Unavailable
Unavailable
Unavailable
Audiobook16 hours
A Man for All Markets: From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and the Market
Published by Penguin Random House Audio
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
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 world's 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.
Includes a PDF of appendices from the book.
Advance praise for A Man for All Markets
"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. Thorp's intellect on that desert city. In 1962, Thorp published the classic book Beat the Dealer. The text was based on Thorp's 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 Thorp's 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 world's 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 man's genius and dedication has solved so many problems in diverse fields. But more important, it's 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
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 world's 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.
Includes a PDF of appendices from the book.
Advance praise for A Man for All Markets
"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. Thorp's intellect on that desert city. In 1962, Thorp published the classic book Beat the Dealer. The text was based on Thorp's 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 Thorp's 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 world's 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 man's genius and dedication has solved so many problems in diverse fields. But more important, it's 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
Unavailable
Related to A Man for All Markets
Related audiobooks
Three Moves Ahead: What Chess Can Teach You about Business (Even If You've Never Played) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Play It Right: The Remarkable Story of a Gambler Who Beat the Odds on Wall Street Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFlash Boys Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The End of Money: Counterfeiters, Preachers, Techies, Dreamers--and the Coming Cashless Society Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Zero-Sum Game: The Rise of the World's Largest Derivatives Exchange Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Financial Reckoning Day: Surviving the Soft Depression of the 21st Century Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhere Are the Customers' Yachts?: Or A Good Hard Look at Wall Street Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Perfect Bet: How Science and Math Are Taking the Luck Out of Gambling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sid Meier's Memoir!: A Life in Computer Games Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Motley Fool You have More Than You Think: The Foolish Guide to Personal Finance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Smartcuts: How Hackers, Innovators, and Icons Accelerate Success Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Armchair Economist: Economics and Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Money Culture Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How To Lie With Statistics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Face Pressed Against a Window: A Memoir Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCasino Gambling For Dummies, 2nd Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Money Machine: The Surprisingly Simple Power of Value Investing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Disrupt You!: Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Freakonomics Rev Ed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chasing Cool: Standing Out in Today's Cluttered Marketplace Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sports Betting for Winners: Tips and Tales from the New World of Sports Betting Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Art Thinking: How to Carve Out Creative Space in a World of Schedules, Budgets, and Bosses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eat People: An Unapologetic Plan for Entrepreneurial Success Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Doug Kass on the Market: A Life on TheStreet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Games & Activities For You
Brain Training: Accelerated Learning and Focus Techniques Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sports Betting For Dummies Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Play Poker Like The Pros Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Itchy, Tasty: An Unofficial History of Resident Evil Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Psychic Workbook: A Beginner's Guide to Activities and Exercises to Unlock Your Psychic Skills Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Habits of Winning Poker Players Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why do we say that? - 202 Idioms, Phrases, Sayings & Facts! A Brief History On Where They Come From! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Phil Gordon's Little Green Book: Lessons and Teachings in No Limit Texas Hold'em Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cleaning Sucks: An Unf*ck Your Habitat Guided Journal for Less Mess, Less Stress, and a Home You Don't Hate Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5David Copperfield's History of Magic Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How To Play Chess: Your Step By Step Guide To Playing Chess Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Getting Gamers: The Psychology of Video Games and Their Impact on the People who Play Them Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/51500 Interesting Facts You Didn’t Know - Crazy, Funny & Random Facts To Win Trivia Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Smart Money: How the World's Best Sports Bettors Beat the Bookies Out of Millions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Guide to RPG Storytelling Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games Is Wrong Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Kill an Earworm: And 500+ Other Psychology Facts You Need to Know Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sid Meier's Memoir!: A Life in Computer Games Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The No-Prep Gamemaster: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Random Tables Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for A Man for All Markets
Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars
4/5
40 ratings1 review
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I liked when Thorp told his life story - I love memoirs. I liked his writing voice. I looked forward to learning a bit about how he beat the casinos and then the stock market, fully prepared that it would likely be all above my head. And yeah it was. Thorp was a young prodigy mathematician. He figured out how to win big at blackjack. It involved counting cards, and memorizing strategies for 500 or so possible deals he might be faced with, and betting larger or smaller depending on where he was in the deck.Then the casinos got wise to him,, made some rule changes about betting, started shuffling the deck on him every other deal, and just plain started cheating, too. He claims it was the cheating that made him give up gambling and turn to investing.He then devised a hedging approach to investing, which had to do with plotting stock prices an buying certain ones while simultaneously selling them short - I understood this even less than I understood the blackjack, frankly. I tried to get the gist of everything I was reading, but it did go on and on, and I kept wanting more life story.The book itself felt like it would never end. He gives a chapter of thoroughly boilerplate explanation of the 2008 financial crisis, which sheds absolutely no new light on anything. He gives a chapter of investment advice which likewise fails to shatter the earth. Finally he talks a bit about his own philanthropic outlays - endowing a mathematics chair at UC Irvine, and helping stem cell research. Thorp is still alive, in his 80s.