A Man for All Markets: From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and

Description: A Man for All Markets by Edward O. Thorp, Nassim Nicholas Taleb The incredible true story of the card-counting mathematics professor who taught the world how to beat the dealer and, as the first of the great quantitative investors, ushered in a revolution on Wall Street. A child of the Great Depression, legendary mathematician Edward O. Thorp invented card counting, proving the seemingly impossible: that you could beat the dealer at the blackjack table. As a result he launched a gambling renaissance. His remarkable success—and mathematically unassailable method—caused such an uproar that casinos altered the rules of the game to thwart him and the legions he inspired. They barred him from their premises, even put his life in jeopardy. Nonetheless, gambling was forever changed. Thereafter, Thorp shifted his sights to "the biggest casino in the world": Wall Street. Devising and then deploying mathematical formulas to beat the market, Thorp ushered in the era of quantitative finance we live in today. Along the way, the so-called godfather of the quants played bridge with Warren Buffett, crossed swords with a young Rudy Giuliani, detected the Bernie Madoff scheme, and, to beat the game of roulette, invented, with Claude Shannon, the worlds first wearable computer. Here, for the first time, Thorp tells the story of what he did, how he did it, his passions and motivations, and the curiosity that has always driven him to disregard conventional wisdom and devise game-changing solutions to seemingly insoluble problems. An intellectual thrill ride, replete with practical wisdom that can guide us all in uncertain financial waters, A Man for All Markets is an instant classic—a book that challenges its readers to think logically about a seemingly irrational world.Praise for A Man for All Markets"In A Man for All Markets, [Thorp] delightfully recounts his progress (if that is the word) from college teacher to gambler to hedge-fund manager. Along the way we learn important lessons about the functioning of markets and the logic of investment."—The Wall Street Journal "[Thorp] gives a biological summation (think Richard Feynmans Surely Youre Joking, Mr. Feynman!) of his quest to prove the aphorism the house always wins is flawed. . . . Illuminating for the mathematically inclined, and cautionary for would-be gamblers and day traders"— Library Journal FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Author Biography Edward O. Thorp is the author of the bestseller Beat the Dealer, which transformed the game of blackjack. His subsequent book, Beat the Market, co-authored with Sheen T. Kassouf, influenced securities markets around the globe. Thorp is one of the worlds best blackjack players and investors, and his hedge funds were profitable every year for twenty-nine years. He lives in Newport Beach, California. Review "In A Man for All Markets, [Thorp] delightfully recounts his progress (if that is the word) from college teacher to gambler to hedge-fund manager. Along the way we learn important lessons about the functioning of markets and the logic of investment."—The Wall Street Journal"So entertaining . . . pretty wonderful . . . Thorps manner of thinking and doing . . . is an inspiration in these confused times."—Bloomberg.com "[Thorp] gives a biological summation (think Richard Feynmans Surely Youre Joking, Mr. Feynman!) of his quest to prove the aphorism the house always wins is flawed. . . . Illuminating for the mathematically inclined, and cautionary for would-be gamblers and day traders"— Library Journal "[A Man for All Markets is] the kind of thing any would-be investor, to say nothing of casino cowboy, ought to read. Thorps in-the-trenches account of gaming the system(s) is a pleasure—and instructive, too."—Kirkus Reviews"An amazing book by a true icon . . . Edward O. Thorp launched revolutions in Vegas and on Wall Street by turning math into magic, and here he weaves his own life lessons into a page-turner as hot as a deck full of aces. Loved it!"—Ben Mezrich, New York Times bestselling author of Bringing Down the House and The Accidental Billionaires"Whether you are an aspiring professional player, a casual gambler, or an occasional visitor to Las Vegas, you can feel the impact of Edward O. Thorps intellect on that desert city. In 1962, Thorp published the classic book Beat the Dealer. The text was based on Thorps original research that stemmed from his curiosity about the game of 21 and was billed as a how-to book for the layperson to beat the casinos at blackjack. Simply stated, it changed everything. A Man for All Markets chronicles Thorps personal journey in navigating the unexpected and sometimes dangerous obstacles that come along with challenging the status quo of a wealthy corporate adversary."