Congratulations to Edward Thorp!  He has been awarded UC Irvine Alumni Association’s highest Lauds & Laurels honor, the Extraordinarius award. Dr. Thorp was a founding member of the mathematics department and a Professor of Mathematics from 1965-1982.  He is the author of the best-seller Beat the Dealer, A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One. In 1969, Thorp launched the first market-neutral hedge fund, which evolved into one of the most successful in the country, and he now runs his own investment company in Newport Beach. He has been always interested in and supportive for mathematics research and education. He and his late wife, Vivian, funded the Edward and Vivian Thorp Chair in Mathematics to attract talented mathematicians to UC Irvine.