The COVID-19 Pandemic: One Giant Prisoner’s Dilemma
While the daily number of number of cases falls in comparison to past rates, the world is far from “learning to live” with Covid-19. At his August briefing, WHO Director-General Ghebreyesus brought to light that one million people have died from the virus just this year. Two and a half years since the concerns about […]
Patent Applications, The Flow of Global Information, and Graph Theory
Intellectual property is broadly the study of ownership rights as it comes to new innovations and proprietary technologies. A large part of new IP depends on information flow: the existence of certain ideas inspires new ideas, which can be cataloged through references in patent filings. Understanding the flow of these references can be valuable, as […]
Game Theory and Social Networks in Environmental Conflicts
Source: https://phys.org/news/2022-09-game-theory-mathematics-human-conflicts.html A recent article by Gareth Willmer, “Using game theory mathematics to resolve human conflicts,” published in Horizon: The EU Research and Innovation Magazine, tackles concepts of game theory as well as graph theory and social networks. Gareth Willmer is a freelance journalist based in London with an interest in environmental issues and […]
Sotheby’s Hybrid Auction in the Landscape of COVID-19
Founded back in the eighteenth century, Sotheby’s has grown to become a multinational corporation that boasts one of the largest collections of art, of which they broker in auctions. Starting in 1744 with books, then infiltrating the realm of fine art, the company has administered ascending-bid auctions. As taught by Professor Easley in class, these […]
Pharmaceutical Companies Used Monitoring to Overcome Price-fixing Cartel’s Prisoner’s Dilemma During 1990s
A paper published by economist Takuo Sugaya and Mitsuru Igami on 18 August 2022 investigated collusion by Roche, Merck, Takeda pharmaceutical companies to fix prices in the market for Vitamin A, C, E and beta carotene during the 1990s. The pharmaceutical companies worked together to fix vitamin prices. This act of companies coordinating to raise […]
When A Node Is Lost: Death and The Resilience of Social Networks
It is common knowledge that tragedy can bring people together. When a community encounters a loss, people often form new bonds or strengthen old ones in order to support one another and to remember the person who passed away. However, isolation and resignation are also common for those experiencing grief. Until recently, there were relatively […]
Data-Driven Politics: Using Networks to Predict Political Outcomes
Did you know network science can be used to predict voting behavior on political issues? 2016 marked a momentous time in the United Kingdom’s political history, most notably with the Brexit referendum voting. Responses to contentious political issues often allow people to be grouped into various opinion camps, but Brexit had divided people across the […]
Game Theory in the war in Ukraine
Hadfield , A. (2022, March 24). Ukraine War: What game theory can tell us about how negotiations might go. The Conversation. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-what-game-theory-can-tell-us-about-how-negotiations-might-go-179784 In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine and started a war. As the war progressed, both sides were hit hard: Russia is locked in a war of attrition, demoralized, and […]
How Controversial Figures Circumvent Social Media De-Platforming
Social Media influencer Andrew Tate, who is known for his combative personality and controversial views on women, was recently banned from TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram, which cited his frequent misogynistic comments as the reason for his removal. However, commentators have noted that despite his accounts being banned from these platforms, Tate continues to maintain a […]
The SHSAT: A Matching Game
Like lots of New York City kids, I distinctly remember the rainy October morning I boarded the downtown A train towards Chambers street to take the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT). The SHSAT is a multiple choice high school entrance exam taken by eighth grade students. Before the exam, students rank the eight specialized […]
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