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Subject: Re: Would this work?

Author: Robert Hyatt

Date: 17:46:26 09/12/99

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On September 12, 1999 at 19:51:14, Ralf Elvsén wrote:

>I have read about some experiments where you let a
>program play against itself, but one version is searching
>one or more ply deeper than the other. From this
>you can estimate how much stronger a program gets
>given more time to search.
>
>Is it possible to perform an experiment like this on
>one computer according to the following?
>
>You take the principal variation given by the
>computer which looks like
>
>move1  move2  move3 ...
>
>i.e. the computer plays move1 and assumes the reply will be move2.
>
>Then you consistently make move2 (just like when you're cheating
>and look at the info from the computer)
>in reply to move1.  Move2 is based on a search one ply
>more shallow than move1, so I figure this would work OK
>to simulate the abovementioned experiments.
>
>On the other hand, both moves "aim" for the same position
>(the one after the last move in the line).
>
>I haven't really been able to decide whether this would work or not.
>Presently I take the position that this would indeed give
>the same results as an ordinary experiment, but I sway back
>and forth, so if you think otherwise,
>you will not have a hard time to convince me :)
>
>Ralf


It won't quite work.  Because (at least for me) I treat things at the root
differently than at ply > 1.  For example, if I am in check at ply=1 I don't
extend because that would extend _every_ move and it makes no sense.  But at
ply=2 it makes perfect sense to extend.  This means that taking the first move
off the PV and assuming that the rest would be seen by a 1-ply shallower search
is not a good assumption...



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