top robbie and save the day? hi, everyone, welcome to "on the money." i'm sue herrera, in for becky quick. what inflation and the band-aid market have to do with it and what it meeps for your money. the man who helped pilot america out of the financial crisis. tim geithner recalls some scary days. >> you're in the plane, the cockpit, the engine's burning. >> can you make sure you're taken care of if you get there? and alan alda proves there are second acts in america. his new role, the lessons he's

learned and what you can teach. "on the money" starts right now. heers a look at what's making news. a wild and wooly week for the stock and bond markets. stocks climbs on friday following the worst two-day decline in more than a month on wednesday and thursday. earlier in the week, the markets hit a new high. that fall due partly to weak economic data and partly because of declining yields in the bond market with ten-year treasuries paying less than 2.5%. that spooked stocks that bonds are signalling the economy is weaker than thought. a disappointing sales number. economists had expected a .4% increase. the number is always closely watched because consumers make up nearly 70% of the u.s. economy. earnings season is winding down. cisco beat expectations as did

macy's, kohl's and walmart, which fell a bit short and if wrou don't have a lot of cash these days, you're not alone. according to a new report by bankrate.com, one in ten americans no longer carry paper money. nearly 80% have less than $50 on them and have carried $20 or less. that cashless society may not be too far away. it's been a confusing week for stocks and investors. first, a record on the dow and s&p 500 followed by a big sell off and what appears to be a big battle between the stock and bond market, so which one is right and what does it mean for your money? joining us now is john ryding. good to see you, john. >> good to be here, sue. >> let's start with the pbattle that seems to be brewing between the stock and bond market. we saw interest rates go down this week, which few people expected. what is the bond market telling

us is going on now? >> if you were to look at what the bond market is saying, you take out inflation, look at real interest rates. they're falling. that's usually a negative growth signal. same time, stock market's hitting a record high, which is a positive growth signal, so, these two markets are ott odds with each other and the equity investors are looking at the bond market, does the bond market know something we don't? when the markets are record high, there's an element of rethinking that my assumption is correct, but if you look at profitability, profitability's strong. if you look at the economy, we are bouncing back from this harsh winter. we have some good numbers on housing. we've had some good numbers on employment. i don't think that the stock market is long on the growth

story. we had some surprise iing high inflation numbers this week. a couple of months ago, inflation at 2% year over year. things to be right op the stock market. >> i would assume you're telling your clinlts to be in the stock market now and with if so, what areas look attractive to you. >> what we see is a market that justified in terms of valuations, stock market looks relatively okay. >> you mentioned inflation and we have started to see a little inflation creep in. is it too much? i mean, the fed has wanted to see a little in the system. >> they have and the problem with a little inflation, like going to a party and trying to have a little amount to drink. sometimes, you may get a little

carri carried away and it may be hard to rein yourself in. zero percent rates from the fed. next month, we are entering the sixth year of economic recovery. it's really uncharted territory in terms of policy and like many drinking sessions, they can end with a nasty hangover, so the trick is for the fed to take that punch bowl away and get out of this without having too bad a hangover and i think the inflation figures are saying the fed should think about doing it sooner rather than later. that's going to be a surprise for the bond market. >> miss yellin has said that basically six months from ynow.

>> her six-month -- but this bond yield is really saying we think it's coming in september more, next year. not even taking what janet yellin said at the last press conference in terms of how she said it, when the federal reserve meet next month, i think people are going to be listening carefully because these employment trends, inflation trends, i get the message that is going to surprise the bond markets. >> all right. we have been forewarned. thank you so much for joining us. up next, we're "on the money." did he save america's financial system or give away billions to the banks? former treasury secretary tim geithner recalls some scary days and an angry public. >> you could take out your favorite investment banker and slit their throat in the alley. and the next day, people would want more. and you've ensured

everything from your home to your car to your health. but are you missing out on long-term care? we find out if it's worth your money. and as we go to the break, let's look at how the stock market ended the week.

