the Foundation for Economic Education. At the Institute for Energy Research, Naresh was mentored by Dr. Robert Bradley Jr., who acted as the Director of Public Policy and speechwriter to Ken Lay at Enron. In addition, Naresh aided the Houston Rockets’ staff in selecting draft picks Aaron Brooks, Carl Landry and Donte Greene in the 2007 and 2008 NBA Drafts. The Rockets’ basketball operations department has revolutionized player evaluation by implementing a “Moneyball” approach to decision-making.

A personal tutor and former middle school assistant basketball coach, Naresh frequently donates his time to community service. Born and raised in Houston, he holds a first-degree black belt in Taekwondo and has been recognized by General Electric, Morgan Stanley and Syracuse University for his speaking, leadership and innovation talents. Naresh and his work have been featured on MSNBC, CNN Radio, SmartMoney Magazine, LewRockwell.com, BizRadio, Cape Cod Times, Hindustan Times, India Today, and many other media outlets.

Naresh welcomes your comments. Please contact him at naresh.vissa@gmail.com.

Neal Dingmann has over 10 years of experience in the investment community, with the majority of that time spent in equity research covering the energy sector. He was a 2005 Homerun Hitter per Institutional Investor Magazine and often appears on Bloomberg television and radio. Dingmann focuses on micro to mid cap E&P and Oil Service names along with situational plays of larger caps.

Dingmann earned his BA in Finance at the University of Arkansas then joined Arvest Bank Group, a private bank group run by the Walton family, where his focus was fixed-income trading. Next, Mr. Dingmann received his MBA at the University of Minnesota where he was one of the leaders in a multi-million dollar run equity fund. After graduation, Mr. Dingmann began working for Dain Rauscher in Dallas, Texas, where he covered the merchant energy group, utilities, and master limited partnerships. Then Mr. Dingmann moved to Banc of America Securities where he worked as part of the number one Oilfield Services Team as ranked by Institutional Investor Magazine. Mr. Dingmann also spent time working for MS Howells & Company as well as Pritchard Capital.

Mr. Dingmann uses his equity and fixed-income expertise to derive his comprehensive energy research, focusing on services and exploration and production companies and to provide clients with an understanding of stock specific and industry wide trends.

Nick Gwiazda is an intern at Minyanville Media. He graduated from the University of Connecticut with a major in Finance and a minor concentration is Economics. Nick's had a passion for stocks since he was sixteen. He is a closet acappella singer, loves investing, and can't eat enough oranges. In his spare time, Nick enjoys weightlifting, writing, and jumping on desks screaming out the names of various stocks.

Peter is the President and CEO of Financial Insyghts LLC. Through Financial Insyghts, Peter helps his clients better understand the issues affecting the financial services industry (particularly credit, regulation and accounting) and their impact on the economy.

Prior to forming Financial Insyghts, Peter spent almost twenty-five years working in the financial services industry. His experience includes thirteen years at JPMorgan, building and ultimately serving as Managing Director and Head of the Asset Finance Group (responsible for non-mortgage securitization), serving as Executive Vice President and Treasurer of credit card issuer First USA, Treasurer of Banc One, Chief Operating Officer of Banc One Investment Advisors, and CEO of Bank One Private Client Services.

Peter graduated from The College of William and Mary with honors, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He currently serves on the Board and Chairs the Budget and Finance Committee for the William and Mary Foundation.

www.erlangerresearch.com

Dr. Prieur du Plessis has 25 years experience in professional investment research and portfolio management. More than 1,000 of his articles on investment-related topics have been published in various regular newspapers, journals, and Internet columns. He has also published a book, Financial Basics: Investment.

du Plessis is chief executive and principal shareholder of South African-based Plexus Asset Management, which he founded in 1995. The group conducts investment management, investment consulting, private equity, and real estate activities in South Africa and other African countries.

Plexus is the South African partner of John Mauldin, author of the Thoughts from the Frontline e-letter, and also has an exclusive licensing agreement with California-based Research Affiliates for managing and distributing its enhanced Fundamental Index® methodology in the Pan-African area.

