Monday, July 30, 2007
Sparking Some Controversy
Someone we know, let's call him Mason Hat Wearer, suggested an end to the minimum bid rule. Why? Well, because of our brilliant invention, the "double your bid and you lose 100 points, triple your bid and you lose the game" rule, which will subsequently be noted as the Larry rule. Well, I don't know if the triple your bid part is official or not, but the double certainly is.
Anyway, according to the MHW, or Joe Bob, the Larry rule penalizes you for underbidding, so why not bid one? Or two? Or three? When Sarge finally gets 4 to go with Corporal's 6, and the Remix is against the wall once again, why shouldn't they be able to go three or less? Especially when their highest card is a Jack and they both made the "pass the spade" motion to each other.
I find Joe Bob's argument to be perfectly logical, and the reasons for remaining with our current rules purely emotional. Therefore, I propose that for series 3 onward, the minimum bid law (for nils and non-nils) be abolished. C'mon boys. We got rid of the Blind 6 coz it was far too easy to make sense. Let's make the correct decision once more.
Anyway, according to the MHW, or Joe Bob, the Larry rule penalizes you for underbidding, so why not bid one? Or two? Or three? When Sarge finally gets 4 to go with Corporal's 6, and the Remix is against the wall once again, why shouldn't they be able to go three or less? Especially when their highest card is a Jack and they both made the "pass the spade" motion to each other.
I find Joe Bob's argument to be perfectly logical, and the reasons for remaining with our current rules purely emotional. Therefore, I propose that for series 3 onward, the minimum bid law (for nils and non-nils) be abolished. C'mon boys. We got rid of the Blind 6 coz it was far too easy to make sense. Let's make the correct decision once more.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
This is how they make up after an argument on whether he should have thrown the diamond or he should have started leading spades...Damn, I'm Good!
More horsin around during the Marathon session in Arlington Heights, circa 2000. Some Jackass took the picture.Zakkus Triumphus
Zakkus, the Polish half of the remix, shows his game face to the camera during a marathon session in Arlington Heights, in about the year 2000. Then, as now, the Indians dominate the life of this unabomber look-a-like. His African partner challenged him to travel more after discovering early in college life that he had been to more countries than the number of states the Zakkus had visited. Now the Zakkus has visited many states, including Canada, mostly following the Indians. Well, that and college bowl.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
A Cool Customer!
Mosh Dawg Adam Kovac Keeps His Cool. His Rock Solid Play and Cucumber Demeanor Are One of the Big Reasons the Mosh Dawgs Lead in the Second Tournament of 100.
Fun Facts: Adam is a seasoned actor, having taken lead and prominent roles in productions of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Sound of Music and A Good Day for Dying: One Commando's Memories of Africa. His favorite card is the Queen of Spades, or as he calls her, "The Dark Mistress."
Photo Taken in Columbus, Ohio, Memorial Day Weekend, 2007.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
How many shuffles?
According to this, seven, but you already knew that. I do the overhand shuffle, which requires 2500 shuffles to ensure randomness. Next time, I'll try and remember to bring the automatic shuffler with me. Yes, I have one...
From Briggsy
Marvelous properties
The economist Paul Romer notes the astonishing fact that if you thoroughly shuffle a deck of 52 cards, chances are practically 100 percent that the resulting arrangement of cards has never before existed.
Never.
Each time you shuffle a deck, you produce an arrangement of cards that exists for the first and only time in history. The arithmetic works that way. For a very small number of items, the number of possible arrangements -- which item is first, which item is second, which is third, and so on -- is small. Three items, for example, can be arranged only six different ways. But the number of possible arrangements grows very large very quickly. The number of ways to arrange five items is 120. For 10 items it's 3,628,800. For 15 items it's 1,307,674,368,000. The number of different ways to arrange 52 items is 8.066 times 10 to the 67th power.
This number is so enormous that no human can comprehend it. By way of comparison, the number of ways to arrange a mere 20 items is 2,432,902,008,176,640,000 -- a number larger than the number of seconds that elapse in the course of 10 billion years. And this number is microscopic compared to 8.066 times 10 to the 67th power.
Despite all this, Sarge continues to complain that he sees the same crappy hand time after time after time...
The economist Paul Romer notes the astonishing fact that if you thoroughly shuffle a deck of 52 cards, chances are practically 100 percent that the resulting arrangement of cards has never before existed.
Never.
Each time you shuffle a deck, you produce an arrangement of cards that exists for the first and only time in history. The arithmetic works that way. For a very small number of items, the number of possible arrangements -- which item is first, which item is second, which is third, and so on -- is small. Three items, for example, can be arranged only six different ways. But the number of possible arrangements grows very large very quickly. The number of ways to arrange five items is 120. For 10 items it's 3,628,800. For 15 items it's 1,307,674,368,000. The number of different ways to arrange 52 items is 8.066 times 10 to the 67th power.
This number is so enormous that no human can comprehend it. By way of comparison, the number of ways to arrange a mere 20 items is 2,432,902,008,176,640,000 -- a number larger than the number of seconds that elapse in the course of 10 billion years. And this number is microscopic compared to 8.066 times 10 to the 67th power.
Despite all this, Sarge continues to complain that he sees the same crappy hand time after time after time...
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
What would you have bid?
A typical hand of mine during the last Spades Marathon gathering in Columbus, Ohio.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)