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 models and definitions to reason about such problems. The flow of ideas also travels in the other direction, and concepts from computer science are increasingly important in economics. This book grew out of the author's Stanford University course on algorithmic game theory, and aims to give students and other newcomers a quick and accessible introduction to many of the most important concepts in the field. The book also includes case studies on online advertising, wireless spectrum auctions, kidney exchange, and network management.

This volume contains the papers presented at the International Workshop on Internet and Network Economics held during December 17–20, 2008, in Sha- hai, China, for its fourth edition. WINE 2008 provided a forum for researchers from di?erent disciplines to communicate with each other and exchange their researching ?ndings in this emerging ?eld. WINE 2008hadteninvitedspeakers:FanChungGraham,MatthewJackson, Lawrence Lau, Tom Luo, Eric Maskin, Paul Milgrom, Christos Papadimitriou, Herbert Scarf, Hal Varian and Yinyu Ye. There were 126 submissions. Each submission was reviewed on average by 2. 5 Programme Committee members. The Committee decided to accept 68 papers. The programme also included 10 invited talks. This ?nal program contained papers covering topics including equilibrium, information markets, sponsored auction, network economics, mechanism - sign,socialnetworks,advertisementpricing,computationalequilibrium,network games, algorithms and complexity for games. December 2008 Christos Papadimitriou Shuzhong Zhang Organization Programme Chairs Conference Chair Herbert E. Scarf (Yale University) Program Co-chair Christos Papadimitriou (UC Berkeley) Program Co-chair Shuzhong Zhang (Chinese University of Hong Kong) Local Organizing Committee Chairs Committee Chair Yifan Xu (Fudan University) Committee Co-chair Duan Li (Chinese University of Hong Kong) Committee Co-chair ShouyangWang(ChineseAcademyofSciences) Committee Co-chair Xiaoping Zhao (SSE INFONET Ltd.

It is widely held that Bayesian decision theory is the final word on how a rational person should make decisions. However, Leonard Savage--the inventor of Bayesian decision theory--argued that it would be ridiculous to use his theory outside the kind of small world in which it is always possible to "look before you leap." If taken seriously, this view makes Bayesian decision theory inappropriate for the large worlds of scientific discovery and macroeconomic enterprise. When is it correct to use Bayesian decision theory--and when does it need to be modified? Using a minimum of mathematics, Rational Decisions clearly explains the foundations of Bayesian decision theory and shows why Savage restricted the theory's application to small worlds. The book is a wide-ranging exploration of standard theories of choice and belief under risk and uncertainty. Ken Binmore discusses the various philosophical attitudes related to the nature of probability and offers resolutions to paradoxes believed to hinder further progress. In arguing that the Bayesian approach to knowledge is inadequate in a large world, Binmore proposes an extension to Bayesian decision theory--allowing the idea of a mixed strategy in game theory to be expanded to a larger set of what Binmore refers to as "muddled" strategies. Written by one of the world's leading game theorists, Rational Decisions is the touchstone for anyone needing a concise, accessible, and expert view on Bayesian decision making.

Ken Binmore's previous game theory textbook, Fun and Games (D.C. Heath, 1991), 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 examples and applications. This replacement for the now out-of-date 1991 textbook retains the entertaining examples, but changes the organization to match how game theory courses are actually taught, making Playing for Real a more versatile text that almost all possible course designs will find easier to use, with less jumping about than before. In addition, the problem sections, already used as a reference by many teachers, have become even more clever and varied, without becoming too technical. Playing for Real will sell into advanced undergraduate courses in game theory, primarily those in economics, but also courses in the social sciences, and serve as a reference for economists.

How can economists define social preferences and interactions? Culture, familial beliefs, religion, and other sources contain the origins of social preferences. Those preferences--the desire for social status, for instance, or the disinclination to receive financial support--often accompany predictable economic outcomes. Through the use of new economic data and tools, our contributors survey an array of social interactions and decisions that typify homo economicus. Their work brings order to the sometimes conflicting claims that countries, environments, beliefs, and other influences make on our economic decisions. - Describes recent scholarship on social choice and introduces new evidence about social preferences - Advances our understanding about quantifying social interactions and the effects of culture - Summarizes research on theoretical and applied economic analyses of social preferences

How can economists define and measure social preferences and interactions? Through the use of new economic data and tools, our contributors survey an array of social interactions and decisions that typify homo economicus. Identifying economic strains in activities such as learning, group formation, discrimination, and the creation of peer dynamics, they demonstrate how they tease out social preferences from the influences of culture, familial beliefs, religion, and other forces. - Advances our understanding about quantifying social interactions and the effects of culture - Summarizes research on theoretical and applied economic analyses of social preferences - Explores the recent willingness among economists to consider new arguments in the utility function