News

Game theory in the popular press.

 

Game theory and economics in the news

August 10, 2006 Wired News, Drugs: Sports' Prisoner's Dilemma
The decision to take steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs is a dominant strategy, leading to a prisoner's dilemma (by Bruce Schneier)
August 3, 2006 Slate, Hezbollah and the Prisoner's Dilemma
Questions the wisdom of applying tit for tat to the Israel-Lebanon war (by Tim Harford)
May 13, 2006 Slate, Risky Business
A discussion of the theoretical and psychological elements of risk in the insurance industry (by Tim Harford)
September 2005 American Scientist, Cheating viruses and game theory
A certain bacteria-eatring virus plays the prisoner's dilemma, with "cheat" a substantial proportion evolving to play "cheat." (by Paul E. Turner)
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April 19, 2005 The Guardian, UK, Signal your opposition
The Prisoner's dilemma applied to politics: "Most people won't vote for the minor parties because they expect other people not to vote for them, and therefore consider such a vote wasted" (by George Monbiot)
April 19, 2005 Financial Times, Rules that breed selfish conduct
Prisoners' dilemmas are only troublesome when people are assumed to be selfish. Yet, if we predicate public policy on reciprocity and cooperation, better outcomes would result. (by John Kay)
October 13, 2004 Wired News, New tack wins Prisoner's Dilemma
A modern updating of Axelrod's tournament finds a strategy that beats tit for tat in the prisoner's dilemma, but only by sacrificing team mates.
March 29, 2004 EurekAlert, Why AL batters get beaned more often
Moral hazard allows AL batters to get hit by pitches more often than NL batters since the designated hitter rule precludes a tit-for-tat response.
March 28, 2004 Times UK, Recession and other terrorist myths
Notes that international cooperation to fight terrorism is a prisoner's dilemma with each nation having incentive to do less than its share.
March 12, 2004 Chicago Maroon, A treatise on dating: the Prisoner's Dilemma
Student paper notes that college dating is a prisoner's dilemma with payoffs expressed in "exclusivity points" (yup, it's a stretch).
July 28, 2003 The Guardian, Caught on tape
A 1974 parody show serves as an example of "Living Scultpure". Contestants participated in a prisoner's dilemma with payoffs reflected as hours of solitary time in a basement.
April 18, 2003 ASU Web Devil, Let the sunlight of honesty disinfect cheating plague
Academic cheating is pervasive and creates a prisoner's dilemma as people may elect cheat to stay competitive.
March 30, 2003 Cincinnati Enquirer, How smart is it to be trusting?
Being trusting in business is not naive but an optimal way to play repeated prisoner's dilemmas according to Axelrod's findings.
January 31, 2003 Wall Street Journal, Ford, GM escalate price war with latest rebates for SUVs
Price wars continue in the prisoner's dilemma of automotive pricing.
January 27, 2003 Dallas Morning News, Physicists play games with quantum mysteries
Quantum computing holds a solution to the prisoner's dilemma, physicists show.
December 13, 2002 University of Minnesota , Nomadism in Mongolia
Blue Jays trained to play the prisoner's dilemma appear to adopt a tit-for-tat strategy, leading to cooperation.
November 18, 2002 Seattle Times, Data-storage field learning to cooperate
Compatibility of hardware and software is a prisoner's dilemma, resolved by the adoption of standards.
October 25, 2002 Harvard Crimson, Philosopher attacks self-interest
Philosopher offers resolution to prisoner's dilemma relying on the establishment of "social identities."
October 1, 2002 Asia Times, OPEC in the line of fire
The repeated prisoner's dilemma of OPEC cooperation is unstable.
October 1, 2002 Physics World, Let the quantum games begin
Quantum computing holds a solution to the prisoner's dilemma and other games, physicists show. (by Chiu Fan Lee and Neil F Johnson)
July 23, 2002 New York Times, Why We're So Nice: We're Wired to Cooperate
Psychiatrists note that cooperation in the prisoner's dilemma is part of innate altruism.
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July 18, 2002 Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Why cooperate? It's a pleasure, says Emory study
