Ship of Fools: Knowing which game you're in

Thread: Knowing which game you're in Board: Purgatory / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Eutychus (# 3081) on :

Last week I heard a talk by Simon Senik in which he had some thoughts on game theory. Here's a link to a ten-minute excerpt from what is pretty much the same talk I heard.

Senik argues that there are two sorts of game, finite games and infinite games.

In finite games you know the players, the rules, and the aim is to win.

In infinite games you don't know all the players, or the rules, and the aim is to stay in the game.

Problems arise, he says, when some players think they are in a finite game and others in an infinite game. One example he gives is that the US thought the Cold War was a finite game (which they declared they had "won") whereas Russia/NK/... are playing it as an infinite game.

He also argues that Apple are playing an infinite game, pursuing their vision, as opposed to Microsoft, who are obsessed only with beating the competition.

Thus it is important, in any major activity, he says, to know which game you're in.

I'm not sure how convinced I am by all this (like many motivational speakers, he is captivating in person but watching him on video his patter seems shallower) but it has certainly led to a new way of looking at various situations I find myself in.

Thoughts from anyone else?

Posted by mr cheesy (# 3330) on :

Do you think this is more than just "this is x, that is y"?

Does just saying that this is the way it is change anything?

I'm not trying to diss this guy (well, other than that I really hate trite TEDtalks), but why should we listen to him?

Posted by mr cheesy (# 3330) on :

Also watching the video is making me think of a book called Poorly made in China which is about how Chinese businesses are playing a different game than the people buying their products.

It isn't that they're playing an infinite game exactly, but they're playing a much longer game involving cutting corners and hoping the buyer doesn't notice (and other such games).

Posted by Eutychus (# 3081) on :

quote:
Originally posted by mr cheesy:
Do you think this is more than just "this is x, that is y"?

Does just saying that this is the way it is change anything?

No, but realising you are looking at the game one way when other players are looking at it another way might.

I incline to the long/short game view too, but I understand infinite/finite games to actually be mathematically distinct in game theory (about which I understand nothing more beyond knowing the way it was portrayed in the A Beautiful Mind movie was imperfect).

[ 09. May 2017, 20:54: Message edited by: Eutychus ]

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