Financial Risk: The Dangers of a 'Sure Thing' September 1, 2009

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Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2009/07/15/Max_Barry_on_Risk

Satirical author Max Barry discusses a hypothetical game where players risk losing $10 to earn $10.10, which he explains is actually a losing proposition. He argues that making those kinds of investments are what led to the recent financial crisis, and that buying a lottery ticket would have been a better investment.

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Bestselling satirical novelist Max Barry explains how our attitudes toward risk both define and confine us.

He uses the mishandling of financial risk in the corporate world as a springboard to a more general discussion about the ways our attitudes towards different kinds of risk define us as people -- how risk informs the fundamental decisions we make about our lives. - Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Max Barry is a contemporary Australian author. He also maintains a blog on various topics, including writing, marketing and politics. Barry is also the creator of NationStates (a game created to help advertise his novel, Jennifer Government) and is the owner of the website Tales of Corporate Oppression.

In early 2004, Barry converted his web site to a weblog and began regularly posting to it. In the November 2004 issue of the magazine Fast Company the novel Company was ranked at number 8 on a list of the top 100 people, ideas, and trends that will change how we work and live in 2005.

Barry has recently finished writing the screenplay for his novel, Syrup, which was optioned by Fortress Entertainment. Universal Pictures has acquired screen rights to Company, which will be adapted by Steve Pink. Jennifer Government has also been optioned by Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney's Section 8 Films.