answer a financial math question

[Hauldren Collider]

Ok i've now ADBLOCKED ben kenobi to avoid any temptation to view his posts
jesus christ I don't understand how someone so stupid can even be literate
adblock

[Riesstiu IV]

Someone needs to start asking Ben basic physics questions.

[giblets]

Two years? Did he get an associate's degree or something?

[Hauldren Collider]

hang on lemme get one out of the problem set

[KrazyHorse]

This is like watching two paraplegics run a marathon.

[Ben Kenobi]

Two years? Did he get an associate's degree or something?

I finished my second year of honours physics and astronomy at UBC.

I switched majors to history in my third year.

[Hauldren Collider]

A long uniform slab of with mass M is sliding on a "frictionless" horizontal surface with (constant) speed S before a small, dense block with mass 2M is placed on top of the front of it by a person nearby. The small block has an initial velocity of ZERO with respect to the fixed horizontal surface so it immediately starts skidding along the surface of the moving slab. The coefficient of kinetic friction between the block and slab is Mu . As the block skids the slab slows down until the velocities of both objects with respect to the fixed surface are identical; after which they move together. ( The block does NOT reach the back of the slab and fall off!)

a) Develop an expression for the time it takes the block and slab to reach the same velocity. Express your answer in terms of g, Mu, and S.
b) Find an expression for the final speed of both objects with respect to the fixed surface.
c) Find the magnitude of the frictional force between the objects once the slab and block are both gliding with the same speed.

[Ben Kenobi]

hang on lemme get one out of the problem set

Put it up, I'll answer it later.

I have work tonight.

[Hauldren Collider]

This is like watching two paraplegics run a marathon.

Ok I concede that I'm not as good at physics as you
I think this is to be expected. Sorry

At least I'm not like ben--I don't think I'm a physicist.

[Riesstiu IV]

Ben is probably going to get the kid who he tutors to solve it for him.

[Hauldren Collider]

It's not even a very hard problem...basic mechanics

[KrazyHorse]

If that problem takes you more than 15 seconds you aren't cut out to be a physicist.

[Hauldren Collider]

there are about 12 more followup questions but they had TeX in them and I didn't feel like figuring out how to get em to copy paste right

Also this was a question from the beginning of the year. Seeing as I am taking calc at the same time as physics, it was considerably harder when I was a beginner...

[Flubber]

/

Exercising early is always suboptimal, modulo transaction costs and some minor difficulties like shorting at a retail level.

hmmm-- I am sure you will come up with reasons why this is wrong mathematically (hell in 10 minutes i found a couple of texts that said exactly what you said and took it was a given but conversely this is pretty much exactly what I was saying http://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/americanoption.asp. I found this after you slammed me. as well.

Since investors have the freedom to exercise their American options at any point during the life of the contract, they are more valuable than European options which can only be exercised at maturity.

Consider this example: If you bought a Ford March Call option expiring in March of 2006 in March 2005, you would have the right to exercise the call option at anytime up until its expiration date. Had the Ford option been a European option, you could only exercise the option at the expiry date in March '06. During the year, the share price could have been most optimal for exercise in December of 2005, but you would have to wait to exercise your option until March 2006, where it could be out-of-the-money and virtually worthless

Simple example and this is real -- During the run up of oil prices before the recession hit, a stock price hit $96 while the strike price on numerous call options were at $55. Many people exercise and then immediately sold their shares (there were actually TSARs attached so it was a notional buy/sell)and pocketed $41 per share. People who waited suffered through a stock collapse and at expiry were able to exercise at $62 per share. This really happened .

Please explain again why exercising early is always suboptimal. You were responding to my post which was clearly about stocks with fluctuating values so I have difficulty seeing what you are trying to say

So bear with me KH. I haven't studied the math. I accept what you are saying is established mathematically If I have an option to buy a stock at 27, its current price is 33 and lets say the best assessments are that the stock will stay at 33 until expiry ( you don't KNOW of course)why is exercising and selling now suboptimal?

Note it was always obvious to me that exercising as late as possible is preferred if you intend to actually hold the stock.

[Solomwi]

You're not a physicist, you piece of ****.

When I saw that, my first thought was to quote it specifically to make sure you would too.