Traders - AP Photo Since the unexpected and significant drop in the DOW on May 6th, articles have permeated the net, speculating the cause of the event.

Working at eigen.systems, my eyes are always peeled for articles that talk about High Frequency Trading (HFT), especially when the significance of computing in this industry is under discussion.

Overall, regardless of whether persons blame or praise the role of computers in todays age of HFT, one thing is for sure, computers are here to stay. The key questions that abound seem to be how do we make them more accurate, faster and more efficient?

There is a great article in today’s New Zealand Herald, which I think both novices and industry professionals do well to read. It explains quite simply what HFT is, how the world of trading has changed over the years with the introduction of faster computation as well as predictions for the future. It’s a great read, so check it out!

AP photo