100 Best Game Theory Books of All Time (Updated for 2026)

1

Thinking, Fast and Slow

Kahneman

5.0

Major New York Times bestseller
Winner of the National Academy of Sciences Best Book Award in 2012
Selected by the New York Times Book Review as one of the best books of 2011
A Globe and Mail Best Books of the Year 2011 Title
One of The Economist's 2011 Books of the Year
One of The Wall Street Journal's Best Nonfiction Books of the Year 2011
2013 Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient

In the internatio

Recommended by Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Ev Williams, and 45 others.

Barack Obama

Former USA President

A few months ago, Mr. Obama read “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” by Daniel Kahneman, about how people make decisions — quick, instinctive thinking versus slower, contemplative deliberation. For Mr. Obama, a deliberator in an instinctive business, this may be as instructive as any political science text. [source]

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

On Bill Gates's reading list in 2012. [source]

Marc Andreessen

Co-Founder/Andreessen Horowitz

Captivating dive into human decision making, marred by inclusion of several/many? psychology studies that fail to replicate. Will stand as a cautionary tale? [source]

2

The Art of Strategy: A Game Theorist's Guide to Success in Business and Life

Avinash K. Dixit, Barry J. Nalebuff

4.8

Game theory means rigorous strategic thinking. It's the art of anticipating your opponent's next moves, knowing full well that your rival is trying to do the same thing to you. Though parts of game theory involve simple common sense, much is counterintuitive, and it can only be mastered by developing a new way of seeing the world. Using a diverse array of rich case studies—from pop culture, TV, mo

Recommended by Kimberly Gloria Choi.

Kimberly Gloria Choi

I am curious of how strategy can apply on all kinds of industries. By reading this book, I want to find out things I might not have known before, or maybe I have been played by this strategy mind game (As a customer, consumer). And I want to see if this book could drastically change my logical thinking in my daily life. [source]

3

The 48 Laws of Power

Robert Greene

4.7

Preview Summary

This amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive book synthesizes the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Carl Von Clausewitz with the historical legacies of statesmen, warriors, seducers, and con men throughout the ages.

Recommended by Charlamagne Tha God, Marvin Liao, Ryan Holiday, and 10 others.

Charlamagne Tha God

Radio Presenter/The Breakfast Club

These are the books I recommend people to listen to on @applebooks. [source]

Marvin Liao

Partner/500 Startups

My list would be (besides the ones I mentioned in answer to the previous question) both business & Fiction/Sci-Fi and ones I personally found helpful to myself. The business books explain just exactly how business, work & investing are in reality & how to think properly & differentiate yourself. On the non-business side, a mix of History & classic fiction to understand people, philosophy to make sense of life and Science fiction to picture what the future could be like (not always utopian). [source]

Ryan Holiday

Author

There is no living writer (or person) who has been more influential to me than Robert Greene. I met him when I was 19 years old and he’s shaped me as a person, as a writer, as a thinker. You MUST read his books. His work on power and strategy are critical for anyone trying to accomplish anything. In life, power is force we are constantly bumping up against. People have power of over us, we seek power ourselves that we might be free enough and influential enough to accomplish our goals—so we must understand where power comes from, how it works and how to get it. But pure power is meaningless. It must be joined to mastery and purpose. So read his book Mastery so that you can figure your life’s task and how to dedicate yourself to it. [source]

4

Theory of Games and Economic Behavior

John von Neumann, Oskar Morgenstern, et al.

4.7

This is the classic work upon which modern-day game theory is based. What began more than sixty years ago as a modest proposal that a mathematician and an economist write a short paper together blossomed, in 1944, when Princeton University Press published Theory of Games and Economic Behavior. In it, John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern conceived a groundbreaking mathematical theory of economic

Recommended by Ariel Rubinstein.

Ariel Rubinstein

This was the first comprehensive attempt to put many game theoretical ideas together. They set up the style, the concepts and the level of abstraction. [source]

5

The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

4.7

Preview Summary

A black swan is a highly improbable event with three principal characteristics: It is unpredictable; it carries a massive impact; and, after the fact, we concoct an explanation that makes it appear less random, and more predictable, than it was.

The astonishing success of Google was a black swan; so was 9/11. For Nassim Nicholas Taleb, black swans underlie almost everything about our world, from t

Recommended by Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Peter Thiel, and 18 others.

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

On Bill Gates's reading list in 2012. [source]

Jeff Bezos

Founder/Amazon

From the book "The Everything Store: and the Age of Amazon" “The scholar argues that people are wired to see patterns in chaos while remaining blind to unpredictable events, with massive consequences. Experimentation and empiricism trumps the easy and obvious narrative,” Stone writes. [source]

James Altucher

Founder/StockPickr

And throw in “The Black Swan” and “Fooled by Randomness”. “Fragile” means if you hit something might break. “Resilient” means if you hit something, it will stay the same. On my podcast Nassim discusses “Antifragility” – building a system, even on that works for you on a personal level, where you if you harm your self in some way it becomes stronger. That podcast changed my life He discusses Antifragility throughout history, up to our current economic situation, and even in our personal situations. [source]

6

The Art of War

Sun Tzu

4.6

Preview Summary

For more than two thousand years, The Art of War has stood as a cornerstone of Chinese culture-a lucid epigrammatic text that reveals as much about human psychology, politics, and economics as it does about battlefield strategy. The influence of Sun-tzu's text has grown tremendously in the West in recent years, with military leaders, politicians, and corporate executives alike finding valuable ins

Recommended by Reid Hoffman, Evan Spiegel, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and 14 others.

Reid Hoffman

CEO/LinkedIn

Reid read Carl von Clausewitz and Sun Tzu as a boy, which informed his strategic thinking. [source]

Evan Spiegel

After meeting Mark Zuckerberg, Evan Spiegel immediately bought every Snapchat employee a copy of 'The Art Of War'. [source]

Neil deGrasse Tyson

Astrophysicist, Author & Science Communicator

Which books should be read by every single intelligent person on planet? … The Art of War (Sun Tsu) to learn that the act of killing fellow humans can be raised to an art. If you read all of the above works you will glean profound insight into most of what has driven the history of the western world. [source]

7

The Selfish Gene

Richard Dawkins

4.6

Preview Summary

Inheriting the mantle of revolutionary biologist from Darwin, Watson, and Crick, Richard Dawkins forced an enormous change in the way we see ourselves and the world with the publication of The Selfish Gene. Suppose, instead of thinking about organisms using genes to reproduce themselves, as we had since Mendel's work was rediscovered, we turn it around and imagine that "our" genes build and mainta

Recommended by Charles T. Munger, Ev Williams, Brian Armstrong, and 7 others.

