Computer Science 590T - AlgorithmcFairness&StrategBhvr

Recent years have seen a dramatic rise in the use of algorithms for solving problems involving strategic decision makers. Deployed algorithms now assist in a variety of economic interactions: assigning medical residents to schools, allocating students to courses, allocating security resources in airports, allocating computational resources and dividing rent. We will explore foundational topics at the intersection of economics and computation, starting with the foundations of game theory: Nash equilibria, the theory of cooperative games, before proceeding to covering more advanced topics: matching algorithms, allocation of indivisible goods, and mechanism design. This course counts as a CS Elective for the BA or BS.

Open to junior and senior Computer Science students who have completed COMPSI 240 and 250 with a grade of C or better in both. LECT 01 FOR UNDERGRADS; LECT 02 FOR GRADS. STUDENTS SHOULD BE FAMILIAR WITH BASIC CONCEPTS OF PROBABILITY THEORY (EXPECTATION, THE LAW OF TOTAL PROBABILITY), LINEAR OPTIMIZATION (SYNTAX, WHAT IS A PRIMAL AND A DUAL), AND BASIC ALGEBRA (WHAT IS A VECTOR SPACE). STUDENTS NEEDING SPECIAL PERMISSION MUST REQUEST OVERRIDES VIA THE ON-LINE FORM: https://www.cics.umass.edu/overrides.