 Overview
In this course, a game is any situation where there is a set
of participants who can make alternative choices and where for each
outcome there is a designated payoff to each participant. While this
definition includes traditional games like chess or poker, it is also
broad enough to include scenarios that arise in business, politics,
and even biology.
Game Theory
is the study of how the different participants should rationally play the
game. Our goal is to develop a set of principals that will help us to
determine the most plausible outcome of the game. As we will see,
for even seemingly simple games, this can be quite complicated.
Evaluation
Your final grade will be determined by
| Three Individual Problem Sets | 25%
| | Comprehensive Final Exam | 25%
| | Group Presentation and Project | 25% |
| Group Homework | 15%
| | Reading Journal | 10%
|
Individual Problem Sets
You will have three Individual Problem Sets that you should treat with
the same seriousness as Takehome Exams. This means that you may not
discuss these problem sets with anyone other than me. Remember that
we are operating under the Honor Code.
See the Tentative Syllabus for the due dates of the Individual Problem
Sets. You will always have at least one week to work on these problem
sets.
Comprehensive Final
The final will be due Wednesday May 10, at the scheduled final exam
period for the class.
Group Presentation and Project
A major part of the course will be a semester-long project where you
will study an application of game theory that we have not discussed
in the course. The project will culminate with an expository paper
giving a general explanation of your topic that the other students in
the course will read before your 15-20 minute presentation
during the last two weeks of the semester.
You will work in groups of two or three on this project. I will give
you more information about my expectations for the project later in
the semester, but some of the important dates are listed on the
Tentative Syllabus.
Group Homework
You will also have three group homework assignments due during the
semester. These problem sets will be substantial in length, and
I will grade a selected subset of problems from each assignment.
A Few Notes on Your Problem Sets and Homework
Here are a few guidelines for the presentation of your problem sets and
homework.
If you do not follow these, I reserve the right to return your homework ungraded!
- Your writing must be clear and legible.
- Your homework should be well-written,
using complete sentences to justify your results where necessary.
A list of answers without explanation is not acceptable.
- Here is a good rule of thumb to follow when writing up your
homework:
Write your solutions so that you could hand them to another student in
the class and she could understand your
explanation.
- Do not turn in your first draft of the assignment. You should
expect to neatly recopy and organize your work.
- If you write in pen, there should be no scratch-outs.
- Do not turn in paper torn from a spiral notebook with ragged
edges.
- Clearly label each problem.
Be aware that
Late assignments are not accepted without a substantial penalty!!
Reading Journal
One of the most important skills you can develop during your
undergraduate career is the ability to read and comprehend technical
material. As a result, I
expect that you will read the text before class.
You may not understand the sections completely, but class meetings will
be much more benefitial to you if are familiar with major themes and
terminology that will be discussed in class.
I will put specific reading assignments on course web page, but unlike
other courses where you have submitted responses via email, you
you will keep a Reading Journal with a one-page (or so) entry for
each class meeting. See the Guidelines for Reading Journals
for details on the format of your Journal.
I will collect your journals twice during the semester. However,
if I feel that the class has not been keeping up with the reading,
I reserve the right to ask to see your Reading Journals with one-class
period notice.
Hudson River Undergraduate Mathematics Conference
The HRUMC will be held on April 8 at Vassar College. I would strongly
encourage all of you to attend, and you should also consider giving a
talk. This is a really nice day to be involved with mathematics with
other undergraduates. A good time will be had by all.
If you do give presentation, you
will receive an extra 5% on your final grade.
Each talk is attended by anywhere from 10 to 50 people, most of
whom are other mathematics students from around New England.
Before you submit an abstract to give a talk, we will need to discuss
your topic and make sure that it is at the appropriate level.
I have very high expectations for the quality of these talks so you
should expect to devote significant effort to your presentation.
I will, of course, work with each of you on your talks.
Class Attendance
Although class attendance is not a specified percentage of your grade,
I will keep a class roll to help me determine borderline grades at the
end of the semester. If you do miss class, you are responsible
for the material that was covered.
Getting Help
Please come see me during my office hours! If you have a conflict
and cannot make my office hours, please call or email me and we can set up
an appointment for another time.
If you want to know check on your grade at any time during the
semester, please ask me and I can give you a rough idea of your
current standing.
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