Prieur lives with his wife, television producer and presenter Isabel Verwey, and two children in Cape Town, South Africa. His recreational activities include long-distance running, reading, and motorcycling.

http://feeds.feedburner.com/wordpress/VYxj

Professor Pinch writes about macroeconomics having spent the better part of his career vacillating between financial services, market research and software firms.

The good professor received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Maryland, but only after a great deal of angst largely due to the Duke men's basketball team. From there, he worked in in the trenches of subprime lending. These were the bad old days; back when things called "pay stubs" and "appraisals" were required to actually get a home loan. From there, he went on to work at some local software and data service start-ups in the D.C. area that he's sure you never have nor ever will hear of.

After moving to Charlotte, N.C. he worked for a number of years at First Union Corp., a predecessor to Wachovia Corporation. While there, he had a variety of positions in project management, online products and services and corporate treasury.

Currently he is working on his pursuit of a CFA (he's a level 2 candidate), some writing projects and, unlike Kevin Depew, tries to avoid contact with velour at all costs.

He currently lives outside of Charlotte, N.C. with his wife and son

Przemyslaw Radomski is the founder, owner, and the main editor of www.SunshineProfits.com. Being passionately curious about the market’s behavior, he uses his statistical and financial background to question the common views and profit on the misconceptions. “Don’t fight the emotionality on the market -- take advantage of it!” is one of his favorite mottos. His time is divided mainly among analyzing various markets with emphasis on the precious metals, managing his own portfolio, writing commentaries and essays, and developing financial software. Most of the time he’s got left is spent on reading everything he can about the markets, psychology, philosophy, and statistics.

Radomski started investigating the markets for his private use well before starting his professional career. He used to work as an informatics consultant, but this time-consuming profession left him little time for his true passion -- the interdisciplinary market analysis. Establishing www.SunshineProfits.com gave him the opportunity to put his thoughts, ideas, and experience into a form available to other investors.

Quint Tatro is president and founder of Tatro Capital, LLC an investment management firm as well as managing member over a multi-strategy investment fund. Tatro also created TickerVille.com to educate individual investors on trading strategies and market opportunities.

Prior to launching his own firm, Tatro served as Vice President for a Florida-based investment company and hedge fund as well as a contributing columnist for a widely read trading and investing website. Tatro, his wife, and son live in Bradenton, Florida, however remain true Wildcat fans as both he and his wife are graduates of the University of Kentucky.

Randall Eckel is currently Managing Partner/Analyst at Marker Advisors, covering the Enterprise Software sector.  A career entrepreneur with experience spanning more than 20 years in the software sector, Mr. Eckel has founded, grown and managed a variety of software and service organizations, and has spent many years as an advisor to small- and medium-sized technology firms.  He has substantial experience in Merger & Acquisition and Management Consulting strategy, in both a CEO/President and Advisor/Broker capacity. 

Reid Holloway is a consultant, specializing in strategic development, and a Realtor, associated with The Cohen Agency of Torrington, Connecticut. He is a member of the Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, the Litchfield County Board of Realtors, the Connecticut Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors (NAR). He developed The RLH Volatility Model (http://stocksthatwiggle.com), a proprietary mathematical model for assessing and managing equity portfolio risk.

Mr. Holloway began his career as an editor with Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publications in 1976. In 1978 he joined Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., Inc. (now a unit of Alliance Capital), an investment research and management firm now handling $498 billion in client assets, where he instituted and managed the company’s communications department. In 1980 he joined specialty-chemicals giant W.R. Grace & Co., and, for seven years, handled as many as 100 speaking engagements per year for then chairman Peter Grace. He served on the presidentially appointed Grace Commission on government waste. In 1987 Mr. Holloway joined Edward S. Gordon Company, Inc. (now C.B. Richard Ellis) and directed the firm’s marketing and communications activities related to large leasing and investment transactions, such as the sale of 2.5-million-square-foot One New York Plaza to Chase Manhattan Bank. He wrote the quarterly Gordon Office Market Report, distributed to clients and the news media, tracking the entire 400-million-squarefoot office leasing market comprising Midtown and Downtown Manhattan. From 1992 through 1996 Mr. Holloway served as managing director of SGC Advisory Services Inc., a corporate-finance and money-management firm specializing in telecommunications and technology, which he co-founded.