Charles T. Munger

Vice Chairman/Berkshire Hathaway

recommends this book in the second edition of Poor Charlie’s Almanack. [source]

Matt Ridley

Turned evolutionary biology on its head and was written like a great detective story. [source]

Phil Libin

CEO/Evernote

Had a profound influence on me pretty early on. [source]

8

The Evolution of Cooperation

Robert Axelrod

4.6

The Evolution of Cooperation provides valuable insights into the age-old question of whether unforced cooperation is ever possible. Widely praised and much-discussed, this classic book explores how cooperation can emerge in a world of self-seeking egoists—whether superpowers, businesses, or individuals—when there is no central authority to police their actions. The problem of cooperation is centra

Recommended by Vlatko Vedral.

Vlatko Vedral

We can explain living systems scientifically very well, but what about human beings? What about the mind? I don’t think we have any ideas in science really how to attack this problem. Because, even defining what the mind or consciousness is, this is still completely open, and in science we have to have a good definition. So now we are not talking about biology any more; we are really talking about sociology. Can we explain interactions between human beings, between societies, with a similar logic to what we used to explain biology for example? The book that made a huge difference there and generated a whole field in sociology and economics is called The Evolution of Cooperation by Robert Axelrod. It’s also a popular book with no equations, but basically the point he is making is that you can use exactly the same mathematics we use in physics and in biology to start to attack more complicated things like this cooperation issue. If you link it back to The Selfish Gene, which claims that underlying human behaviour is this selfishness of genes in some sense, then, of course, any cooperative behaviour becomes a mystery. Why do we ever actually cooperate with each other? Why do we have this built in? And why do societies or tribes cooperate with other tribes and other societies? Axelrod really tries to explain this in this book, which generated this whole field of taking the game theory of mathematics and trying to apply it to the social context to understand conflict and cooperation and so on. [source]

9

A Beautiful Mind

Sylvia Nasar

4.6

Stories of famously eccentric Princetonians abound—such as that of chemist Hubert Alyea, the model for The Absent-Minded Professor, or Ralph Nader, said to have had his own key to the library as an undergraduate. Or the "Phantom of Fine Hall," a figure many students had seen shuffling around the corridors of the math and physics building wearing purple sneakers and writing numerology treatises on

Recommended by Ariel Rubinstein and Diane Coyle.

Ariel Rubinstein

The story of John Nash is really a human story – I don’t think it sheds much light on game theory. But it gives hope to people dealing with this disease. [source]

Diane Coyle

This is a terrific book for just saying something about what game theory helps to do, without plunging you into all the complicated mathematics of how to do it in practice. [source]

10

Finite and Infinite Games a Vision of Life as Play and Possibility

James Carse

4.5

A fascinating meditation on life as a contest of games to be completed and games to be continued--and on what lies beyond winning and losing.

Recommended by Andra Zaharia, Ashley Hathaway, Graham Duncan, and 5 others.

Andra Zaharia

While I was thinking of the best books to add to this short list, I realized that not even half of them are directly related to digital marketing. This is because I believe that the best marketers are people who understand human nature deeply and aim to bring out the best in it. Call me naive, but that’s how I see it. If I were to want to pursue a career in marketing, I’d read … Finite and Infinite Games. [source]

Ashley Hathaway

I’d say Finite & Infinite games was my favorite & quite impactful. They were all impactful, actually. I read my altMBA books on a beach in Kauai (highly recommended). It was odd though because I was by myself and it was just- total knowledge bombs all over the place. Reading the altMBA books in rapid succession like that took a few months to digest honestly. [source]

Graham Duncan

I like this book which has been going around a lot. [source]

11

Thinking Strategically: The Competitive Edge in Business, Politics, and Everyday Life

Avinash K. Dixit, Barry J. Nalebuff

4.5

The international bestseller — don't compete without it! A major bestseller in Japan, Financial Times Top Ten book of the year, Book-of-the-Month Club bestseller, and required reading at the best business schools, Thinking Strategically is a crash course in outmaneauvering any rival. This entertaining guide builds on scores of case studies taken from business, sports, the movies, politics, and gam

Recommended by Tim Harford.

Tim Harford

This guide to game theory is the book that first made me fall in love with economics. [source]

12

Theory of Fun for Game Design

Raph Koster

4.5

Preview Summary

Now in full color, the 10th anniversary edition of this classic book packs more insight into what it means to design games for fun. Theory of Fun for Game Design challenges and inspires game designers as well as game enthusiasts looking for products and experiences that are truly fun and entertaining.

The book discusses the impact of designing in a multidimensional landscape, where computer science

Recommended by Bret Victor, Jesper Bylund, and Tom Chatfield.

Jesper Bylund

One of the most important books I’ve ever read is A Theory of Fun by Raph Koster. It creatively describes how “fun” is created and what it is. Which might sound trivial, but as a designer and developer of tools, this is by far the most important design principle I’ve discovered. Basically, why would you do anything if it wasn’t fun? Thankfully, this book describes how to make anything fun.

Tom Chatfield

Today we are seeing a new form of it, but in order to really understand it properly, we need to begin with this really deep evolutionary hold that games have on us. [source]

13

Prisoner's Dilemma

William Poundstone

4.5

A fascinating biography of the dazzlingly brilliant Hungarian mathematician--considered by many to be the greatest genius of the 20th century--Prisoner's Dilemma tells the story of John Von Neumann, the inventor of the digital computer and key player in the invention of the atom bomb. Photographs.

14

Introducing Game Theory: A Graphic Guide (Introducing...)

Ivan Pastine

4.5

Why did countries engage in a nuclear arms race? How do we make decisions when we don’t have all the information? What makes international environmental cooperation possible?

Game theory is the study of how we make a decision when the outcome of our moves depends on the decisions of someone else. But it’s not just about predicting your opponent’s next play in a game of chess; conflict and cooperati

15

Ready Player One

Ernest Cline

4.4

The bestselling cult classic--soon to be a major motion picture directed by Steven Spielberg.

At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, READY PLAYER ONE is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut--part quest novel, part love story, and part virtual space opera set in a universe where spell-slinging mages battle giant Japanese robots, entire planets are in

Recommended by Steve Jurvetson, Brian Armstrong, Astro Teller, and 5 others.

Steve Jurvetson

A gift to all of my Apple II programming buddies from high school and Dungeons & Dragons comrades. [source]

Astro Teller

So much fun. [source]

Brian Burkhart

The last novel I read was Ernest Cline’s “Ready Player One: A Novel,” because my buddy Mike Maddock said, “You gotta read this book!” And I tore it up. I read the whole book in less than two days. It’s something I wish everyone, including myself, did more of. [source]

16

Ender's Game

Orson Scott Card

4.4

Once again, Earth is under attack. An alien species is poised for a final assault. The survival of humanity depends on a military genius who can defeat the aliens. But who?

