Posted on 02/02/2014 10:52:21 AM PST by 1rudeboy
There was another group that would come into the bar and insist on turning off the music, or whatever sport was on the tube (that we were wagering on, but I digress), and watch Jeopardy.
The boys and I would shake our heads at what inevitably would happen--winners playing to lose, and losers playing to lose.
Long story short, if this guy has figured it out (and I suspect he has), the conventional way of "playing" Jeopardy is over.
And yes, I'm a nerd. And I have no money.
ping
As long as it is within the rules, everything is in play.
Good for him in applying new scientific strategies to the game — it certainly has been fun and interesting.
As for the Jeopardy-followers who say “you are giving me a headache” — GET A LIFE! IT IS JUST A SHOW — ONE YOU ARE NOT COMPETING IN! (/Shatner)
I never watch jeopardy but I did recently and saw this guy. I didn’t quite get what he was doing. But it was fun to watch.
Ken Jennings also searched for the daily doubles, losing an early double is outweighed by advantage of winning early double, forces the other two opponents to play “catch-up” and take chances...
Looks like he did the math. lol
And that's my point! If a bunch of drunks (myself included) could figure out that the "conventional" method of playing was screwed-up, then why didn't it happen earlier?
And yes it happens all the time. Witness how no one used middle-relievers in the MLB until one manager figured it out (was it Sparky Anderson?) . . . next thing you know every team has a squad of middle relievers.
I watch the show maybe three times a year, but I did wonder why in a category that someone has knowledge of, why they didn’t immediately go for the big amounts, instead of going with the small amounts first.
Daily Double hunting is more common in the Tournament of Champions. Those contestants are all proven winners on the show, and they need to be more aggressive to beat other winners.
Even back then there were contests who didn't go systematical down a column but would be all over the board looking for the DD.
In college (in the ‘80s), we had a team Jeopardy! tournament based on dorm room. We actually employed part of his strategy. There was no buzzer for the round end, so there was no reason to rush with answers, but I personally suggested that we find our best category and start at the top to build up an early lead. It worked great. Often we played girls’ teams. I remember one round where we were paired against a sharp group of ladies, but we got first category pick. It went something like this.
Our team: We’ll take guns and Ammo for $500, Matt.
MC: This WWII German munitions manufacturer . . .
Out team: Ding! Who is Krups?
MC: Correct!
(Girls’ team looks flummoxed, sonn rings in on $300 question getting it wrong).
We did work from top to bottom, rather than hunting Daily Doubles. If we were up against a girls’ team we would purposely pick categories that they were less likely to know, as well as things we were familiar with. So, even if we knew Ebglish Lit, we would pick Sports or Comic Book Heroes instead.
Related topic, in honor of Super Bowl Sunday:
The Cost to Punting, The Sports Economist, January 12, 2013.re: "generally accepted practice."
oops . . . January 13, 2012
I often express frustration at the way some women play Jeopardy. They can be knowledgeable in a certain category but are risk averse and don’t do the double or risk a sizable amount.
I’ve been watching this guy. His strategy is fun to watch, but in the end, you still have to be able to answer the questions....er, answer the clues in the form of a question.
/johnny
I remember the Art Fleming years.
I was having babies then and used to fold diapers while watching Jeopardy and the little ones napped.
.
Ummmmmmm .....
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