> CT, I need to do some more work on the ante/payoff matrix,
> but in the meantime, suppose you are Charlie, and I am Alpha.
this...after I info(rmed) you that I would most certainly play...if I could
be A(lpha). But instead you reassign the positions...and the payoff appears
in a state of flux!
> Amara sprinkled a bit of NaSi on her food in order
> to improve its flavor.
> I am betting that the French Literature student will recognize
> only that NaSi is some kind of chemical and will find a periodic
> chart and guess that I have:
>
> Na = element 11.
> +Si = element 14.
> =25
>
> She will be thinking aquarium, and guess 25 pets.
So, Bravo tells Delta: 25. Bravo is wrong. Alpha and Charlie each clear
$150...a $50 profit@.
> I am betting that you, CT, are trained in the sciences,
> and since you see from the original list of players that
> I am trained in chemistry, therefore I could not have
> made such an absurd error as NaSi.
au contraire. NaSi to indicate the compound sodium silicate = Na2O.NSiO2
2(Na) + 1(Si) = 3 pets
> You will realize that of course Amara sprinkled NaCl
> upon her dinner
Well, I did wonder about the NaCl connection...and then pondered the fact
that you didn't say Amara had dusted her dinner with some substance...and
then queried the anhydrous powder forms of NaSi...but then I ........
> If you correctly ascertain that I have 3 pets,
Ya! Charlie tells Delta that Alpha has 3 pets. Alpha and Charlie each clear
$150...once again. If Bravo guesses wrong or Charlie guesses right, Charlie
gets $150. Charlie is lazy and so subversively(?) assists Bravo in
'realizing' that 25 is indeed the correct answer. Charlie pockets the $150
early-on and has time for one more game.
> you have given
> me a huge clue as to your identity, for it would take at least
> a modicum of chemistry sophistication to recognize NaSi as
> an impossible combination of elements.
Well, Alpha could have tricked Charlie into thinking that the answer was 3
when the correct answer was some other number. Then Charlie would
incorrectly report 3 to Delta. Alpha and Bravo would pocket $150@. But Alpha
was planning on cashing in some LMT to pay for the dent his bike made when
he crashed into his neighbor's humvee. Unfortunately, Alpha's LMT isn't
worth much more than Charlie's IRIDQ, so Alpha would really like to score
the $200 pay-off. Therefore, Alpha lets Charlie know that the final solution
will require two messages from Alpha separated by feedback (NaSi = 3 being
part 1). Alpha learns Charlie's identity and gives it to Delta before
sending the second message to Charlie. Alpha gets $200, Bravo and Charlie
get $50 each.
Alpha is a defector. What do you think Charlie's strategy will be the next
time Charlie plays a game with Alpha?
But one game deserves another, reciprocal altruism after all. I assume the
same 20 lifeforms will make up the pool of potential players?
ct
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