Since 1988 Mr. Holloway has operated an independent consulting practice during which his client roster has included Young & Rubicam, Inc., Philip Morris Management Corp., Philip Morris U.S.A., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Browning-Ferris Industries and The Trump Organization.

Mr. Holloway has been published by The Christian Science Monitor and The New York Times and is a regular guest on four ClearChannel radio stations based in Monterey, California.

Mr. Holloway published studies in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008 forecasting the outcome of the Electoral College and popular vote totals. For two weeks leading up to the 2004 election, he was a nightly guest on the nationally broadcast ABC Radio Network discussing his findings with John Batchelor. In 2008, the Holloway forecast called the turnout within fewer than 4 million votes out of more than 121 million total votes cast, and his estimate for Obama’s vote count was off by about a million votes. In percentage measures, the Holloway call was, in both candidates’ cases, wide of the mark by a scant 0.72 percentage points. The technologies Holloway applies to his Electoral College forecasts are based on The RLH Volatility Model (http://stocksthatwiggle.com).
To read more of Reid's content, visit the RLH Volatility Model.

Mr. Rhodes is founder of Rhodes Capital Management (2001) and co-founder of The CoffeeTree Fund LP (2007). He serves as investment strategist and portfolio manager for RCM clients and for The CoffeeTree Fund LP. Prior to launching these entities, Mr. Rhodes spent a number of years in the international corporate finance sphere. From 1994 to 1999, he served as the Financial Director of the Moscow-based corporate consulting group Center for Business Skills Development. Thereafter, he served as on WorldCom's Strategic and Capital Planning teams, after which he went on to launch The Rhodes Report newsletter and Rhodes Capital Management, Inc.

Mr. Rhodes graduated from the University of Houston with a B.A in Russian Studies, and holds an international M.B.A. from the Thunderbird School of Global Management with an emphasis upon the Russian language, international finance and accounting.

Robert Barone received a Ph.D. in Economics from Georgetown University in 1972. His first position was as an economist for Cleveland Trust Company where he built the bank’s first computer based strategic model. In the mid-70s, he moved to a small S&L where he became the most productive S&L bond manager in the Cincinnati Federal Home Loan Bank district.

Mr. Barone then moved west, spending 5 years as the Professor of Finance at the University of Nevada. In 1984, he took control of a failing bank and spend 16 years as it Chairman and CEO, successfully selling the institution in 1999. During his tenure at Comstock Bancorp, in 1996 he became a Director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, a $250 billion quasi government agency, serving as its Chair in 2004. In 2000, he was asked to become a Director of AAA of Northern California, Nevada and Utah and a Director of its associated insurance company.

Mr. Barone currently serves on AAA’s Finance and Investment Committee which oversees $5 billion of investible assets. Mr. Barone served as Vice-Chair of those organizations from 2005 to 2007, and as their Chairman from 2007 to 2009. In 2005, he was elected to the Board of Auto Club Associates, the holding company of the auto club. Along with his son Joshua, he founded Adagio Trust Company in 2000, selling his interests in $300 million institution in 2006 to open Ancora West Advisors. In 2004, Mr. Barone became a Director of Allied Mineral Products, Columbus, OH, America’s strongest refractory company, after 25 years of valuing its ESOP shares. He is also associated with ELP Capital in Reno, NV.

Rod David developed analytical techniques that are designed to efficiently identify targets and turning points for any liquid stock or market in any time frame. He primarily applies his technique to analyzing S&Ps. The methodologies are also applied to other high-profile futures markets to generate an opinion and to identify specific actionable parameters.

