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  1. Ergodic

    COMPARE GaTech QCF vs Purdue Stats/CF vs NYU-Poly FE

    I have a hard time believing this! Do you have any idea how cheap it is to live in a small town in Indiana? If you've spent most of your adult life in Chicago, the rents here will make you sh*t a brick. They're so low that even Jimmy McMillan wouldn't complain. (Then again, I haven't looked...
  2. Ergodic

    COMPARE GaTech QCF vs Purdue Stats/CF vs NYU-Poly FE

    Hey Hellas. I go to Purdue and would be willing to give my two cents about your situation. First I'd need some more info about you and where you are in life: 1) What is your educational background? 2) What kind of work do you currently do? 3) What will be the bottom-line price tags for the...
  3. Ergodic

    GRE Math Subject Test

    That's too bad. In that case, I'd conjecture that the best way to score well (on top of the aforementioned training) is to simply be good at higher mathematics topics: Analysis, Topology, Algebra, etc. If you know the basic theorems, counterexamples, and proof forms of those, you can knock out...
  4. Ergodic

    GRE Math Subject Test

    Extreme pragmatism. There are four real practice tests available. Take all of them under timed conditions (for the experience of pressure), then go over ALL questions, including those omitted. This gives you a practical feel for the types of questions they ask. Then simply design your own...
  5. Ergodic

    GRE Math Subject Test

    We're on the same page, then. I just wanted to clarify this point for prospective test-takers who might be reading this.
  6. Ergodic

    GRE Math Subject Test

    Not to veer too far off topic, but I disagree. I went through a self-designed training program and improved my percentile from 44th to 88th, and I know at least one other guy who did the same. I know other applicants whose "IQs" were at least as good as mine (whatever that means) who didn't...
  7. Ergodic

    COMPARE MFE in Math vs. Stat @ Purdue

    From Purdue, eh? Nice. So I guess there is hope for those of us who will finish the program wondering how to overcome the networking disadvantage of attending a program in the middle of nowhere. Given your background, then, I'd definitely advise you to take the Stat route. Unless, of course...
  8. Ergodic

    College majors

    I doubt you really hate them, even though you might feel like that now; I would bet money that you just had a bad experience with a calc 3 or linear algebra professor or textbook. On deeper level: at your age, there's no way you know yourself as well as you currently think you do. You'll do...
  9. Ergodic

    Why did you choose Quantitative Finance?

    All due respect, what's keeping you from pursuing your "true passion" now? Or are you hoping to pull a Kronecker?
  10. Ergodic

    COMPARE MFE in Math vs. Stat @ Purdue

    Again, my guess would be Stats, but I'll have to let you know what I determine as the story unfolds over the next few years. On thing I can say is that there is a Quantitative Finance club at Purdue. One of their projects involves contacting alums of the CF programs to see where they are now...
  11. Ergodic

    COMPARE MFE in Math vs. Stat @ Purdue

    Oh, so your question was more than theoretical, then? Which department are you in?
  12. Ergodic

    COMPARE MFE in Math vs. Stat @ Purdue

    I'm going to join the program in a few weeks, Math-side. Since I'm new I can't say anything with authority for now, although the impression I get is that both routes are viable options and there is a good deal of overlap, so you should be able to get more or less the same education either way...
  13. Ergodic

    The power of positive thinking

    Well...awkward language aside, I think you would be a good candidate for the "keep your ambitions flexible" advice. For example, if you were to declare "My goal is to be working at Renaissance Technologies within the next 10 years," I think people would be right in telling you to be realistic...
  14. Ergodic

    The power of positive thinking

    That's not exactly what I said. The book argues that unconditional acceptance of shallow positive thinking has led to problems of varying scope and magnitude (personal, economic) and can be dangerously misleading. My claim, which was really more of a side note and neither contradicts nor agrees...
  15. Ergodic

    The power of positive thinking

    I agree (in the right contexts), but so is excessive negative thinking without action. I recently checked out Ehrenreich's book. Although she spends most of it trying to dispel illusions (like attempts to explain the Law of Attraction with hard sciences), in the end there actually is a call to...
  16. Ergodic

    Who are you voting for in 2012?

    If only everybody else were like that...eschew any wealth beyond juust what you "need"...if only everybody shared these same values...
  17. Ergodic

    Who are you voting for in 2012?

    At this point she's gonna make like Rex Manning and fade away. One hopes.
  18. Ergodic

    The PhD Movie Trailer

    When she said "Bell job applications," I heard "blow job applications." Just sayin'.
  19. Ergodic

    The college bubble

    >:-( I suppose that would be consistent with practices at places like Harvard and MIT where the Intro Analysis students get flung unceremoniously into Rudin and are, I guess, expected to find historical motivation and less mysterious proofs on their own. I still believe that DF has way too...
  20. Ergodic

    The college bubble

    Slightly off-topic, but Gallian is a perfect text for a first course in Algebra, regardless of where you're learning it. Are 1st-tier schools expecting their math majors to have already taken AA in high school these days or something?
  21. Ergodic

    I really doubt my Verbal score helped. If yours is at least, say, 500, then you have nothing to...

