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Subject: Re: Kasparov offered $700,000 to lose to Deep Junior.

Author: José Carlos

Date: 18:10:10 08/09/02

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On August 09, 2002 at 20:26:51, Dann Corbit wrote:

>On August 09, 2002 at 17:28:19, José Carlos wrote:
>
>>On August 09, 2002 at 16:37:39, Roy Eassa wrote:
>>
>>>They are offering to give Kasparov $700,000 to show up and lose.  He's only
>>>human and that's an awful big temptation.  Why would he work a thousand times as
>>>hard for an extra 14%?
>>>
>>>Just show up, play casually and without concentrating very hard, and you're
>>>$700,000 richer.
>>>
>>>I've never heard of a match in any sport in which somebody gets only 14% more
>>>money for winning versus losing.
>>>
>>>Why not cut the loser's share dramatically and make it interesting?
>>
>>  I agree with you.
>>  This sounds to me like motivating Kasparov not to try hard for a win, which is
>>a bad way to get a good result (for the program team).
>>  I'd rather give money for each win, maybe 33% of it for each draw and zero for
>>losing, which would allow us to see what Kasparov can achieve against the
>>computer.
>>  With the conditions you mention, I think Kasparov will go for a minimum win.
>
>Imagine you are Kasparov.  You have been publicly humiliated in front of 2.5
>billion people or so in 1997 -- in the highest profile chess match of all time
>and billed as man verses machine.  In the press conferences that followed,
>volcanic rage is the best and most fitting description of the resulting
>attitude.  Seething in anger for 5 years at your 'silicon humuliation', someone
>offers you $700,000 to prepare for a match and an additional $100,000 if you
>win.  If you win, it may look like 'man really was better than machine' after
>all [to the common 'Joe on the street'].  If you lose, this time, people may
>point out: 'It was only a little tiny desk machine this time.'
>
>Do you really (honestly) believe he might possibly sandbag it?  I simply cannot
>imagine that.  Now, I can imagine if he starts off 3-0, he might draw/draw/draw
>just to get a quick pocketful and a win.  But he will try for all he is worth.
>I also believe he will prepare harder and better than he ever has for any match.
> And now, people know ways to beat computers better than throwing goofy openings
>at them.  There is a lot more data available as to what works.

  I have no idea what he's gonna do. I think no one has. But the offer of 700k
and 100k more for winning the match sounds like saying "you don't _need_ to make
a big effort because you have a lot of money even for losing, and a small
percent more if you win". What does it mean? It means saying "I pay you a lot
for _not_ crashing the program". That's why I expect a minimum win of Kasparov.
  If they want Kasparov to figth every game and kill the program by 6-0, then
offer money only for won games.
  I repeat, I don't know if Kasparov will get influenced by this, but this is
what "seems" to be implied by the offer.

  José C.



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