Mr. David publishes his setups intraday on a blog at IfThenSignals.com, where he also hosts a live "charting room" webinar to graphically depict his patterns and targets in real-time.

Previously David was a Contributing Editor for optionMONSTER where he produced the Index Trader blog, providing intraday timing signals and targets in S&Ps and other futures markets. Prior to that, David founded AvidTrader.com in 1995, one of the original technical analysis websites. Through AvidTrader, Rod launched the web's first free-access traders chatroom in 1996 where technical analysis newcomers and experts from around the world mingle throughout each trading day.

In addition to Minyanville, David's analysis has been published or quoted in CBS MarketWatch, CNBC, The New York Times, Trader Daily, Futures Magazine, and Technical Analysis of Stocks & Commodities, among others. Rod graduated Summa Cum Laude from Park University and resides in the Kansas City area.

Ron Coby & Denny Lamson are the authors of Minyanville's Grail ETF & Equity Investor newsletter.  To learn more or for a free trial - click here.

Bio: Ron Coby, Founding Partner, CIO, Coby Lamson Capital Management

A contributing "professor" to Minyanville, Ron Coby is a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) and a Commodities Trading Advisor (CTA) with a 22 year background in securities. Starting on Wall Street in 1987, he has worked as a stockbroker, syndicate manager, investment banker, financial analyst, market strategist, venture capitalist and currently as a registered investment advisor and hedge fund manager. In May 2008, Ron co-founded Coby Lamson Capital Management, a money management firm, with his partner Dennis Lamson in Medford, OR.

Bio: Dennis Lamson Founding Partner, CEO, Coby Lamson Capital Management

Dennis Lamson's financial services career spans over 20 years and includes positions at Dain Rauscher (1992-1998) and Merrill Lynch (1998-2000), where he served as a VP and Manager at each firm. Since February 2000, Mr. Lamson has been principal of Geyser Futures, Inc. Mr. Lamson is the creator of Coby Lamson's proprietary trading indicator "The Lamson Grail," an integral element of all trading models offered by Coby Lamson Capital Management.

To learn more about Ron, Dennis, and Coby Lamson Capital Management, Inc., and the Grail, visit www.cobylamson.com.

Satyajit Das has worked in the area of financial derivatives and risk management for over 30 years. He has worked on the sell side (including Citigroup and Merrill Lynch), buy side (TNT), and as an independent consultant.

He is the author of a number of key reference works on derivatives and risk management. His works include Swaps/Financial Derivatives Library - Third Edition (2005, John Wiley & Sons) (a four-volume 4,200-page reference work for practitioners on derivatives) and Credit Derivatives, CDOs and Structured Credit Products -Third Edition (2005, John Wiley & Sons). He is the author of Traders, Guns & Money: Knowns and Unknowns in the Dazzling World of Derivatives (2006, FT-Prentice Hall), an insider's account of derivatives trading and the financial products business filled with black humor and satire. The book has been described by the Financial Times, London as " fascinating reading … explaining not only the high-minded theory behind the business and its various products but the sometimes sordid reality of the industry." He is also the author (with Jade Novakovic) of In Search of the Pangolin: The Accidental Eco-Tourist (2006, New Holland), a unique travel narrative offering passionate and often poignant insights into the natural world and the culture of eco-travel.

Scott Redler is the Chief Strategic Officer of T3 Live. He develops all trading strategies for the company and serves as the de facto face of T3 Live. Mr. Redler focuses on thorough preparation and discipline to achieve uncommon consistency as a trader. Experience: Mr. Redler has been trading equities for more than 10 years and has more recently received widespread recognition from the financial community for his insightful, pragmatic approach. He began his career as a broker and venture capitalist where he was able to facilitate relationships that led him into trading. Beginning his trading career at Broadway Trading in 1999, Mr. Redler moved on with Marc Sperling to Sperling Enterprises, LLC after establishing himself as one of the best young traders in the firm. As a manager at Sperling Enterprises, he maintained his status as a top trader in the industry while working closely with all traders in the firm to dramatically increase performance. Mr. Redler has participated in more than 30 triathlons and one IronMan triathlon, exhibiting a work ethic that also defines his trading. His vast knowledge and meticulous attention to detail has led to regular appearances on CNBC, Fox Business and Bloomberg, and he has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal and Investor’s Business Daily among other publications. Mr. Redler produces much of the media and content available to subscribers and followers.

