Evolution and the Theory of Games
Encyclopedia
Evolution and the Theory of Games is a 1982 book
by the British
evolutionary biologist John Maynard Smith
on evolutionary game theory
. In it, Maynard Smith summarises work on evolutionary game theory that had developed in the 1970s, to which he made several important contributions. The book is also noted for being well written and not overly mathematically challenging.
The main contribution to be had from this book is the introduction of the Evolutionarily Stable Strategy
, or ESS, concept, which states that for a set of behaviours to be conserved over evolutionary time, they must be the most profitable avenue of action when common, so that no alternative behaviour can invade. So, for instance, suppose that in a population of frogs, males fight to the death over breeding ponds. This would be an ESS if any one cowardly frog that does not fight to the death always fares worse (in fitness terms, of course). A more likely scenario is one where fighting to the death is not an ESS because a frog might arise that will stop fighting if it realises that it is going to lose. This frog would then reap the benefits of fighting, but not the ultimate cost. Hence, fighting to the death would easily be invaded by a mutation that causes this sort of "informed fighting." Much complexity can be built from this, and Maynard Smith is outstanding at explaining in clear prose and with simple math.
Book
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by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
evolutionary biologist John Maynard Smith
John Maynard Smith
John Maynard Smith,His surname was Maynard Smith, not Smith, nor was it hyphenated. F.R.S. was a British theoretical evolutionary biologist and geneticist. Originally an aeronautical engineer during the Second World War, he took a second degree in genetics under the well-known biologist J.B.S....
on evolutionary game theory
Evolutionary game theory
Evolutionary game theory is the application of Game Theory to evolving populations of lifeforms in biology. EGT is useful in this context by defining a framework of contests, strategies and analytics into which Darwinian competition can be modelled. It originated in 1973 with John Maynard Smith...
. In it, Maynard Smith summarises work on evolutionary game theory that had developed in the 1970s, to which he made several important contributions. The book is also noted for being well written and not overly mathematically challenging.
The main contribution to be had from this book is the introduction of the Evolutionarily Stable Strategy
Evolutionarily stable strategy
In game theory and behavioural ecology, an evolutionarily stable strategy , which is sometimes also called an evolutionary stable strategy, is a strategy which, if adopted by a population of players, cannot be invaded by any alternative strategy that is initially rare. An ESS is an equilibrium...
, or ESS, concept, which states that for a set of behaviours to be conserved over evolutionary time, they must be the most profitable avenue of action when common, so that no alternative behaviour can invade. So, for instance, suppose that in a population of frogs, males fight to the death over breeding ponds. This would be an ESS if any one cowardly frog that does not fight to the death always fares worse (in fitness terms, of course). A more likely scenario is one where fighting to the death is not an ESS because a frog might arise that will stop fighting if it realises that it is going to lose. This frog would then reap the benefits of fighting, but not the ultimate cost. Hence, fighting to the death would easily be invaded by a mutation that causes this sort of "informed fighting." Much complexity can be built from this, and Maynard Smith is outstanding at explaining in clear prose and with simple math.
Contents
- Introduction
- The basic model
- The war of attrition
- Games with genetic models
- Learning the ESSEvolutionarily stable strategyIn game theory and behavioural ecology, an evolutionarily stable strategy , which is sometimes also called an evolutionary stable strategy, is a strategy which, if adopted by a population of players, cannot be invaded by any alternative strategy that is initially rare. An ESS is an equilibrium...
- Mixed strategies-I. A classification of mechanisms
- Mixed strategies-II. Examples
- Asymmetric games-I. Ownership
- Asymmetric games-II. A classification, and some illustrative examples
- Asymmetric games-III. Sex and generation games
- Life history strategies and the size game
- Honesty, bargaining and commitment
- The evolution of cooperation
- Postscript
- Appendices.