SimPolitics: How America Tried to Solve Politics with Computers
New open access book on history of computers and politics
I trace the six-decade history of efforts to simulate politics using computers, from the 1960s to the late 1980s. My research reveals how programmers and political scientists built models to win elections and predict global conflicts. This book exposes the long-standing promise that technology can fix our political systems, urging us to critically examine current claims about AI and governance.
SimPolitics is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how computers have shaped our political imagination—and our democracy.
- al_hag
Open access link
https://direct.mit.edu/books/oa-monograph/6166/SimPoliticsAm...
- boznz
Thank you for this, I'm going to give it a read.
I am unfortunately very bearish on politics in general. All politicians think short term, look after themselves, their families, their friends, and their interests first; Facts, and working simulations just get in the way. (I am still looking for a politician that is an exception to this rule)
Human nature is unfortunately real, and the only way I can see to "solve politics" is to remove human's entirely, but that comes with a whole new set of issues and is another book I guess.
- liampulles
Great video on the subject of applying science to business and government:
- amelius
Looking forward to "modeling the economy with AI agents".
- throwaway27448
Can anyone tell me if it acknowledges the dialectic?