Education: Scott received a B.B.A. in Marketing/Finance from the State University of New York at Albany, graduating Magna Cum Laude from Albany’s School of Business.

Personal Statement from Scott: In order to complete a triathlon, or, even further, an Iron Man, you need motivation, discipline, staggering mental composure and an extensive game plan. Having completed twenty-plus triathlons and one Iron Man competition, I have mastered these qualities and incorporated them into my life on every level. My trading is no exception; to be a successful trader it takes discipline, passion, a positive outlook and mental toughness. I am the first one in the office and the last one to leave. Trading is a lifestyle, one always needs to continue learning and adapt to the environment to put oneself in a position to succeed. The stoic, prepared, accountable trader will always end up on the right side.

Sean A. Udall actively trades his portfolio as well as the portfolios of friends and family. In addition, Mr. Udall provides consulting to stock traders and investment professionals. Previously, he managed client assets at Morgan Stanley and Smith Barney for nine years, specializing in discretionary portfolio management. Earlier in his career, Mr. Udall acquired broad experience in financial and investment analysis through hedging foreign currencies and interest rate risks while working in the corporate treasury departments of two prominent Silicon Valley companies, as well as conducting equity research for Fisher Investments and Wilshire Associates.

Mr. Udall invests primarily in equities, both long and short, and uses an array of option strategies. Fundamentally, he develops themes and employs a GARP investment process but does not use this exclusively. He applies technical analysis to the bulk of his buy/sell decisions unless a situation presents highly compelling valuation characteristics.

Overall, Mr. Udall has spent the past 17 years analyzing portfolios, individual securities and technical analysis in various financial markets. His expertise is in NASDAQ and financial stocks as well as IPOs. He received a BS in Finance from the University of Montana.

Shira Levine is a freelance writer based in New York. She covers the travel, real estate, pop culture, celebrity and all things luxurious.

She welcomes your comments and feedback at shiralevine@hotmail.com.

Smita Sadana is the founder and CEO of Sunrise Capital LLC, a company focused on helping investors and traders improve their skills and profit from both bull and bear markets through its subsidiary www.TraderVantage.com.

With a double Masters in Economics, Sadana has been successfully navigating the world financial markets, racking up impressive results year after year. Over the past 13 years, Sadana has achieved what most traders aspire: an astonishing track record of consistent and extraordinary trading performance. She has delivered a 43% compounded annual gain over the last 11 years, versus the S&P 500 index which is virtually unchanged in this time frame.

Sadana actively manages a substantial portfolio, trading in stocks, options, currencies, and commodities. Her success is the result of disciplined deployment of risk management techniques, technical and fundamental analysis, and a thorough understanding of trader and market psychology.

Through her activities at Sunrise Capital LLC and Tradervantage.com, Sadana has also become an active mentor, helping other traders sharpen their own skills and take charge of their financial future. Her trading tips and interviews have been published in various forums, and she also meets with local traders to share ideas and learn from each other. She is especially passionate about helping other women get more actively involved in this field, in what is largely a male-dominated profession.

Besides her keen financial knowledge and business acumen, Sadana has also won numerous awards as she distinguishes herself in academics as well as performing arts on state and national levels. In recognition of these achievements, she was also awarded the State Youth award. She’s an avid reader and enjoys writing poetry. She has a passion for charitable work and is an active member of several local organizations focused on helping the less fortunate.

Sadana graduated with a Masters in Economics from Queens University in Kingston, Canada.

Please feel free to contact Sadana at smita@minyanville.com.

