Edward O. Thorp
Edward O. Thorp is the author of the bestseller Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One. It presented the first scientific system ever devised for a major casino gambling game and revolutionized the game of blackjack. His book Beat the Market helped start the derivatives revolution that transformed world securities markets. Based on his work, he launched the first market neutral hedge fund in 1969. Dr. Thorp, with Claude Shannon, also invented the first wearable computer in 1961 to win roulette. He has also written Elementary Probability, the Mathematics of Gambling, and numerous mathematical papers of probability, game theory, and functional analysis.
He completed undergraduate and graduate work at U.C.L.A., receiving the B.A. and M.A. in physics, and the Ph.D. in mathematics in 1958. He has taught at U.C.L.A., M.I.T., and New Mexico State University, and was Professor of Mathematics and Finance at the University of California at Irvine.