Great book, goes very well with the Ascent of Money and Debt. I'll be reading a few more books written by the characters in this book.... the characters in the book are all those that created theories for and against rational markets. I've read Mandelbrot, but many of the others weren't on my radar.

If you want an understanding of why the financial infrastructure is keenly based on the principles of a rational market you should read this book. It explains rationally why we as a society made the decisions we made and why those decisions can be both good and bad. Really insightful for those with a true interest in the financial economy.