A Field Theory of Games: Introduction to Decision Process Engineering, Volume 2

Thomas, Gerald H.

A Field Theory of Games: Introduction to Decision Process Engineering, Volume 2

Gerald H. Thomas

This book continues the program established in Volume 1 to provide a new take on game theory known as the field theory of games. The book uses the Wolfram Language to introduce more advanced concepts from the field theory of games to not only electrical engineering students but also to a more general audience, including students of computer engineering, software engineering, computer science and business.

As in Volume 1, the Wolfram Language automates the tedious work of solving linear programming problems and partial differential equations so that students can focus on a conceptual understanding of the field theory of games. Readers will apply the same toolkit from Volume 1 to practical problems. In this book, the focus is on non-game theory mechanisms from the field theory of games that account for the perceived stable behaviors of decision processes. These mechanisms are treated as if they act independently, though in the theory they are coupled. The coupling adds significant complexity to the computations and goes beyond the scope of this volume. However, the couplings are important, as they lead to the apparent stability of the behaviors, so the effects are discussed at a qualitative level.

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Title: A Field Theory of Games: Introduction to Decision Process Engineering, Volume 2
Author: Gerald H. Thomas
ebook: $24.95 660 pages
Publisher: Wolfram Media, Inc.
Publication Date: March 22, 2023
ISBN-13: 978-1-57955-079-0 (ebook)

Publicity and Interviews: publishing@wolfram.com

Trim Size: 7" x 10"

Non-fiction

Distribution by Amazon

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Companion Online Course Introduction to Decision Process Theory

Wolfram U interactive courses are hosted on the Wolfram Cloud and allow you to interactively explore concepts using Wolfram Language functionality. This interactive course includes video lessons, practice problems, quizzes, an interactive exploration, a final exam and a chat-based Course Assistant (requires AI Access). Sharable course completion and Level 1 proficiency certificates are available for Introduction to Decision Process Theory. Work through the course content at your own pace and use the built-in progress tracker as you advance. Get started with our free courses by signing in to the Wolfram Cloud with your Wolfram ID—or create one; it's free!

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About the Author

Gerald H. Thomas has 10 years of experience in high-energy particle physics at CERN in Switzerland and Finland, as well as at Argonne National Laboratory, USA, followed by 25 years in the corporate world at both AT&T Bell Labs and Motorola (cellular division), and at a successful start-up company in Florida, USA. The corporate experiences included project management, software engineering and senior and executive management. More recently, the author has been an adjunct professor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering for the past 18 years. He has also published several books. Of relevance to these, the author worked closely with system dynamics consultants trained at MIT to help control the delivery and staffing overruns for a large software project. This generated the idea that a deterministic theory of decisions could be created that would apply not only to software projects but more generally to any field of human endeavor in which decisions play a significant role. The key was to tie this idea to a theoretical foundation, which his experience in particle physics provided. This resulted in a two-volume set titled Geometry, Language and Strategy. A second two-volume set along the same lines has been published by Wolfram Media, entitled A Field Theory of Games: Introduction to Decision Process Engineering. This set provides important refinements to the theory, an introduction to the Wolfram Language and a toolkit that allows readers to apply the theory to practical problems.