The Good Place – Trolley Problem

Chidi and Eleanor tackle a famous ethical dilemma, the trolley problem. The thought experiment is popular in philosophy and ethics courses, but the same experiment can be used in an economics context when discussing opportunity costs and costs. In a literal sense, whichever way the trolley goes will have a cost associated with it based on the people who will die. Depending on the structure of your course, you may also be able to look at the trolley problem from a game theory perspective.

Thanks to Jamie Wagner for the clip recommendation

2023 1

Bullet Train –- Prisoner’s Dilemma

Bullet Train is an American action comedy that pits various killers against each other while riding a bullet train. In this scene, Lemon has tracked down two people (Prince and Kimura) and needs information. Instead of torturing the two of them, he opts instead to place them in a classic prisoner’s dilemma. He hopes that the two will be self-interested and reveal the outcome he desires.

Prince and Kimura are asked to close their eyes and either confess or rat the other person out. Lemon reminds them that cooperation (both raising hands or both pointing at each other) is likely a lie and he will kill them both. It’s a slight twist on the traditional prisoner’s dilemma played in classrooms, but it’s nice to see an application of interdependence and game theory in movies.

Thanks to Liam McDermott for the clip recommendation!

2023 0

Star Trek TNG — Data Overanalyzes

Data is trying to formulate a battle plan for Commander Riker, but he’s assuming that Commander Riker is rational and knows that Data has analyzed his move. Data takes it a step further and hypothesizes that Commander Riker knows that Data knows that the commander has a battle plan. Full information is a tough assumption about rationality, but bounded rationality lets us assume that people have limitations but still respond to incentives in a predictable way. While perhaps a human failure, most of society does not operate on the same level as Data.

Thanks to Peter Nencka for the clip suggestion!

2018 0

A League of Their Own

Dottie decides to quit right before the World Series, and her coach isn’t too happy about it. One of the most salient topics taught in a section on behavioral economics is the idea of ignoring sunk costs. When things get boring or tough, a rational agent may decide to quit. Dugan believes that baseball is a great separating equilibrium and that it shows who’s tough and who isn’t. If baseball were an easy game then the it wouldn’t be a beneficial signal to everyone watching.

Thanks to Jose Fernandez for the reference!

2018 0

Prison Break — What is Game Theory?

In the re-boot of Prison Break, we look at how game theory impacts the decisions made by Michael Scofield. It starts with the idea that players in the game are focused on self-interest even when it comes at the expense of other players in the game. The setup is described as a one-shot game where players focus on themselves with no future implications.

2018 0

Big Bang Theory — Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock

Sheldon isn’t a fan of traditional rock, paper, scissors so he introduces a new variant of the game with two more options, which increases the number of possible outcomes. The guys decide to use RPSLS to solve their disagreements, but they seem to struggle with the notion of needing to have mixed strategies. While Spock is not a dominant strategy in this game, the others don’t seem to comprehend ways to beat the throw.

For more Big Bang Theory clips, check out Bazinganomics!

2018 0

USA Rock, Paper, Scissors National Championship

The national championship of the Rock, Paper, Scissors League was filmed in the mid-2000s in Las Vegas, Nevada. The announcers walk through the variety of strategies that players consider during the game and whether each method is valid. As a simultaneous game, RPS is taught that players should randomize, but professional players try to outsmart their competition.

Here’s a neat AI program to play RPS in your class.

2018 0

BudLight — Rock, Paper, Scissors

Rock, paper, scissors is a good game to help settle a dispute, but this simultaneous move game has no clear advantage. It helps if you have an actual rock in your back pocket though.

2017 0

Footloose — Playing Chicken with Tractors

Two high school students decide to play a game of chicken on a dare. In this classic game, two contestants head straight for one another and the winner is the one who doesn’t bail or turn away. If both participants turn away then they both are deemed “chickens.” However, if both stay the course then they will crash into one another and possibly die.

Thanks to Austin Boyle for the clip!

2017 0

Wanda Sykes — Being Tested

Wanda Sykes describes how she tests her husband when he doesn’t even know he’s being tested. She’s okay with a sink of dirty dishes one or two days, but if it continues for much longer than she’ll extract her revenge (later in the clip she talks about how all the fury comes out when they’re having sex). This tit-for-tat behavior where one party waits for the other one can turn into a situation where both parties are eating off of napkins and no one is cleaning anything.

2017 0