Derivatives: stay clear unless 'able' to not be too affected...

Derivatives: stay clear unless 'able' to not be too affected financially in event of worst case scenario of losing all your money.

* If Professors who won Nobel prizes for their work on Derivatives ended up with their hedge fund bankrupt, I stay clear (and would recommend new investors to stay clear). Only fundamentally sound purpose for partaking in such instruments is "if" you have exposure to the 'underlying asset'. Otherwise, just a bet. Investing in securities is sometimes claimed to be a bet by some people (but which idea I oppose, as with good research, chances are a lot better than a flip of a coin).