Ender Wiggin. Brilliant. Ruthless. Cunning. A tactical and strategic master. And a child.

Recruited for military training by the world government, Ender's childhood ends the moment he enters his new home: Battle School. Among the

Recommended by Mark Zuckerberg, Ev Williams, Timothy Ferriss, and 5 others.

Mark Zuckerberg

Founder/Facebook

Oh, it’s not a favorite book or anything like that, I just added it because I liked it. I don’t think there’s any real significance to the fact that it’s listed there and other books aren’t. [source]

Timothy Ferriss

Author & Entrepreneur

At one point, this was the only book listed on Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook page. If it’s good enough to be the sole selection of the founder of Facebook, maybe there’s something to it. The plot: In anticipation of another attack from a hostile alien race, the search for a brilliant military strategist has led to Ender Wiggin. In space combat school, Ender stands out, demonstrating exceptional leadership and unconventional strategy. But it is lonely at the top for Ender, as he struggles with relentless pressure from his instructors. Through Ender’s journey, you’ll learn how to capitalize on your strengths and those of your teammates, as well as exploit your adversaries’ weaknesses. Ender is a futuristic Level 5 Leader we can all learn from. [source]

Travis Kalanick

About a kid who is trained by the military to play video games … But he realizes at the end that the video games he was playing were an actual war. [source]

17

The Joy of Game Theory: An Introduction to Strategic Thinking

Presh Talwalkar

4.4

18

Games and Decisions: Introduction and Critical Survey

R. Duncan Luce

4.3

Superb non-technical introduction to game theory, primarily applied to social sciences. Clear, comprehensive coverage of utility theory, 2-person zero-sum games, 2-person non-zero-sum games, n-person games, individual and group decision-making, more. Bibliography.

Recommended by Ariel Rubinstein.

Ariel Rubinstein

Luce and Raiffa were thinking about elements of what we would probably now call modern choice theory. It’s written beautifully. [source]

19

Game Theory for Applied Economists

Robert Gibbons

4.3

This book introduces one of the most powerful tools of modern economics to a wide audience: those who will later construct or consume game-theoretic models. Robert Gibbons addresses scholars in applied fields within economics who want a serious and thorough discussion of game theory but who may have found other works overly abstract. Gibbons emphasizes the economic applications of the theory at le

20

Who Gets What — and Why: The New Economics of Matchmaking and Market Design

Alvin E. Roth

4.3

A Nobel laureate reveals the often surprising rules that govern a vast array of activities — both mundane and life-changing — in which money may play little or no role.

If you’ve ever sought a job or hired someone, applied to college or guided your child into a good kindergarten, asked someone out on a date or been asked out, you’ve participated in a kind of market. Most of the study of economics

Recommended by Lucas Morales.

Lucas Morales

Depending on your interest and goals, if you are like me and always looking for the trends in the big picture then I highly recommend being an active contrarian reader. Read what no one else is reading. Your goal is to think outside the box. To look at the world and ask “why hasn’t this been solved?” And that gives you a roadmap as to what opportunities may exist for your entrepreneurial efforts. So to that, here’s a snapshot, in no particular order, of what might help you push your intellectual boundaries: Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism by Ha-Joon Chang Postcapitalism: A Guide to Our Future by Paul Mason Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty Who Gets What--And Why: The New Economics of Matchmaking and Market Design by Alvin E. Roth The Political Economy of Participatory Economics by Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism by Jeremy Rifkin Why America Misunderstands the World by Paul R. Pillar A Theory of Justice by John Rawls Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall [source]

21

The Strategy of Conflict: With a New Preface by the Author

Thomas C. Schelling

4.3

A series of closely interrelated essays on game theory, this book deals with an area in which progress has been least satisfactory--the situations where there is a common interest as well as conflict between adversaries: negotiations, war and threats of war, criminal deterrence, extortion, tacit bargaining. It proposes enlightening similarities between, for instance, maneuvering in limited war and

22

The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses, Second Edition

Jesse Schell

4.3

Good game design happens when you view your game from as many perspectives as possible. Written by one of the world's top game designers, The Art of Game Design presents 100 plus sets of questions, or different lenses, for viewing a game�s design, encompassing diverse fields such as psychology, architecture, music, visual design, film, software engineering, theme park design, mathematics, puzzle d

Recommended by Ryan Hoover and Katherine Isbister.

Ryan Hoover

Although it's about gaming, the learnings and tactics in the book can be applied to any product. It's really about psychology and how people think. [source]

Katherine Isbister

This book is written by a very respected game design practitioner and academic, and it is one of the classics. [source]

23

Behavioral Game Theory: Experiments in Strategic Interaction

Colin F. Camerer

4.3

Game theory, the formalized study of strategy, began in the 1940s by asking how emotionless geniuses should play games, but ignored until recently how average people with emotions and limited foresight actually play games. This book marks the first substantial and authoritative effort to close this gap. Colin Camerer, one of the field's leading figures, uses psychological principles and hundreds o

24

Mastery

Robert Greene

4.3

Preview Summary

In this book, Robert Greene demonstrates that the ultimate form of power is mastery itself. By analyzing the lives of such past masters as Charles Darwin, Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, and Leonard da Vinci, as well as by interviewing nine contemporary masters, including tech guru Paul Graham and animal rights advocate Temple Grandin, Greene debunks our culture’s many myths about genius and d

Recommended by James Altucher, Ryan Holiday, Aubrey Marcus, and 5 others.

James Altucher

Founder/StockPickr

What better way to learn about success then the minute paths taken by 100s or 1000s of successful people.It feels like Robert takes everyone in history and dissects the exact moments and decisions that led to their great success. [source]

Ryan Holiday

Author

There is no living writer (or person) who has been more influential to me than Robert Greene. I met him when I was 19 years old and he’s shaped me as a person, as a writer, as a thinker. You MUST read his books. His work on power and strategy are critical for anyone trying to accomplish anything. In life, power is force we are constantly bumping up against. People have power of over us, we seek power ourselves that we might be free enough and influential enough to accomplish our goals—so we must understand where power comes from, how it works and how to get it. But pure power is meaningless. It must be joined to mastery and purpose. So read his book Mastery so that you can figure your life’s task and how to dedicate yourself to it. [source]

Boban Dedovic

Question: What books had the biggest impact on you? Perhaps changed the way you see things or dramatically changed your career path. Answer: Here are some others books that are important to me. Zero to One by Peter Thiel (on startups) Mastery by Robert Greene (life and career path study) Good to Great by Jim Collins (on growing a great company) Getting to Yes by Roger Fisher (negotiation) [source]

25

Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War

Robert Coram

4.3

John Boyd may be the most remarkable unsung hero in all of American military history. Some remember him as the greatest U.S. fighter pilot ever -- the man who, in simulated air-to-air combat, defeated every challenger in less than forty seconds. Some recall him as the father of our country's most legendary fighter aircraft -- the F-15 and F-16. Still others think of Boyd as the most influential mi

Recommended by Ryan Holiday.

