Economies are deeply complex systems. The marketplace involves many economic actors behaving in rational and irrational ways, sustaining a dizzying array of interconnected activity. Because of the number of participants involved, the unpredictability of their actions, and the sheer variety of possible actions, some degree of economic uncertainty is inevitable. In one of the most dramatic displays of economic uncertainty in our times, a wave of toxic...

Delve into the details of the Mississippi bubble, an early 18th-century financial crisis sparked by speculation in the anticipated wealth of French Louisiana. Learn how the bubble's instigator, John Law, a Scottish gambler and convicted murderer, gained control of the French economy and pushed ideas that were ahead of their time - so far ahead that they plunged France into economic collapse.

Long-Term Capital Management was a hedge fund with everything going for it: well-heeled investors, a dream team of economists and managers, and banks willing to loan hundreds of millions of dollars with no questions asked. In 1998, it all went terribly wrong in a debacle that threatened to take down Wall Street. Spotlight the basic rules of finance that were ignored by LTCM and its banks.

China was largely unaffected by the 2007 - 2009 global economic meltdown. But that doesn't mean it's immune to crises. Focus on China's shadow banking, which is the provision of banking services by non-bank institutions. The practice is subject to abuse. In China's case, the widespread use of shadow banking courts trouble that could lead to financial disaster.

Wade into the quagmire that trapped savings and loan institutions in the 1980s and '90s. Once a thriving, if low-profit, source of home mortgages, the industry fell victim to a combination of high interest rates, well-intentioned government deregulation, and a wave of predatory, unscrupulous managers. The ensuing debacle left the American taxpayer with a bill of $160 billion in 1995 dollars.

Inspect the unprecedented run on the international financial system in 2007 - 2008, which led to the worst recession since the Great Depression. Learn the ins and outs of subprime mortgages, collateralized debt obligations, and structured investment vehicles, which fueled a U.S. housing-construction boom that involved most of the world's major financial institutions.

Can anyone actually beat the performance of the stock market? Grasp what the Efficient Market Hypothesis and the debate over its validity can reveal about the answer - and how your own opinion can shape your investment strategy.

In this first lecture about bonds - with the focus on a "buy-and-hold" strategy - grasp the variety of available bonds and the features most important to an investor: who issued them, whether they are secured, and the timing of payments. You also learn how to "ladder" your holdings for a consistent income stream.

Discover how an elected official with a self-admitted seventh-grade proficiency in math earned fabulous returns as treasurer of Orange County, California, and then plunged the system into the largest municipal default in United States history up to that time. His strategy - and downfall - relied on two financial instruments. Track down where he went wrong.

Now that you understand the many investment products out there, it's time for practical decision making about turning your financial planning into financial reality. Grasp how to shape your investment choices to match your retirement plans and how to turn those investments into income for living expenses when you do reach retirement.