Posts Tagged 'Games'

The Mathematics of Fair Play in Video Games

Published April 2, 2020 Irish Times Leave a Comment
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Video games generate worldwide annual sales of about $150 billion. With millions of people confined at home with time to spare, the current pandemic may benefit the industry. At the core of a video game is a computer program capable of simulating a range of phenomena in the real world or in a fantasy universe, of generating realistic imagery and of responding to the actions and reactions of the players. At every level, mathematics is crucial [TM184 or search for “thatsmaths” at irishtimes.com].

League-Of-Legends

League of Legends, from Riot Games.

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ToplDice is Markovian

Published August 29, 2019 Occasional Leave a Comment
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Many problems in probability are solved by assuming independence of separate experiments. When we toss a coin, it is assumed that the outcome does not depend on the results of previous tosses. Similarly, each cast of a die is assumed to be independent of previous casts.

However, this assumption is frequently invalid. Draw a card from a shuffled deck and reveal it. Then place it on the bottom and draw another card. The odds have changed: if the first card was an ace, the chances that the second is also an ace have diminished.

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The Beer Mat Game

Published June 22, 2017 Occasional Leave a Comment
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Alice and Bob, are enjoying a drink together. Sitting in a bar-room, they take turns placing beer mats on the table. The only rules of the game are that the mats must not overlap or overhang the edge of the table. The winner is the player who puts down the final mat. Is there a winning strategy for Alice or for Bob?

Beermats-picture

Image from Flickr. 

We start with the simple case of a circular table and circular mats. In this case, there is a winning strategy for the first player. Before reading on, can you see what it is?

* * *

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Franc-carreau or Fair-square

Published February 11, 2016 Occasional Leave a Comment
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Franc-carreau is a simple game of chance, like the roll-a-penny game often seen at fairs and fêtes. A coin is tossed or rolled down a wooden chute onto a large board ruled into square segments. If the player’s coin lands completely within a square, he or she wins a coin of equal value. If the coin crosses a dividing line, it is lost.

Franc-Carreau-01

The playing board for Franc-Carreau is shown above, together with a winning coin (red) contained within a square and a loosing one (blue) crossing a line. As the precise translation of franc-carreau appears uncertain, the name “fair square” would seem appropriate.

The question is: What size should the coin be to ensure a 50% chance of winning?

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Factorial 52: A Stirling Problem

Published December 24, 2015 Occasional Leave a Comment
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How many ways can a deck of cards be arranged? It is very easy to calculate the answer, but very difficult to grasp its significance.

Card-Arc

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Fun and Games on a Honeycombed Rhomboard.

Published July 9, 2015 Occasional Leave a Comment
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Hex is an amusing game for two players, using a board or sheet of paper divided into hexagonal cells like a honeycomb. The playing board is rhomboidal in shape with an equal number of hexagons along each edge. Players take turns placing a counter or stone on a single cell of the board. One uses white stones, the other black. Or red and blue markers can be used on a paper board.

11 x 11 Hex Board. Image from http://www.iggamecenter.com/

11 x 11 Hex Board. Image from iggamecenter.com

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Game Theory & Nash Equilibrium

Published June 11, 2015 Occasional Leave a Comment
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Game theory deals with mathematical models of situations involving conflict, cooperation and competition. Such situations are central in the social and behavioural sciences. Game Theory is a framework for making rational decisions in many fields: economics, political science, psychology, computer science and biology. It is also used in industry, for decisions on manufacturing, distribution, consumption, pricing, salaries, etc.

Theory of games and economic behavior. Centre: John von Neumann. Right: Oskar Morgenstern.

Theory of Games and Economic Behavior.
Centre: John von Neumann. Right: Oskar Morgenstern.

During the Cold War, Game Theory was the basis for many decisions concerning nuclear strategy that affected the well-being of the entire human race.

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