Game Theory: A Nontechnical Introduction
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About this ebook
"A lucid and penetrating development of game theory that will appeal to the intuition . . . a most valuable contribution." — Douglas R. Hofstadter, author of Gödel, Escher, Bach
The foundations of game theory were laid by John von Neumann, who in 1928 proved the basic minimax theorem, and with the 1944 publication of the Theory of Games and Economic Behavior, the field was established. Since then, game theory has become an enormously important discipline because of its novel mathematical properties and its many applications to social, economic, and political problems.
Game theory has been used to make investment decisions, pick jurors, commit tanks to battle, allocate business expenses equitably — even to measure a senator's power, among many other uses. In this revised edition of his highly regarded work, Morton Davis begins with an overview of game theory, then discusses the two-person zero-sum game with equilibrium points; the general, two-person zero-sum game; utility theory; the two-person, non-zero-sum game; and the n-person game.
A number of problems are posed at the start of each chapter and readers are given a chance to solve them before moving on. (Unlike most mathematical problems, many problems in game theory are easily understood by the lay reader.) At the end of the chapter, where solutions are discussed, readers can compare their "common sense" solutions with those of the author. Brimming with applications to an enormous variety of everyday situations, this book offers readers a fascinating, accessible introduction to one of the most fruitful and interesting intellectual systems of our time.
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Reviews for Game Theory
28 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5And by non-technical, the author means no math. I don't know what there is to game theory if you strip the math away, but there you go.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The title of this book perhaps promises a little more than it can deliver. And that's a good thing.The very name "game theory" is perhaps a little confusing, because what mathematicians call "games" are simply situations in which each of two (or more) people involved has a precisely defined set of options, and there are certain rewards associated with combinations of options. Often the "games" are as exciting as mud. But they teach us about strategies.The mathematics of game theory is generally not too complex (no higher-order calculus involved!), but it can be laborious. This book does an excellent job of sparing the reader that. No proofs; most of the principles are presented as examples or simply handwaved away. This sounds like it would make for a non-rigorous book. Surprisingly, it is not so. While the volume won't make you a game theorist, it will give you a genuine idea of how the field works. And, with it, a good idea of how to respond to a lot of real-life situations. Of the many books in the field I've read, this is genuinely one of the best.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A non-technical introduction? There are not too many formulas so in that sense it is non-technical. But to really engage with the material here requires some serious thinking. Very little here is anything close to trivial. Introduction... well, it builds the material up from the ground. Anyone can read this... uh, well. It's really something of a typical math book. Yeah, sure, it starts from ground zero. But seriously if you are not accustomed to some pretty rigorous thinking, I suspect this book will quickly leave you in the dust!I would call it more like a whirlwind tour. There are lots of good examples to chew on. It doesn't spend a whole lot of time on any one piece of the puzzle. You get a good taste and then off you go to the next dish.This is a great book for getting a feel for what game theory is all about. I must admit, I didn't slog through all the details. Too much to digest! So there is a lot more here than what I absorbed!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5ok introduction