Jellyfish invasions, Internet auctions, god particles: Read about the year's biggest science stories before they happen. Bonus: How to decipher geeky jargon and when to buy a DeLorean
Posted 12.27.2007 at 2:00 am
1 Comment
Checkers is Solved. Next?
There are 500 billion billion possible ways to arrange pieces on the board during a game of checkers. Still, after 18 years of research, Jonathan Schaeffer, a computer scientist at the University of Alberta in Canada, announced last year that his program had "solved" checkers-that is, it was unbeatable. How soon before we solve other popular games?-Kate Pickert
 |
Heads-Up Texas Hold 'Em Time to Solve: 5 years Poker is generally no fun with just two people, but it's impossible to "solve" (in the scientific sense) with any combination of more than two players. |
 |
Backgammon Time to Solve: 10 years The element of chance (rolls of the dice) makes the number of board combinations huge (1020). Scientists know how to solve backgammon, but current computer technology can't do it. |
 |
Chess Time to Solve: 100 years No one knows exactly how many possible board positions for chess exist, but it's thought to be somewhere between 1040 and 1045. Schaeffer predicts that the game will not be solved in his lifetime. |
 |
Go Time to Solve: Anybody's guess The extremely complicated game, which originated in ancient China, has far more board combinations than chess (10100). Scientists have no idea how to solve it and won't even venture to guess when the technology will exist to definitively do so. |
Image Credits: Thomas van de Weerd; Alan Light; Donarreiskoffer
Turn the page to check out how IBM is breaking Moore's Law.
Want to learn more about breakthroughs in electronics, medicine, nanotech, and more?
Subscribe to Popular Science and enter to win $5,000!
Subscribe to Popular Science and enter to win $5,000!
1 Comment
To comment, please Login.
Download Our iPhone App
Stay up to date on the latest news of the future of science and technology from your iPhone with full articles, images and offline viewing
Follow Us On Twitter
Featuring every article from the magazine and website, plus links from around the Web. Also see our PopSci DIY feed
Become a Fan On Facebook
Share links with friends, comment on stories and more
December 2009: Best of What's New
In our December issue, Popular Science names the 100 best innovations of the year: bombproof wallpaper, self-parking cars, the fastest helicopter, and 97 more. Plus inventor profiles and videos.
Check out the best of what's new here.
Popular Science Photo Pool
Popular on Popsci
Most Viewed
Science
- Mesmerizing, Isn't It?
- New Reactor Uses Sunlight to Turn Water and Carbon Dioxide Into Fuel
- Man Diagnosed 'Comatose' For 23 Years Was Actually Conscious All Along
- Modified Algae Produce Clean, Easy Hydrogen
- NASA Scientists Say Martian Meteorite May Have Brought Life to Earth
- Yikes: Peruvian Jungle Gang Arrested for Selling Fat of Its Murder Victims
- World's First Osmotic Power Plant Goes Live in Norway
- Liquid Cooling Bags For Data Centers Could Trim Cost and Carbon By 90 Percent
- Revitalized LHC Manages to Collide Protons
- This Week in the Future, November 16-20, 2009
Most Commented
Science
- This Week in the Future, November 16-20, 2009
- This Week in the Future, November 23-26, 2009: Thanksgiving Special
- New Reactor Uses Sunlight to Turn Water and Carbon Dioxide Into Fuel
- So Much For "Hopenhagen"
- President Obama Hopes to Jumpstart Science and Technology Education With New Initiative
- Modified Algae Produce Clean, Easy Hydrogen
- Revitalized LHC Manages to Collide Protons
- NASA Scientists Say Martian Meteorite May Have Brought Life to Earth
- Mesmerizing, Isn't It?
- Man Diagnosed 'Comatose' For 23 Years Was Actually Conscious All Along
Most Emailed
Science
- New Reactor Uses Sunlight to Turn Water and Carbon Dioxide Into Fuel
- World's First Osmotic Power Plant Goes Live in Norway
- President Obama Hopes to Jumpstart Science and Technology Education With New Initiative
- Modified Algae Produce Clean, Easy Hydrogen
- This Week in the Future, November 23-26, 2009: Thanksgiving Special
- NASA Scientists Say Martian Meteorite May Have Brought Life to Earth
- DOE Announces $620 Million in Smart Grid Project Grants
- Take Down Rampaging Elephants with Automatic Entangling Leg-Cords, Star Wars Style
- Future Then Video: Braniff Goes Supersonic
- Revitalized LHC Manages to Collide Protons
Today on PopSci.com
Copyright © 2009 Popular Science
A Bonnier Corporation Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
why? when there are so many other choices.......still land will be destroyed to get the coal , people die mining it, water is polluted from mining......land is taken from people to get at it.......wake up people!! we are smarter than this most things we truly need are above ground just a little blessing from the universe and god!!!!!! Why do we feel the need too waste time.lives and money tearing things apart to find our answers....the world was designed perfectly , we have the sun , wind & water to obtain energy we can create hydrogen gas from water and as an added bonus we keep the beautiful mountains to visit with our children. Why do we cling to our destructive ways when we have better cleaner answers- this bs spreads money too thin and holds back real progress- sooner or later there will be no coal for anyone this is already known why not pretend this is so now and move on to better things aaa?
http://www.aseks.com http://http://www.redtubeturk.com http://www.aseks.net/vittesse-woman-bayan-ozel-_p1432.html http://www.bayanazdiricilar.com/azdirici-damlalar/ http://www.aseks.net http://www.germanporn.tk http://www.sexmovie.tk http://www.teenporn.tk http://www.gratisporn.tk http://www.aloveshop.com http://www.zayiflamahapii.com http://www.zayiflamabandii.com http://www.zayiflamavediyet.net http://www.sikis1.com http://www.tvsexizle.com http://www.rx-1turkiye.com http://www.zayiflamahapii.com/diyet.html http://www.pornotubesex.com http://www.azdirici.com http://www.penisbuyutuculer.com http://www.diyetteyiz.net http://www.zayiflamatr.net http://www.cinselfantaziurunleri.com http://www.teensexmovie.tk http://www.penisbuyutucuvigrx.com http://www.gogusbuyutuculer.com http://www.erotikderginiz.com http://www.erotikgiyim.com http://www.cinselkozmetik.com http://www.kozmetikmedikal.com http://www.gilbertswitzer.com http://www.juporns.com http://www.xyouporn.net http://www.sexshopum.com http://www.kilovertr.com/rx-1-bitkisel-zayiflama-kapsulu_bilgisi143.html http://www.aseks.com/azdirici_krem/index.html http://www.jagrapenisbuyutucuhap.com http://www.erotikmarketiniz.com