Perfect Bet: How Science and Math Are Taking the Luck out of Gambling
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.69 (663 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B01C3UHSV8 |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 596 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2016-01-24 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
"A Safe Bet" according to William Elliott. I bought this book after listening to an article on BBC Radio A Safe Bet William Elliott I bought this book after listening to an article on BBC Radio 4. The book talks about betting of course but looks at the role maths and the various sciences play in gambling. I was thoroughly tickled to learn how experiments in friction on a roulette ball were scuppered by the presence of fog at the University of California Santa Cruz campus, particularly as I am familiar with Santa Cruz and it's penchant for foggy days.This book was so interesting that I have read it in one day. Not a common thing for me, but it is a nice mix of history, maths, and sets out some practical theories that are of interest to me in general.. . The book talks about betting of course but looks at the role maths and the various sciences play in gambling. I was thoroughly tickled to learn how experiments in friction on a roulette ball were scuppered by the presence of fog at the University of California Santa Cruz campus, particularly as I am familiar with Santa Cruz and it's penchant for foggy days.This book was so interesting that I have read it in one day. Not a common thing for me, but it is a nice mix of history, maths, and sets out some practical theories that are of interest to me in general.. "Splendid value" according to Alan Buckle. A very accessible, well written, extraordinarily analytical, entertaining and very informative book written by someone who demonstrates a complete understanding of the material.. Mike said Interesting read. Very interesting read for someone with a science or math background. I thought it might encourage me to quit gambling, but it did not.
Bringing together ideas from mathematics, psychology, economics, and physics, The Perfect Bet traces the origins of successful betting methods. Kucharski reveals why winning at chess depends on luck - but victory in checkers does not - and why poker is one of the ultimate challenges for artificial intelligence. Covering exploits and ideas from across the globe, he meets the teams behind hedge funds that capitalize on inaccurate sports betting odds and explains how PhD-level pundits are using methods originally developed for the US nuclear program to predict sports results. From the simple to the intricate and the audacious to the absurd, Adam Kucharski reveals the long and tangled history between betting and science and explains why gambling continues to generate insights into luck and decision making today. He also explores the difficulties of mimicking human behavior and explains what caused one hedge fund's rogue algorithm to lose them $400,000 per second in the summer of 2012.