Ryan Holiday

Author

Boyd was probably the greatest post-WWII military strategist; he developed the F-15 and F-16, revolutionized ground tactics in war and covertly designed the US battle plans for the Gulf War. He shunned wealth, fame, and power all to accomplish what he felt needed to be accomplished. Coram captures his essence in a way that no other author has touched. [source]

26

Game Theory: A Nontechnical Introduction

Morton D. Davis

4.3

"A lucid and penetrating development of game theory that will appeal to the intuition . . . a most valuable contribution." — Douglas R. Hofstadter, author of Gödel, Escher, Bach
The foundations of game theory were laid by John von Neumann, who in 1928 proved the basic minimax theorem, and with the 1944 publication of the Theory of Games and Economic Behavior, the field was established. Since then,

27

Co-Opetition

Adam M. Brandenburger, Barry J. Nalebuff

4.3

Now available in paperback, with an all new Reader's guide, "The New York Times" and "Business Week" bestseller "Co-opetition" revolutionized the game of business. With over 40,000 copies sold and now in its 9th printing, "Co-opetition" is a business strategy that goes beyond the old rules of competition and cooperation to combine the advantages of both. "Co-opetition" is a pioneering, high profit

28

Game Theory. Analysis of conflict

Roger B. Myerson

4.3

Eminently suited to classroom use as well as individual study, Roger Myerson's introductory text provides a clear and thorough examination of the models, solution concepts, results, and methodological principles of noncooperative and cooperative game theory. Myerson introduces, clarifies, and synthesizes the extraordinary advances made in the subject over the past fifteen years, presents an overvi

29

Evolution and the Theory of Games

John Maynard Smith

4.3

Professor John Maynard Smith has written an account of a new way of thinking about evolution which has been developed in the last ten years. The theory of games, first developed to analyse economic behaviour, is modified so that it can be applied to evolving populations. John Maynard Smith's concept of an evolutionarily stable strategy is relevant whenever the best thing for an animal or plant to

30

Micromotives and Macrobehavior

Thomas C. Schelling

4.3

"Schelling here offers an early analysis of 'tipping' in social situations involving a large number of individuals." —official citation for the 2005 Nobel Prize

Micromotives and Macrobehavior was originally published over twenty-five years ago, yet the stories it tells feel just as fresh today. And the subject of these stories—how small and seemingly meaningless decisions and actions by individuals

31

Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World

Jane McGonigal

4.2

More than 31 million people in the UK are gamers. The average young person in the UK will spend 10,000 hours gaming by the age of twenty-one. What's causing this mass exodus? According to world-renowned game designer Jane McGonigal the answer is simple: videogames are fulfilling genuine human needs. Drawing on positive psychology, cognitive science and sociology, Reality is Broken shows how game d

Recommended by Bogdana Butnar and Xi-Wei Yeo.

Bogdana Butnar

I thought I might put my money where my mouth is. I keep whining that young people are not in touch with some essential books on advertising that have helped me shape the way I practise my trade today, but I never did anything about it. So I am starting here the ultimate books to read list. I will add to it as I get suggestions and as more good books get written. [source]

Xi-Wei Yeo

If you’re into gamification, like myself and my team, I highly, highly recommend Reality is Broken, by Jane McGonigal, Actionable Gamification by Yu-Kai Chou, and Gamify: How Gamification Motivates People to do Extraordinary Things, by Biran Birke. Jane McGonigal is essentially the Martha Stewart of gamification (sans prison sentence), and Yu-Kai Chou is doing great things in the field, pioneering great frameworks like the Octalysis. Can’t wait to get more of their books. [source]

32

Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

4.2

Preview Summary

Fooled by Randomness is a standalone book in Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s landmark Incerto series, an investigation of opacity, luck, uncertainty, probability, human error, risk, and decision-making in a world we don’t understand. The other books in the series are The Black Swan, Antifragile, and The Bed of Procrustes.

Now in a striking new hardcover edition, Fooled by Randomness is the word-of-mouth se

Recommended by Malcolm Gladwell, Ev Williams, James Altucher, and 6 others.

James Altucher

Founder/StockPickr

And throw in “The Black Swan” and “Fooled by Randomness”. “Fragile” means if you hit something might break. “Resilient” means if you hit something, it will stay the same. On my podcast Nassim discusses “Antifragility” – building a system, even on that works for you on a personal level, where you if you harm your self in some way it becomes stronger. That podcast changed my life He discusses Antifragility throughout history, up to our current economic situation, and even in our personal situations. [source]

Anant Jain

The five-book series, "Incerto", by Nassim Nicholas Taleb has had a profound impact on how I think about the world. There’s some overlap across the books — but you'll likely find the repetition helpful in retaining the content better. [source]

Art De Vany

I used this book is a class I taught on the economics of uncertainty. [source]

33

Game Theory: An Introduction

Steve Tadelis

4.2

The definitive introduction to game theory

This comprehensive textbook introduces readers to the principal ideas and applications of game theory, in a style that combines rigor with accessibility. Steven Tadelis begins with a concise description of rational decision making, and goes on to discuss strategic and extensive form games with complete information, Bayesian games, and extensive form games

34

Algorithmic Game Theory

Noam Nisan, Tim Roughgarden, Eva Tardos, Vijay V. Vazirani

4.2

In the last few years game theory has had a substantial impact on computer science, especially on Internet- and e-commerce-related issues. More than 40 of the top researchers in this field have written chapters that go from the foundations to the state of the art. Basic chapters on algorithmic methods for equilibria, mechanism design and combinatorial auctions are followed by chapters on incentive

35

Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture

Johan Huizinga

4.2

In Homo Ludens, the classic evaluation of play that has become a "must-read" for those in game design, Dutch philosopher Johan Huizinga defines play as the central activity in flourishing societies. Like civilization, play requires structure and participants willing to create within limits. Starting with Plato, Huizinga traces the contribution of Homo Ludens, or "Man the player" through Medieval T

Recommended by Tom Chatfield.

