economics-times

Hundreds of pages of insanely dense math with absolutely no practical information on how to apply chaos theory to the markets. In fact, the author seems to suggest that it may be impossible to use chaos theory as a prediction tool in the financial markets.

This is akin to a recipe book written by someone who thinks cooking is impossible, so all he can really write about is grocery shopping. NOT recommended! A much better book is "Trading on the Edge" by Deboeck.

The only cool thing about the book is that you can use it to impress your friends/enemies with the title and loads of arcane equations inside.

1) first, there is hardly *any* mention of markets in the
book. I only found two references
to the market in the entire book. the first reference was
early on where a couple of plots of the S&P were shown at
daily and weekly time frames, and the author stated that the
plots resembled each other and therefore this could be taken
as evidence of self-similarity.

the title of the book is mis-leading... it would be as if
a calculus textbook were to call itself "calculus in the markets"
simply because they have a section on compound interest...

2) there is a lot of hand-waving in the theory that is covered.
the author does cover a lot of ground, so it is understandable
that more details and explanations of certain subjects are
not provided. this book *is* a good bibliographic reference,
for example if one is interested in a particular topic, it
could be looked up in this book, and references to all the
seminal works are given.

3) there are better books out there that cover similar subject
matter, and *are* centered on the marketplace: for example,
Mandlebrot's "Fractals and Scaling in Finance", Lo and
MacKinlay's "A Non-Random Walk Down Wallstreet", William Brock
et al "Nonlinear Dynamics, Chaos, and Instability", and
several books by Edgar Peters.

I'm surprised that this book got reader reviews that
are as favorable as the reviews posted before this one.

If you are interested in the mathematics of chaos and
dynamical systems, this might be a good book for you.
However, this book is densely packed with mathematics
and unless you have a very solid mathematical background,
Peitgen, Jurgens and Saupe's wonderful book "Chaos and
Fractals: New Frontiers of Science" might be a better choice.
This book covers the basic mathematics of dynamical systems
but does not delve into graduate level mathematics.

If you are thinking of buying this book because its title
mentions markets and non-linear financial time series,
save your money. The author spends five very mathematically
laden chapters discussing dynamical systems. There is nothing
solid on applying the mathematics of dynamical systems to
financial time series other than the observation that they
sure seem chaotic. At the very end the author weakly suggests
that dynamical systems theory might be applied to market
information, but he provides no examples.

People who develop successful market models usually don't
publish much on them, since there is a lot to be gained
by trading them. So one cannot catagorically state what has
and has not been done. However, I know of no case where
dynamical systems mathematics has been used to successfully
provide predictive models (e.g., models you can trade and
make money on) of financial markets. This book certainly does
not live up to the promise of its title.

There are a number of good book on time series analysis and
modeling. For example, see "Wavelet Methods for Time Series Analysis" by Donald B. Percival, Andrew T. Walden. This book
does not deal with financial time series directly, but it does
deal with "non-stationary" time series.

I thought this was a waste of my money. It is basically a spiral notebook calendar with some generic sayings on it, much like the free one my insurance rep sends me every December! Here are a few examples:

"Prioritize your responsibilities."
"Time is money."
"Learn from your mistakes"
"Throw useless, broken junk away."
"Use a coffeemaker with a timer in the mornings"
"Accept that life will always be filled with challenges."
"Make a list of items you need before going to the store."

Well, Duuuuuuuuuuuh!

Do I really need a professional organizer to tell me these little "tips" and clichés? That's ALL it is. No elaboration or examples, no new ideas, no unique methods for approching a task, just trite, one-sentence platitudes.

I was really looking forward to this book and when it came, all I could think was: "Is this it?"

When the author wants to actually WRITE A BOOK worth the full price then maybe I'll check it out, but I feel tricked into buying something I could have picked up at my local drugstore for cheap.

I was very disappointed in this "book", it is only an empty datebook. Don't waste your money !

Call it a calendar or call it a self-help book. Whatever you call it, go out and buy it! What a great way to help yourself get organized and feel good about yourself! Keeping it on a day-to-day level, The Neat Ideas Daybook is for anyone and everyone who wants to get back on track and stay on track. I even gave one to my 10 year old daughter who uses hers religiously for school and sports. It makes me feel good to pass along such a 'neat idea' with great advice that she can use for years to come. This will be on my Christmas shopping list this year for friends and family. Don't pass this up!

I found this book to be helpful with its simple straightforward ideas to organize things. Since I can never have every room in the house organized at the same time, I like the way this book tackles one area/topic at a time. Ideas are short and sometimes of the "duh!" variety, but overall I found great suggestions for getting things in order. The book isn't expensive and from the few ideas I got, my $$ was definitely well-spent.

