Solving for the Uncertainty

              I used to play the game rock, paper, scissors with my friends when we get bored and sometimes we play the game to decide whoever wins, will have the greatest luck and the price would be in his hands (haha). But, jeez, I never thought that this game might have a deeper meaning than just playing it simply as a kid.

The book Rock, Paper, Scissors by Len Fisher is a science book in which people are introduced to applications of game theory and connects it to everyday situations. Also, several strategies are suggested for achieving this cooperation. The book gives the readers an interesting introduction to game theory to the people who doesn’t know what it is and it gives a brilliant look at examples and applications for those who are familiar with the elements of the game theory.

                By definition, game theory is the study of strategic decisions in situations where the results of strategies depend on other participant’s strategies. But game theory is a lot more interesting and significant than that definition there.

                As the book demonstrates, game theory is everywhere, from the game of rock, paper, scissors up to international conflicts. One of the most famous examples of game theories is the prisoner’s dilemma which is described in the first chapter. It is a hypothetical situation in which two conspirators are arrested for a crime they have made and they are asked to confess by asking them separately and offered with the same deal. The idea revolves around the chances of the two prisoners to confess or not to confess and the consequences behind it. The prisoner’s dilemma can be extrapolated and applied in all kinds of areas to explain things that their possibilities could end up… endless.

                The second chapter offers a catchy introduction to the concepts of minimax and fair division. The author shows fair vision with stories like how he got in trouble as a kid shooting fireworks and as a consequence to yield fireworks with his brother. The answers he got as a kid gave him this realization that those were an application of the minimax principle. The author also discusses the principle of equal division of the contested sum, which is regarding religion and homeowner fees.

                In the third chapter, the author discusses the seven of the most interesting game theory problems. He also refers it as the seven deadly dilemmas. In this chapter, the author offers a great summary of such problems as the free rider issue and the game of the chicken.

Chapter four is a humorous one which is about the rock, paper, scissors game. This could be the main highlight of the book focusing on the game rock, paper, scissors. I just thought that this game is only in the Philippines and I didn’t know that it is in fact played in most of the world, though under various other names. It can be used in the conflict resolution because the game does not involve any strategy that dominates the others, which means that we are very unsure of what would be the outcome. Well, this game is pretty simple to play but may be very unpredictable to win. This is when rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper and paper beats rock. Thus, situations and games which seem to be at a standstill and don’t have any decisions due to the equal weight of two points can be solved by adding strategies and converting them to rock, paper, scissors situations which is the best way to solve the uncertainty.

In chapters five through eight, the author talks about the cooperation, trust  and other effective ways to approach bad situations, like how people can achieve trust, bargain effectively and change the game to avoid the “trap” of the Prisoner’s dilemma and other undesirable outcomes. We all know that communication is very important for cooperation to work. The author focused on the story wherein he was almost punched by a drunk soccer player but they have managed to fix the problem because of the simple word- communication. The story points out that communication leads to negotiation, reduce violence and make peaceful situations. As of the moment, I have this problem regarding communication with the person who seems so close to me. I just remembered this stuff when I read this part. (lol). Communication is very important just as how air is important to us. yeah.

                The author also describes experiments that are uncertainly scientific but undoubtedly amusing that are related to game theory in weddings, parties, airports and buses. Game theory can also be related and applicable to nature, specifically the evolutionary biology.

                A lot of people have good feedbacks about this book. They have mentioned that it is a great book about game theory that can be understood by someone who reads it. Well, I couldn’t agree more to that. It is indeed good to read and somehow very funny. I like how the author relates his life experiences to most of the dilemmas. The book, as well as the author, are somehow friendly and I think the ideas that the author gave me will stay in my mind for a longer time.~