Papers by Alessandro Mezzavilla
Schelling's 1960 book was a landmark and proved fruitful in much of the game theoretic research o... more Schelling's 1960 book was a landmark and proved fruitful in much of the game theoretic research of the following decades. Our focus shall fall on the issue of multiple equilibria, exploring Schelling's focal point effect and elements of an alternative theory by Harsanyi and Selten (1988). Specifically, we will address the issue of coordination between players to successfully reach the particular state of equilibrium they wish to obtain in tacit bargains. Once this overall picture has been sketched, the last section will deal with the relationship between Schelling's theory and overall framework of research on the one hand, and "traditional" game theory on the other. After putting focal point theory in the right place, we shall conclude by highlighting possible direction for further research.
The goal of the present paper is to reconstruct the history of Minkowski spacetime, focusing on t... more The goal of the present paper is to reconstruct the history of Minkowski spacetime, focusing on the specific understanding that Minkowski had of his own model in the context of his worldview. To achieve it, we will first take a look at Minkowski’s personal academic history. By exploring his scientific development, certain key elements in his approach to mathematics and physics will be highlighted, so that his worldview is put into perspective and supported by evidence. Afterwards, a brief summary of Einstein’s work on special relativity is presented, with the aim to speculate on Einstein’s own way of interpreting spacetime. This will also set up the foundation for a comparison with Minkowski. Then, we will analyze the main lectures through which Minkowski presented his geometric model of spacetime to the German scientific community, focusing especially on Raum und Zeit. Here, Minkowski’s worldview is further articulated. Last but not least, we will endorse that, despite Minkowski’s work becoming crucial for Einstein and Einstein's interpretation of spacetime most likely growing closer to Minkowski's, the two scientists ultimately shared crucial differences in weltanschauung.
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Papers by Alessandro Mezzavilla