Comments | jonathankaplan: nother one bites the dust.

jonathankaplan

nother one bites the dust.

Jan 20, 2010 15:27

Another option trader friend of mine just died. The first one I wrote about here was Howard Ring, he was a friend and colleague, a backgammon champ, a very smart, math-oriented genius. And a really nice guy, to boot. The second one I wrote about here was Steve Fossett, not as much a friend as friendly opponent, he was a gamesman also. The friend ( Read more... )

gaming, obituary, options

Comments 29

nokomisjeff January 20 2010, 21:38:59 UTC

I lost an old grain trader friend 2 weeks ago. Everyone seems to be dying off.

jonathankaplan January 21 2010, 17:07:02 UTC

Eventually, for sure. But floor traders do seem to have it harder.

nokomisjeff January 21 2010, 17:14:19 UTC

I think it's from getting stabbed with pencils. How many pencil tattoos do you have? I can't even count mine.

jonathankaplan January 22 2010, 16:40:13 UTC

I have plenty of friends with lead tattoos. But not me.
For most of my floor career, I was an options Specialist, which meant (for those unknowing) that I stood at the very front of the pit, between a bank of computers in my face and a cadre of clerks at my back. They protected me from incursions from the masses, generally, and my space was secure. I have different health issues, but pencil tattoos isn't one of them.

Thread 5

anonymous January 20 2010, 22:29:53 UTC

I bet the jewels were just hard "currency" for him

jonathankaplan January 21 2010, 17:08:13 UTC

I agree. A way of divesting of USD, keeping blocks of tradable currency always on hand, in small form. Sounds like a smart thing he would do.

Math Puzzle anonymous January 21 2010, 01:11:32 UTC

John solved this in <15 seconds during a car ride to nyc. No one else has come close...

A pot contains 75 white beans and 150 black ones. Next to the pot is a large pile of black beans.

A somewhat demented cook removes the beans from the pot, one at a time, according to the following strange rule: He removes two beans from the pot at random. If at least one of the beans is black, he places it on the bean-pile and drops the other bean, no matter what color, back in the pot. If both beans are white, on the other hand, he discards both of them and removes one black bean from the pile and drops it in the pot.

At each turn of this procedure, the pot has one less bean in it. Eventually, just one bean is left in the pot. What color is it?

Re: Math Puzzle anonymous January 21 2010, 01:26:15 UTC

Since white beans can only be removed two at a time and there are an odd number to start with, the last bean left must perforce be white. That took more than 15 seconds but less than 150.

Re: Math Puzzle qatman January 21 2010, 01:28:20 UTC

(decloaking to hear why I'm wrong!)

Re: Math Puzzle jonathankaplan January 21 2010, 17:10:17 UTC

Friends of John told me this puzzle on the way to Atlantic City one time. I'm not sure I EVER got it, so don't expect the answer from me!

Thread 5

Continuing Followup jonathankaplan January 29 2010, 18:04:23 UTC

A friend sent me a link with followup News on the John Bender Murder.
Here is a link to more information.Some thoughts ( ... )

Re: Continuing Followup jonathankaplan December 16 2012, 20:28:02 UTC

thought the preserve was around 1000 acreas not 5000 acres and anyone can own land under a corporation in CR, not the same as mexico...not that it matters or pertains ( ... )

Re: Continuing Followup jonathankaplan January 24 2013, 19:33:34 UTC

You might want to consider that this is week to stop sniffing glue, ace.

Re: Continuing Followup jonathankaplan January 28 2013, 19:57:00 UTC

I'm not the person who wrote that bit, bud, I don't know who it was.

John Bender anonymous February 17 2010, 00:38:37 UTC

I knew John when he was 11-12 years old. He had a serious interest in minerals, gems, meteorites and most other things geological even at that early age. The 'jewels' referred to might simply have been his own personal collection.