Author: Bob Durrett
Date: 06:00:48 11/27/02
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On November 27, 2002 at 00:34:45, Russell Reagan wrote: >While I was at work tonight sitting at a computer, having nothing to do, I >opened up the calculator program and started playing around with the branching >factor for the game of go. I quickly realized that with such a large branching >factor at each level (361 from the starting position), it's no wonder computer >go programs play well below master level. > >Are there any games that have a high branching factor that computers are good >at? The only games that I'm somewhat familiar with are chess, checkers, and go. >Of those, it seems that the branching factor of the game largely determines how >well computers play them. It seems that checkers with the lowest branching >factor gives humans the hardest time, then chess, and then go with a much larger >branching factor is not even in the same ballpark with the top humans. > >Does this relationship between branching factor and computer strength hold for >other games? Or do some games break the pattern? If some games do break the >pattern, why? Simplicity of the game? Magical shortcuts? > >Russell My gut feel is that the use of search algorithms is inappropriate for such games. There must be some other algorithms, which are not search algorithms, which would do a reasonable job. It only remains for someone to identify them and write a program using them. This is a golden opportunity for some programmer to become famous! He/she would be known as "the programmer who cracked open the game of GO." : ) Bob D.
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