How can we easily and quickly understand someone's true face? How can we avoid defeat if we suspect that our "best friend" is ready to betray us in order to enjoy the benefits of their victory?

When we play cards or backgammon, when we roll dice, when we place bets on roulette, when we gamble in the lottery, when we "raise" our bid at an auction, when we negotiate in a transaction, when, as a country, we devise a vaccination strategy, when, in general, we play a game of chance, something hidden always slips out. Perhaps not from the first minutes, but gradually. A winning roll, a bad hand, a wrong piece of information, a failed partnership,... and what we plan, deep inside us, comes to the surface. A passionate reaction, a wrong move, and the strategy is revealed.

Game theory – which arises from the study of probabilities in games of chance – soon began to be applied to human interactions: what is the best strategy you can devise to "win in life" (no matter what game you are playing)?

The mathematical techniques of game theory appear, with varying degrees of "wisdom," when – facing "teammates" – we devise strategies aimed either at maximizing gains or minimizing our losses – from personal interest to the global economy,... even in the planning of a nuclear war.

Brian Clegg delves into the colorful history and significant findings of game theory, and shows what we can learn from this often misunderstood field of study.