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Stay Curious.
Make the most of your college experience.
Jeff Hulett
Curator, The Curiosity Vine
Stay Curious.
The Curiosity Vine is an idea incubator.
Our contributors have experience and interest in a variety of high-impact topics, such as science, technology, conservation, mathematics, data science, public policy, economics, and others. Our objective is to promote early-stage ideas, enable idea collaboration, and test idea purchase.
TCV platform is curated by Jeff Hulett.
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TCV's ideas are used to provide seminars, write books, build businesses, and especially to help people.
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Featured Posts
Beyond "Lesser-of-Two-Evils": A Guide to Voting Your Conscience
People like to imagine political campaigns as a pitch for a better future (a candidate standing on stage declaring, "Vote for me because here is what I will build, protect, and deliver"). Instead, voters face a relentless strategy built almost entirely on fear. Over the past fifty years, institutional reforms shifted power toward low-turnout primaries dominated by party activists and focused money. Consequently, positive visions quietly gave way to defensive positioning. Mode
An Investment in Emergence: 35 Years, Four Children, and the Generational Power of Everyday Faithfulness
Looking back on our journey together, my wife Patti and I feel such gratitude. We met over 40 years ago at the beginning of college and now approach our 35th wedding anniversary. Over those decades, four wonderful children (three sons and a daughter) blessed our lives, ranging from 31 down to our youngest, David, who is 25. Born roughly two years apart, watching them grow from energetic kids into healthy adults remains the great privilege of our lives. Recently, David got eng
The Boundaries of Power: What Economic History Teaches Us About the Proper Role of Government
Every generation faces a core question of political economy: What is the proper role of government? Historically, the debate waxes and wanes between expanded state intervention and restrained governance. Modern practice reveals a steady expansion of state power. Effective government does not represent a luxury; it represents a foundational necessity. As Adam Smith and classic commentators made clear, market societies require a government enforcing justice to function properly
The Classical Liberal’s Dilemma: Why Freedom Fails at the Ballot Box
When the Classical Liberal Revival Feels Real The impulse to dismantle the administrative state is a recurring rhythm in the history of governance, a perennial tension between the expanding reach of the bureaucracy and the enduring ideals of classical liberalism. While the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) stands as a recent historical attempt to prune the thicket of executive overreach, it follows a storied lineage of efforts to restore institutional accountability.
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Treasury Rates Update: August 20th, 2026
The fixed-income market is delivering a classic textbook lesson in yield curve dynamics following the latest inflation data. The August 12th CPI release confirmed that headline inflation has moderated to 3.5%, providing the bond market with much-needed breathing room ahead of the September 16th Federal Reserve meeting. Rather than sparking a broad rally, however, investors used the news to aggressively recalibrate short-to-intermediate maturities while long-term rates remaine
Bill Knudson
Aug 211 min read
Treasury Rates Update: August 6th, 2026
In my decades of monitoring fixed-income markets, periods of near-total stability often precede significant policy shifts. Following the market rebalancing that coincided with the Federal Reserve's late-July meeting, the Treasury market entered a brief holding pattern this past week. Yields across the entire term structure shifted by no more than two basis points (bp), reflecting a market in collective pause. Investors are largely standing on the sidelines as they await cruci
Jeff Hulett
Aug 71 min read
Treasury Rates Update: July 30th, 2026
In my years analyzing fixed-income markets, post-Federal Reserve decision days offer an instructive view of market recalibration. Following the Fed's July 29th meeting, the Treasury market pivoted toward a classic "bear steepener" dynamic. Yields retreated significantly across short and intermediate maturities while long-term rates held firm, indicating investors are pricing in near-term policy easing alongside persistent long-run fiscal and growth considerations. The bench
Jeff Hulett
Jul 311 min read
Treasury Rates Update: July 23rd, 2026
In my decades of monitoring fixed-income markets, sharp selloffs ahead of a Federal Reserve decision usually indicate a dramatic shift in market conviction. Despite the July 14th CPI print showing encouraging disinflation from 4.2% down to 3.5%, the Treasury market spent this past week aggressively pushing yields higher across every maturity. Investors are rapidly recalibrating expectations as pre-meeting positioning takes hold. The benchmark 10-year Treasury rate surged 14
Jeff Hulett
Jul 241 min read
Treasury Rates Update: July 16th, 2026
The fixed-income market is navigating a fascinating tug-of-war as we head toward the Federal Reserve's July 29th meeting. In my years analyzing macroeconomic trends, it is rare to see such cleanly conflicting signals: a highly sluggish July 2nd jobs report showing only 57,000 additions was quickly followed by a stellar July 14th CPI print, which saw inflation fall from 4.2% to 3.5%. Rather than signaling economic panic, the bond market responded with an orderly, marginal stee
Jeff Hulett
Jul 171 min read
Treasury Rates Update: June 25th, 2026
In my decades of analyzing the fixed-income markets, a broad-based retreat in yields after a period of intense policy anxiety often signals a market searching for an economic breather. Following last week’s inflationary tremors, the Treasury market spent this past week reversing course, with yields sliding across nearly the entire term structure as intermediate maturities led a notable steepening of the curve. The benchmark 10-year Treasury rate dropped 6 basis points (bp)
Jeff Hulett
Jun 261 min read
Treasury Rates Update: June 18th, 2026
In my years analyzing fixed-income markets, few dynamics are as compelling as a classic "bear flattener" driven by sudden structural shifts in economic data. Following a cluster of high-impact reports, the Treasury market spent this past week aggressively repricing the front end of the curve. The June 5th jobs data revealed a moderate expansion of 172,000 positions, but it was the June 10th CPI report—showing an acceleration in inflation from 3.8% to 4.2%—that sent shockwaves
Jeff Hulett
Jun 191 min read
Treasury Rates Update: June 4th, 2026
As we position ourselves ahead of a crucial stretch of macroeconomic data, the fixed-income market is exhibiting a classic consolidation pattern. Drawing from my years of experience analyzing curve dynamics, this week’s subtle flattening indicates a market that is fine-tuning its expectations, seeking a delicate equilibrium between growth resilience and persistent policy caution. The benchmark 10-year Treasury rate ticked up a modest 2 basis points (bp) this week to finish
Jeff Hulett
Jun 51 min read
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