I have always had a problem with being organized, with staying organized. I found this little book by the literary agent Sheree Bykofsky to be simply terrific! It is full of excellent advice and is easy to follow, easy to use. Ms. Bykofsky is a high powered book agent who is always doing dozens of things at the same time, making deals, courting publishers, giving lectures. If you doubt how incredibly effective and organized she is herself, go and look up her website--take a look at the number of books she has sold, the authors she has helped put on the map. We can all use help with getting organized. I found this book to be a big help, and being better organized has made me more money and most importantly, has added real value to my life. Check it out. You'll love it!

The first 50 or so ideas were great, and I sensed order emerging from the chaos of my home. Sadly if there was some handy hint for remembering where you put your reading glasses it wasn't in the ones I read, so I didn't finish the book.

Change Your Attitude is rich with examples and interactive exercises for the reader. The authors do an excellent job of providing comic relief at regular intervals, some of which works. The active, participatory style of this book makes it more engaging than other books in the motivational genre. Much of this vitality comes from the impressive amount of research that went into it. The authors reference well over one hundred books, magazines, and newspaper articles, bringing readers a lively cross-section of ideas. The book's simple failing: Few of these ideas are new. Nevertheless, we at getAbstract recommend Change Your Attitude as an entertaining book that covers all of the motivational standards.

What a wonderful, elegant treatise on the critical importance of "Attitude" in our search for meaning. It's absolutely true, that it's not what happens to us that counts.....it's the attitude we face our challenges with that will determine our happiness. Thank you Tom Bay for this powerful testament to the human spirit. PS I've been fortunate enough to see Tom Bay speak, and if you EVER have the chance, take advantage of it. He's in elite company....Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, et.al. He really is that good!

This book is easy reading and delivers a power packed punch! Although it covers basic principles, the book delivers a message that never gets old. It's one of those books I'm eager to share with my family, friends and colleagues......Great Reading!

I don't understand why this book is classified as a "Strategic Change" or "Organizational Change" book. It is neither.

But, it is a good book, if you enjoy reading the work of a futurist.

For "Org Change" take a look at Kotter, Collins, Beitler, Black & Gregersen, etc.

Since the future isn't what it used to be and only seems to get stranger by the day, Peter Schwartz's latest book should be a welcome guide to the "inevitable surprises" ahead. Schwartz isn't just any futurist; he's a kingpin at the Global Business Network and frequently consults to governments and large corporations. Schwartz argues that many of the big surprises ahead can be foreseen if we use scenario thinking to closely examining existing signs. With this point as well as in some details - such as the impact of shrinking populations - Schwartz is in accord with Peter Drucker. This book lays out the dramatic transformation and volatility we face over the next quarter century. The book's scope is wide enough that everyone is likely to find themselves startled and stimulated.

In case you read Schwartz's previous work and wonder whether he still believes in "The Long Boom", the answer is an undeniable and unashamed *yes!* Productivity and accelerating technological advances will return the economy to a long-term path of strong growth. This doesn't mean that Schwartz paints a pastel portrait of the future. We can expect a cleaner environment and opportunities in abundance, but must also anticipate massive migrations of people, declining populations in large parts of the Western world, a confusing and unruly international situation, global climate crises, plagues, and possibly an asteroid strike. Study this book, challenge Schwartz's thinking, and prepare yourself and your business for a wild ride ahead.

Schwartz believes that his forecasts and scenarios will stand up to the test of future history better than those of most prognosticators. The reason is that, in the grand tradition of "predetermined elements" in scenario planning, he is drawing out the implications of events that have already happened. Many of the big surprises are, in fact, inevitable. So why are we continually caught off guard? Schwartz pins the blame on our tendency as decision makers to react to the drivers of change either with denial or defensiveness. Neither kind of response is effective and both are "fundamentally irresponsible" as Schwartz puts it. In this book, he aims to help us understand the kinds of inevitable surprises lying ahead, and to suggest steps that organizations can take to thrive.

In the author's view, humanity faces greater challenges now than ever before. At the same time we have greater capabilities than ever before. Our greatest challenge is "to master our own accelerating power, without being swept away by it." Along with a few other well-grounded futurists, Schwartz has laid down a challenge along with weapons for tackling the future. Inevitably, most readers will read this book and find it both informative and engaging but few will incorporate the resulting ideas for action into their plans. When it comes to these large-scale shifts, *doing* has always been disadvantaged compared to *denial* and *defensiveness*. Being proven wrong about this would be a surprise but, alas, not an inevitable surprise.

