This reminds of the buffet myth when it was charlie munger who had the real talent. In the case of Simons the genuine big brain was Shiing-Shen Chern ~ you can look him up. And apart from quant theory that should have stayed in academia; simons made money by having machines run the trades which in my opinion destroyed the original purpose of the stock market. He created the ultimate cheat pushing the human element out of the game. It's like letting a robot car compete at the F1 and have it win over real drivers. really? and that's great because? I've always been amazed and disappointed at the accolades given to men who just find ways to displace man. But he made a lot of money so I suppose at this stage our evolution that justifies all deeds.
Not really. That's a myth which only makes it more difficult to quit. I should know as I was a heavy chain smoker too at a point. The book by Allen Carr was helpful in that respect. Sorry for that diversion. Rest in peace seems like a weird thing to say since I obviously didn't know the guy, but wow, Jim Simons truly have my fullest respect and admiration and his life history is incredible. For those who didn't already read it, the book by Zuckerman is a must read. Hell, I'll say it anyway. Rest in peace, Jim Simons!
Almost all "trading" activities undermine the original purpose of the stock market, which is to provide a venue for companies to raise capital. Buffet and Simons are/were geniuses. But the real lesson is that it takes a collaboration of many people to be insanely successful even if 1 person gets all the credit.