    I really doubt my Verbal score helped. If yours is at least, say, 500, then you have nothing to worry about. Focus on the more important aspects of your profile, like your SOP, your research interests, and relevant topics you're self-studying.
  22. Ergodic

    Need for needles

    http://xkcd.com/356/
  23. Ergodic

    Yes indeed. Are you going there too, or do you know anyone who is?

    Yes indeed. Are you going there too, or do you know anyone who is?
  24. Ergodic

    Newest child prodigy

    Of course, the real story is that you took an IQ test, scored only in the 130s to 140s--good, but nothing to write home about these days--and so went in the mocking direction of trumpeting a "low IQ" in contrast to your obvious knowledge and skills. Next time say 105. It's more believable ;)
  25. Ergodic

    Newest child prodigy

    No need to act all hurt and frowny. Step 1: Pick your head up. Step 2: Stop diverting the discussion every other post to brag about what you did before you were old enough to go to your first high school dance. Step 3: It sounds like you have a bright future. Try to focus more on what you want...
  26. Ergodic

    Newest child prodigy

    Keep plugging this and you might have your own youtube series soon.
  27. Ergodic

    Newest child prodigy

    You drop the controversially vague term "genuine ability" and imply this kid doesn't have it. I think many would claim this kid does have some kind of ability, even if integration by parts is nothing mysterious to anyone here. The article does say he's a PhD candidate at IU, right? My...
  28. Ergodic

    MA in Mathematics, GPA 3.03, GRE general test 1570 (770V, 800Q), GRE math subject test 810...

    MA in Mathematics, GPA 3.03, GRE general test 1570 (770V, 800Q), GRE math subject test 810 (85%ile), brief work experience as an actuarial analyst, current work as a high school math teacher, research experience: one paper in elementary number theory in review
  29. Ergodic

    Newest child prodigy

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schadenfreude
  30. Ergodic

    Help Me Choose Where To Go For Undergrad

    And I second this advice, regardless of where you go. So many people enter undergrad thinking only about what to study and downplay the crucial role of developing and maintaining good relationships with professors. Not only is this an end in itself, it is also very important when the time...
  31. Ergodic

    Pay: $53k for Purdue or only $3k Oklahoma State

    Wait, you are talking about graduate school/CF, right? And a terminal Masters rather than PhD, right? If that's the case, then I'd lean towards OK with the assistantship. As biased as I am towards Purdue (since I'll be likely starting there this year), I would be extremely uncomfortable about...
  32. Ergodic

    Purdue - Computational Finance

    I was recently admitted to Purdue's computational finance program, fully funded. (Well, technically I'm admitted to the Mathematics doctoral program.) If anyone else has gotten in there, I'd love to talk to you about the program and see what you've heard from the faculty and students there.
  33. Ergodic

    IIT MMF

    No word yet on scholarship, tuition waiver, etc.
  34. Ergodic

    Purdue CF

    PhD-track program in Mathematics with Computational Finance specialty. Fully funded Teaching Assistantship.
  35. Ergodic

    The waning of London as a financial centre?

    And all this time I thought London was becoming the financial and cultural capital of the world, one Guy Ritchie film at a time.
  36. Ergodic

    Yet other introductions to analysis

    From a pedagogical standpoint, Abbott's Understanding Analysis is--according to this MAA reviewer--so good that it's dangerous. Its treatment of power series/elementary functions is probably not as good as the ones BBW recommended, though; it works best in the hands of the intellectually...
  37. Ergodic

    MIT MFin Merton rejoins MIT to teach quantitative finance

    Fair enough, although I remain a little curious. In retrospect, I could have moderated the strength of my adjectives. Keep in mind I might have been deliberately provoking you. What I call cynicism you might call realism. In my view, those two words exist on a continuum for which there...
  38. Ergodic

    MIT MFin Merton rejoins MIT to teach quantitative finance

    Ilya, please do yourself a favor and listen more, opine less. In general. You can't fit the whole world into a little box, in a way that conforms seamlessly to your models and judgments. In Taleb's words, have the courage to say "I don't know," and be more skeptical about the quality of your...
  39. Ergodic

    NYU student with 100K loan

    Agreed. If you borrow six digits' worth to finance a top-level education in the liberal arts, you are implicitly accepting a lifetime of poverty in exchange. (Unless you plan on "selling out" and getting a JD or MBA afterwards.)
  40. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    And with Black, no less. A smashing final victory, putting that skinny little whiner in his place. I didn't follow all of the games live, but this last one I watched whenever I could, and was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Is this what fans of baseball and football feel during an...
  41. Ergodic

    Getting less than six hours of sleep?

