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What makes good people do bad things? How can moral people be seduced to act immorally? Where is the line separating good from evil, and who is in danger of crossing it?

Renowned social psychologist Philip Zimbardo has the answers, and in The Lucifer Effect he explains how–and the myriad reasons why–we are all susceptible to the lure of “the dark side.” Drawing on examples from history as well as his own trailblazing research, Zimbardo details how situational forces and group dynamics can work in concert to make monsters out of decent men and women.

Zimbardo is perhaps best known as the creator of the Stanford Prison Experiment. Here, for the first time and in detail, he tells the full story of this landmark study, in which a group of college-student volunteers was randomly divided into “guards” and “inmates” and then placed in a mock prison environment. Within a week the study was abandoned, as ordinary college students were transformed into either brutal, sadistic guards or emotionally broken prisoners.

By illuminating the psychological causes behind such disturbing metamorphoses, Zimbardo enables us to better understand a variety of harrowing phenomena, from corporate malfeasance to organized genocide to how once upstanding American soldiers came to abuse and torture Iraqi detainees in Abu Ghraib. He replaces the long-held notion of the “bad apple” with that of the “bad barrel”–the idea that the social setting and the system contaminate the individual, rather than the other way around.

This is a book that dares to hold a mirror up to mankind, showing us that we might not be who we think we are. While forcing us to reexamine what we are capable of doing when caught up in the crucible of behavioral dynamics, though, Zimbardo also offers hope. We are capable of resisting evil, he argues, and can even teach ourselves to act heroically. Like Hannah Arendt’s Eichmann in Jerusalem and Steven Pinker’s The Blank Slate, The Lucifer Effect is a shocking, engrossing study that will change the way we view human behavior.


From the Hardcover edition..
Price: $10.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

This primer on the analysis of hedge funds offers investors a more quantitative understanding of this topic, providing a complete guide to portfolio techniques, asset allocation, performance measurement and product selection in the alternative investment world.

• Hedge funds are the fastest growing sector of the financial industry, and yet the least understood, by market professionals.
• Examines and popularises the results of several quantitative studies that have so far been confirmed within academic circles.
• Written by a highly regarded and impartial financial practitioner and academic, this will provide an excellent follow-on to Hedge Funds: Myths & Limits (Wiley 2002).
  

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Price: $71.04 [Notify me when price goes down.]

During his fourteen years as Yale's chief investment officer, David F. Swensen has transformed the management of the university's portfolio Largely by focusing on nonconventional strategies, including a heavy allocation to private equity, Swensen has achieved an annualized return of 16.2 percent, which has propelled Yale's endowment into the top tier of institutional funds. Now, this acknowledged leader of fund managers draws on his experience and deep knowledge of the financial markets to provide a compendium of powerful investment strategies.

Swensen presents an overview of the investment world populated by institutional fund managers, pension fund fiduciaries, investment managers, and trustees of universities, museums, hospitals, and foundations. He offers penetrating insights from his experience managing Yale's endowment, ranging from broad issues of goals and investment philosophy to the strategic and tactical aspects of portfolio management. Swensen's exceptionally readable book addresses critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting investment advisers, and negotiating the opportunities and pitfalls in individual asset classes. Fundamental investment ideas are illustrated by real-world concrete examples, and each chapter contains strategies that any manager can put into action.

At a time when it is becoming increasingly difficult to cope with the relentless challenges provided by today's financial markets, Swensen's book is an indispensable roadmap for creating a successful investment program for every institutional fund manager. Any student of markets will benefit from Pioneering Portfolio Management..
Price: $10.48 [Notify me when price goes down.]

If you want to diversify your portfolio and lower your risk exposure with hedge funds, here’s what you should know: Hedge Funds For Dummies explains all the different types of funds, explores the pros and cons of funds as an investment, shows you how to find a good broker, and much more.

Authored by Ann Logue, a financial writer and hedge fund specialist, this handy, friendly guide covers all the bases for investors of all levels. Whether you’re just building your first portfolio or you’ve been investing for years, you’ll find everything you need to know inside:

• What a hedge fund is and what it does
• How hedge funds are structured
• Determining whether a hedge fund is right for your portfolio
• Calculating investment risk and return
• Short- and long-term tax issues
• Developing a hedge fund investment strategy
• Monitoring and profiting on macroeconomic trends
• Evaluating fund performance
• Evaluating hedge fund management

If you’re investing for the future, you definitely want to minimize your risk and maximize your returns. A balanced portfolio with hedge funds is one of the best ways to achieve that sort of balance. This book walks you step by step through the process of evaluating and choosing funds, incorporating them into your portfolio in the right amounts, and making sure they give you the returns you expect and deserve. You’ll learn all the ins and outs of funds, including:

• What kind of fees you should expect to pay
• Picking a hedge fund advisor or broker
• Fulfilling paperwork and purchasing requirements
• Performing technical analysis and reading the data
• How to withdraw funds and handle the taxes
• Tracking fund performance yourself or through reporting services
• Hedge fund strategies for smaller portfolios
• Performing due diligence on funds that interest you

