A History of the Theory of Investments: My Annotated Bibliography Hardback - 2006

A HISTORY OF THE Theory of Investments

"Only Mark Rubinstein could have written this book. Idiosyncratic and eclectic, it is full of surprises. Anyone seriously interested in Financial Economic Theory should own it."
William F. Sharpe, recipient of the 1990 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences

Why was Pascal credited with the origination of the arithmetical triangle in 1654, though impressive work on combinatoric problems had been published more than five centuries before? What were the pioneering assumptions unveiled in Ross's classic 1976 paper The Arbitrage Theory of Capital Asset Pricing--and what questions were left open for later researchers to resolve?

A History of the Theory of Investments addresses these issues and hundreds more in a first-of-its-kind reference that is as unendingly fascinating as it is undeniably valuable. Exploring key turning points in the development of investment theory, through the critical prism of award-winning investment theory and asset pricing expert Mark Rubinstein, this groundbreaking resource follows the chronological development of investment theory over centuries, exploring the inner workings of great theoretical breakthroughs while pointing out contributions made by often unsung contributors to some of investment's most influential ideas and models.

A History of the Theory of Investments is about ideas--where they come from, how they evolve, and why they are instrumental in preparing the future for new ideas. Author Mark Rubinstein writes history by rewriting history. In unearthing long-forgotten books and journals, he corrects past oversights to assign credit where credit is due and assembles a remarkable history that is unquestionable in its accuracy and unprecedented in its power.

In just one example, Rubinstein points out that the seminal Black-Scholes model shares its foundations with research that was published two decades earlier by Kenneth Arrow--research that can itself be traced back three centuries to the celebrated correspondence between Pascal and de Fermat. Connections are drawn between seemingly disparate and unrelated works. The resulting journey is both innovative and illuminating, revealing how seemingly insignificant thoughts and discoveries have led to many of investment history's most notable breakthroughs.

From the "ancient" period through the "modern" period, and stretching from celebrated and luminary figures like Keynes and Hayek to those relatively unknown and underappreciated names who have become all but lost in dusty library stacks, A History of the Theory of Investments paints a stunningly all-inclusive, engaging, and important depiction of the foundations of investment theory and asset pricing.