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Special Jeopardy event starting tonight

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Mudcat

Mudcat

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Don't know if anyone besides me cares but it is being billed as



MAN VERSUS MACHINE THIS WEEK ON JEOPARDY

It's history in the making as two of the most celebrated Jeopardy! champions return to the game to pit their human brain power against that of a machine!

IBM’s “Watson” computing system will compete on Jeopardy! against the show’s two most successful contestants – Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. This first-*‐ever man vs. machine Jeopardy! competition, hosted by Alex Trebek, will feature two matches and will air on February 14, 15 and 16 at 7:30 p.m. on Local 4.

The grand prize for this competition is $1 million. Ken Jennings is the Jeopardy! record holder for the most consecutive games played – winning 74 games in a row during the 2004-*‐2005 season and netting more than $2.5 million. Brad Rutter is the Jeopardy! record holder for the highest cumulative amount ever by a single player, earning $3,255,102.



Personally I am very interested in the head-to head match between those two (human) players, Brad Rutter, the greatest player of all time (IMO) versus Ken Jennings, the most publicized. As a fan of the game, I think I would rather just see them go at it without the computer angle.

But whatever, I'm sure it will be interesting.
 
Of course a lot of people do see great significance in the artificial intelligence angle.


Today, February 14, 2011, IBM’s Watson computer system is slated to take on the world’s best humans in a televised duel of the world famous game “Jeopardy!”. Should Watson defeat its human competitors, it will herald perhaps the most significant achievement ever in the field of artificial intelligence and computer science. For IBM the prestige and positive publicity stemming from Watson’s victory would be long lasting and the envy of the world. For the rest of us, Watson’s victory would mark yet another of a long series of achievements where computers increasingly exhibit behavior that matches or exceeds human ability.
 
How do they deal with the buzzer bullshit? Does the computer know when he's allowed to buzz? I remember reading that if you buzzed too quickly, it didn't register and you were DQ'ed from trying again until the next question/answer.
 
Matty
That actually sounds pretty cool. Even if the computer has access to Google or can parse a huge database in a split second, it has to work with vague/roundabout "answers".

Ima watch that shit.
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Yeah exactly. Jeopardy questions are not straight-forward things. They are not just times tables or reciting world capitals. They can be playful and sly and slangy.

It really is an experiment in artificial intelligence and seeing how far computers have evolved along the continuum from calculator to Commander Data.
 
Matty
How do they deal with the buzzer bullshit? Does the computer know when he's allowed to buzz? I remember reading that if you buzzed too quickly, it didn't register and you were DQ'ed from trying again until the next question/answer.
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I don't know. The way it usually works is they ask the question and then a bank of lights comes on and whoever reacts quickest will get in first. You are not DQ'ed if you buzz in too early but there is a slight delay before your next buzz can register.

I guess there is no reason it can't work that way with the computer. It can have a visual sensor.

Clearly though, in the case of a straight-forward question where everyone knows the answer and it comes down to reflexes, the computer should win virtually every time.


But I'm just speculating. I'm not sure how exactly they will have it set up for this event.
 
Just read Jennings's FAQ on his site and he says that the game is all about working the buzzer.


Sounds sketchy. I wish they would do another challenge by eliminating the buzzer SNAFU. Give everyone 100 questions to answer, 15 seconds per answer, like the online test.
 
Matty
Ima watch that shit.
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Why bother? The show will be broadcast in English and we all know you speak French.
Won't it be too difficult to understand? Will you be using google to translate?

Matty I jest, your English is better than most of the Americans that post here - except for Scholar.

PS: I love you like a sister, a limp cocked fancy sister, pal.
 
Matty
Very doubtful. I think I came out of my bout with drug abuse as a smarter, more focused individual.

Methinks he just abuses the thesaurus/synonym dictionary.
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Matty, crazy people do not think they are crazy. They think everyone else is strange.

Drug users often make poor decisions, pal. Like splitting 5's or 10's when playing blackjack.
 
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