From dblank at brynmawr.edu  Wed Nov 28 10:55:44 2007
From: dblank at brynmawr.edu (Douglas S. Blank)
Date: Wed Nov 28 10:55:50 2007
Subject: [Compsci] Are you a TechChix?
Message-ID: <474D8F80.3060804@brynmawr.edu>

Are you a TechChix? Are you interested in technology or computing? Would 
you be interested in discussing current issues with like-minded TechChix?

If so, then come to a kick-off meeting this Friday at 4:00pm in Park 
Science 230. Spread the word.

Hope you can make it!

From dblank at brynmawr.edu  Wed Nov 28 21:11:34 2007
From: dblank at brynmawr.edu (Douglas S. Blank)
Date: Wed Nov 28 21:11:40 2007
Subject: [Compsci] How Computers Play Poker
Message-ID: <474E1FD6.80600@brynmawr.edu>

[A talk tomorrow afternoon at Haverford College by a Haverford alum. -Doug]

Thursday, November 29

Austin Parker '02 , University of Maryland, College Park

"How Computers Play Poker:  Algorithms for Imperfect Information Games"

Talk at 3:30 p.m.-KINSC H110   |  Tea at 3:15 p.m.-KINSC H110

http://www.cs.haverford.edu/talks/parker07/

Among the areas where computer science has met the most success in the
face of the greatest pessimism is the area of computational game
playing. It was at one time thought that computers could not play
serious games such as chess as well as any human.

While that has been proven false-computer chess programs are generally
considered better or on par with even the best human chess players-it
is still the case that expert humans outplay computers in many popular
kinds of games such as bridge, kriegspiel, and poker. Many of these
games share the property of being imperfect information games, or
games where some information is hidden from the opponent. In this talk
we will examine state-of-the-art techniques for playing the imperfect
information games of bridge, kriegspiel (an imperfect information
variant of chess), and poker.