Steven Birenberg is president of Northlake Capital Management, an SEC-registered investment advisor specializing in managed equity portfolios for high net worth individuals utilizing a unique strategy combining index ETFS and media and communications stocks. Birenberg is also co-owner and co-portfolio manager of the Entermedia Funds. The Entermedia funds are long/short equity hedge funds focused on media, entertainment, communications, and related technologies.

Steve welcomes your comments and questions at steve@northlakecapital.com.

Steve Reiter is Minyanville's Managing Editor. He comes from the suburbs of New Jersey and graduated from Pennsylvania State University in 2005 with a degree in journalism.

When not obsessing over New York sports, you might see him doing crossword puzzles or eating his favorite food: oranges.

Steve Smith has over 20 years of investment experience and an expert level of option knowledge. He was a seat-holding member of the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) from 1989 to August 1997. During that period, he traded multiple markets for his own personal account and acted as an executing broker for third-party accounts.

In 1998 he joined TheStreet.com as the senior option columnist and chief derivatives strategist. He wrote a daily option blog, taped videos and podcasts, and provided both educational and strategy-specific content.

Smith created and wrote the OptionAlert, a subscription newsletter. The newsletter contained an actively managed option-based model portfolio. The during the four-year period from its inception in July 2004 to July 2008 the model portfolio delivered a total return of 73%; this compares to the S&P 500 Index which gained 6.7% during the same time period.

The OptionAlert was awarded the MIN “best business newsletter” in 2006.

Smith is a graduate of Emory University. He earned a BA in 1987.

He currently lives in New York City with his wife and two young children.

Steve welcomes your feedback at ssmith@minyanville.com.

Sushil Kedia has been traversing the Indian Equity markets for over a decade and a half with a career that has spanned varied roles as a successful analyst, trader, broker, strategist, and investment manager. He has worked in the past for companies such as ING Barings, Standard Chartered Bank, and Devonshire Capital as well as with a few of the best Indian financial services names.

He is the only practicing Chartered Market Technician who has also qualified as a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst in India and brings to the table a unique faculty at blending fundamental value assessments with Technical & Quantitative Market timing frameworks.

He is a Post Graduate in Business Management from the prestigious XLRI Jamshedpur School of Business. He has continued to pursue varied learning programs and recently earned the FRM certification from GARP. He's written his CFA Level III exam and is pursuing a Masters in Financial Engineering from The National University of Singapore.

He is one of the earliest Alternative Investment professionals in the Indian markets and has done significant work in the arenas of market timing, derivatives strategy, quantitative trading, and investing in the Indian context.

His focus is India and his keen interest is in every other liquid and tradable market on the globe from commodities, currencies, and equity indices.

He has been a regular columnist, market commentator in the various media, regular speaker at various industry conferences in India and overseas, and a highly networked professional who brings on table multi-faceted holistic perspectives on Indian markets and often global markets across time spans ranging from intraday to multi-year fractals of market horizons.

Kedia has been married for twelve years and has two daughters. His hobbies include playing chess, studying crowds, cookery, and reading.

He is reachable at sushilkedia@vsnl.net.

New York-area writer Tal Pinchevsky is a regular contributor at Minyanville. A McGill University graduate, he has worked on the launch team for a number of national publications and has contributed to a variety of others, including The New York Times, ESPN, the New York Post, and Blender.

Tarquin is the Senior Technical Analyst at the New York office of Investors Intelligence, a provider of Technical Analysis dating as far back as 1947. He has more than a decade of Technical Analysis experience and is an expert in virtually all Technical Analysis disciplines, from simple trend following to Elliott wave theory. He achieved a rare distinction with the UK’s Society of Technical Analysts’ diploma in 2003. His analytical style is top-down, with behavioral finance and investor psychology central to his approach.

Coe spent two years in Investors Intelligence’s London office, providing consultancy to hedge funds and institutions, prior to moving to the US in the summer of 2008. A chart obsessive, in a typical day he will analyze upwards of 500 different charts, across all financial instruments. His most recent service highlights intraday trading ideas in the US markets - www.thecoereport.com.

