A Demon of Our Own Design - APL , A+ and others

So now we have reached the stage predicted by this book , maybe more
people will read it now ?


A well written book.
The author talks about the A+ language.
Bookstaber was one of the inventors of these complex instruments .. so
he knows what he's talking about. He refers to the "Quants" ... the
mathematicians that created the formulas.

Although he criticises APL and A+ ( wrongly IMO ), I think he should
have added the following comparison : "The scientists invented Nuclear
Fission/Fusion; the politicians [ bankers ] misused it."

The example of the Barings bank that went bust due to lack of controls
and [ top management's ] understanding of what they were doing is just
a very simple case.
The world of derivatives today is far more complex.






Just in case you haven't read it , here is the link again :
http://www.amazon.com/Demon-Our-Own-...3102648&sr=8-1
A Demon of Our Own Design: Markets, Hedge Funds, and the Perils of
Financial Innovation (Paperback)
by Richard Bookstaber (Author) List Price: $16.95





One particluar Comment from Amazon :


"Like many pessimistic observers, Richard Bookstaber thinks financial
derivatives, Wall Street innovation and hedge funds will lead to a
financial meltdown. What sets Mr. Bookstaber apart is that he has
spent his career designing derivatives, working on Wall Street and
running a hedge fund." (The Wall Street Journal)

This book has been discussed at some length in Wikipedia. See
"Criticism of the APL Language", then look for a section called "Wall
Street Use". I think there is also some relevant material in the talk
page.