(no subject)
Hey guys sorry I have been lacking on the posts but I have been trapped in this strange depression and I am just getting myself out of it. And for anyone's who is intrested here is some notes on my current thesis:
Poker has three distinct qualities that make it difficult to play: incomplete information, indeterminate actions with little or no influence on the state of the game, and common knowledge.
Poker is an incomplete information game, which simply means that no player has complete knowledge of the state of the game. This is opposed to a perfect information game like chess or checkers, in which both players know the position of all the pieces. But because in Poker cards are closed (can only be seen by the player to whom it was dealt) players lack all the information necessary to evaluate the true state of the game. The challenge is using the available information to derive the game state.
Poker is an indeterminate game because chance is involved. In Chess a knight will always move in the L-shaped pattern, and in checkers, a piece will always move diagonally. These games are determinate because no move is restricted by some element of chance. But in games such as Backgammon, where you have to roll dice, a player’s list of legal actions is determined by some chance. Similarly in Poker, the deal of the cards is random and so the state of the game is determined by some chance. This means that it is not always possible to “lose” or “win” because that is often determined by chance.
Poker is made further difficult because the actions a player’s actions(with respect to the cards) does not have a determined result. In five card draw, I ask for three cards hoping that my I will to get another ace to go with my pair of aces, but I am not guaranteed that result. And in some variations of Poker, such as Texas Hold’em, the player has no influence on the value of their hand, and the state of the game.
The third and most difficult problem of poker is the idea of common knowledge. A player has little control over the value of their hand, but they have total control over the implied value of their hand. Betting not only raises the amount of money in the pot but also implies information. Based on player A’s action, player B estimates the value of player A’s hand and design a strategy based on his/her hand and the estimate. However, because Poker is a zero sum game, player A is attempting to deceive player B. However player B is aware of that player A is also attempting to deceive him/her. But player A is aware that player B is aware that player A is attempting to deceive. This goes on ad infintum. The problem of deception is a very hard problem.
One of the most deceptive qualities of poker, is that players have little control over whether they win or lose, and in Texas Hold’em a player has no control. A player has control over the reward he/she receives, the reward does not actually determine whether they win or lose. A player “wins” a hand if his/her hand beats the best showing hand. For example in Texas Hold’em, player A has made a flush on the river card but has folded (having invested $60) believing player B to have a full house. Player C however calls Player B believing that he/she has nothing. Player C has a pair but Player B has two pair and wins the $220 pot. According to the cards, Player A won that hand but because he folded his reward was -$60, as opposed to a positive $240 he/she would have won if he/she stayed in. However player B also won, because his/her hand is the best showing. This can be confusing, because you can have a winning hand and yet have a negative reward, as in the above example. But regardless, poker players have no control over the state of the game
Poker players do have control over information. A player in poker is trying to maximize the reward for the current state (minimize loss, maximize wins), which he/she does in two ways: the player tries to derive the state of the game, and mislead opponents about the state of the game. A player gathers information by examining the cards that he/she can see (his/her hand and the open cards) and by analyzing the betting of the opponents. The player uses the betting not only as way to raise money in the pot but also to give misinformation. A player’s always gives information, which may or not may not be indicative of the state of the game. This is why you don’t play Poker, you play your opponents; because the state of the game is determined and unchangeable, the competition is focused on information which is controlled by the players.
Poker has three distinct qualities that make it difficult to play: incomplete information, indeterminate actions with little or no influence on the state of the game, and common knowledge.
Poker is an incomplete information game, which simply means that no player has complete knowledge of the state of the game. This is opposed to a perfect information game like chess or checkers, in which both players know the position of all the pieces. But because in Poker cards are closed (can only be seen by the player to whom it was dealt) players lack all the information necessary to evaluate the true state of the game. The challenge is using the available information to derive the game state.
Poker is an indeterminate game because chance is involved. In Chess a knight will always move in the L-shaped pattern, and in checkers, a piece will always move diagonally. These games are determinate because no move is restricted by some element of chance. But in games such as Backgammon, where you have to roll dice, a player’s list of legal actions is determined by some chance. Similarly in Poker, the deal of the cards is random and so the state of the game is determined by some chance. This means that it is not always possible to “lose” or “win” because that is often determined by chance.
Poker is made further difficult because the actions a player’s actions(with respect to the cards) does not have a determined result. In five card draw, I ask for three cards hoping that my I will to get another ace to go with my pair of aces, but I am not guaranteed that result. And in some variations of Poker, such as Texas Hold’em, the player has no influence on the value of their hand, and the state of the game.
The third and most difficult problem of poker is the idea of common knowledge. A player has little control over the value of their hand, but they have total control over the implied value of their hand. Betting not only raises the amount of money in the pot but also implies information. Based on player A’s action, player B estimates the value of player A’s hand and design a strategy based on his/her hand and the estimate. However, because Poker is a zero sum game, player A is attempting to deceive player B. However player B is aware of that player A is also attempting to deceive him/her. But player A is aware that player B is aware that player A is attempting to deceive. This goes on ad infintum. The problem of deception is a very hard problem.
One of the most deceptive qualities of poker, is that players have little control over whether they win or lose, and in Texas Hold’em a player has no control. A player has control over the reward he/she receives, the reward does not actually determine whether they win or lose. A player “wins” a hand if his/her hand beats the best showing hand. For example in Texas Hold’em, player A has made a flush on the river card but has folded (having invested $60) believing player B to have a full house. Player C however calls Player B believing that he/she has nothing. Player C has a pair but Player B has two pair and wins the $220 pot. According to the cards, Player A won that hand but because he folded his reward was -$60, as opposed to a positive $240 he/she would have won if he/she stayed in. However player B also won, because his/her hand is the best showing. This can be confusing, because you can have a winning hand and yet have a negative reward, as in the above example. But regardless, poker players have no control over the state of the game
Poker players do have control over information. A player in poker is trying to maximize the reward for the current state (minimize loss, maximize wins), which he/she does in two ways: the player tries to derive the state of the game, and mislead opponents about the state of the game. A player gathers information by examining the cards that he/she can see (his/her hand and the open cards) and by analyzing the betting of the opponents. The player uses the betting not only as way to raise money in the pot but also to give misinformation. A player’s always gives information, which may or not may not be indicative of the state of the game. This is why you don’t play Poker, you play your opponents; because the state of the game is determined and unchangeable, the competition is focused on information which is controlled by the players.