Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story of the Scientific Betting System That Beat the Casinos and Wall Street

In 1956 two Bell Labs scientists discovered the scientific formula for getting rich. One was mathematician Claude Shannon, neurotic father of our digital age, whose genius is ranked with Einstein?s. The other was John L. Kelly Jr., a Texas-born, gun-toting physicist. Together they applied the science of information theory?the basis of computers and the Internet?to the problem of making as much money as possible, as fast as possible.

Shannon and MIT mathematician Edward O. Thorp took the ?Kelly formula? to Las Vegas. It worked. They realized that there was even more money to be made in the stock market. Thorp used the Kelly system with his phenomenonally successful hedge fund, Princeton-Newport Partners. Shannon became a successful investor, too, topping even Warren Buffett?s rate of return. Fortune?s Formula traces how the Kelly formula sparked controversy even as it made fortunes at racetracks, casinos, and trading desks. It reveals the dark side of this alluring scheme, which is founded on exploiting an insider?s edge.

Shannon believed it was possible for a smart investor to beat the market?and Fortune?s Formula will convince you that he was right.

Price Range:$4.64 to $10.80 | 6 stores
Product Rating:

63 Reviews
Info:
Set Price Alert Save to Wish List
Tags:
Paperback, William Poundstone, Buy.com, Amazon, HotBookSale.com, Barnes & Noble, DeepDiscount.com, BookCloseouts

ComparePrices

title,desc	merchant	price	seeit
Smarter Choice Paperback, Fortune's Formula: The... In 1961, MIT mathematics professor Ed Thorp made a small Vegas fortune by counting cards ; his 1962 bestseller, Beat...	23,982 reviews *smarter certified	$8.44	See it
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story... William Poundstone / 2006 / 386 pages Books	DeepDiscount.com 4,164 reviews *smarter certified	$10.50 Free Shipping Coupon 1 coupon available Code:No Code Required Detail: Free Standard shipping on any order at DeepDiscount. Expires:Aug-31-2010 Restriction:Unknow	See it
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story... Investments and Securities - General Business & Economics - In 1956 two Bell Labs scientists discovered the...	Barnes & Noble	$15 $10.80 Coupon 2 coupons available Code:J7M3C9V Detail: 20% off single item when you use Master card at Barnes & Noble Expires:Dec-31-2009 Restriction:Unknow Code:No Code Required Detail: Free Shipping on orders of $25 at Barnes & Noble Expires:Jun-30-2010 Restriction:see site for more details	See it
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story... In 1956 two Bell Labs scientists discovered the scientific formula for getting rich. One was mathematician Claude...	24 reviews	$4.64 Free Shipping	See it
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story... Like New	BookCloseouts 19 reviews	$4.99 Coupon 1 coupon available Code:freeshipping Detail: Free Shipping with $35 at BookCloseouts Expires:Dec-31-2009 Restriction:pass: bookcloseouts.com	See it
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story... Pages: 400, Edition: 1st, Paperback, Hill and Wang	Amazon 11,406 reviews	$10.20 Coupon 1 coupon available Code:No Code Required Detail: FREE Shipping on orders over $25 at Amazon. Expires:Dec-31-2010 Restriction:Some restrictions apply. See site for details.	See it

*Shipping costs are based on an estimate of the lowest shipping rate available within the contiguous US, excluding Alaska and Hawaii. Only merchants with this product in stock are listed (Merchants with this product back ordered have been removed from this list).

Do you see a pricing error? Please let us know by filling out a simple form: Click here

Write a review

ProductReviews83/100 (63 Reviews)

Recent Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Aug-15-2009; Kelly formula for calculating investment bets; I picked up this book because Mohnish Pabrai, the author of The Dhandho Investor, recommended it. The author describes the Kelly Formula that was developed by John Kelly at Bell Labs in New Jersey and applied by the individuals featured...; read full review | report as inappropriate

4/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Jun-28-2009; Quick, entertaining, informative; FF is a gentle introduction to information science and the 'science' of gambling and the stock market. Well worth the read. Fans of WP might be interested to know: FF is something of a departure from WP's earlier books, which are...; read full review | report as inappropriate

1/5: From: Amazon; Posted: May-12-2009; adjectively and adverbly stretched introduction to the subject; The cover says this is the "untold story" and it's no wonder why--I really wonder if William Poundstone is enjoying playing a great joke on his agent and publisher - or helping them put over a huge joke on us. The back of the book says...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Nov-23-2008; Enjoyable and inspiring tale; It might be a matter of personal taste, since I've found other reviewers with exactly the opposite opinion, but I really enjoyed the book and, given the fact that English is not my first language, it can't be possibly be written as badly...; read full review | report as inappropriate

Selected Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Aug-15-2009; Kelly formula for calculating investment bets; I picked up this book because Mohnish Pabrai, the author of The Dhandho Investor, recommended it. The author describes the Kelly Formula that was developed by John Kelly at Bell Labs in New Jersey and applied by the individuals featured...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: May-29-2008; OK, but not great; Having just finished Poundstone's book on Gaming the Vote, I was hoping for a book equally as interesting. Although this book was worth reading, and there are a few aspects from it that I will put into practice, I did not walk away...; read full review | report as inappropriate

1/5: From: Amazon; Posted: May-12-2009; adjectively and adverbly stretched introduction to the subject; The cover says this is the "untold story" and it's no wonder why--I really wonder if William Poundstone is enjoying playing a great joke on his agent and publisher - or helping them put over a huge joke on us. The back of the book says...; read full review | report as inappropriate