six years after the worst financial collapse in most american's lifetime, timothy geithner is telling his story about his role in the rescue. it's a mem oir about what he did and how he did it, ranging from a defense of big bank bailouts to whether the system the safer now. andrew ross sorkin gets some answers in a revealing interview. >> americans haven't lived with the risk of a major crisis since

the great depression. you're in a plane. you're in the cockpit. the engine's burning. there's smoke filling the cabin. you've got a bunch of terrorists on board or people who have built the plane or somehow messed it up and they want you to come out of the cabin and like beat up the bad guys, but you've got to make sure you land the plane first. >> you landed safely, but when there was an opportunity for reform, to truly reform the system, to fundamentally perhaps change the system, you didn't take it. >> i don't agree with that. we did transform reforms to the system much stronger consumer protection, much better authority for the cops than we had before the crisis and a set of protections against risk taking that make the system today a more stable system. banks are forceded to run much more capital. we limit the size. no bank can be more than 10%, that's a much more, that's a

much tougher -- anywhere in the world. >> there's a point of the book where you go to visit bill clinton. talk about a couple of things. one being whether there's a way to persuade the public perhaps that what you're doing is the right thinking. what did he tell you? >> he said the basic reality and it's sort of the human thing, is that people wanted blood. and you could take your pick. you could take out your favorite investment banker and slit their throat in the alley and the next day, people would want more. >> were you surprised? >> that was an example. a more general point, which is that you know, the amount of damage caused by the crisis was just enormous. it was tragic. huge amount of damage. we're still living with a scars of the crisis today. just making the observation that that amount of anger is something that you can honor in trying to fix the problem. get the economy going again.

it's hard to honor and satisfy by going out and shooting people. >> the extent that part of your job on the political side is pu persuading the public is the right thing. >> this is hard for me. i wasn't that successful at it. >> if you could go back and do it again, is there something you would have done differently? >> i don't know. think about it this way. it's not my natural talent. how can you convince something that something to terrible, worst recession in our lifetimes, could have been worse. the things you have to do to protect people from worse damage are going to look terribly unfair. >> it's been a year since you left the job. a little more than a year now. what do you make of where we are in the economy and what do you think of the markets? >> you know, i think the country still has a lot of challenges, obviously. we have very high rates of poverty. long periods where the average median income is up and growing. we have tremendous inquality and i think americans as a whole feel a loss of confidence still,

but i think even with those challenges, we're a stronger country. we're getting stronger, we're gradually healing the damages. we're in a much stronger position today than we were before the crisis. >> our thanks to andrew ross sorkin and timothy geithner. up next, we're "on the money." less than l% of americans have it and yet, the majority will need it at some point in their lives. find out about the one expense you're not planning for that could turn your finances upside down. then, alan alda on the role of his lifetime. science educator. how a love of

it is the one thing that could make our break your retirement piggy bank and it's long-term care. nursing homes, home health aides and therapists are a part of a $210 billion industry that can hit your pockets if you're not prepared. is insurance the best way to pay for it all? we'll find out because here to explain is sharon epperson. >> you may be covered financially in case of a car wreck or house fire or disease, but what about insuring for something that's a lot more likely? old age. should you buy long-term care insurance? >> we're going to all get old

and it's a protection. >> i've got parents and grandparents, so it's important for me to consider what it's like to have to support them. >> long-term care insurance is designed to cover services to those who can no longer take care of themselves and paying for services to assist them with activities like bathing, dressing or eating. >> protecting somebody else's standard of living or the fact that i want to make sure that my the assets are going to go to my loved ones. i don't want them to be ravaged by long-term care of the costlyness of going into a nursing home. >> 53-year-old accountant anthony ferreira wonders whether it is worth it. >> it is a big decision for most people. do you want to spend money on things like insurance or things you want today. >> this type of insurance is not for the very wealthy or poor who

qualify for medicaid, those in the middle should consider several factors before paying for long-term care insurance. the cost of coverage can vary widely, so compare premiums. also, choose a plan that covers a comprehensive list of activities of daily living and is portable, so you're covered in you move to another state. for ferreira, family is his primary consideration. >> i have family who i would not want to burden financially. or personally. it would be nice to leave your children something and not leave them with the burden of having to care for their mom or dad. >> this type of insurance may not be for everyone, but it is worth looking into. about 70% of those 65 and older will need long-term care, even in their own home or in a nursing home, that's according to government statistics. >> i know the price varies

widely as you said in your important, but do we have a little bit of an idea about how costly it can be? >> we know how costly it can be to be in a nurse l home, the average policy, probably about $2,000 a year. about $160,000 in benefits and. it is something that is costly for some, but it's worth looking into. a couple of things you want to think about, you want to think about the age that you are when you purchase it. the younger you are, the cheaper it's going to be. you also want to look into the type of policy you're selecting and the type of coverage provided. are you going to be able to have at-home care, assists living care. >> is there an age in which it makes sense to do it and an inge in which it does not? >> most purchase between 50 and 60. usually, 50, if you're getting one from work.

