Game Theory Used to Explain Cooperative Behavior in Yeast

We've all heard of the idea of evolution, where in essence, it is simply the survival of the fittest. Now, cooperative behavior is where benefits to others come at a cost to an individual. With those two ideas in mind, how then, did cooperative behavior come to exist?

Researchers at MIT have been using game theory to explain the cooperative behavior in yeast. Why yeast? Because "yeast have no emotions or thoughts that interfere with rational decision-making; their actions are solely driven by their genetic response to the environment."

The article also talks about cooperators and cheaters. In the experiments, not matter what the starting condition is, there was alway an equilibrium of cooperators and cheaters in the end. At first, yeast started to cooperate. But then when there were too many of them cooperating, some started to cheat.

This can be tied to the first week of lectures where we learned about game theory with the example of the dating game (blonds and brunettes). If you think the other person is going to cooperate, you should cheat. If you think the other person is going to cheat, you should cooperate.

Link: "The games microbes play"