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Welcome to the major leagues of debt. Collateralized debt obligations, almost always referred to as a CDOs, are horrendously
complicated deals that often leave anyone without a MBA wondering what was put into these CDOs.
The first thing to
understand about bonds, (aka debt) is that bonds are often backed by something else. Think about your home mortgage. If you
don't pay your mortgage, the bank can take the house. You end up homeless, and the bank sells the house to pay off the rest
of that mortgage. There is something "backing" that mortgage; something lender can fall back on, if you don't pay your bills
like a good human being. That's called collateral.
CDOs are one flavor of an entire sector of investing called structured
finance, and they are also backed. CDOs, in the simplest concept, are just bonds backed by something else. In most cases,
a CDO is backed by a collection of various types of debt. CDOs can be home mortgages, or other types of debt like credit cards,
auto loans, and personal loans. Most of these types of debt are usually considered a bit more risky and they don't have the
backing that a home loan does. So, if you think it through, you can imagine that CDOs are usually considered a risky investment.
To take a step further, understand that CDOs have multiple flavors within each CDO. These flavors are called tranches. If you've taken French, you might recognize the word, it means "slice" or "portion." Each slice of that CDO you invest in is a little different and carries different amounts of risk.
You could invest in the lowest risk tranche of the CDO, which would
provide you lower risk. But, you don't get a good return on that investment. Or, you can be the heroic adventurer of bonds
and invest in the lowest-grade tranche of the CDO. You'll make an amazing return, but if the economy even looks at you wrong,
you might lose the entire investment.
CDOs aren¿t easy, and are almost always invested in by mutual funds, insurance
companies and hedge funds. As an individual investor, you will probably not come across a CDO you can participate in.
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Friday, July 25, 2008
Alternative Warm-Up Program Reduces Risk of ACL Injuries for Female College Soccer Players
Comtex
ATLANTA, July 25, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ ----Female Athletes Most at Risk for Ligament Injuries
The risk of potentially devastating tears to an important knee ligament may be reduced in female college soccer players by an alternative warm-up program that focuses on stretching, strengthening, and improving balance and movements, according to a CDC study published online this week in The American Journal of Sports Medicine. The program can be done without additional equipment or extensive training that other prevention programs may require.
Female athletes are at greater risk for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, compared to males participating in similar activities. The gender difference becomes even greater for noncontact ACL injuries, which occur usually in stopping, turning, or landing from a jump as opposed to colliding with another player or something on the field like the goal post.
"This study shows tremendous promise for female collegiate soccer players, especially those with a history of ACL injuries," said CDC's Injury Center epidemiologist Julie Gilchrist, M.D., lead author of the study. "Enjoying sports is a great way to stay fit. And to stay healthy, we encourage coaches, athletic trainers, and athletes to consider adapting this program into their routine."
The study explored the effectiveness of the Prevent Injury and Enhance Performance (PEP) program developed by the Santa Monica Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Research Foundation, Santa Monica, Calif. The Foundation conducts research to prevent musculoskeletal and neurologic injuries. The PEP program is designed to help teams prevent noncontact ACL injuries without a significant investment in equipment or time. The session includes warm-up, stretching, strengthening, and sport-specific agility exercises.
The study followed 61 women's soccer teams with 1,435 players in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for a single season. Twenty-six teams were randomly assigned to use the program and 35 other teams served as a comparison group. Teams participating in the study came from many different regions, conferences and experienced a variety of competitive success.
Researchers noted that while the number of injuries reported in this study was small, the use of the PEP program was effective in reducing the risk of ACL injuries, and the program can be done during regular practice time and without special equipment.
Significant findings include:
* Athletes on teams using the PEP Program suffered no ACL injuries during practice, compared to six injuries among other teams.
* Among athletes with a history of ACL injury who used the program, none experienced noncontact ACL injuries, compared to four injuries among other players with a similar history.
* In the second half of the season, athletes using the PEP program reported no ACL injuries, while other athletes experienced five injuries.
While many teams may conduct various warm up and stretching exercises, the PEP program focuses on improving biomechanical techniques in jumping, stopping and turning to reduce ACL injuries.
"PEP was developed specifically to prevent serious knee injuries and their consequences," said Dr. Bert Mandelbaum, director of the research foundation. "We recommend that teams use it as an alternative warm-up before training sessions. Putting PEP widely into practice, we hope, will continue to show reduced risk of ACL injury among soccer players."
The study was made possible by additional support from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, International Federation of Football Associations, National Collegiate Athletic Association, and the Santa Monica Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Research Foundation.
For more information about CDC's injury prevention efforts, please link to http://www.cdc.gov/injury. For a copy of this study, please visit http://ajs.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/36/8/1476. To obtain a copy of the PEP program, go to http://www.aclprevent.org.
EDITORS NOTE: This article is "in press" and posted online at
http://ajs.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/36/8/1476. The print publication date
of this study is August 2008.
SOURCE Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.aclprevent.org
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
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