Tomorrow never comes, the saying goes. But what if tomorrow always comes? What if the game never ends? This simple shift transforms everything. The mathematics that govern our choices flip upside down when we move from single encounters to infinite […]
Folk Theorem: The Mathematical Foundation of Reputation Read More »
Three friends decide to bake a cake for a charity sale. Sarah brings the flour and sugar. Michael provides the eggs and butter. Lisa owns the oven and knows the recipe. They sell the cake for thirty dollars. Now comes
Why Your Contribution Is Worth More Than You Think (Shapley Value) Read More »
Two executives sit across a polished table. Between them lies a contract worth millions. Neither knows what the other will do next, yet both understand that every decision shapes the next round of offers. This dance, repeated across boardrooms and
The Negotiator’s Gambit: Forcing a Markov Equilibrium Read More »
There’s something oddly cinematic about watching a chess grandmaster stare at a board, contemplating a move that won’t pay off for another fifteen turns. Everyone else sees the knight fork threatening their queen. The grandmaster sees the endgame where their
Farsightedness: The “Main Character” Energy of Strategists (Game Theory) Read More »
When Hernán Cortés arrived on the shores of Mexico in 1519, he made a decision that would have gotten him expelled from any modern business school. He ordered his men to burn their own ships. No escape route. No plan
Commitment Devices: The Art of Strategic Self-Sabotage Read More »
The chess master sits across from her opponent, eyes narrowed. Every move she considers depends on a simple question: does she need to remember how they got here, or only where they are right now? This question echoes through every
Markov Strategies vs. History Dependent Strategies: The Ultimate Simplification Read More »
Two strangers need to meet in New York City tomorrow. They have no way to communicate. No phones, no messages, no carrier pigeons. Where do they go? Most people, when faced with this question, give the same answer: Grand Central
How Shared Knowledge Solves Impossible Coordination Problems Read More »
The most destructive weapons ever created might have saved more lives than any peace treaty in history. This sounds absurd until you examine the mathematics. Before 1945, great powers fought each other regularly. The Napoleonic Wars killed millions. World War
Game Theory Explains Why Nuclear Weapons Made the World Safer (According to Math) Read More »
Picture two generals staring at a map scattered with battlefields. Each commands exactly one hundred soldiers. The rules are brutal in their simplicity: whoever sends more troops to a battlefield wins it. Victory goes to whoever captures the most battlefields.
Blotto Game Trade-Off Between Winning Big and Winning Often Read More »
Picture a room full of people staring at each other, each trying to guess what the others are thinking. Nobody speaks. Everyone knows that everyone else is trying to figure out what everyone else is thinking. It sounds like a
Rationalizability: What It Really Means for a Strategy to “Make Sense” Read More »