—Nicholas G. Colon, professional advantage gambler and managing director, Alea Consulting Group"What a CV! Figure out how to win at blackjack using card counting? Check. Build the worlds first wearable computer? Check. Find the formula for valuing financial options but use it to make money rather than win a Nobel Prize? Check. This book is in part the gripping story of how one mans genius and dedication has solved so many problems in diverse fields. But more important, its a fascinating insight into the thought processes of someone with little interest in fame, who has mostly stayed under the radar, yet who has followed his inquisitive mind wherever it has led him, and reaped the resulting rewards. There is nothing more important than knowing how to think clearly. Read this book and learn from a master."—Paul Wilmott, founder, Wilmott magazine Review Quote "In A Man for All Markets , [Thorp] delightfully recounts his progress (if that is the word) from college teacher to gambler to hedge-fund manager. Along the way we learn important lessons about the functioning of markets and the logic of investment." -- The Wall Street Journal "So entertaining . . . pretty wonderful . . . Thorps manner of thinking and doing . . . is an inspiration in these confused times." --Bloomberg.com "[Thorp] gives a biological summation (think Richard Feynmans Surely Youre Joking, Mr. Feynman! ) of his quest to prove the aphorism the house always wins is flawed. . . . Illuminating for the mathematically inclined, and cautionary for would-be gamblers and day traders" -- Library Journal "[ A Man for All Markets is] the kind of thing any would-be investor, to say nothing of casino cowboy, ought to read. Thorps in-the-trenches account of gaming the system(s) is a pleasure--and instructive, too." -- Kirkus Reviews "An amazing book by a true icon . . . Edward O. Thorp launched revolutions in Vegas and on Wall Street by turning math into magic, and here he weaves his own life lessons into a page-turner as hot as a deck full of aces. Loved it!" --Ben Mezrich, New York Times bestselling author of Bringing Down the House and The Accidental Billionaires "Whether you are an aspiring professional player, a casual gambler, or an occasional visitor to Las Vegas, you can feel the impact of Edward O. Thorps intellect on that desert city. In 1962, Thorp published the classic book Beat the Dealer . The text was based on Thorps original research that stemmed from his curiosity about the game of 21 and was billed as a how-to book for the layperson to beat the casinos at blackjack. Simply stated, it changed everything. A Man for All Markets chronicles Thorps personal journey in navigating the unexpected and sometimes dangerous obstacles that come along with challenging the status quo of a wealthy corporate adversary." --Nicholas G. Colon, professional advantage gambler and managing director, Alea Consulting Group "What a CV! Figure out how to win at blackjack using card counting? Check. Build the worlds first wearable computer? Check. Find the formula for valuing financial options but use it to make money rather than win a Nobel Prize? Check. This book is in part the gripping story of how one mans genius and dedication has solved so many problems in diverse fields. But more important, its a fascinating insight into the thought processes of someone with little interest in fame, who has mostly stayed under the radar, yet who has followed his inquisitive mind wherever it has led him, and reaped the resulting rewards. There is nothing more important than knowing how to think clearly. Read this book and learn from a master." --Paul Wilmott, founder, Wilmott magazine Excerpt from Book Chapter 1 Loving to Learn My first memory is of standing with my parents on an outdoor landing at the top of some worn and dirty wooden steps. It was a gloomy Chicago day in December 1934, when I was two years and four months old. Even wearing my only set of winter pants and a jacket with a hood, it was cold. Black and leafless, the trees stood out above the snow-covered ground. From inside the house a woman was telling my parents, "No, we dont rent to people with children." Their faces fell and they turned away. Had I done something wrong? Why was I a problem? This image from the depths of the Great Depression has stayed with me always. I next recall being taken at age two and a half to our beloved family physician, Dr. Dailey. My alarmed parents explained that I had yet to speak a single word. What was wrong? The doctor smiled and asked me to point to the ball on his desk. I did so, and he asked me to pick up his