Rock, Paper, Scissors is a
popular science book that connects game theory to day to day situations in life
and offers strategies for achieving cooperation.
The first chapter
“trapped in a matrix” mainly describes the Prisoner’s dilemma and gives the
negative connotation that the Nash equilibrium is a logical trap. The book may
start off a little bit slowly, either way; these setbacks did not stop me from
reading the rest of the book which offers a wide range of interesting examples
and explanations. The second chapter “I
cut and you choose offers a nice introduction to the concepts of fair division.
Fisher shares fair division with anecdotes like how he got in trouble as a kid
shooting fireworks, and as a consequence had to yield fireworks with his
brother. The answer he arrived to as a kid was what he knows realizes was an
application of the minimax principle. I was also impressed that Fisher
discusses the principle of equal division of the contested sum. The third chapter emphasizes a great summary
of such problems as the free rider issue and the game of
chicken. It is also about the seven of the most interesting game theory
problems, which Fisher calls as “the seven deadly dilemmas.”On the other hand, Chapter four is a humorous one, and is about the
game “rock, paper, scissors.” I was also amused at how rock, paper, scissors
can be used in conflict resolutions, and how it is also played in different
countries and races (which, also, has different names). Although the game is
used in different day to day situations, the game itself has no pure strategy
that may dominate others. On the other hand, conflicts, situations can be
solved by adding strategies and converting them to rock-paper-scissors
situation. Chapters five
through eight are
all about cooperation: how we can achieve trust, bargain effectively, and
change the game to avoid the “trap” of the Prisoner’s dilemma and other
undesirable outcomes. The main fun points are similar in nature as to the other
chapters which are the narratives and interesting examples from science.
Fisher used different
strategies in the book, one of which is the game “I Cut and You Choose”, which
indicates that: When slicing a cake, a person slices two pieces, and then the
other person chooses the pieces he/she wants to and for the other person as
well. Assuming that the person slicing the cake likes cakes, he/she has the
right to make both pieces equal. Fisher suggests using the same strategy to
solve disputes amongst different countries.
In
conclusion, this author clearly denotes the importance of day to day strategies
and techniques in life to achieve unity and cooperation; may it be it in a team
or in a group. This is a must read book for achieving coherence and how we
maximize gain in competitive situations. In this book Len Fisher starts by
demonstrating the limits of game theory: What’s best for you isn’t always
what’s best for everyone else. Fisher uses game theories to show how
cooperation can be evolved and how cooperation can be achieved even in the most
difficult circumstances. Even so, Rock, Paper Scissors is a wonderfully entertaining
introduction to game theory and the science of cooperation.
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