[blueplum]

After the first child cuts and the second one chooses, each child further cuts his or her own slice into thirds. The third child then chooses a third of a slice from each plate. It might get messy, but all three should feel fairly treated.

what?! what?! what mind-think is being fed to our super-egos here under the keyword guise of 'fair'?? Why are children cutting the cake instead of a parent? And why isn't the child who did eat his broccoli or asparagus rewarded with a slightly larger piece of cake, cut by the parent, over the obstinate child who refused? If I lose an online game of solitaire, I don't get 'extra' points from some player down the line that won. Wow. Just wow.

[1rudeboy]

what mind-think is being fed to our super-egos here under the keyword guise of 'fair'??

It's called "game theory," a branch of economics, itself a social science.