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 phenomenally 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 William Poundstone's Fortune's Formula will convince you that he was right.

Asa Candler rose from a rural background to reap a fortune. His windfall came from purchasing the Coca-Cola formula in 1888 and establishing the company that became a national phenomenon in less than a decade. In Formula for Fortune, author Ann Uhry Abrams narrates the life and times of Candler from his ancestral background to the death of the last of his five children. Formula for Fortune not only shows how he turned his entrepreneurial genius into an empire, but also relates his status in Atlanta, Georgia, as a prominent banker, realtor, philanthropist, civil servant, and mayor. Painting a lively portrait of the past, this biography tells a fascinating American story that covers a century of American and Southern life as seen through the eyes of a middle-class family elevated to prominence by their patriarch's incredible success. It not only provides a peek into the horse-and-buggy days of one of the nation's major corporations, but also follows Coca-Cola's fascinating transformation from patent-medicine to international phenomenon. Family dynamics weave through this drama of love, disappointments, and disaster played out against the background of four wars, a race riot, technological revolutions, and numerous courtroom dramas.

Three consecutive years on the New York Times Best Sellers list, Albert J. Lowry Ph.D. has combined with real estate guru Richard C. Powelson Ph.D to offer truly genius methods that show anyone how to increase personal income. These tried and proven methods teach anyone how to make thousands of dollars in one day, how to become a millionaire, how to be self-employed, and how to build a fortune with No-Money-Down. A must for anyone serious about increasing wealth. This book has received top reviews.

The Arthurian Formula, the last major work of Dion Fortune, formed the cornerstone of the inner work of her Society of the Inner Light for the following twenty years. It later formed the basis for work by Gareth Knight with the Company of Hawkwood and allied groups in later years, inspiring his book The Secret Tradition in Arthurian Legend. Dion Fortunes contribution explores the remote sources of the Arthurian legends and the mission of Merlin, played out in the polar relationships between Arthur, Guenivere and Lancelot in both human and faery dynamics, and leading to aspects of the Grail. explores the labyrinth of archetypal patterns of knights and ladies, including Morgan le Fay Gareth Knights commentary is an overview of the traditions behind the Arthurian Formula of Glastonbury, Atlantis, the world of Faery, Merlin, the Troubadours, the cult of Queen Venus application to the practical Mysteries of today

From the author of Are You Smart Enough to Work at Google?, a fascinating look at how an equation that foretells the future is transforming everything we know about life, business, and the universe. In the 18th century, the British minister and mathematician Thomas Bayes devised a theorem that allowed him to assign probabilities to events that had never happened before. It languished in obscurity for centuries until computers came along and made it easy to crunch the numbers. Now, as the foundation of big data, Bayes' formula has become a linchpin of the digital economy. But here's where things get really interesting: Bayes' theorem can also be used to lay odds on the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence; on whether we live in a Matrix-like counterfeit of reality; on the "many worlds" interpretation of quantum theory being correct; and on the biggest question of all: how long will humanity survive? The Doomsday Calculation tells how Silicon Valley's profitable formula became a controversial pivot of contemporary thought. Drawing on interviews with thought leaders around the globe, it's the story of a group of intellectual mavericks who are challenging what we thought we knew about our place in the universe. The Doomsday Calculation is compelling reading for anyone interested in our culture and its future.

At least five U.S. presidential elections have been won by the second most popular candidate, because of "spoilers"--Minor candidates who take enough votes away from the most popular candidate to tip the election. The spoiler effect is a consequence of the "impossibility theorem," discovered by Nobel laureate economist Kenneth Arrow, which asserts that voting is fundamentally unfair--and political strategists are exploiting the mathematical faults of the simple majority vote. This book presents a solution to the spoiler problem: a system called range voting, already widely used on the Internet, which is the fairest voting method of all, according to computer studies. Range voting remains controversial, however, and author Poundstone assesses the obstacles confronting any attempt to change the American electoral system.--From publisher description.

This sharply intelligent, consistently provocative book takes the reader on an astonishing, thought-provoking voyage into the realm of delightful uncertainty--a world of paradox in which logical argument leads to contradiction and common sense is seemingly rendered irrelevant.