pencil. After I had done this and a few more tasks he said, "Dont worry, hell talk when hes ready." We left, my parents relieved and a little mystified. After this, the campaign to get me to talk intensified. About the time of my third birthday, my mother and two of her friends, Charlotte and Estelle, took me along with them to Chicagos then famous Montgomery Ward department store. As we sat on a bench near an elevator, two women and a man got off. Charlotte, keen to tempt me into speech, asked, "Where are the people going?" I said clearly and distinctly, "The man is going to buy something and the two women are going to the bathroom to do pee-pee." Charlotte and Estelle both blushed deeply at the mention of pee-pee. Far too young to have learned conventional embarrassment, I noticed this but didnt understand why they reacted that way. I also was puzzled by the sensation I had caused with my sudden change from silence to talkativeness. From then on I spoke largely in complete sentences, delighting my parents and their friends, who now plied me with questions and often received surprising answers. My father set out to see what I could learn. Born in Iowa in 1898, my father, Oakley Glenn Thorp, was the second of three children, with his brother two years older and sister two years younger. When he was six his family broke up. His father took him and his brother to settle in the state of Washington. His mother and sister remained in Iowa. In 1915 my grandfather died from the flu, three years before the Great Flu Pandemic of 1918-19, which killed between twenty and forty million people worldwide. The two boys lived with an uncle until 1917. Then my father, at age eighteen, went to France to join World War I as part of the great American Expeditionary Force. He fought with the infantry in the trenches, rose from private to sergeant, and was awarded the Bronze Star, the Silver Star, and two Purple Hearts for heroism in places like Chteau-Thierry, Belleau Wood, and the Battles of the Marne. As a very small boy I remember sitting in his lap on a humid afternoon examining the shrapnel scars on his chest and the minor mutilation of some of his fingers. Following his discharge from the army after the war, my father enrolled at Oklahoma A&M. He completed a year and a half before he had to leave for lack of funds, but his hunger and respect for education endured and he instilled them in me, along with his unspoken hope that I would achieve more. Sensing this and hoping it would bring us closer, I welcomed his efforts to teach me. As soon as I began to talk, he introduced me to numbers. I found it easy to count first to a hundred, then to a thousand. Next I learned how to increase any number by adding one to get the next number, which meant I could count forever if I only knew the names of the numbers. I soon learned how to count to a million. Adults seemed to think this was a very big number so I sat down to do it one morning. I knew I could eventually get there but I had no idea how long it was going to take. To get started, I chose a Sears catalog the size of a big-city telephone book because it seemed to have the most things to count. The pages were filled with pictures of merchandise labeled with the letters A, B, C ..., which I recall appeared as black letters in white circles. I started at the beginning of the catalog and counted all the circled letters, one for each item, page after page. After a few hours I fell asleep at something like 32,576. My mother reported that when I awoke I resumed with "32,577 ..." A trait that showed up at about this time was my tendency not to accept anything I was told until I had checked it for myself. This had consequences. When I was three, my mother told me not to touch the hot stove because it would burn me. I brought my finger close enough to feel the warmth, then pressed the stove with my hand. Burned. Never again. Another time, I was warned that fresh eggs would crack if they were squeezed just a little bit. Wondering what "a little bit" meant, I squeezed an egg very slowly until it cracked, then practiced squeezing another, stopping just before it would crack, to see exactly how far I could go. From the beginning, I loved learning through experimentation and exploration how my world worked. After teaching me counting, my fathers next project for me was reading. We started with See Spot, See Spot Run, and See Jane. I was puzzled and disoriented for a couple of days; then I saw that the groups of letters stood for the words we spoke. In the next few weeks I went through all of our simple beginner books and developed a small vocabulary. Now it got exciting. I saw printed words everywhere and realized that if I could figure out how to pronounce them