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Subject: Re: I can't believe this bashing is being allowed on here: "Bad Math Topic"

Author: Uri Blass

Date: 12:47:24 09/06/02

Go up one level in this thread


On September 06, 2002 at 14:42:02, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On September 06, 2002 at 13:33:29, Vincent Diepeveen wrote:
>
>>On September 05, 2002 at 14:06:08, Eugene Nalimov wrote:
>>
>>>Actually, often you don't want to search the objectively best move first. You
>>>want to search the move that will cause a beta cutoff and will result in a
>>>smallest subtree being searched.
>>
>>Not really, the best move is usually best, because usually the
>>problem of *a move* cutting off is shown next iteration by major
>>overhead. So at this iteration i a move could cutoff in very little
>>nodes, but if it next iteration fails low it obviously is a whole
>>subtree you researched.
>
>
>Would you _please_ think a bit before jumping in?  Eugene's statement is a
>direct premise of any tree searching program based on alpha/beta.  Do the
>least amount of work possible.  Given a set of N moves that will produce a
>cutoff (fail high) and another set M that will not... If you search any moves
>in M first, you waste time and effort and slow down.  If you search any move in
>N you get a cutoff and are done.  How can it _not_ be best to pick the one that
>requires the least effort to fail high?  Because once you fail high at a node,
>you are _finished_ there..

If this iteration is the last iteration you are right.
The point is that if the iteration is not the last iteration you may prefer
to have a move with bigger tree if it means that the tree for the same position
is smaller in later iterations.

I do not know if the best move is usually best and I guess that things are also
dependent in your pruning and extensions rules.

You can also consider moves that force repetition as best if you get a cut off
by 1 node thanks to them.

Uri



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