Tom Chatfield

It’s a book about the way that play precedes culture, and is a distinct and very complicated human phenomenon, which the author sees as giving rise to much that we think of as civilisation… [source]

36

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

4.2

Preview Summary

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's famous investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow. During flow, people typically experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life. In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work, Csikszentmihalyi demonstrates the ways this posit

Recommended by Austin Kleon, Brian Tracy, Dan Pink, and 1 others.

Austin Kleon

While re-reading Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s wonderful book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, I came across this passage on working crossword puzzles. I think he could just as well be talking about making blackout poems: "There is much to be said in favor of this popular pastime, which in its best form resembles the ancient riddle contests. It is inexpensive and portable, its challenges can be finely graduated so that both novices and experts can enjoy it, and its solution produces a sense of pleasing order that gives one a satisfying feeling of accomplishment. It provides opportunities to experience a mild state of flow to many people who are stranded in airport lounges, who travel on commuter trains, or who are simply whiling away Sunday mornings." [source]

Tom Chatfield

The notion of flow is the idea that there is a state that is characterised by complete immersion in an activity, by a constant response to stimuli, and a perfect match between your ability and the challenge in front of you. [source]

37

Games of Strategy (Fourth Edition)

Avinash K. Dixit

4.2

The most accessible game theory text brings game theory to the masses.

A clear, comprehensive introduction to the study of game theory. In the Fourth Edition, new real-world examples and compelling end-of-chapter exercises engage students with game theory.

38

Game Theory: A Playful Introduction (Student Mathematical Library)

Matt Devos and Deborah A. Kent

4.2

39

A course in Game Theory

Martin J. Osborne, Ariel Rubinstein

4.2

A Course in Game Theory presents the main ideas of game theory at a level suitable for graduate students and advanced undergraduates, emphasizing the theory's foundations and interpretations of its basic concepts. The authors provide precise definitions and full proofs of results, sacrificing generalities and limiting the scope of the material in order to do so. The text is organized in four parts

40

Game Theory 101: The Complete Textbook

William Spaniel

4.2

41

Playing for Real: A Text on Game Theory

Ken Binmore

4.2

Ken Binmore's previous game theory textbook, Fun and Games, carved out a significant niche in the advanced undergraduate market; it was intellectually serious and more up-to-date than its competitors, but also accessibly written. Its central thesis was that game theory allows us to understand many kinds of interactions between people, a point that Binmore amply demonstrated through a rich range of

42

Gladiators, Pirates and Games of Trust: How Game Theory, Strategy and Probability Rule Our Lives

Haim Shapira

4.2

"One of the best Game Theory books of all time" - BookAuthority

This book provides many humorous anecdotes and insightful examples of how our daily lives are affected by Game Theory. Game Theory is the mathematical formalization of interactive decision-making - it assumes that each player's goal is to maximize his/her benefit, whatever it may be. Players may be friends, foes, political parties, sta

43

The Origins of Virtue: Human Instincts and the Evolution of Cooperation

Matt Ridley

4.2

If, as Darwin suggests, evolution relentlessly encourages the survival of the fittest, why are humans compelled to live in cooperative, complex societies? In this fascinating examination of the roots of human trust and virtue, a zoologist and former American editor of the Economist reveals the results of recent studies that suggest that self-interest and mutual aid are not at all incompatible. In

Recommended by Naval Ravikant and Paul Seabright.

Naval Ravikant

CEO & Co-Founder/AngelList

Getting into the more evolution, science kind of books, I really highly, highly recommend picking up … Origins of Virtue. [source]

Paul Seabright

Yes, exactly. In one sense Matt Ridley was restating the message which was already there in The Descent of Man but which had rather been forgotten. What this book did was popularise the idea that cooperation can indeed be favoured by natural selection. [source]

44

Game Theory: A Very Short Introduction

Ken Binmore

4.1

Games are everywhere: Drivers maneuvering in heavy traffic are playing a driving game. Bargain hunters bidding on eBay are playing an auctioning game. The supermarket's price for corn flakes is decided by playing an economic game. This Very Short Introduction offers a succinct tour of the fascinating world of game theory, a ground-breaking field that analyzes how to play games in a rational way. K

Cover unavailable

45

The Infinite Game

Simon Sinek

4.1

Preview Summary

So many organizations and individuals are obsessed with winning. But how do you win a game that never really ends? There is no such thing, for example, as "winning" business.

Simon Sinek's Start With Why and Leaders Eat Last have helped millions of readers see the hidden rules that govern our behavior. Now The Infinite Game picks up where those books left off, challenging us to rethink our perspect

Recommended by Adam Grant.

Adam Grant

In my view, this is Simon Sinek’s biggest idea yet. If you think success is about winning and losing, you’ve already lost. It works in sports because you're playing a finite game, but business is an infinite one. He argues that the companies that last aren't the ones that play to win. They're the ones that play to keep playing. [source]

46

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Handwriting Analysis

Edward C. Rosenthal Ph.D.

4.1

47

Game Theory Editor

Editor

4.1

48

Game Theory

Michael Maschler, Eilon Solan, Shmuel Zamir

4.1

Covering both noncooperative and cooperative games, this comprehensive introduction to game theory also includes some advanced chapters on auctions, games with incomplete information, games with vector payoffs, stable matchings and the bargaining set. Mathematically oriented, the book presents every theorem alongside a proof. The material is presented clearly and every concept is illustrated with

49

Convention: A Philosophical Study

David Lewis

4.1

Convention was immediately recognized as a major contribution to the subject and its significance has remained undiminished since its first publication in 1969. Lewis analyzes social conventions as regularities in the resolution of recurring coordination problems-situations characterized by interdependent decision processes in which common interests are at stake. Conventions are contrasted with ot

50

The Game of Life and How to Play It

Florence Scovel Shinn

4.1

With her classic book, THE GAME OF LIFE AND HOW TO PLAY IT, Florence Scovel Shinn established herself as one of the most down-to-earth, practical, and helpful prosperity writers of her era. With a timeless message and the ability to explain success principles and how they work in an entertaining style, her writings are still considered the leaders in prosperity literature today.

51

Trading: This Book Includes- Bitcoin, Ethereum, Forex, Options

Branden Lee

4.1

52

Rock, Paper, Scissors: Game Theory in Everyday Life

Len Fisher

4.1

How can cooperation be made into the most appealing option? Game theory could hold the answers. The man who won an IgNobel Prize at Harvard for using quantum physics to calculate the best way of dunking a biscuit provides new tactics for solving real problems, from dealing with drunks, navigating one's way through queues and defusing conflict, to helping prevent global warming.