I might recognize them and know what they meant. Phonics came naturally, and I learned to sound out words so I could say them aloud. Next was the reverse process--hear a word and say the letters--spelling. By the time I turned five I was reading at the level of a ten-year-old, gobbling up everything I could find. Our family dynamics also changed then, with the birth of my brother. My father, fortunate to be employed in the midst of the Great Depression, worked longer hours to support us. My mother was fully occupied by the new baby and was even more focused on him when, at six months of age, he caught pneumonia and nearly died. This left me much more on my own and I responded by exploring endless worlds, both real and imagined, to be found in the books my father gave me. Over the next couple of years I read books including Gullivers Travels, Treasure Island, and Stanley and Livingstone in Africa. When, after an eight-month arduous and dangerous search, Stanley found his quarry, the only European known to be in Central Africa, I thrilled to his incredible understatement, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume," and I discussed the splendor of the Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River with my father, who assured me (correctly) that they far surpassed our own Niagara Falls. Gullivers Travels was a special favorite, with its tiny Lilliputians, giant Brobdingnagians, talking horses, and finally the mysterious Laputa, a flying island in the sky supported by magnetic forces. I enjoyed the vivid pictures it created in my mind and the fantastical notions that spurred me to imagine for myself further wonders that might be. But at the time Swifts historical allusions and social satire mostly escaped me, despite explanations by my father. From Malorys story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, I learned about heroes and villains, romance, justice, and retribution. I admired the heroes who, through extraordinary abilities and resourcefulness, achieved great things. Introverted and thoughtful, I may have been inspired to mirror this in the future by using my mind to overcome intellectual obstacles, instead of my body to defeat human opponents. The books helped establish lifelong values of fair play, a level playing field for everyone, and treating others as I myself wish to be treated. The words and adventures were largely in my head; I didnt really have anyone to discuss them with, except sometimes my tired father after work or on weekends. This led to an occasional unique pronunciation. For instance, for a couple of years I thought misled (miss-LED) was pronounced MYE-zzled, and for years afterward when I saw the word in print I would hesitate for a beat as I mentally corrected my pronunciation. When I was reading or just thinking, my concentration was so complete that I lost all awareness of my surroundings. My mother would call me, with no response. Thinking I was willfully ignoring her, the shout would became a yell, then she would bring her flushed face right up to me. Only when she appeared in my visual field did I snap back into the here and now and respond. She had a hard time deciding whether her son was stubborn and badly behaved or was really as unaware as he claimed. Though we were poor, my parents valued books and managed to buy me one occasionally. My father made challenging choices. As a result, between the ages of five and seven I carried around adult-looking books and strangers wondered if I actually knew what was in them. One man put me to an unexpected and potentially embarrassing test. It happened because my parents became friends with the Kesters, who lived on a farm in Crete, Illinois, about forty-five miles from our home. They invited us out for two weeks every summer, starting in 1937 when I was turning five. These special days were what I most looked forward to each year. For a city boy from the outskirts of Chicago, it was sheer joy to watch "water spiders" scoot over the surface of a slowly meandering creek, Details ISBN0812979907 Author Nassim Nicholas Taleb Short Title MAN FOR ALL MARKETS Pages 416 Language English ISBN-10 0812979907 ISBN-13 9780812979909 Format Paperback DEWEY B Year 2018 Publication Date 2018-04-17 Imprint Random House Trade Paperbacks Subtitle From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and the Market Country of Publication United States AU Release Date 2018-04-17 NZ Release Date 2018-04-17 US Release Date 2018-04-17 UK Release Date 2018-04-17 Place of Publication New York Illustrations 11 CHARTS; 8-PP PHOTO INSERT Publisher Random House USA Inc Audience General We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. 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