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Minimax Theorem
In the mathematical area of game theory, a minimax theorem is a theorem providing conditions that guarantee that the max–min inequality is also an equality. The first theorem in this sense is von Neumann's minimax theorem from 1928, which was considered the starting point of game theory. Since then, several generalizations and alternative versions of von Neumann's original theorem have appeared in the literature. Zero-sum games The minimax theorem was first proven and published in 1928 by John von Neumann, who is quoted as saying "''As far as I can see, there could be no theory of games ... without that theorem ... I thought there was nothing worth publishing until the Minimax Theorem was proved''". Formally, von Neumann's minimax theorem states: Let X \subset \mathbb^n and Y \subset \mathbb^m be compact convex sets. If f: X \times Y \rightarrow \mathbb is a continuous function that is concave-convex, i.e. : f(\cdot,y): X \to \mathbb is concave for fixed y, and : f(x,\cdo ...
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Game Theory
Game theory is the study of mathematical models of strategic interactions among rational agents. Myerson, Roger B. (1991). ''Game Theory: Analysis of Conflict,'' Harvard University Press, p.&nbs1 Chapter-preview links, ppvii–xi It has applications in all fields of social science, as well as in logic, systems science and computer science. Originally, it addressed two-person zero-sum games, in which each participant's gains or losses are exactly balanced by those of other participants. In the 21st century, game theory applies to a wide range of behavioral relations; it is now an umbrella term for the science of logical decision making in humans, animals, as well as computers. Modern game theory began with the idea of mixed-strategy equilibria in two-person zero-sum game and its proof by John von Neumann. Von Neumann's original proof used the Brouwer fixed-point theorem on continuous mappings into compact convex sets, which became a standard method in game theory and mathema ...
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Max–min Inequality
In mathematics, the max–min inequality is as follows: :For any function \ f : Z \times W \to \mathbb\ , :: \sup_ \inf_ f(z, w) \leq \inf_ \sup_ f(z, w)\ . When equality holds one says that , , and satisfies a strong max–min property (or a saddle-point property). The example function \ f(z,w) = \sin( z + w )\ illustrates that the equality does not hold for every function. A theorem giving conditions on , , and which guarantee the saddle point property is called a minimax theorem. Proof Define g(z) \triangleq \inf_ f(z, w)\ . For all z \in Z, we get g(z) \leq f(z, w) for all w \in W by definition of the infimum being a lower bound. Next, for all w \in W , f(z, w) \leq \sup_ f(z, w) for all z \in Z by definition of the supremum being an upper bound. Thus, for all z \in Z and w \in W , g(z) \leq f(z, w) \leq \sup_ f(z, w) making h(w) \triangleq \sup_ f(z, w) an upper bound on g(z) for any choice of w \in W . Because the supremum is the least upper bound, \sup_ g( ...
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John Von Neumann
John von Neumann (; hu, Neumann János Lajos, ; December 28, 1903 â€“ February 8, 1957) was a Hungarian-American mathematician, physicist, computer scientist, engineer and polymath. He was regarded as having perhaps the widest coverage of any mathematician of his time and was said to have been "the last representative of the great mathematicians who were equally at home in both pure and applied mathematics". He integrated pure and applied sciences. Von Neumann made major contributions to many fields, including mathematics (foundations of mathematics, measure theory, functional analysis, ergodic theory, group theory, lattice theory, representation theory, operator algebras, matrix theory, geometry, and numerical analysis), physics (quantum mechanics, hydrodynamics, ballistics, nuclear physics and quantum statistical mechanics), economics ( game theory and general equilibrium theory), computing ( Von Neumann architecture, linear programming, numerical meteo ...
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Saddle Point
In mathematics, a saddle point or minimax point is a point on the surface of the graph of a function where the slopes (derivatives) in orthogonal directions are all zero (a critical point), but which is not a local extremum of the function. An example of a saddle point is when there is a critical point with a relative minimum along one axial direction (between peaks) and at a relative maximum along the crossing axis. However, a saddle point need not be in this form. For example, the function f(x,y) = x^2 + y^3 has a critical point at (0, 0) that is a saddle point since it is neither a relative maximum nor relative minimum, but it does not have a relative maximum or relative minimum in the y-direction. The name derives from the fact that the prototypical example in two dimensions is a surface that ''curves up'' in one direction, and ''curves down'' in a different direction, resembling a riding saddle or a mountain pass between two peaks forming a landform saddle. In te ...
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Mathematische Annalen
''Mathematische Annalen'' (abbreviated as ''Math. Ann.'' or, formerly, ''Math. Annal.'') is a German mathematical research journal founded in 1868 by Alfred Clebsch and Carl Neumann. Subsequent managing editors were Felix Klein, David Hilbert, Otto Blumenthal, Erich Hecke, Heinrich Behnke, Hans Grauert, Heinz Bauer, Herbert Amann, Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, Wolfgang Lück, and Nigel Hitchin. Currently, the managing editor of Mathematische Annalen is Thomas Schick. Volumes 1–80 (1869–1919) were published by Teubner. Since 1920 (vol. 81), the journal has been published by Springer. In the late 1920s, under the editorship of Hilbert, the journal became embroiled in controversy over the participation of L. E. J. Brouwer on its editorial board, a spillover from the foundational Brouwer–Hilbert controversy. Between 1945 and 1947 the journal briefly ceased publication. References External links''Mathematische Annalen''homepage at Springer''Mathematische Annalen''archive (1869†...
