The prevailing paradigm for financial markets--that markets tend toward equilibrium and deviations from it are random--is both false and misleading,he argues, and only by exploring a new conceptual framework for how markets really work can we avoid disaster and economic ruin.

"THIS IS THE WORST CRISIS since the Great Depression," writes Soros of the scale of financial distress spreading across financial centers around the world.

In the midst of the most serious financial upheaval in decades, legendary financier George Soros explores the origins of the crisis and its implications for the future.Soros, whose breadth of experience in financial markets is unrivaled, places the current crisis in the context of decades of study of how individuals and institutions handle the boom and bust cycles that dominate global economic activity. The prevailing paradigm for financial markets--that markets tend toward equilibrium and deviations from it are random--is both false and misleading,he argues, and only by exploring a new conceptual framework for how markets really work can we avoid disaster and economic ruin. In a concise essay that combines practical insight with philosophical depth,Soros makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the great credit crisis and its implications for our nation and the global economy.

Introduction

Setting the Stage

Part One: Perspective

 1. The Core Idea

 2. Autobiography of a Failed Philosopher

 3. The Theory of Reflexivity

 4. Reflexivity in Financial Markets

Part Two:The Current Crisis and Beyond

 5. The Super-Bubble Hypothesis

 6. Autobiography of a Successful Speculator

 7. My Outlook for 2008

 8. Some Policy Recommendations

Conclusion

Acknowledgments

About the Author