Psychiatrists note that cooperation in the prisoner's dilemma is part of innate altruism.
May 1, 2002 Dollar & Sense, What can radicals learn from game theory?
An introduction to social struggle as a prisoner's dilemma in which the role of government is to devise the right game to be played. (by Alejandro Reuss)
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April 3, 2002 Nature, Physicists play by quantum rules
Quantum computing holds a solution to the prisoner's dilemma, physicists show.
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January 23, 2002 ZDNet, PGP creator: Snooping must be curbed
Encryption: the web is a one-shot, not an iterated prisoner's dilemma
January 11, 2002 Poker Digest, How winning and losing alters our perceptions of risk
Applications of Thaler's research on risk tolerance and rationality to poker
December 1, 2001 Discover, Why we take risks
Describes evidence of Amotz Zahavi's "handicap principle" by which risky, extravangant behaviors by many species of animals signal strength and ability.
November 15, 2001 Nature, Playing by quantum rules
Quantum computing holds a solution to the prisoner's dilemma, physicists show. (by Erica Klarreich)
October 24, 2001 ABC News, Drug hoarding and 'Prisoner's Dilemma'
The desire to hoard antibiotics in response to anthrax threats leads to a prisoner's dilemma and limited supplies. (by John Allen Paulos)
September 28, 2001 Slate.com, Flying pork barrels
The benefits of taking on risk are higher-than-average returns, but there are no risks if airlines are bailed out.
August 18, 2001 goMemphis.com, NBA team as status symbol becoming more like an idol.
Cities cought in a prisoner's dilemma over recruiting basketball teams.
April 10, 2001 DevX Press, DevX.com and Microsoft launch prisoner's dilemma game...
The prisoner's dilemma as an educational tool for developers.
March 23, 2001 Dayton Business Journal, Game theory applied to lure health care workers
Hospitals bidding for nurses find themselves in a prisoner's dilemma.
2001 The Games Journal, Aggression in multi-player games
Early aggression may lead to retribution in strategy board games.
November 22, 2000 The Street.com, The malls get decked: Retailers minding too many stores
Retail overexpansion the result of a prisoner's dilemma
June 19, 2000 eeTimes, Bill Gates could gain a lot from a little game theory
Discusses tit-for-tat as an optimal strategy in repeated games
June 1, 2000 New York Times, Managing online security risks
Proper assignment of liability creates the incentives for those best able to manage risk to do so.
January 25, 2000 New York Times, Paradox in Game Theory: Losing Strategy That Wins
Alternating between two losing gambles can lead to winning
January 1, 2000 Scientific American, For quantum prisoners, there may be no dilemma
Quantum computing holds a solution to the prisoner's dilemma
December 23, 1999 Nature, Good news for losers
Alternating between two losing gambles can lead to winning
April 1, 1999 Nature, Phage-lift for game theory
Primitive phages, bacteria-infecting viruses, play the prisoner's dilemma on a genetic, evolutionary level.
January 29, 1999 Commonweal, Who's driving: the market's dilemma
Incorrectly describes a stock market bubble as a prisoner's dilemma but does describe the boundedly rational greater fool theory.
October 10, 1998 New Scientist, Don't get even, get mad
Drama Theory attempts to reconcile game theory with irrationality, emotional commitment.
October 1, 1998 Physician's News Digest, IPAs confront market challenges
Risk management and incentive pay in physician groups.
June 11, 1998 Nature, Help and you shall be helped
Can cooperation in prisoner's dilemma -type games evolve without repeated interaction, through indirect reciprocity?
1998 The Slab, Tit for Tat
Describes the use of tit for tat throughout the natural world and notes Axelrod's findings.
July 1, 1997 Pollution Engineering, Industry, regulators learn to play the game
Pollution regulation is a prisoner's dilemma between companies and regulators
September 1, 1993 Atlantic Monthly, Can selfishness save the environment?
The Greenhouse Effect results from a tragedy of the commons which can be overcome with tit-for-tat strategies.