The Evolution of Technical Analysis: Financial Prediction from Babylonian Tablets to Bloomberg Terminals [Hardcover]

Whether driven by mass psychology, fear or greed of investors, the forces of supply and demand, or a combination, technical analysis has flourished for thousands of years on the outskirts of the financial establishment. In The Evolution of Technical Analysis: Financial Prediction from Babylonian Tablets to Bloomberg Terminals, MIT's Andrew W. Lo details how the charting of past stock prices for the purpose of identifying trends, patterns, strength, and cycles within market data has allowed traders to make informed investment decisions based in logic, rather than on luck. The book

• Reveals the origins of technical analysis
• Compares and contrasts the Eastern practices of China and Japan to Western methods
• Details the contributions of pioneers such as Charles Dow, Munehisa Homma, Humphrey B. Neill, and William D. Gann

The Evolution of Technical Analysis explores the fascinating history of technical analysis, tracing where technical analysts failed, how they succeeded, and what it all means for today's traders and investors.

Introduction vii

Chapter 1: Ancient Roots 1

The Beginnings 2

Ancient Babylon 5

Ancient Greece 11

Ancient Rome 15

Negative Attitudes toward Traders 18

Chapter 2: The Middle Ages and the Renaissance 21

Western Europe 22

Technical Analysis 32

Societal Attitudes 39

Chapter 3: Asia 43

Japan 44

China 49

Chapter 4: The New World 59&lÓÏ