Edward O. Thorp

Edward Oakley Thorp is a Chicago born mathematics professor, hedge fund manager, author, and blackjack player. As a pioneer in modern applications of probability theory, Edward was one of the first to harness small correlations for reliable financial gain.

He was the author of Beat the Dealer, a book which demonstrated that the mathematical house advantage in blackjack could be overcome by card counting. He also developed and applied effective hedge fund techniques in the financial markets, and collaborated with Claude Shannon in creating the first wearable computer.

Thorp received his PhD from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1958, and worked at M.I.T. from 1959 to 1961. He was a professor of mathematics from 1961-1965 at New Mexico State University, and then joined the University of California, Irvine where he was a professor of mathematics from 1965 to 1977, and a professor of mathematics and finance from 1977 to 1982.