Security expert Bruce Schneier believes that a game-theoretic assessment of whether to release the Trump dossier supports release---regardless of your political affiliation or whether you believe the contents. That's the thing with formal analysis---it clarifies the situation and, sometimes, results in a trivial decision-making process. … [Read more...]
Latin American Leadership and Effective Governance seminar
I gave a talk last month on interactive decision making at a Leadership and Effective Governance seminar run by George Washington University. The seminar is aimed at Latin American politicians and civil servants. My talk covered topics such as stakeholder analysis game theory confrontation analysis The techniques were illustrated by examples of confrontations facing the new government of … [Read more...]
Trump and confrontation (analysis)
The general consensus in the mainstream media seems to be that Trump is irrational...at least that's how the polite ones put it. However, the provocative positions he takes may draw attention away from a rational campaign strategy. Take Trump's famous wall. While Clinton mocks the unrealistic ambition, she doesn't seem to disagree with the basic premise. Her position is, basically, to build a … [Read more...]
Confrontation between Trump and GOP
I was discussing the chaos within the US Republican party with a colleague today. House Speak Paul Ryan, the highest ranking Republican, says he can't currently endorse his party's presumptive presidential nominee---Donald Trump. Extraordinary! I built a simple confrontation analysis model of the standoff between Trump and "his" party. It doesn't look good for the Republican … [Read more...]
Game theory pioneer John Nash killed in car crash
Sad to hear that game theory pioneer and Nobel Laureate John Nash was killed yesterday in a car accident. Game theory is used to study interactive decision-making. Nash made fundamental contributions to the field, leading to him being awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1994. … [Read more...]