Just one more addition to this.....Someone posted earlier the Merrill Lynch "recovery fund" units. These expire in Mar-05 (the LEAP date) and are linked to the value of NDX100 i.e. QQQ. There are limits to how much of any potential gain buyers will receive, effectively meaning that ML has sold collars and bought caps (?). Anyway, just an observation, and explains the huge volume, as there is effectively another side to the trade i.e. the mugs who buy these derivative-based units and line Merrill's pockets.