Par hasard I tripped onto a new and revolutionary method for increasing the attention span of Alzheimer's sufferers. I have an elderly client who was brought to me by his much younger (and good looking, hmmm) wife. Her complaint was that he was losing money daytrading. As a daytrader myself, I barely stifled the snide retort "And who doesn't?" But I desperately need new clients, especially those who pay up, so I agreed to take the case. In our first session I asked the client, whom we shall call Joe, to bring his computer and demonstrate to me how he trades. Surprisingly, Joe has what appears to be a mildly positive expectancy system, which he uses to enter trades propitiously, but because of his mental deterioration, he inevitably fails to exit at a profit. Probing a bit, I elicited the self-observation from him "I know my system, because I invented it before my short term memory started to go, but after I enter a trade I soon forget why I did so and get disoriented." Eureka! "Joe," I said, "take the next long trade, and keep your finger poised on the Sell button. When you forget why you entered, stab it!" The attached blotter was the result. Now we are slowly working our way up to longer and longer duration trades using the time-honored methods of Vipassana meditation with the chart as the object of mindfulness. I am hopeful that we may eventually achieve trades which last a full minute.
Sh*t!!! I'm supposed to day trading, not reading ET. But wait...if I didn't just log in to read ET, I wouldn't have remembered I'm supposed to be day trading...will there be a study released for this? Are you publicly traded, Duref?
You are fully onto the Circularity Conundrum. My client Joe also shared with me that he has difficulty attending to the market because he cannot remember if Jack has published a blotter yet, so he is constantly drawn back to check. He continually bemoaned "I can't remember if there was anything useful on ET just now." I console him, "Joe, that's not fault of the Alzheimer's." Indeed, as you are interested, we will keep you informed of progress. As to being publicly traded, alas, only by my wife's girlfriends.
The great thing about this is that the longer duration trades will come naturally with Alzheimers, no vipassana needed. You might try options as well. Some of the most creatively diversified option spread trades known to man could be generated in such a febrile and flaccid laboratory.
My client and I actually did discuss that, but decided that at our age the spreads we were interested in were not options.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't option spreads allow for satisfaction without the need for full price penetration?
I am no expert, but if options are anything like relationships, I would assume that would depend on whether or not the spread was deep in the money. (I apologize for my lack of attention. I am down on my knees in my lederhosen knee socks and Alpine cap cleaning the carpets for my wife's holiday party.)
I think it depends on which leg you close first. Depends on how much volatility you can stand the deeper in the money you go.