Let me tell you about the ultimatum game, it goes like this: After the students split into pairs of a “proposer” and an “accepter”, I give each proposer $10. The proposer has to offer the accepter a round number of dollars. If the accepter agress he or she receives what’s been offered and the proposer gets the rest.

If the accepter refuses the offer, though, they both get nothing and the $10 goes back to me.

No matter what slection they made, they find themselves in a minority. The splits were all different, $6/$4, $5/$5, $7/$3, $8/$2, etc.

In something as simple as merely splitting $10 of “found” money, there is no consensus of what constitues a “fair” split.

The best rational offer was the proposer offering $1. Anyone who made any offer other than $1 made an emotional choice.

And for accepters who turned down $1, since when is getting $0 better than getting $1?

–Never split the difference, p.120