Hi there

As some of you may have gathered, I’m fascinated with the history of game theory, especially what occurred in Vienna in the 1930s and Princeton from 1940-60. It is a topic that includes everything I love: mathematics, equilibrium theory, Princeton University, the lives of John von Neumann, John F. Nash Jr. and so on.

Per today, Privatdozent essays on the history of game theory include:

• The Legend of Abraham Wald, February 12th 2021

• David Hilbert’s Influence on Economics, November 26th 2021

• Karl Menger’s Vienna Colloquium (1928-36), October 22nd 2021

• Oskar Morgenstern’s Transformation (1925-38), August 27th 2021

• Nash’s Bargaining Problem (1950), December 3rd 2021

• John von Neumann’s Minimax Theorem (1928), March 26th 2021

See below my favorite books on the topic.

1. Towards a History of Game Theory (1995)

by E. Roy Weintraub

If you can find a copy of this book, grab it immediately. It is a wonderful collection of stories about how game theory as field came to be. It features chapters from a number of authors who would later go on to write their own books on the topic, including Robert W. and Mary Ann Dimand, Robert J. Leonard and Philip Mirowski. Edited by E. Roy Weintraub, the book includes stories on the early history of game theory, several detailed chapters about von Neumann and Morgenstern’s collaboration and a narration of game theory in Princeton in the early 1950s by Martin Shubik, in addition to many other topics. Highly, highly recommended.

Type: Edited Volume | Years: 1800s-1970s | Pages: 200 | Price: $35

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2. Von Neumann, Morgenstern, and the Creation of Game Theory (2010)

by Robert Leonard

This book is perhaps the main opus of Professor Robert J. Leonard of Université du Québec à Montréal. He studied the von Neumann/Morgenstern collaboration starting in the early 1990s, did his Ph.D. with the supervision of E. Roy Weintraub and has a chapter in the previous book about the topic as well. The book is substantial and includes the best documentation yet of the Austria/early Princeton years of game theory, beginning with Morgenstern’s dissertation and von Neumann’s proof of minimax, through Menger’s colloquium, the von Neumann/Morgenstern collaboration in Princeton and the effects of their groundbreaking book Theory of Games and Economic Behavior. A must-have resource.

Type: Narrative | Years: 1900-60 | Pages: 422 | Price: $41.99

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3. The History of Game Theory, Volume I: From the Beginnings to 1945 (2014)

by Mary-Ann and Robert W. Dimand

If there ever was a “golden age” of research on the history of game theory, it appears to have occurred approximately between 1990-98. The same few names always show up: E. Roy Weintraub, Robert Leonard, Philip Mirowski and a couple: Mary Ann and Robert W. Dimand. This book is their most complete contribution to the history (yet), covering much of the same ground as Leonard, but going much deeper into pre-1900 history and offering counter-factual narratives in some cases. A short but dense book that’s also very worthwhile owning.

Type: Technical | Years: 1800s-1945 | Pages: 200 | Price: $40

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4. A Beautiful Mind (1998)

by Sylvia Nasar

This book is mostly about the life of John F. Nash, Jr. but also contains a very engaging history of game theory in Princeton, especially from 1950 onwards. In particular, its narration stretches from the end of von Neumann and Morgenstern’s collaboration up until the late 1950s when Nash had his mental breakdown. If you’re just getting into reading about this topic, I would actually start with chapters 6-13 in this book.

Type: Narrative | Years: 1928-94 | Pages: 200 | Price: $40

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5. Prisoner's Dilemma: John von Neumann, Game Theory, and the Puzzle of the Bomb (1992)

by William Poundstone

Again from the “golden age of research” on the topic, this book from 1992 was among the first complete narratives of the history of game theory. I refer to it less often than the others, but it is nonetheless a groundbreaking book in many ways. Also a shorter book, this one is perhaps most relevant to those who’ve already read the others.

Type: Narrative | Years: 1928-94 | Pages: 200 | Price: $40

Buy it here

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Other books

There are many tangentially related books to this topic. Off the top of my head, look into:

• How Economics Became a Mathematical Science* by E. Roy Weintraub

• John von Neumann* by Norman Macrae

• The Essential John Nash*, by John F. Nash, Jr. and Harold Kuhn

• Essays in Mathematical Economics: In Honor of Oskar Morgenstern*, by Martin Shubik

* These are Amazon Affiliate links

Thank you, as always, for reading Privatdozent. I hope you found this useful!

Have a great weekend.

Sincerely,

Jørgen

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