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Title: Game Theory at Work: How to Use Game Theory to Outthink and Outmaneuver Your Competition by James D. Miller ISBN: 0-07-140020-6 Publisher: McGraw-Hill Companies Pub. Date: 13 March, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.67 (12 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Game Theory Finally Made Easy and Humorous
Comment: Miller's book is intentionally aimed toward a non-specialist audience. By the end of the book you'll have a good grasp of game theory even if you've never had a course in economics. Miller manages to explain game theory clearly yet without resorting to the complicated mathematical formulae typical of formal game theory, and he puts the reader at ease by inserting irreverent humor into his explanations and examples--something you won't find in other books on the subject.
Miller begins by explaining what game theory is and why you'll find it useful not only in business but in everyday life. He uses examples from his own life and from his experiences teaching at Smith College, which give the book a nice personal touch; for example, he includes a section on applications of game theory to Greek mythology, a cross-disciplinary approach that interested his students. But he also includes obligatory yet interesting sections on Nash Equilibria and the well-known "Prisoner's Dilemma", without which no book on game theory would be complete. Other topics include price competition; sports and lotteries; the personal computer industry; and the stock market. Each chapter is introduced by a humorous quote: the chapter on price competition, for example, gives us Lily Tomlin's "The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat."
The book includes many helpful figures and diagrams, and an appendix at the back provides study questions and answers, should readers be interested in testing their understanding of each chapter.
If the book has a main flaw, it is a flaw that applies to game theory in general: game theory assumes that players are acting rationally and in their own self-interest. There is little room in game theory for irrationality, illogic, insanity, and acts based on faith. Miller deals with this problem briefly ("The Benefits of Insanity", pp. 31-34) but incompletely, showing only when insanity might benefit game playing, rather than explaining how game theory fails when irrationality enters the picture. But a critique of game theory itself could fill another entire book, and I'm hesitant to fault Miller for the flaws in his field.
In short, I'd recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand more about a basic economic theory.
...
Rating: 5
Summary: Smart. Relevant. Entertaining.
Comment: Market situations are everywhere: when you look for a job, when you buy insurance, when you shop, when you date, when you negotiate. Miller shows you how to play markets to your advantage; how to make better choices. Also, Miller's Game Theory approach is like a mirror that makes it easier for you to see the assumptions that other people are making about you. You learn about yourself, about how other people perceive you. These are keys to success in work and in life.
I have to say I had high expectations when I picked up this book. Miller's Ph.D. advisors included a Nobel Laureate economist who helped invent Game Theory, and America's most prolific legal genius, Judge Posner.
What Professor Miller's astral credentials don't prepare you for is the fun. I had a blast reading Game Theory at Work. Miller had me cracking up page after page. And there's remarkably little fluff, it's so densely packed with ideas and concrete examples. You'll hesitate to put the book down before finishing it - especially if you are impatient - because you'll want to start putting the life-changing approach of Game Theory to work right away. I found it so relevant to so many things in my life. Miller's Game Theory at Work gives you an edge.
Rating: 2
Summary: Alternative to novels; nothing practical or useful
Comment: This is a vain attempt to take a technical topic and present it in easy language. The author runs out of things to convey after the first 3 chapters
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Title: Game Theory: A Nontechnical Introduction by Morton D. Davis ISBN: 0486296725 Publisher: Dover Publications Pub. Date: 01 July, 1997 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: Thinking Strategically: The Competitive Edge in Business, Politics, and Everyday Life by Avinash K. Dixit, Barry J. Nalebuff ISBN: 0393310353 Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: 01 April, 1993 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Co-Opetition: 1. A Revolutionary Mindset That Redefines Competition and Cooperation; 2. the Game Theory Strategy That's Changing the Game of Business by Adam M. Brandenburger, Barry J. Nalebuff ISBN: 0385479506 Publisher: Currency Pub. Date: 01 December, 1997 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
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Title: Game Theory: Analysis of Conflict by Roger B. Myerson ISBN: 0674341163 Publisher: Harvard University Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1997 List Price(USD): $28.95 |
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Title: The Compleat Strategyst: Being a Primer on the Theory of Games of Strategy by J. D. Williams ISBN: 0486251012 Publisher: Dover Publications Pub. Date: 01 May, 1986 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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