Tech Topics - Winter 2007 - (Page 21) TheHill ‘Mad Money’ Jim Cramer films popular TV show on Tech campus By Matthew Nagel ROB FELT Three Professors Share Pieces of Peace Prize T C ries of “booyah” echoed through Technology Square as CNBC’s “Mad Money” with Jim Cramer filmed in the courtyard of the Georgia Tech College of Management building. The hit stock-picking show came to the College of Management as part of the program’s “Back to School” college tour. Cramer is known for his manic hosting style involving sound effects, props and CNBC star Jim Cramer poses with the boisterous crowd in frequent use of the catchword “booyah.” the courtyard outside the College of Management building. Several hours before filming began, Cramer engaged management students in a question-andRound,” a showcase for the host’s knowledge of answer session in which he explained the origins of stocks. “This show is not about making friends,” “booyah.” He said that prior to the “Mad Money” Cramer said. It’s all about making money, he stressed. debut in March 2005, he once took a call on his radio Cramer defines “mad money” as funds available show from a man who expressed to invest in stocks — not money gratitude for Cramer’s people would invest in retirement recommendation of Kmart stock vehicles like 401Ks or IRAs. by using the New Orleans In another segment of the colloquialism “boo-yah,” which show, he fielded questions from refers to making money. members of the Georgia Tech After Cramer transferred Student Foundation Investment into TV, callers remembered the Committee. He praised their expression and would use it. performance investing Exclamatory use of the word has endowment funds in recent years. since become synonymous with The student-run group has Cramer’s show. consistently outperformed the During taping of the show, S&P 500 Index Fund, distributing Cramer said he frequently hears earnings to student organizations. I do some criticism of his larger-than-life Jonathan Clarke, associate entertaining, and I hosting style. “I do some finance professor at Georgia Tech, do some entertaining, and I do some said he’s a fan of “Mad Money” educating,” he said. “Some because it “gets students educating,” he said. people say it’s wrong to do interested in finance and investing “Some people say stocks and entertain. I say I’m a and that helps bring some it’s wrong to do showman in the tradition of Jack excitement to the classroom. stocks and Benny and Bob Hope.” Cramer’s very passionate about Management students what he does.” entertain. I say I’m enthusiastically supported Randy Lambert, a master’s a showman in the Cramer’s performance in pepstudent in quantitative and tradition of rally style by wearing Georgia computational finance, said he Jack Benny and Tech T-shirts and chanting school appreciates Cramer’s attitude cheers from the bleachers set up toward trading. Bob Hope. in the courtyard. Buzz and “I don’t think his stock picks Georgia Tech cheerleaders were are necessarily what’s important,” on stage to get the crowd said Lambert, whose studies focus pumped. on trading. “It’s how he picks them. He’s got a very “Mad Money” also taped a segment of the show specific understanding of how the market works and at the World of Coca-Cola museum, where Cramer how business works, and that’s what’s really praised The Coca-Cola Company’s recent important. performance. “Coke is not only back, it’s also better “I’m not trading very much yet, but I really enjoy than ever.” watching his show,” Lambert said. “There are all Cramer had harsher things to say about other these boring shows on all day, and then Cramer companies students asked about in the “Lightning comes on, and he’s so exciting.” “ hree Georgia Tech professors share in the Nobel laureate recognition with the awarding of the Peace Prize to Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Marilyn A. Brown, in the School of Public Policy, and Robert Dickinson and Rong Fu, in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, were among the scientists and educators who participated in the IPCC assessment report. “This award is not just for those who worked so hard to complete the fourth assessment report but also for those who contributed to earlier IPCC reports,” said a letter from the IPCC. “This work Marilyn Brown has provided the foundation for the current recognition of IPCC as an authoritative voice on the climate system, the impacts of climate change and ways to avoid it.” Brown, who came to Georgia Tech in 2006 from Oak Ridge Robert Dickinson National Laboratory, was part of Working Group III of the IPCC, which produced special reports on aviation, emission scenarios, technology transfer, ozone and climate, CO2 Capture and Rong Fu Storage, as well as the third and fourth assessment reports. Dickinson is an eminent scholar in the Georgia Research Alliance and has research focused on improving the land surface component of climate models and related issues such as global warming. A contributing author, Dickinson’s work included contributing research on climate change for Working Group I (the physical basis). Fu contributed results and discussion to the IPCC Working Group I relating to projected rainfall change over the Amazon for the 21st century and the reliability of current climate models. “ TECHTOPICS | WINTER 2007 21
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