Miller lecturer Ian Ayres discusses time diversification in investing
April 6, 2010
ATLANTA—Ian Ayres may not be E. F. Hutton but the audience was intently listening to his investment advice during Georgia State University College of Law's 46th Henry J. Miller Distinguished Lecture Series recently.
"Invest two to one," said Ayres, an accomplished law and business professor at Yale University. "My results say it gives a 20 percent reduction in risk."
As investors continue recovering from the worst recession in decades, Ayres research and data shows that from 1871 to present, the strategy has merit.
"Time diversification is more important and provides substantial benefits," he said. "Borrow money while you're young. Expose your future money to today's market. Take a portion of your savings and invest."
Ayres is the William K. Townsend Professor and Anne Urowsky Professorial Fellow in Law at Yale Law School. He also teaches at Yale's School of Management.
In addition to his research, Ayres is a columnist for Forbes magazine, a regular contributor to National Public Radio's "Marketplace" segment, and The New York Times' Freakonomics Blog. His research has been featured on Oprah and "Good Morning America" and in Time and Vogue magazines.
In 2006, Ayres was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His book with Greg Klass, "Insincere Promises: The Law of Misrepresented Intent," won a Scribes book award in 2006. The Chronicle of Higher Education has referred to Ayres as a "law-and-economics guru."
For more information about the Henry J. Miller Distinguished Lecture Series and past guest speakers, which include Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and others, please visit the Miller Lecture web page.