I missed the summit last year but I’m definitely not passing up on the chance to join MBS 2. Nevermind if the host city is a 3 or 4 hour ride away from Davao. Can’t wait to see General Santos again. Read More
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Warning: Lots of numbers and mathematical terms involved = nosebleed!
It’s an interesting read. I’m not fond of mathematics but there are times when I do find the numbers quite interesting. This is one of those moments. I got this pdf file from the folks at Microsoft research, thanks to Dana Boyd’s blog.
Here’s the abstract:
A well-known result in game theory known as “the Folk Theorem” suggests that finding Nash equilibria in repeated games should be easier than in one-shot games. In contrast, we show that the problem of finding any (approximate) Nash equilibrium for a three-player infinitely repeated game is computationally intractable (even when all payoffs are in {−1, 0,−1}), unless all of PPAD can be solved in randomized polynomial time. This is done by showing that finding Nash equilibria of (k + 1)-player infinitely-repeated games is as hard as finding Nash equilibria of k-player one-shot games, for which PPAD-hardness is known (Daskalakis, Goldberg and Papadimitriou, 2006; Chen, Deng and Teng, 2006; Chen, Teng and Valiant, 2007). This also explains why no computationally-efficient learning dynamics, such as the “no regret” algorithms, can be rational (in general games with three or more players) in the sense that, when one’s opponents use such a strategy, it is not in general a best reply to follow suit.
If you’re from the social sciences and interested in learning more about the game theory then this might help. It’s not an easy reading because of the terminologies and the complex mathematical concepts involved… so be warned. 
Download:The myth of Folk theorem
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Last summer I tagged along with a classmate whose research was about cemeteries. Cemeteries? Yeah, I know it’s weird, not to mention creepy. Despite my natural fear for the dead I managed to muster enough courage to navigate the cramped but relatively clean public cemetery. And of course, photo buff that I am, I lugged around my old and beaten camera to take a few shots not only of the tombs but also of the people whose lives pretty much revolve in this place for the dead.
This was taken a few steps away from the entrance of Mintal’s public cemetery. Contrary to what most people think, this public cemetery wasn’t too bad. The place was clean and the trees lent a beautiful shade to mourners who stay here. Read More
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Ethnography, Film, and Capital
A Reflection Paper on the film Nanook of the North
The film Nanook of the North starts with a preface, an explanation of the author, or in this case the film maker, informing the audience his intent and the context of the film. Created by Robert Flaherty in 1960, the film showcases the everyday life of an Inuit family in the Arctic North with most of the scenes showing how Nanook and his people hunt for food in the Arctic wilderness. As a documentary it has earned both accolades and scathing criticisms- especially with the ‘staged feeling’ of the whole film which I’ll discuss towards the end of this paper.
The Big Aggie
Nanook of the North is now regarded as a classic. The film has been crowned as a pioneer of ethnographic film. Given the context of the film industry back in the 1960s, the accolades and the crown is well deserved by Nanook of the North. Flaherty’s methods, specifically the use of narratives in his film spurred revolutionary changes in the film. He lent his voice to the film and introduced the use of narratives in documentary making. This is something that most producers now use and something that we viewers tend to take for granted. Admittedly, I’ve been so used to hearing film makers use narratives in telling their stories that when I first saw Flaherty’s film I focused on how basic and sparse it was. Reading more about the background of the film however enabled me to appreciate Flaherty’s use of narratives and can only flinch at the thought of what Flaherty’s contemporaries presented to their audience.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
