The Marriage Problem

This lecture discusses the marriage problem where a bride ranks a set of bachelors presented in a random order, aiming to choose the best one. The process is modeled as a controlled stochastic process with states and actions. Dynamic programming algorithms are introduced to find the optimal policy for accepting bachelors based on their ranks, leading to a strategy that involves rejecting a fraction of bachelors and then accepting the next best one. The lecture explores the probability of ending up with the best bachelor and provides insights into the optimal policy for selecting a partner.