OCR D2 2007 June — Question 2

Exam BoardOCR
ModuleD2 (Decision Mathematics 2)
Year2007
SessionJune
TopicMatchings and Allocation

2 The table gives the pay-off matrix for a zero-sum game between two players, A my and Bea. The values in the table show the pay-offs for A my.
Bea
\cline { 3 - 5 }Strategy XStrategy YStrategy Z
\cline { 2 - 5 }Strategy P4- 20
\cline { 2 - 5 } A myStrategy Q- 154
\cline { 2 - 5 }
\cline { 2 - 5 }
A my makes a random choice between strategies \(\mathbf { P }\) and \(Q\), choosing strategy \(P\) with probability \(p\) and strategy Q with probability \(1 - \mathrm { p }\).
  1. Write down and simplify an expression for the expected pay-off for Amy when Bea chooses strategy X . Write down similar expressions for the cases when B ea chooses strategy Y and when she chooses strategy \(Z\).
  2. Using graph paper, draw a graph to show A my's expected pay-off against p for each of Bea's choices of strategy. Using your graph, find the optimal value of pfor A my. A my and Bea play the game many times. A my chooses randomly between her strategies using the optimal value for p.
  3. Showing your working, calculate A my's minimum expected pay-off per game. W hy might A my gain more points than this, on average?
  4. W hat is B ea's minimum expected loss per game? How should B ea play to minimise her expected loss?