Games like the 'Pris

53

The Dictator's Handbook: Why Bad Behavior is Almost Always Good Politics

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, Alastair Smith

4.1

For eighteen years, Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith have been part of a team revolutionizing the study of politics by turning conventional wisdom on its head. They start from a single assertion: Leaders do whatever keeps them in power. They don't care about the "national interest"--or even their subjects--unless they have to.

This clever and accessible book shows that the difference bet

54

What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy

James Paul Gee

4.1

James Paul Gee begins his classic book with "I want to talk about video games--yes, even violent video games--and say some positive things about them." With this simple but explosive statement, one of America's most well-respected educators looks seriously at the good that can come from playing video games. In this revised edition, new games like World of WarCraft and Half Life 2 are evaluated and

Recommended by Katherine Isbister.

Katherine Isbister

This book is probably the book that launched the tremendous interest in games for learning. [source]

55

Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics

Richard H. Thaler

4.1

Preview Summary

Nobel laureate Richard H. Thaler has spent his career studying the radical notion that the central agents in the economy are humans—predictable, error-prone individuals. Misbehaving is his arresting, frequently hilarious account of the struggle to bring an academic discipline back down to earth—and change the way we think about economics, ourselves, and our world.

Traditional economics assumes rati

56

Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

4.1

Preview Summary

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Black Swan, a bold new work that challenges many of our long-held beliefs about risk and reward, politics and religion, finance and personal responsibility

In his most provocative and practical book yet, one of the foremost thinkers of our time redefines what it means to understand the world, succeed in a profession, contribute to a fair and just so

Recommended by Ben Horowitz, Daniel Kahneman, Marc Andreessen, and 5 others.

Ben Horowitz

Co-founder/Andreessen Horowitz

A book about the dynamics of how large-scale, highly random systems behave. [source]

Daniel Kahneman

Nobel Prize Winner, Author

Changed my view of how the world works. [source]

Marc Andreessen

Co-Founder/Andreessen Horowitz

Skin in the game as conflict of interest, or as attaching one's livelihood to one's speech? Who to listen to, and why. Ideal counterpart to Philip Tetlock's Expert Political Judgment. [source]

57

Game Theory and the Social Contract, Volume 2: Just Playing (Economic Learning and Social Evolution)

Ken Binmore

4.1

"Ken Binmore's "Game Theory and the Social Contract" is the most important work in social philosophy since John Rawls' "Theory of Justice." It is highly original, insightful, and will be a focal point for social theory."
-- Brian Skyrms, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Economics, University of California, Irvine In Volume 1 of "Game Theory and the Social Contract," Ken Binmo

58

Two-Sided Matching: A Study in Game-Theoretic Modeling and Analysis

Alvin E. Roth and Marilda A. Oliveira Sotomayor

4.1

Winner of the Operations Research Society of America Lanchester Award, Two-Sided Matching provides a comprehensive account of recent results concerning the game-theoretic analysis of two-sided matching such as between firms and workers in labor markets, and between buyers and sellers in auctions. The book begins with a discussion of empirical results concerning behavior in such markets, and then p

59

Game Theory and the Social Contract, Volume 1: Playing Fair

Ken Binmore

4.1

In Game Theory and the Social Contract, Ken Binmore argues that game theory provides a systematic tool for investigating ethical matters. His reinterpretation of classical social contract ideas within a game-theoretic framework generates new insights into the fundamental questions of social philosophy. He clears the way for this ambitious endeavor by first focusing on foundational issues -- paying

60

Play Optimal Poker: Practical Game Theory for Every Poker Player

Andrew Brokos

4.1

Think game theory is abstract and incomprehensible? Think again!

Play Optimal Poker shatters the myth that game theory is only for elite poker players. Renowned poker pro and coach Andrew Brokos takes you step-by-step through the fundamentals, explaining core game theory principles and how to apply them in real poker situations. Whether you play small stakes or high stakes, cash games or tournament

61

Social Choice and Individual Values

Kenneth J. Arrow

4.1

62

Evolutionary Games and Equilibrium Selection

Larry Samuelson

4.1

The author examines the interplay between evolutionary game theory and the equilibrium selection problem in noncooperative games.

Evolutionary game theory is one of the most active and rapidly growing areas of research in economics. Unlike traditional game theory models, which assume that all players are fully rational and have complete knowledge of details of the game, evolutionary models assume t

63

Opening Theory Made Easy

Otake Hideo

4.1

64

Incerto: Fooled by Randomness the Black Swan the Bed of Procrustes Antifragile

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

4.1

Nassim Nicholas Taleb s landmark Incerto series is an investigation of luck, uncertainty, probability, opacity, human error, risk, disorder, and decision-making in a world we don t understand, in nonoverlapping and standalone books. All four volumes "Antifragile, The Black Swan, Fooled by Randomness, "and the expanded edition of" The Bed of Procrustes, "updated with more than 50 percent new materi

65

Natural Justice

Ken Binmore

4.1

This book lays out foundations for a "science of morals." Binmore uses game theory as a systematic tool for investigating ethical matters. He reinterprets classical social contract ideas within a game-theory framework and generates new insights into the fundamental questions of social philosophy. In contrast to the previous writing in moral philosophy that relied on vague notion such as " societal

66

Reinforcement Learning: An Introduction

Richard S. Sutton and Andrew G. Barto

4.1

The significantly expanded and updated new edition of a widely used text on reinforcement learning, one of the most active research areas in artificial intelligence.

Reinforcement learning, one of the most active research areas in artificial intelligence, is a computational approach to learning whereby an agent tries to maximize the total amount of reward it receives while interacting with a comple

Recommended by Zachary Lipton.

Zachary Lipton

@innerproduct 1. Tor Lattimore Great book work on bandits (https://t.co/gttspSm40W) and work on causality + bandits (https://t.co/lkwvtEiKvE) 2. Caroline Uhler — Interesting work on causal inference + discovery, causal inference under measurement error etc (https://t.co/I3IRpwmdMd) [source]

67

Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny

Robert Wright

4.1

Recommended by Reid Hoffman, Ev Williams, Anne-Marie Slaughter, and 3 others.