the older you get, the more expensive it's going to be. i've had a policy for about ten years. it's something i think is important to ensure for myself and my family, but it varies. the thing we've seen a number of long-term care policy rates go up. insurers are raising those rates and they can't just do it on you as an individual, but they can do it on a group of people if they get state approval and that has been happening, so you have to make sure you can afford this if it continues to go up and also afford it if your income changes. >> thank you so much. you've given us a lot to think about. >> all right, up next, a look at the news for the week ahead. and the science of simple questions. they're not so easy to answer after alan alda tells us about his challenge to science educators in plain english.

here are the stories coming up that may impact your money this week. we'll get results from target, best buy, gap and hewlett-packard. wednesday, the federal reserve will release its minutes from the open committee meeting. the 9/11 museum in new york will be open to the public and your favorite hbo shows will be available on amazon prime in an exclusive licensing deal. on thursday, existing home sales for april are due. also on thursday, facebook will hold its annual shareholders meeting and on friday, new home sales for april.

sometimes, asking a simple question does not lead to a simple answer. actor and science enthusiast, alan alda, is here to discuss his new role as founder of the flame challenge, where scientists attempt to answer questions and are judged by thousands of 11-year-olds. it's great to see you. i am so enthusiastic about this project of yours. one, because i have young children who are almost 11, so, tell me about the flame hall and one of the questions this year is what is color. >> it is the question that we've asked scientists to explain to kids, about 11 years old, in a way that the kids can understand it and the kids are the judges of the entries and we have these wonderful videos of the kids evaluating the entries. where they get to say, you know, th that's a good explanation, but

not as good as it could be. this gives the kids such a sense of power over the process. they're actually consulted about the process of learning and as a result, they're far more interested in what they're doing and they question the scientist's explanations on the base of whether or not they're inform tifr enough. you need more information here. one kid said, you know, it's okay to be funny to appeal to 11-year-olds, but you don't have to be silly. he said, you know, we're 11. we're not 7. >> that's right. we're big kids. >> i started this contest, it's a worldwide contest. we have sicientists from all ovr the world submitting entries, video and words. i did it not to teach kids. i did it to teach the scientists how hard it is to say something to that an 11-year-old can understand it. so when the 11-year-old can understand it, then i'll be able to understand it. >> you said it just a few

minutes ago. if you know it well enough to explain it simply, then you can engender enthusiasm for science and learning in general. >> and what we found is the kids are so involved by this process of evaluating the scientists, that they learn more about this than they ever would have. it's called the flame challenge because the first year, we said to the scientists, explain what a flame is. explain what time is. very hard. what is color? i'm seeing videos of kids knowing so much more than i would have expected them to know. >> now, i want to turn to your being a proponent of science. your name is on one of the buildings at stony brook university and basically, you've become a proponent of science education for a number of years now. >> all my life, i've been interested in science and i read about science almost the only thing i read about. but what i've found is that it's

very hard for the most interesting science to get explained to people like me, who are curious. a few years ago, i came up with the idea, what if we taught sciencetists during their science education, to be top scientists that we teach them to be cop communicators at the same time and i went around asking universities if they were interested and the only one that picked up on it was stony brook in new york and we now have, they now call the alan alda center for communicating sciences and we're teaching not just there, but we're partnering up with dartmouth, other units, universities, so that we'll have a network of centers around the country where scientists will learn to speak to us in a way we can understand and by the way, it won't just speak to us. they'll speak to policymakers, members of congress, people who

have to decide on their funding and they'll be able to speak to one another and understand one another across disciplines and collaboration will get better. >> many people know you from your years on mash, but i think now, you will be known at the gentleman who introduced millions of children around the world to new concepts in science. >> thank you. it was fun to talk with you. >> thank you so much for coming and that's the show for today. i'm sue herrera in for becky quick. thanks so much for joining me. each week, keep it right here because we're on the money. have a great weekend.

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nbc bay area news starts now. >> good evening. >> here's the top stories we're following right now? san francisco, a much calma beta breakers race this morning. about 40,000 ran it. police say there were four arrests with three injuries. this year a larger police presence at the race. the city also blocked off alamo square after complaints from neighbors. plus, time is running out for voters to register for june's primary election. people have until monday to make sure their vote counts. that's tomorrow.