Game theory

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Who

John von Neumann, a Hungarian-American mathematician of Jewish descent, with economist Oskar Morgenstern

When

1944

Where

Princeton, New Jersey, United States

Game theory is the mathematical study of strategic decision-making, now central to economics, biology and computer science. Its foundations were laid by John von Neumann, born into a Jewish family in Budapest, whose 1928 minimax theorem and 1944 book with Oskar Morgenstern, 'Theory of Games and Economic Behavior', founded the field. Von Neumann emigrated to the United States and became one of the twentieth century's most influential mathematicians.

Part of “The Gifts of the Jews” — verified Jewish contributions to the world, with sources.