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Nonzero is a book that everybody should read. It is a big book – not a quick read. The Logic of Human Destiny – that’s a pretty big subject. What it essentially does is tell the story of steadily increasing complexity, of increasingly complex human interactions, from cave societies to current Shanghai. Wright sees human interactions as a Nonzero sum. While primitive systems might have run on dog-eat-dog or an-eye-for-an-eye zero-sum interactions, where I win means you lose, the story of human society is a story of people coming together and discovering it doesn’t have to be zero sum. Human interaction can be positive sum. We can cooperate in ways so that everybody wins. What Wright does is trace that logic through human history, and that logic is enormously important for understanding the complex systems we live in. [source]

Jason Kottke

One of the very few books I think about all the time is Robert Wright’s Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny. Nonzero is an intriguing lens through which to view current events (which is why it’s often in my thoughts). As Chopra notes, cooperation isn’t always the norm…Trumpist Republicans and Brexit proponents are both veering towards the zero sum end of the spectrum and I don’t think it will work out well for either country in the long run. [source]

Nick Thompson

Among my five favorite books of all time. [source]

68

Twenty Lectures on Algorithmic Game Theory

Tim Roughgarden

4.1

Computer science and economics have engaged in a lively interaction over the past fifteen years, resulting in the new field of algorithmic game theory. Many problems that are central to modern computer science, ranging from resource allocation in large networks to online advertising, involve interactions between multiple self-interested parties. Economics and game theory offer a host of useful mod

69

Auction Theory

Vijay Krishna

4.1

Auction Theory is the standard reference on auctions and the first source of authoritative information about multi-unit auctions. The book develops the main concepts of auction theory from scratch in a self-contained and theoretically rigorous manner. It explores auctions and competitive bidding as games of incomplete information through detailed examinations of themes central to auction theory.

Th

70

Fun and Games: A Text on Game Theory

Ken Binmore

4.0

Binmore' s groundbreaking text on game theory explores the manner in which rational people should interact when they have conflicting interests. While Binmore uses a light touch to outline key developments in theory, the text remains a serious exposition of a serious topic. In addition, his unique story-telling approach allows students to immediately apply game-theoretic skills to simple problems.

71

Games People Play

Eric Berne

4.0

Preview Summary

We think we’re relating to other people–but actually we’re all playing games.

Forty years ago, Games People Play revolutionized our understanding of what really goes on during our most basic social interactions. More than five million copies later, Dr. Eric Berne’s classic is as astonishing–and revealing–as it was on the day it was first published. This anniversary edition features a new introducti

72

The Bounds of Reason: Game Theory and the Unification of the Behavioral Sciences

Herbert Gintis

4.0

Game theory is central to understanding human behavior and relevant to all of the behavioral sciences--from biology and economics, to anthropology and political science. However, as The Bounds of Reason demonstrates, game theory alone cannot fully explain human behavior and should instead complement other key concepts championed by the behavioral disciplines. Herbert Gintis shows that just as game

73

Population Games and Evolutionary Dynamics

William H. Sandholm

4.0

A systematic, rigorous, comprehensive, and unified overview of evolutionary game theory.

This text offers a systematic, rigorous, and unified presentation of evolutionary game theory, covering the core developments of the theory from its inception in biology in the 1970s through recent advances. Evolutionary game theory, which studies the behavior of large populations of strategically interacting a

74

Insights Into Game Theory

Ein-Ya Gura

4.0

Few branches of mathematics have been more influential in the social sciences than game theory. In recent years, it has become an essential tool for all social scientists studying the strategic behaviour of competing individuals, firms and countries. However, the mathematical complexity of game theory is often very intimidating for students who have only a basic understanding of mathematics. Insig

75

Game Theory at Work: How to Use Game Theory to Outthink and Outmaneuver Your Competition

James Miller

4.0

An easy-to-follow, non-technical approach to using game theory in every business battle

Game theory has become entrenched in today's business world. It has also often required oppressive and incomprehensible mathematics. Game Theory at Work steers around math and pedagogy to make this innovative tool accessible to a larger audience and allow all levels of business to use it to both improve decision

76

Individual Strategy and Social Structure: An Evolutionary Theory of Institutions

H. Peyton Young

4.0

Neoclassical economics as-sumes that people are highly rational and can reason their way through even the most complex economic problems. In Individual Strategy and Social Structure, Peyton Young argues for a more realistic view in which people have a limited understanding of their environment, are sometimes short-sighted, and occasionally act in perverse ways. He shows how the cumulative experien

77

Game Theory Evolving: A Problem-Centered Introduction to Modeling Strategic Interaction

Herbert Gintis

4.0

The study of strategic action (game theory) is moving from a formal science of rational behavior to an evolutionary tool kit for studying behavior in a broad array of social settings. In this problem-oriented introduction to the field, Herbert Gintis exposes students to the techniques and applications of game theory through a wealth of sophisticated and surprisingly fun-to-solve problems involving

78

Science, Strategy and War: The Strategic Theory of John Boyd

Frans P.B. Osinga

4.0

John Boyd is often known exclusively for the so-called 'OODA' loop model he developed. This model refers to a decision-making process and to the idea that military victory goes to the side that can complete the cycle from observation to action the fastest.

This book aims to redress this state of affairs and re-examines John Boyd's original contribution to strategic theory. By highlighting diverse s

79

Notes on the Theory of Choice

David Kreps

4.0

In this book, Professor Kreps presents a first course on the basic models of choice theory that underlie much of economic theory. This course, taught for several years at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, gives the student an introduction to the axiomatic method of economic analysis, without placing too heavy a demand on mathematical sophistication.

The course begins with the ba

80

An Introduction to the Theory of Mechanism Design

Tilman Borgers, Daniel Krahmer, et al

4.0

What is the best way to auction an asset? How should a group of people organize themselves to ensure the best provision of public goods? How should exchanges be organized? In An Introduction to the Theory of Mechanism Design, Tilman Börgers addresses these questions and more through an exploration of the economic theory of mechanism design. Mechanism design is reverse game theory. Whereas game the

81

The Predictioneer's Game: Using the Logic of Brazen Self-Interest to See and Shape the Future

Bruce Bueno De Mesquita

4.0

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita is a master of game theory, which is a fancy label for a simple idea: People compete, and they always do what they think is in their own best interest. Bueno de Mesquita uses game theory and its insights into human behavior to predict and even engineer political, financial, and personal events. His forecasts, which have been employed by everyone from the CIA to major busine

Cover unavailable

82

The Theory of Poker

David Sklansky

4.0

Discusses theories and concepts applicable to nearly every variation of the game, including five-card draw (high), seven-card stud, hold 'em, lowball draw, and razz (seven-card lowball stud). This book introduces you to the Fundamental Theorem of Poker, its implications, and how it should affect your play. Other chapters discuss the value of deception, bluffing, raising, the slow-play, the value o

83

A Composer's Guide to Game Music

Winifred Phillips

4.0

A comprehensive, practical guide to composing video game music, from acquiring the necessary skills to finding work in the field.

