this post was submitted on 30 Aug 2024
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Min maxing is a game theory strategy (mathematics). Coincidentally useful in games and other competitions. It involves a reward and working your resources to max out your winnings while minimising the opponents'. The min max approach to a genie wish that gives you a thousand dollars but someone close to you you hate a million is to not take the wish.
But I think here who you were responding to is talking about the colloquial term: doctors focused on becoming (good?) doctors in detriment of every other skill. I personally find we in the sciences often disregard social skills too far, academically and at times professionally.
Min maxing is a legit academic topic? Awesome. I learned what it is from years of being sweaty at killing internet dragons
[Wiki article](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimax#:~:text=Minimax%20(sometimes%20Minmax%2C%20MM%20or,to%20maximize%20the%20minimum%20gain.) is pretty good at talking about it, yeah.
Is that some king of new trend like nft?
It's actually more like choosing the strategy with the relatively best worst-case scenario, in general. In zero-sum games it turns into what you're describing.
But either way, yeah, that's not what OP means.
But it's a specific best worst case : it's not only about how best you can do for yourself, it's for how far from you the opponent is. You prefer'd a -1 -100 option over a +2 +1 in minmaxing. While you'd take the second in a maximizing strategy, if there wasn't a third option thatd be like +3 +20. All that being your reward, opponent reward.
That's what I want to transmit to folks reading us.