Game Theory is the study of co-operation and the underlying strategies that shape human behaviour. In Rock, Paper, Scissors, Len Fisher unearths the wide-ranging applications for this science, and the ways we can use its discoveries to find effective means to co-operate in daily life. Whether we want to understand where a shared supply of teaspoons disappears to, or why countries take themselves to the brink of nuclear war, Game Theory reveals the decision-making process. Len Fisher's writing brings this science of interaction to life with anecdotes and applications that are sure to spark the imagination and give you pause for thought. Dealing with collaboration, co-operation, completion and confrontation, Rock, Paper, Scissors is essential reading for anyone interest in what it takes to get people to work together.
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"Through a combination of real-world examples...and philosophical problems, Fisher shows us that we're more cooperative than we sometimes think we are, while at the same time startlingly more selfish than we out to be...the writing is lively, the scientific discourse clear and accessible, and the ideas challenging and exciting." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"Through a combination of real-world examples...and philosophical problems, Fisher shows us that we're more cooperative than we sometimes think we are, while at the same time startlingly more selfish than we out to be...the writing is lively, the scientific discourse clear and accessible, and the ideas challenging and exciting." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Len Fisher PhD is the author of Weighing the Soul and How to Dunk a Doughnut, which was name Best Popular Science Book of the year by the American Institute of Physics. He is also the recipient of the IgNobel Prize for calculating the scientifically correct way to dunk a doughnut.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
As a newcomer to game theory I found "Rock, Paper, Scissors" a particularly interesting and compelling read. This is a book I can thoroughly recommend to anyone with an interest in the topic.
I had previously believed game theory to be an obscure field of mathematics with limited relevance to my everyday life and had therefore been hesitant about engaging with the topic; this book shattered that naïve assumption!
In "Rock, Paper, Scissors" Len Fisher sets out a very readable account of how game theory can provide ways of understanding and getting more out of many aspects of everyday life. The book starts with the basic nature of the Nash equilibrium, moves on to use game theory to examine how different social dilemmas arise, provides strategies for cooperation and finishes with an insightful chapter summarising how a more cooperative approach can be achieved. Finally the very comprehensive notes, sensibly positioned at the end of the text, greatly enhance the reader's understanding of the topic as well as providing a springboard for further research into specific areas of interest.
I had previously believed game theory to be an obscure field of mathematics with limited relevance to my everyday life and had therefore been hesitant about engaging with the topic; this book shattered that naïve assumption!
In "Rock, Paper, Scissors" Len Fisher sets out a very readable account of how game theory can provide ways of understanding and getting more out of many aspects of everyday life. The book starts with the basic nature of the Nash equilibrium, moves on to use game theory to examine how different social dilemmas arise, provides strategies for cooperation and finishes with an insightful chapter summarising how a more cooperative approach can be achieved. Finally the very comprehensive notes, sensibly positioned at the end of the text, greatly enhance the reader's understanding of the topic as well as providing a springboard for further research into specific areas of interest.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Rolf Dobelli
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Len Fisher, an award-winning author of popular science books, has written an entertaining, enlightening and practical guide to the abstruse discipline of game theory. Fisher shows how game theory explains phenomena as mundane as why spoons go missing from a coffee break room, as ingenious as rabbinical problem solving in the Talmud and as fateful as global warming. getAbstract finds that his lively writing invites a wide audience. Fisher engages lay readers by elucidating an intensively mathematical subject without heavy reliance on equations or jargon. His treatment of the subject makes game theory appear only slightly more complicated than child's play. In fact, he often uses children's games to illustrate the role of game theory in daily life.
7 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Let me start by saying that I might not be the primary type of reader targeted by this book (I do research and publish on topics at the interface of philosophy, game theory and social science, so I already know my way around). Obviously I expected some good and entertaining hours reading this book. Yet, I was quite disappointed. Too many personal anecdotes and too few aaaha-examples for my taste. Also, I found the way game theory was explained way too pedagogical - most of the cases looked at require no more than knowing the numbers 1 to 5 if they were stated as one would usually do, but are instead given in various 'smiley-faces.' I'm sympathetic to the author though and I hope that the book will find its audience. But perhaps my disappointment is my own mistake. Though titles are often misleading these days, the book actually delivers what it says on the cover - game theory in everyday life (though perhaps it would have added to precision if it had said "game theory in Fisher's everyday life").
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rock/paper/scissors
This is a thoughtful + fun + well written guide to game theory.I like a book that will alter ,like a prism ,the way you see the world + this book does. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Dr. Simon Smith
1.0 out of 5 stars
Utter rubbish, I'm afraid...
Says it all really. I am not sure he has really thought much about his subject matter. He flits around, enlessly telling the reader about how whacky he is, and just doesn't get... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Harry
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