Edgar E. Peters > Quotes

“Benoit Mandelbrot can be considered the Euclid of fractal geometry. He has collected the observations of mathematicians concerned with "monsters," or objects not definable by euclidean geometry. By combining the work of these mathematicians with his own insight, he has created a geometry of nature that thrives on asymmetry and roughness. Mandelbrot has said that "mountains are not cones, and clouds are not spheres.”
― Edgar E. Peters, Chaos and Order in the Capital Markets: A New View of Cycles, Prices, and Market Volatility

“Fundamental analysis often works, but it often fails. Technical analysis often works, and then it does not work. Economists speak of economic cycles, but none can be found analytically. Traders speak of market cycles; they too cannot be proven. To top it off, the critics of the EMH have been unable to offer an alternative that takes all the discrepancies into account. In few other areas are theory and practical experience in such little agreement.”
― Edgar E. Peters, Chaos and Order in the Capital Markets: A New View of Cycles, Prices, and Market Volatility

“In the 16th century, it was widely believed by scientists that projectiles, like cannonballs fired toward an enemy, fell straight down after they reached their apex, because gravity pulled them down in a linear fashion, as specified by Aristotle. Practitioners (in this case, soldiers) said that this theory was nonsense: cannonballs followed a curved path. They knew, because they were busy knocking down castles. Not until Descartes' work in the 17th century would mathematicians admit that they (and Aristotle) had been wrong.”
― Edgar E. Peters, Chaos and Order in the Capital Markets: A New View of Cycles, Prices, and Market Volatility