The World's Best Book Summaries
What was the Great Famine? What could have prevented the Irish potato famine? Between 1845 and 1849, Ireland experienced mass starvation and disease after most potato crops got infected. Amartya Sen uses the example of England’s lack of support during the potato famine to demonstrate how easy it is to prevent famines. Keep reading to learn what could have prevented the potato famine and how famines can be prevented today.
What was China’s one-child policy? How did the one-child policy affect China? Between 1980 and 2016, China had a one-child policy designed to combat overpopulation by limiting families to having one child. The policy restricted women’s rights, caused higher child mortality rates, and led to more crime in the nation. Continue reading to learn more about the impact of China’s one-child policy, according to Amartya Sen in Development as Freedom.
What happened when the dot-com bubble burst? How did investors react to the crash? When the dot-com bubble burst in 2000, investors became skeptical of any company that had aspirations of shaping the future. And their newfound skepticism became part of the new conventional wisdom. Here’s why that wisdom was misguided, according to Peter Thiel.
What is the Securities and Exchange Commission? How did they contribute to making high-frequency trading easier? The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s primary purpose is to prevent market manipulation. However, when the stock market transitioned into a technological stage, they were forced to change their stock market regulations with it. Unfortunately, these regulations made it easier for high-frequency (HF) traders to exercise their power over responsible investors. Here’s how the Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulations ended up backfiring on them and who stepped up to fix their problems, as explained in Michael Lewis’s book, Flash Boys.
What is a flash crash? Why did Wall Street experience a flash crash in 2010? A flash crash is when the stock market experiences a dramatic and unexpected drop in prices followed by a quick recovery. Wall Street experienced a flash crash in 2010, which Michael Lewis, author of Flash Boys, believes was caused by high-frequency trading (HFT) methods, but others believe one man was behind it. In this article, we’ll explore the 2010 flash crash, and how Wall Street fell victim to it.
What was the dot-com bubble? What can it teach us about tech startups? The dot-com bubble of the 1990s was the biggest bubble since the one ending in the Wall Street crash of 1929. The “lessons” of the dot-com dictate the way we think about tech today. Continue reading for Thiel’s insights on the dot-com bubble and its lessons for entrepreneurs.
Why haven’t we cured cancer yet? What were some of the most significant efforts in the history of our fight against cancer? Humanity has been putting up the fight against cancer for decades, but victory has so far evaded us. Among the first key efforts were the establishment of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a ban on tobacco advertising, and the National Cancer Act. Keep reading to learn about some of the key milestones in our efforts to cure cancer.
Do you want to know how Tesla became successful? Is Tesla’s success attributed to Elon Musk, the Tesla employees, the government, or the public? The story of how Tesla became successful is told in many small chapters. Tesla suffered severe financial and manufacturing issues early on and struggled to stay in business. It wasn’t until 2010 that the rest of the world started to believe in Musk’s vision. Keep reading to learn how Tesla became successful and who contributed to its success.
Who are the SolarCity founders? What was Elon Musk’s role in helping them start SolarCity? The SolarCity founders are Elon Musk’s cousins, Lyndon and Peter Rives. The two cousins founded SolarCity in 2006, thanks to a recommendation and large investment from Musk. The company eventually was bought out by Elon Musk 10 years later. Keep reading for more information on how the SolarCity founders started, grew, and sold their business thanks to Elon Musk.
What is the Falcon 1 rocket? How did it contribute to the success of SpaceX? The Falcon 1 rocket is the first rocket ever built by Elon Musk’s team at SpaceX. After multiple failed launches, the rocket successfully made it to space and enabled SpaceX to be where it is today. The Falcon 1 launch was arguably the most significant accomplishment in the history of SpaceX. Keep reading to learn about the Falcon 1 rocket launch.