He is known as the "father of the wearable computer" since inventing the world's first wearable computer in 1961. He was a pioneer in modern applications of probability theory, including the harnessing of very small correlations for reliable financial gain. He is the author of Beat the Dealer (1962), the first book to mathematically prove that the house advantage in blackjack could be overcome by counting cards. He also developed and applied effective hedge fund techniques in the financial markets. Thorp received his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1958 and worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT 1959-61). He was a professor of mathematics from 1961-65 at New Mexico State University then joined the University of California, Irvine where he was a professor of mathematics from 1965-77 and a professor of mathematics and finance from 1977-82.
Edward Thorp spent a great deal of time using an IBM calculating machine, which counted the probabilities of stand, hit, double down or split actions based on which cards were already dealt, the dealer's face-up card and the player's cards. The aim of the whole concept was not to win every hand, but to increase your bet when the chances were bent toward you and to decrease it when the chances were low—the principles which were used in full measure by the legendary MIT blackjack team. Long research and an immense amount of work resulted in the book Beat the Dealer (1962).
After his success in casino games, Thorp moved to Wall Street, where he used in full measure his mathematical genius to foresee the price anomalies and with his partner J. Regan developed simple and efficient methods of earning money on stock. His methods are shown brilliantly in his book Beat the Market (1967). Edward O. Thorp is a legendary blackjack player and thinker, and is one of the 7 people elected to be original members of Blackjack Hall of Fame.