This friendly, to-the-point resource includes information you can’t do without, including sample portfolios that show you how to invest wisely. Hedge funds are an important part of every balanced portfolio, and this friendly guide tells how to use them to your best advantage. With important resources, vital information, and commonsense advice, Hedge Funds For Dummies is the perfect resource for every investor interested in hedge funds..
Price: $9.59 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Minimize risk and maximize profits with convertible arbitrage
Convertible arbitrage involves purchasing a portfolio of convertible securities-generally convertible bonds-and hedging a portion of the equity risk by selling short the underlying common stock. This increasingly popular strategy, which is especially useful during times of market volatility, allows individuals to increase their returns while decreasing their risks. Convertible Arbitrage offers a thorough explanation of this unique investment strategy. Filled with in-depth insights from an expert in the field, this comprehensive guide explores a wide range of convertible topics. Readers will be introduced to a variety of models for convertible analysis, "the Greeks," as well as the full range of hedges, including titled and leveraged hedges, as well as swaps, nontraditional hedges, and option hedging. They will also gain a firm understanding of alternative convertible structures, the use of foreign convertibles in hedging, risk management at the portfolio level, and trading and hedging risks. Convertible Arbitrage eliminates any confusion by clearly differentiating convertible arbitrage strategy from other hedging techniques such as long-short equity, merger and acquisition arbitrage, and fixed-income arbitrage.
Nick Calamos (Naperville, IL) oversees research and portfolio management for Calamos Asset Management, Inc. Since 1983 his experience has centered on convertible securities investment. He received his undergraduate degree in economics from Southern Illinois University and an MS in finance from Northern Illinois University..
Price: $38.67 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A perceptive evaluation of the new “emerging church” movement showing how we must not only interact with a fast-changing culture but also have our vision and practice of ministry shaped by biblical theology with Scripture as the norm..
Price: $8.07 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture presents a biblical, Christian worldview for the emergent church—people who are not at home in the traditional church or in the secular world. As exiles of both, they must create their own worldview that integrates their Christian beliefs with the contemporary world. Exiles seeks to integrate all aspects of life and decision-making and to develop the characteristics of a Christian life lived intentionally within emerging (postmodern) culture. It presents a plea for a dynamic, life-affirming, robust Christian faith that can be lived successfully in the post-Christian world of twenty-first century Western society. This book will present a Christian lifestyle that can be lived in non-religious categories and be attractive to not-yet Christians.

Such a worldview takes ecology and politics seriously. It offers a positive response to the workplace, the arts, feminism, mystery and worship. Exiles seeks to develop a framework that will allow Christians to live boldly and courageously in a world that no longer values the culture of the church, but does greatly value many of the things the Bible speaks positively about. This book suggests that there us more to being a Christian than meets the eye. It explores the secret, unseen nooks and crannies in the life of a Christian and suggests that faith is about more than church attendance and belief in God. Written in a conversational, easy-to-read style, Exiles is aimed at church leaders, pastors and laypersons and seeks to address complex issues in a simple manner. It includes helpful photographs and diagrams..
Price: $12.48 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In the years since the now-classic Pioneering Portfolio Management was first published, the global investment landscape has changed dramatically -- but the results of David Swensen's investment strategy for the Yale University endowment have remained as impressive as ever. Year after year, Yale's portfolio has trumped the marketplace by a wide margin, and, with over $20 billion added to the endowment under his twenty-three-year tenure, Swensen has contributed more to Yale's finances than anyone ever has to any university in the country. What may have seemed like one among many success stories in the era before the Internet bubble burst emerges now as a completely unprecedented institutional investment achievement.

In this fully revised and updated edition, Swensen, author of the bestselling personal finance guide Unconventional Success, describes the investment process that underpins Yale's endowment. He provides lucid and penetrating insight into the world of institutional funds management, illuminating topics ranging from asset-allocation structures to active fund management. Swensen employs an array of vivid real-world examples, many drawn from his own formidable experience, to address critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting advisors, and weathering market pitfalls.

Swensen offers clear and incisive advice, especially when describing a counterintuitive path. Conventional investing too often leads to buying high and selling low. Trust is more important than flash-in-the-pan success. Expertise, fortitude, and the long view produce positive results where gimmicks and trend following do not.

The original Pioneering Portfolio Management outlined a commonsense template for structuring a well-diversified equity-oriented portfolio. This new edition provides fund managers and students of the market an up-to-date guide for actively managed investment portfolios..
Price: $23.10 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In Foundation and Endowment Investing, authors Lawrence Kochard and Cathleen Rittereiser offer you a detailed look at this fascinating world and the strategies used to achieve success within it. Filled with in-depth insights and expert advice, this reliable resource profiles twelve of the most accomplished Chief Investment Officers within today’s foundation and endowment community—chronicling their experiences, investment philosophies, and the challenges they face—and shares important lessons that can be used as you go about your own investment endeavors..
Price: $32.85 [Notify me when price goes down.]