Music in video games is often a sophisticated, complex composition that serves to engage the player, set the pace of play, and aid interactivity. Composers of video game music must master an array of specialized skills not taught in the conservatory, including the creati

84

Lessons in Play: An Introduction to Combinatorial Game Theory

Michael H. Albert, Richard J. Nowakowski, David Wolfe

4.0

Combinatorial games are games of pure strategy involving two players, with perfect information and no element of chance. Starting from the very basics of gameplay and strategy, the authors cover a wide range of topics, from game algebra to special classes of games. Classic techniques are introduced and applied in novel ways to analyze both old and new games, several appearing for the first time in

85

An Introduction to Game Theory

Martin J. Osborne

4.0

Game-theoretic reasoning pervades economic theory and is used widely in other social and behavioral sciences. An Introduction to Game Theory, by Martin J. Osborne, presents the main principles of game theory and shows how they can be used to understand economic, social, political, and biological phenomena. The book introduces in an accessible manner the main ideas behind the theory rather than the

86

Game Theory: A Critical Introduction

Shaun P. Hargreaves Heap, Yanis Varoufakis

4.0

First published in 1995. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

87

Evolutionary Dynamics: Exploring the Equations of Life

Martin A. Nowak

4.0

At a time of unprecedented expansion in the life sciences, evolution is the one theory that transcends all of biology. Any observation of a living system must ultimately be interpreted in the context of its evolution. Evolutionary change is the consequence of mutation and natural selection, which are two concepts that can be described by mathematical equations. Evolutionary Dynamics is concerned w

88

A Lifetime of Puzzles: A Collection of Puzzles in Honor of Martin Gardner's 90th Birthday

Erik D. Demaine

4.0

Martin Gardner has entertained the world with his puzzles for decades and inspired countless mathematicians and scientists. As he rounds out another decade, his colleagues are paying him tribute with this special collection that contains contributions from some of the most respected puzzlemasters, magicians and mathematicians, including: - John H. Conway - William R. Gosper - Ed Pegg, Jr. - Roger

89

The Complexity of Cooperation: Agent-Based Models of Competition and Collaboration

Robert Axelrod

4.0

Robert Axelrod is widely known for his groundbreaking work in game theory and complexity theory. He is a leader in applying computer modeling to social science problems. His book The Evolution of Cooperation has been hailed as a seminal contribution and has been translated into eight languages since its initial publication. The Complexity of Cooperation is a sequel to that landmark book. It collec

90

The Ambiguity of Play

Brian Sutton-Smith

4.0

Every child knows what it means to play, but the rest of us can merely speculate. Is it a kind of adaptation, teaching us skills, inducting us into certain communities? Is it power, pursued in games of prowess? Fate, deployed in games of chance? Daydreaming, enacted in art? Or is it just frivolity? Brian Sutton-Smith, a leading proponent of play theory, considers each possibility as it has been pr

91

The Essential John Nash

John Nash

4.0

When John Nash won the Nobel prize in economics in 1994, many people were surprised to learn that he was alive and well. Since then, Sylvia Nasar's celebrated biography A Beautiful Mind, the basis of a new major motion picture, has revealed the man. The Essential John Nash reveals his work--in his own words. This book presents, for the first time, the full range of Nash's diverse contributions not

92

The Logic of Political Survival

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, Alastair Smith, Randolph M. Siverson, James D. Morrow

4.0

The authors of this ambitious book address a fundamental political question: why are leaders who produce peace and prosperity turned out of office while those who preside over corruption, war, and misery endure? Considering this political puzzle, they also answer the related economic question of why some countries experience successful economic development and others do not. The authors construct

93

The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theory of Groups

Mancur Olson

4.0

This book develops an original theory of group and organizational behavior that cuts across disciplinary lines and illustrates the theory with empirical and historical studies of particular organizations. Applying economic analysis to the subjects of the political scientist, sociologist, and economist, Mancur Olson examines the extent to which the individuals that share a common interest find it i

94

Microeconomics: Behavior, Institutions, and Evolution

Samuel Bowles

4.0

In this novel introduction to modern microeconomic theory, Samuel Bowles returns to the classical economists' interest in the wealth and poverty of nations and people, the workings of the institutions of capitalist economies, and the coevolution of individual preferences and the structures of markets, firms, and other institutions. Using recent advances in evolutionary game theory, contract theory

95

Game Theory: A Non-Technical Introduction to the Analysis of Strategy

Roger A Mccain

4.0

Focuses on providing a true interdisciplinary perspective that draws upon applications from many different areas of study such as management, strategic planning, competitive intelligence, military operations, economics, political science and finance.

96

Economic Fables

Ariel Rubinstein

4.0

"I had the good fortune to grow up in a wonderful area of Jerusalem, surrounded by a diverse range of people: Rabbi Meizel, the communist Sala Marcel, my widowed Aunt Hannah, and the intellectual Yaacovson. As far as I'm concerned, the opinion of such people is just as authoritative for making social and economic decisions as the opinion of an expert using a model." Part memoir, part crash-course

97

Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One

Edward O. Thorp

4.0

The Book That Made Las Vegas Change the Rules
Over 1,000,000 Copies in Print

Edward O. Thorp is the father of card counting, and in this classic guide he shares the revolutionary point system that has been successfully used by professional and amateur card players for generations. This book provides:

o an overview of the basic rules of the game
o proven winning strategies ranging from simple to advan

98

Liars and Outliers: Enabling the Trust that Society Needs to Thrive

Bruce Schneier

4.0

We don't demand a background check on the plumber who shows up to fix the leaky sink. We don't do a chemical analysis on food we eat.

Trust and cooperation are the first problems we had to solve before we could become a social species. In the 21st century, they have become the most important problems we need to solve — again. Our global society has become so large and complex that our traditional t

99

Why Stock Markets Crash: Critical Events in Complex Financial Systems

Didier Sornette

4.0

The scientific study of complex systems has transformed a wide range of disciplines in recent years, enabling researchers in both the natural and social sciences to model and predict phenomena as diverse as earthquakes, global warming, demographic patterns, financial crises, and the failure of materials. In this book, Didier Sornette boldly applies his varied experience in these areas to propose a

Recommended by Nassim Nicholas Taleb and James Owen Weatherall.

James Owen Weatherall

I think of this book as the gold standard of what ideas from mathematics and physics can do. [source]

100

Multiagent Systems: Algorithmic, Game-Theoretic, and Logical Foundations

Yoav Shoham, Kevin Leyton-Brown

4.0

This exciting and pioneering new overview of multiagent systems, which are online systems composed of multiple interacting intelligent agents, i.e., online trading, offers a newly seen computer science perspective on multiagent systems, while integrating ideas from operations research, game theory, economics, logic, and even philosophy and linguistics. The authors emphasize foundations to create a