Tag: gametheory

Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Feb 2026)

The Future Is Europe 6 floor Mural in Brussels. Belgium. Maalbeek metro stationBy Linda DV

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed hearing about the whisperpair flaw, Windows Bitlocker keys available to the FBI and owning nothing is freeing of your money.

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with the quiet advances with graphene, the windfarm project agreement and Denmark very much in news recently is also trying red street lights for environmental reasons.

2026 has to be the year of digital sovereignty?

Ian thinks: This is a perfect summary of where we are right now. Marx combines the huge geopolitical and challenges with the world order, with the rush for AI and control. Recorded at the very start of 2026, the rest of the month felt perfectly placed.

EU making FOSS a priority?

Ian thinks: This is long time coming but I have seen Germany make huge changes to open source adoption. A few people I have spoken to recently have pointed out Trump is most likely the biggest reason for the push.

Does it matter which European social network is first?

Ian thinks: If you read the press, you might think the new W network is the one and only social network out of Europe. Of course this is a lie, with wedium.social and the most thoughtful eurosky also in the same hat. The main point I think people are missing is, it doesn’t matter who is first but rather how they are run, governed and their underlying values.

Atwood is sharp as a ever

Ian thinks: This interview with Margaret Atwood is a breath of fresh air. Atwood is always on point with her scrutiny but also brings a level of humour to some of the societies deepest problems. Love her thoughts on AI like fire.

How game theory influences so much of the world?

Ian thinks: I had no idea that the prisoners dilemma was not taught in Finland due to the country being strong on trust and collaboration. This interview with Sonja Amadae, is a very good reminder of the broken theories which grip the world now and future.

An enshittification resistant internet is possible?

Ian thinks: Doctorow talking at the CCC 39 over the holidays, is grand. No mixing of words and lots of great examples well thought out. This is certainly Cory on top form and the message is very strong.

Sharing as the world and society needs it

Ian thinks: I have heard the idea of a tool library a few times, including via Rushkoff. This podcast digs deep into the genuine sharing economy and if you think it can’t really work, I  found one in Manchester.and will likely sign up soon. Have a look for one in your area, you might be surprised.

Do you really trust your operating system?

Ian thinks: Hearing Signal talk from CCC 39 about all the work they had to do to stop Microsoft Recall from doing just that, is a little insane. All this adds up to the end of application security and the end of trust in operating systems?

The truth of social media is laid bare for us all to see

Ian thinks: To fully understand the mindset of the people in mainstream social platforms such as meta. You should read through this court evidence. Or you could read through the high/low lights in the verge post about it. It’s not pretty and you can feel the absolute contempt for their users.

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Channel4’s TV Phoneshop, Deal or no deal and Come dine with me

Since I’ve been at home recovering from my brush with death. I’ve started watching a lot more TV. This has been a bit of shock for people that know me. He’s the ones I watch the most, weirdly there mainly Channel4.

Come dine with me

I love this series, its very simple. Take 4/5 strangers then every night a guest cooks for the rest of the group in there home. At the end of the evening, the guests mark the food and dining experience out of 10. At the end of the week we see who has the highest score and that person gets the prize fund of £1000.

The concept is so simple and works for strangers, celebs, sports stars, almost anyone. I’ve even heard that some of my friends have done a personal come dine with me with other friends. Although I got to say thats got to be one of the quickest ways to loose friends and cause massive rows.

The best part of come dine with me has to be the voice over which points how nutty the guests are. Its cheap throw away television but cleverly put together

Phoneshop

This is a brand new series from Channel4, its only on episode 3 but I got to say its had me in stitches, mainly because the characters are simply crazy and I also know people who actually talk and interact in the same way. The South London urban accent and setting makes the whole thing even more funny. Specially since I spent a good few years there myself.

I’ve included a clip at the very top of the post, if you don’t get the humor maybe its just not for you.

Deal or no Deal

22 boxes, no one knows whats in the box. The player picks a box and picks off boxes till there is only two boxes left. Hopefully the player has picked a box with a quarter of million inside and opens it to find it. The external force is the banker which changes everything.

My ex-wife says this is a game for those who don’t understand probability but you know what I’m not so sure. I can only talk about the UK version (as like most game shows theres versions all around the world).

There’s a strategic point running through the game which the game kind of glosses over.

I first thought the banker would simply offer offers which were the average of whats left in the boxes, but thats not the case. In actual fact its a bit of a poker game, if the banker thinks the player will go on and believes in the box, the banker will offer higher amounts to put the player off. If the player seems shaky and a little nervous, the banker will put in slightly lower offers, hoping the player will go for it. So theres a bit of interaction from a far.

The game’s deceptively simple format has attracted attention from mathematicians, statisticians, and economists as a study of decision making under risk: It is an excellent instructive example of the application of utility theory.

In 2004, a team of economists played a scaled-down version of the game with 84 participants and compared the results with the expected utility hypothesis. The study received a great deal of media attention, appearing on the front page of The Wall Street Journal on January 12, 2006 as well as being featured on National Public Radio in the United States on March 3, 2006.

So its the game strategy which interest me about the gameshow.

I may also have a member of my family going on deal or no deal in the near future, so I’ll be filling them in on all the strategy behind the game.