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Compact Space
In mathematics, specifically general topology, compactness is a property that seeks to generalize the notion of a closed and bounded subset of Euclidean space by making precise the idea of a space having no "punctures" or "missing endpoints", i.e. that the space not exclude any ''limiting values'' of points. For example, the open interval (0,1) would not be compact because it excludes the limiting values of 0 and 1, whereas the closed interval ,1would be compact. Similarly, the space of rational numbers \mathbb is not compact, because it has infinitely many "punctures" corresponding to the irrational numbers, and the space of real numbers \mathbb is not compact either, because it excludes the two limiting values +\infty and -\infty. However, the ''extended'' real number line ''would'' be compact, since it contains both infinities. There are many ways to make this heuristic notion precise. These ways usually agree in a metric space, but may not be equivalent in other topologic ...
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Convex Set
In geometry, a subset of a Euclidean space, or more generally an affine space over the reals, is convex if, given any two points in the subset, the subset contains the whole line segment that joins them. Equivalently, a convex set or a convex region is a subset that intersects every line into a single line segment (possibly empty). For example, a solid cube is a convex set, but anything that is hollow or has an indent, for example, a crescent shape, is not convex. The boundary of a convex set is always a convex curve. The intersection of all the convex sets that contain a given subset of Euclidean space is called the convex hull of . It is the smallest convex set containing . A convex function is a real-valued function defined on an interval with the property that its epigraph (the set of points on or above the graph of the function) is a convex set. Convex minimization is a subfield of optimization that studies the problem of minimizing convex functions over convex se ...
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Concave Function
In mathematics, a concave function is the negative of a convex function. A concave function is also synonymously called concave downwards, concave down, convex upwards, convex cap, or upper convex. Definition A real-valued function f on an interval (or, more generally, a convex set in vector space) is said to be ''concave'' if, for any x and y in the interval and for any \alpha \in ,1/math>, :f((1-\alpha )x+\alpha y)\geq (1-\alpha ) f(x)+\alpha f(y) A function is called ''strictly concave'' if :f((1-\alpha )x + \alpha y) > (1-\alpha) f(x) + \alpha f(y)\, for any \alpha \in (0,1) and x \neq y. For a function f: \mathbb \to \mathbb, this second definition merely states that for every z strictly between x and y, the point (z, f(z)) on the graph of f is above the straight line joining the points (x, f(x)) and (y, f(y)). A function f is quasiconcave if the upper contour sets of the function S(a)=\ are convex sets. Properties Functions of a single variable # A differentiab ...
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Convex Function
In mathematics, a real-valued function is called convex if the line segment between any two points on the graph of a function, graph of the function lies above the graph between the two points. Equivalently, a function is convex if its epigraph (mathematics), epigraph (the set of points on or above the graph of the function) is a convex set. A twice-differentiable function of a single variable is convex if and only if its second derivative is nonnegative on its entire domain. Well-known examples of convex functions of a single variable include the quadratic function x^2 and the exponential function e^x. In simple terms, a convex function refers to a function whose graph is shaped like a cup \cup, while a concave function's graph is shaped like a cap \cap. Convex functions play an important role in many areas of mathematics. They are especially important in the study of optimization problems where they are distinguished by a number of convenient properties. For instance, a st ...
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Sion's Minimax Theorem
In mathematics, and in particular game theory, Sion's minimax theorem is a generalization of John von Neumann's minimax theorem, named after Maurice Sion Maurice Sion (17 October 1927, Skopje – 17 April 2018, Vancouver) was an American and Canadian mathematician, specializing in measure theory and game theory. He is known for Sion's minimax theorem. Biography Sion received from New York Univer .... It states: Let X be a compact space, compact Convex set, convex subset of a linear topological space and Y a convex subset of a linear topological space. If f is a real-valued Function (mathematics), function on X\times Y with : f(x,\cdot) upper semicontinuous and quasi-convex function, quasi-concave on Y, \forall x\in X, and : f(\cdot,y) lower semicontinuous and quasi-convex on X, \forall y\in Y then, : \min_\sup_ f(x,y)=\sup_\min_f(x,y). See also *Parthasarathy's theorem *Saddle point References

* * Game theory Mathematical optimization Mathematical theorems ...
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Parthasarathy's Theorem
In mathematics – and in particular the study of games on the unit square – Parthasarathy's theorem is a generalization of Von Neumann's minimax theorem. It states that a particular class of games has a mixed value, provided that at least one of the players has a strategy that is restricted to absolutely continuous distributions with respect to the Lebesgue measure (in other words, one of the players is forbidden to use a pure strategy). The theorem is attributed to the Indian mathematician Thiruvenkatachari Parthasarathy. Theorem Let X and Y stand for the unit interval ,1/math>; \mathcal M_X denote the set of probability distributions on X (with \mathcal M_Y defined similarly); and A_X denote the set of absolutely continuous distributions on X (with A_Y defined similarly). Suppose that k(x,y) is bounded on the unit square X \times Y = \ and that k(x,y) is continuous except possibly on a finite number of curves of the form y=\phi_k(x) (with k=1,2,\ldots,n) where the \phi_k ...
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Dual Linear Program
The dual of a given linear program (LP) is another LP that is derived from the original (the primal) LP in the following schematic way: * Each variable in the primal LP becomes a constraint in the dual LP; * Each constraint in the primal LP becomes a variable in the dual LP; * The objective direction is inversed – maximum in the primal becomes minimum in the dual and vice versa. The weak duality theorem states that the objective value of the dual LP at any feasible solution is always a bound on the objective of the primal LP at any feasible solution (upper or lower bound, depending on whether it is a maximization or minimization problem). In fact, this bounding property holds for the optimal values of the dual and primal LPs. The strong duality theorem states that, moreover, if the primal has an optimal solution then the dual has an optimal solution too, ''and the two optima are equal''. Pages 81–104. These theorems belong to a larger class of duality theorems in optimizatio ...
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