Terry is a Buzz & Banter editor at Minyanville Media.

He graduated from Tulane University’s AB Freeman School of Business in 2003 with a focus in Business management and Business Law. His past experience includes operations at Brown Brothers Harriman as well as an assistant in residential real estate appraisal.

Terry is from New Orleans, Louisiana. He played football for much of his youth and walked on as a middle linebacker for the Tulane Greenwave. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, playing the violin, playing sports, exercising, and cooking.

Toby Connor is the author of Gold Scents, a financial blog with a special emphasis on the gold secular bull market. Mr. Connor's analysis skill of the markets is largely self-taught, though he admits to being an avid reader of Richard Russell and Jim Rogers, among several others. Toby is an avid rock climber and world class weight lifter (for his age).

Todd Gordon is a currency strategist and trader at FOREX.com, a division of GAIN Capital Group.

In addition to trading, Gordon applies his expertise in technical analysis to produce the widely-read "Strategy of the Day" research report for clients of FOREX.com and GAIN Capital. Gordon is also a frequent contributor to publications such as Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities and Active Trader, and spoken internationally on technical analysis in the forex market.

Prior to joining GAIN in 2004, Gordon was a Director with Connors Capital, LLC, a hedge fund in Los Angeles. Gordon began his professional career trading equities for Aspen Trading, LLC.

Vinny Catalano, CFA is president and global investment strategist with Blue Marble Research, and author of Sectors and Styles (Wiley 2006). A leading investment strategist, asset manager, and global economic and capital markets expert, Vinny appears regularly in the media (CNBC, Bloomberg Radio, National Public Radio, Canada's CTV and New Delhi TV), and is frequently quoted in various professional publications (Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Financial Times, Reuters, Fortune, TheStreet.com, MarketWatch, Globe and Mail, and Business Week).

Catalano also produces and conducts numerous events with various CFA Societies and other groups throughout the US, including the highly popular "Market Forecast Series." He's a past president of the New York Society of Security Analysts and a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation.

Will Suarez is the Vice President, Sales of Minyanville Media, Inc. Suarez joined Minyanville in August 2007 to craft the company’s interactive advertising strategy and business development initiatives for its core Minyanville.com property, and to accelerate revenue growth.

Suarez brings over 22 years of advertising sales and marketing expertise to Minyanville. For 10 years prior to joining the company, Suarez held senior sales management positions at companies specializing in different aspects of the interactive media landscape. He was Director of Sales at Pointroll, the world’s leading Rich Media solutions company, VP of Eastern Regional Sales and President’s Club inductee for AvantGo (a Sybase Company), a pioneer in Mobile/Wireless Internet Services, and Engage Media (a CMGI Company), a leading Internet Ad Network.

Prior to his career in Interactive Media Sales, Suarez worked at several of the world’s largest Advertising Agencies including J. Walter Thompson, Saatchi & Saatchi, DDB, and Lowe & Partners, all in New York. His clients included some of the world’s biggest and best-known brands such as Warner Lambert, General Mills Cheerios, Coca-Cola’s Diet Coke, Hasbro Toys G.I. Joe and Transformers, and Roche Laboratories.

Suarez resides in Connecticut with his wife, Susan, and four children and is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame.

 

www.fleckensteincapital.com

Yaron Sadan is the founder and president of Osher Capital Advisors, LLC (www.OsherCapital.com), a value-oriented investment management firm specializing in global macro strategies and equity portfolios. Prior to starting OCA, Yaron advised high net worth individuals (most recently at Goldman Sachs) and worked as a trader at a multi-strategy hedge fund.

Yaron also publishes and edits The Hard Trade (www.TheHardTrade.com), a financial newsletter focused on risk and asset allocation, behavioral finance, contrarian investing, global macro-economic themes, and geopolitics.

Yaron has an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School and a B.S. from Cornell University.