[HN Gopher] Newton's financial misadventures in the South Sea Bu...
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       Newton's financial misadventures in the South Sea Bubble (2018)
        
       Author : cs702
       Score  : 39 points
       Date   : 2024-10-02 17:54 UTC (5 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (royalsocietypublishing.org)
 (TXT) w3m dump (royalsocietypublishing.org)
        
       | bdjsiqoocwk wrote:
       | This article confirms that the common lore is broadly correct.
       | Newton bought, stock goes up, Newton sells, realizes huge gains,
       | stock goes up more, Newton buys again, stock crashes, Newton
       | loses big.
        
         | amelius wrote:
         | What goes up must come down. Newton of all people should have
         | known.
        
           | FredPret wrote:
           | Stock investment can drive economic and technical
           | development, which only needs to stop with the heat death of
           | the universe.
           | 
           | This particular stock was a massive bubble though.
        
             | vasco wrote:
             | Newton should've invested in broad index ETFs, shame he was
             | born a few hundred years too early.
        
               | FredPret wrote:
               | Should've invented crypto!
        
           | jameshart wrote:
           | I don't know - given that an object in motion remains in
           | motion, he might have been more of a 'line goes up' HODLer...
        
       | irq-1 wrote:
       | For a broader story, including Newtons running of the Royal Mint,
       | check out:
       | 
       | MONEY FOR NOTHING
       | 
       | THE SCIENTISTS, FRAUDSTERS, AND CORRUPT POLITICIANS WHO
       | REINVENTED MONEY, PANICKED A NATION, AND MADE THE WORLD RICH
       | 
       | https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/thomas-levenson/m...
        
         | FredPret wrote:
         | For an lengthy but amazing alternate-reality account of same
         | (and much... much more), check out Neal Stephenson's Baroque
         | Cycle
        
           | Onavo wrote:
           | For a more rigorous treatment, try Paul Wiltmott's (a famous
           | quant) _The Money Formula_
           | 
           | https://www.amazon.com/Money-Formula-Finance-Science-
           | Mathema...
        
       | downrightmike wrote:
       | More about the whole thing:
       | 
       | England: South Sea Bubble - The Sharp Mind of John Blunt - Extra
       | History - Part 1
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1kndKWJKB8&list=PL931Bkj5KL...
        
       | pvg wrote:
       | Couple of previous discussions from 2018 and 2019
       | 
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16245284
       | 
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21007541
        
         | dang wrote:
         | Thanks! Macroexpanded:
         | 
         |  _Isaac Newton 's Financial Misadventures in the South Sea
         | Bubble_ - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29032752 - Oct
         | 2021 (1 comment)
         | 
         |  _Newton 's Financial Misadventures in the South Sea Bubble_ -
         | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21007541 - Sept 2019 (15
         | comments)
         | 
         |  _Newton's Financial Misadventures in the South Sea Bubble
         | [pdf]_ - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16245284 - Jan
         | 2018 (35 comments)
        
       | bruce511 wrote:
       | One of the things I found interesting recently was that the
       | "South Sea" part of the name refers to the South Atlantic. I'd
       | always inferred that the "South Sea" was the South Pacific.
       | 
       | I suppose the term "South Pacific" is ingrained in the language,
       | so naturally my mind takes me there with "South Sea".
       | 
       | Anyway, just one of those long-held beliefs that turns out yo be
       | false.
        
         | badpun wrote:
         | Doh, I always thought it as South China Sea!
        
         | mikrl wrote:
         | South Seas in popular culture typically does refer to the South
         | Pacific and Polynesia though. I'd also say the South China Sea
         | too.
         | 
         | But in Newton's day yes, I think the colonial adventures were
         | still very much focused on the Atlantic.
        
       | ren_engineer wrote:
       | Newton should have known to always leave a moon bag
        
       | hermitcrab wrote:
       | One of the smartest people who ever lived and he was still
       | suckered, due to greed.
        
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       (page generated 2024-10-02 23:00 UTC)