Monday, August 3, 2026
Science

A physicist's fresh look at the 'prisoner's dilemma' reveals hope for cooperation

The "prisoner's dilemma" is one of the most famous ideas in game theory. For decades, this game has been used to explain why selfishness often beats cooperation. In the prisoner's dilemma, two players can either cooperate or cheat. Cheating always seems to pay off more, so both players end up cheati...

A physicist's fresh look at the 'prisoner's dilemma' reveals hope for cooperation
Image: Phys.org
The "prisoner's dilemma" is one of the most famous ideas in game theory. For decades, this game has been used to explain why selfishness often beats cooperation. In the prisoner's dilemma, two players can either cooperate or cheat. Cheating always seems to pay off more, so both players end up cheating and losing out even though working together would have given them the biggest reward.

Originally published at Phys.org

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