Sunday, May 3, 2009

Week 15

This week we went over the group projects and the press conference. We talked about group communications, and how two people in a group, without trying to be devious, will take initiative beyond the requirement out of altruism because they are frustrated about a policy not moving fast enough or information not being clear enough. This was an example of a lack of communication within the group. Also, any attempt to give out perfect communication or to seek perfection in any aspect will ultimately lead to frustration. Perfection is the enemy of good, because if you try to pursue perfection, you will come up too little or too late. We also looked at the questions that the heads of organizations were trying to answer, like "Who said what to whom? and "which member told this non-member that?" We also deciphered why the press is so relentless in obtaining information; they are trying to get as much information as possible, even though they know the most they could ever get is around 90%. The simulation made the imperfections of the system jump out. We also started talking about the Gutman reading by discussing how after the Soviets left Afghanistan, enthusiasm was limited because there was no desire to start a wider conflict.

1. What would happen if it were possible to have perfect information within the simulation?
2. What would have happened if the US remained interested in Afghanistan after the Soviets left?

It is nearly impossible to tell how the simulation would run if everyone would have perfect information. It may lead to less frustration within groups, but it is unlikely that it would lead to agreement among everyone. Just because two groups know everything, it does not mean that they will agree because they have different interests.

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