Provides students a firm foundation in traditional game theory and mechanism design. Game theory is the language of mathematizing interactions between individual decision-makers, but it can also be used to mathematize decisions more abstractly, like how to most efficiently route (internet) network traffic or maximize information diffused over a (social) network. Computation is a powerful tool in the hands of a game theorist, as they can model strategic decision-making, its effect on system indicators like profit/loss/information flow/etc, and can constructively engineer and test changes to the system meant to improve performance. Students discuss limitations to design, in particular, due to computational complexity.
