By Gavin Rivera
Longwood High School
Every day, we make choices: what to eat, when to speak, whom to trust – without realizing we are playing a game.
The way we play that game is the subject of an annual conference at Stony Brook University’s Wang Center from July 14 to July 17. The four-day conference is organized by Boston University Assistant Economics Professor Chiara Margaria and Yale University Economics Professor Larry Samuelson.
In Game Theory, everyday decisions become moves in a larger puzzle. Game Theory breaks down how people compete, cooperate, bluff and win. Whether it’s in politics or business, Game Theory helps explain why we do what we do and how another move can affect everything.
“Game Theory in its purest form is a body of theoretical techniques but is relevant to a vast range of interactions,” Samuelson said.
Game Theory uses a series of mathematical equations based on the analysis of strategies dealing with competitive situations where the outcome of a participant’s action depends on the actions of other participants, experts said.
The technique has been applied to virtually everything — such as wars, biology, the justice system, and business. Founded in the 1940s by mathematicians John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern, Game Theory became more mainstream during the Cold War, as experts used it to help diplomatic negotiations and ease tensions.
Topics of discussion at the conference ranged from the academic to the practical.
“Clicks or Comments? The Quality-Quantity Trade-off of Review Systems” shared space on the packed calendar with “Vaguely Good News and Accurate Bad News: A Modular Approach” and “Optimality of Two-tier Quotas in Selection,” and dozens more.
One common real-world concept that helps explain game theory is The Prisoner’s Dilemma, a scenario that features two suspects who face different punishments depending on whether they choose to tell on their partner in crime or remain silent. The example demonstrates how two people may not cooperate even if it’s in their best interest.
The Cuban Missile Crisis of the 1960s — an historic event that pitted the United States against the Soviet Union over its placement of nuclear weapons in Cuba — was an example of the application of Game Theory since it was a real-world scenario of critical decision-making by world leaders.
Game Theory plays out in everyone’s day-to-day life, too, and it may be such a small scenario that you may not even notice. For example, when merging into traffic, you must make a choice: Should I speed up to merge now or slow down and wait? The other driver has to make a similar choice: Should I let this person in or change lanes? You’re often unsure if the other driver will let you in or how aggressive and patient they may be. If both drivers work together, things will go smoothly, but if one driver’s actions don’t sync with the other’s, the disconnect may cause an accident.
You make decisions based on assumptions. which is what Game Theory models.
“The Stony Brook Game Theory Conference has been around for 36 years, supported through the [National Science Foundation] grant,” co-coordinator Tim Chin said, adding that this year’s turnout was larger than usual. “This week has 200 economists and mathematicians coming from all over the world, from places such as India, China, the U.K. and other states such as California, Texas, and Florida.”
The speakers came from universities around the world including Meg Myer of Oxford University and John Levy of the University of Glasgow.
Beside enlightening attendees, Chin said the goal of the conference was “showing Stony Brook in its best light.”