Heartily enjoyed this book. Got me thinking long-term about some of the possibilities for the future that you don't find in the newspapers e.g. the impact of AIDS in places like Russia and India and how that could affect future growth.

The way the author can say pretty well what will happen based on current evidence is an amazing tool that should only grow in importance, yet it does not take away the free will to change.

Makes you appreciate the world will be even more amazing in the future.

I lost money using these strategies. Buy Steve Nison book if you want a good book on TA. This one just doesn't measure up.

There is much useful material, along with a thoughtful approach to creating a daytrading discipline, in this book. I don't fully agree with (and wouldn't expect to) all of Lewis' statements, and, as you might expect, given the changes in the trading environment over the last couple of years, many of his methods and observations are arguably already out of date, but others still apply, and his overall philosophy, perspective, and attitude are probably more important, in my opinion, than the particulars of his personal approach as practiced in and around late 2000. The text includes numerous clear, concrete, and detailed examples, though you may have to look past an L2 screen with a stack of QCOM buyers at 343 13/16 (I just never get over mania-market prices) to receive the message.

SOMEONE SUCCESSFUL WITH THE SAME INTEREST AS OURS REVEALS TO US HIS SYSTEM. CLEAR, THRUTFUL AND CONCISE. THIS BOOK WAS THE ULTIMATE REVELATION FOR ME. GOT ALL MY IDEAS CLEAR ON MY OWN APPROACH AND PERMIT ME, COMBINED WITH DIFFERENT MOMENTUM CONCEPTION TO GAIN MASTERY IN TRADING. MY DREAM HAS BECOME REALITY AFTER 10 MONTHS.
THANK YOU A LOT Mr. LEWIS for your GENEROSITY AND plain english FOR TREATING SUCH COMPLEX MATTERS.

(OTHER PARALLEL READINGS TO GET TO THE ULTIMATE RESULT:
STAN WEINSTEIN/ WILLIAM O'NEIL (TRADING PHILOSOPHY!!
ALAN FARLEY (ORIGINAL SWING TRADING CONCEPTION
JOSH LUKEMAN (MARKET MAKERS MENTALITY
& ARI KIEV (PSYCHOLOGY ASPECTS FOR TRADING

The author seams try to hide the little information he was able to gather from outside the Soros's circle with a poetic writing about his rise to be a "Master of the Universe". But the fact remain that the book give only a very superficial idea about Soros and for sure do not address the big question about him: "Devil's Master of Globalization or Saint of a New Economy?"

Although quite out of date, this is the most interesting amongst all other bibliographies of Soros I ever read. This could be attributed to that the author could not get direct info from Soros or his associates at all. Without the burden of returning any favor, the author could quote whatever and whoever (some ex Soros partners) he liked, particularly criticisms, which were the most interesting parts of the book. Other parts, like how Soros broke the Bank of England, how he identified with his Hungarian Jewish identity, how he failed to become a philospher and turned into a trader, should be good enough to satisfy most readers' curiosity on the early part (on or before 1994) of Soro's life. For those traders who want to know the trading secrets, go somewhere else.

p.s. As a trader, I still would like to quote something from the book for my fellows' reference:-

1. Page 60: What Soros understood better than most were the cause and effect relationships in the world's economies. If A happened, that B must follow, then C after that.

2. Page 83: The stock market is always wrong, so that if you copy everybody else on Wall Street, you're doomed to do poorly.

3. Page 85: In 1979, Soros renamed his fund...Quantum Fund, in tribute to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle in quantum mechanics. That principle asserts that it is impossible to predict the behavior of subatomic particples in quantum mechanics, an idea that meshed with Soros's conviction that markets were always in a state of uncertainty and flux that it was possible to make money by discounting the obvious, and betting on the unexpected.

4. Page 92: Soros always says that you shouldnt be in the market unless you are willing to take the pain.

5. Page 110: Short term volatility is greatest at turning points and diminishes as a trend becomes established.

6. Page 159: It is not whether you are right or wrong, but how much money you make when you are right and how much money you lose when you are wrong....If you have tremendous conviction on a trade you have to go for the jugular.It takes courage to be a pig. It takes courage to ride a profit with huge leverage.... When you right on something, you cant own enough.

This book helps decipher the code of a great speculator. Financiers like Soros help keep the financial and economical mkt mesh in sync. Recent news on the dismantling of his Quantum (largest hedge fund in the world) and Quota funds has many on the street bewildered about his authority, but it should be understood that Soros publicly announced about two years ago that he no longer meddled in any of the funds' investments. This is a good book that explains the why's of a worldly speculator.