    Blessed are the sleepy ones, for they shall soon drop off.
  42. Ergodic

    Greed is good

    Nice move. I'll let you have the last word on this one. Like I said, I feel I have little to learn from engaging in Rand debates, or even listening to them. So...there's more to "greed is good" than simply the works of Ayn Rand. (And, at the other extreme: making fun of the teabaggers.)...
  43. Ergodic

    Greed is good

    That's not exactly what I was getting at. I was mostly pointing out what I have observed about how people tend to debate Ayn Rand's character and philosophy. People tend to fall into one of the extremes of love/hate (for lack of better term), and many will go to great lengths to hold onto...
  44. Ergodic

    Greed is good

    Interesting read, although the quotes from her notebooks are clearly taken out of context. When expressing one's opinion on Ayn Rand, confirmation bias is par for the course. People make up their minds ahead of time whether or not they agree with her, and then will go rushing to history...
  45. Ergodic

    Greed is good

    You've got to admit, though: Ellsworth Toohey was a brilliant creation. Ayn Rand understood the mind of a patient, manipulative sociopath and might have made a good one had she been born under different circumstances. Maybe you could recast this post as a survey, e.g. Q: What is your...
  46. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    Black is down a bishop in the end. Although he "has two extra pawns," White's rook will make short work of the two on the queenside, and the passed e-pawn is easily blocked by the white king. Don't get me wrong: in a blitz game between amateurs, Black would have many opportunities for a...
  47. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    Poor Vishy. Looks like this is going to be even worse than I imagined. The last time Topalov uncorked such a novelty (to my knowledge) was against Kramnik in Wijk aan Zee, 2008. He then went on to further sac his queen for a rook and knight, achieving mate in an unrelenting fashion. As an...
  48. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    Call it calculated intuition. I guess it's time to apply my skills to financial markets. Those guys are off my radar for now. Wang Yue caught my eye when he almost broke Tal's record for a string of non-losses (86?)--if he quits smoking, he'll have my full support. Carlsen is younger than...
  49. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    Nice try, but I call your bluff and put you at 1800-2000 FIDE. Incidentally, I assume Carlsen is considered a national hero in your country. To whom in the USA could his current level of fame be compared? Magnus Carlsen is someone to watch. He's actually training with the Big K himself...
  50. Ergodic

    Chess season is upon us

    I don't suppose the world of chess is nearly as popular on Wall Street as baseball. Nevertheless, for all the domestic students who aren't aware that "chess professional" is not, in fact, an oxymoron, here's the skinny: Reigning champion Viswanathan Anand has travelled many miles across...
  51. Ergodic

    Wanted: MFE students diary

    If this were Facebook, I would "like" this comment. Consider this de facto approval.
  52. Ergodic

    "MFE program profile evaluation" master thread

    Thank you! I have to ask, though: what is your basis for this level of confidence? PhD programs don't seem to place much weight on the GRE, as I am unfortunately on my way to being non-accepted at all the programs to which I applied this year. Are MFE programs a different animal in this regard?
  53. Ergodic

    "MFE program profile evaluation" master thread

    Education: M.A. in Mathematics GRE general -- 1570 (800Q, 770V) GRE mathematics subject – 810 (approx. 87th percentile) GPA: 3.03 Previous work: One year as an Actuarial Analyst (passed two exams) Current work: designing and teaching SAT and ACT courses with a small startup company...
  54. Ergodic

    Only the Men Survive - The Crash of Morgan Stanley Executive Zoe Cruz - Great Reading!

    This statement is either nonsensical or tautological, depending on how you interpret it. Nothing wrong--in whose eyes? In the eyes of a sociopath? Of course not--he operates purely pragmatically, never in terms of intrinsic right and wrong. In the eyes of someone with a "traditional"...
  55. Ergodic

    Taleb and scalable careers

    After I read Fooled by Randomness, I was inspired: Taleb/Nero's trading style, of steady bleeding in anticipation of huge gains, and his profiting from the stubborn human vices of failing to acknowledge Black Swans and assuming the world would conform to mathematical models, seemed like...
  56. Ergodic

    Math Subject GREs

    Simple: unplug your internet connection and get to work. There comes a point (probably several) in a man's life when he needs to break free from the comfort of the "advice and planning" phase and take action. After nearly 500 posts here, I'm guessing you have received all the information...
  57. Ergodic

    Math Subject GREs

    The Princeton Review "Cracking..." book is fine, in spite of a few typos. It is helpful in some ways, but your main preparation should be from the four past exams (*real* exams) that are out there on the internet. UCSB provides scanned pdfs of three of them: Index of /mathclub/GRE , and the...
  58. Ergodic

    A provocative discussion of Goldman Sachs

    Not quite sure I see the connection. On a related note: was your expatriation [from the venal USA] a purposeful act of "Shrugging"?
  59. Ergodic

    MS in Scientific Computing - Courant

    Here's a link to the program in case anyone wants to check it out: http://www.math.nyu.edu/degree/ms/scicomputing.html
  60. Ergodic

    MS in Scientific Computing - Courant

    I'm interested in computational finance/financial engineering, but I'd like to get a more general degree than an MFE (general intellectual curiosity, plus I have a friend at Deutsche Bank warning me against MFE right now.) I'm considering a phD in Statistics or computational mathematics, but...
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