Until the second phase of his life, he was a wrapt, consecrated solitary, pursuing his studies by intense introspection, with a mental endurance perhaps never equalled.
But the market generates interest far beyond its size because it brings together great wealth, enormous egos, greed, passion and controversy in a way matched by few other industries.
Three months may not seem a huge difference, but according to Dr Christakis it is comparable to the benefit an elderly person can expect from excercising or losing some surplus weight.
In Einstein's day, there were only a few thousand physicists worldwide, and the theoreticians who could intellectually rival Einstein probably would fit into a streetcar with seats to spare.