This book is very vague and general in content. In trying to determine how much of our home office furniture was deductible I looked up "furniture" and the book points you to "Business Assets" and within business assets there is no mention of furniture or like assets. What is written is a short very general list what "might" be deductible. I expected 422 deductions to be "specific deductions" or more importantly "how to determine" the eligibility of deductions. This book is far to vague to understand what is deductible and how to determine the eligibility.

Prior reviewers seem to have been disappointed with this book because they expected it to be something that it isn't designed to be. It is an encyclopedia of tax deductions for small businesses. If you're wondering if something is deductible, turn to that page in ths book (deductions are in alphabetical order), and you'll learn whether it's deductible and, if so, what category on your return it should be listed under. There won't be much information about who's eligible to deduct it or what records you need to keep to prove it but it does answer the question I always have of "can I deduct XX?" If you use this along with a general small business tax book, you'll have most of the information you need. I recommend either Kamaroff's Small Time Operator or Jan Zobel's Minding Her Own Business. The JK Lasser small business tax book might be fine too.

Now in a fully revised and updated edition, 422 Tax Deductions For Businesses & Self-Employed Individuals by certified public accountant and tax specialist Bernard B. Kamoroff is an alphabetical listing of tax deductions that business owners and the self-employed can apply to save themselves money on their tax bill. Ranging from depreciation of athletic facilities; to the cost buying, feeding, and maintaining a watch dog; to the creation of Medical Savings Accounts, 422 Tax Deductions presents its entries in brief, simple terms which are entirely accessible and "user friendly" for non-specialist general readers. 422 Tax Deductions For Businesses & Self-Employed Individuals is a superbly presented and strongly recommended tax preparation supplement for small business owners and the self-employed.

If you like the usual Marxist c**p you will like this book.

I consider myself fairly well educated: I have a Ph.D. and I've thrived on books in this genre, such as _Europe and the People Without History_ and _The Colonizer's Model of the World_. But I find Arrighi's book a difficult one--a little beyond most readers, I should think.

There are three main reasons for this: a.) Arrighi fails to write for a larger audience and b.) fails to write as clearly as he could; and c.) Arrighi is assuming fluency in Braudel, Wallerstein, Abu-Lughod, and a host of other scholars who have tackled the rise of capitalist empires.

I think most Americans, who have a mediocre background in Marxist theory, world systems theory, class dynamics, and hegemony, might want to pass. Does the name Gramsci ring a bell? How about the basic premises of Lenin? Which way did you nod your head when I mentioned Abu-Lughod? If these notions aren't a part of your working knowledge, take a pass on this book. Try one of the two books I mentioned at the top. And if you *are* well-versed in Braudel, macro-economic theory, and critical discussions of imperialism, you might venture to read this difficult work. Arrighi has put together an ambitious, provocative work, a serious investigation into the power-economies of empires.

If you are a student of the international system or international relations this is a must read. It should be considered the second part in a five volume set. The first should be something about world systems theory by Wallerstein, a reader will do, then Fernand Braudel's Perspective of the World, followed by Hopkins and Wallertein's Age of Transition. For the final book I recommend Robert Gilpin's response to these works, The Challenge of Global Capitalism published in 2000.

I originally ordered this book direct from the Stefanchik organization via a direct mail piece sent to me. While I found the book very informative and educational in regards to the world of buying and selling paper, it also served as a primer for a follow-up telemarketing call from a Stefanchik representitive selling a rather pricy course on the said subject.

This is a very interesting book. It goes into the world "Second Trust Deeds" and "Takeback Notes" and really gives you a bird's eye view of this business. Unfortunately it will not work for 90% of the people.

When I was first introduced to privately held Second Trust Deeds it was as an investment. These Seconds can be as high as 18% or 20%. It's a great way to beat CD's. Unfortunately, these percentages are harder to come by in this easy mortgage environment. Many of the ones available are in neighborhoods that secondary investors would not want to buy in.

The other flaw in his logic is selling before you buy. Many holders of these notes want some type of deposit to hold the not why you find a purchaser.

Lastly, this is a nickle and dime industry. You are trying to make 2% to 3% differences here and there, sometimes you can sometimes you can't. There is really no way of really fulfilling the promises of the title without working this program full time.

I have an investment advisor for 11 years, I focus on futures and commodities, and I have written three books on the subject. I know when the facts are being presented and when it is just baloney. Stefanchik has some facts...too bad it's mixed in with the baloney.

John Sfefanchik has written a very good book on cash flow with discounted mortgages. This information is just as vital now as it was back in 1994 when it was first written. Some companies charge as much ...[way to much] for a 2 day seminar for the same information.