Book Review of "God From the Machine"

Book Review of "God From the Machine"
"Artificial Models of Religious Cognition"
by William Sims Bainbridge
AltaMira Press, 2005

Review by Bill Schaeffer

copyright(c) 2013, 2018
William Schaeffer

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p.37

Lofland-Stark Model (of religious conversion)

1. experience enduring, acutely felt tension
2. within a religious problem-solving perspective
3. which leads him to define himself as a religious seeker
4. encountering the group at a turning point in his life
5. wherein an effective bond is formed (or preexists) with one or more converts
6. where extra cult attachments are absent or neutralized
7. and where, if he is to become a deployable agent, he is exposed to intensive interaction

p.102

Table 6.2

Seven Strategies for playing the Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma

1. Nice Always keep bargain.
2. Nasty Always double Cross
3. Even Random Keep Bargain 50%, Double cross 50%
4. Nice Random Keep Bargain 75%, Double cross 25%
5. Tit for tat 1st turn keep bargain,
Every successive turn - do what opponent did on previous turn.
6. Pavlov 1st turn keep bargain 75% of the time,
Then switch behaviors when you lose
7. Defection Refuse to interact.

p.105

Table 6.3 - First Results of Playing Prisoner's Dilemma

Strategy total points Average points per game
1. Nice -872 -0.07
2. Nasty 72,222 5.74
3. Even Random 31,399 2.47
4. Nice Random 7,987 0.64
5. Tit-for-tat 19,009 1.52
6. Pavlov 39,827 3.16
7. Defection 0 0.00

p.108

Table 6.6 - Results with no defection and individuals rejecting groups
(this final result is the one referenced in the discussion)

Strategy Inning 20
1. Nice 5.83
2. Nasty -8.27
3. Even Random 0.25
4. Nice Random 5.28
5. Tit-for-tat 5.44
6. Pavlov 7.14