Fund research is something of a dark art - there is little quality information available on how to go about it. But here are two great papers covering qual and quant analysis of funds and managers.

Even the most skillful active managers will sometimes underperform. And, in some market environments, most active managers can be expected to underperform.

Now the Fed has opened the door to normalising interest, what constitutes "normal"? Take care in stretching for yield now the Fed is no longer making promises.

This paper by Rob Arnott and Denis Chaves looks the effects of different age cohorts on GDP and asset class returns.

This paper offers a surprising amount of info and interesting ways of framing investment issues in retirement, and some good analysis of longevity risk.

Currency risk is a significant issue for Australian investors. This paper summarises the research on optimal hedge ratios for international equities exposures.

In this seminal paper, Ibbotson confirms that after the decision to actually invest is made, asset allocation and manager selection are equally important.

Pippa picked up where she left off in her opening keynote, tying the Markets Summit 2015 proceedings together, summarising her key takeouts, and their implications for portfolios.

In this simulated investment board meeting, our day's 17 international and local Faculty members debated and voted on whether to overweight international equities and underweight Australian equities in portfolios on a two- to three-year view.

In 2014, we witnessed the return of market volatility. With potentially significant market return and volatility, investors should consider portfolio positioning before the fact.

The fourth D confronting investors - the disruptions wrought by technological change. Cash cows, thoroughbred stocks and roll-ups are best placed in a world challenged by the four Ds.

While demographics will still dominate into the future, energy and automation are quickly rising to be just as important with significant implications for portfolios.

A currency union absent of full political union is inherently unstable. After the first country exits the eurozone, markets will attack the next most vulnerable. The dominos will fall.

Few opportunities are available today where discounts to intrinsic value outweigh downside risks. Japanese corporations are increasingly embracing ROE and shareholder value.

Since Q4 2014, oil prices have plunged, currency markets are at war and intraday volatility of stock indices is disturbing. A crisis mode has started. Asset allocators must mitigate risks before this next crisis inevitably hits.

One of the most important events of 2014 for investors was the dramatic collapse in the oil price. Overall, investment portfolios must be repositioned for increased volatility.

The US equity market will disappoint going forward. Global equity investors need to be far less US-centric to capture better returns.

Navigating the lower limbo stick will require more unconstrained investing, greater consideration of the chosen benchmark, and a greater focus on downside risk management.

Lower 'neutral' monetary policy rates across the developed world will continue to serve as an important anchor for the secular valuation of all asset classes.

Emerging markets will face a more challenging economic and financial outlook over the next few years - but systemic risk across the emerging world is lower than before the Asian crisis.