e4, back to chess fundamentals

Chess is a bit of a philosophical paradox, simple in the basics (piece movements, rules) but intractably complex in gameplay. Every game, whether by rank amateur or grandmaster, is as unique as a snowflake (unless both players intentionally follow a previous published game or theory line all the way to the end). And yet at any given point during any game, the allowed moves are quite definite, of finite number (averaging something like 20 or 25 per move over the course of a game), and known to both players at all times.

The basic reason for the complexity is of course "combinatorial explosion", the exponential increase in the number of prospective positions as more than one move into the future is considered. For example, assuming for simplicity 20 choices at each move, while the player "on move" has to decide between only 20, the player waiting has 400 different decisions to consider (until the first player moves), and the first player wishing to consider a mere two-move combination has to consider 8000 different move sequences. Of course "shortcuts" like rules of thumb and preemptive elimination of "obviously bad" moves are absolutely necessary for practical play, but shortcuts are just as obviously suscepible to error (exceptions). Even computers cannot deal completely effectively with the complexities.

Star Trek TOS Goodness, 23 A Taste of Armageddon

Eminiar VII, principal planet of star cluster NGC-321, is the destination. Immediately the conflict is set up: The Enterprise has been ordered to establish diplomatic relations, but Eminiar VII is sending Code 710, meaning under no circumstances should they approach the planet. Of course, we have a diplomatic ambassador on board, Fox, who orders Kirk to proceed anyway, risking interplanetary war. Oh well.

We get an exposition dump from Spock, learning that the last ship to visit this system, the U.S.S. Valiant, never returned and was considered lost in space. Leaving Scotty in command, Kirk beams down with Spock and a security team.

Escorted by Mea-3, they are led to the planetary council headed by Anon-7. Much exposition necessarily follows. They were warned away because of "the war" which has been going on "for five hundred years!". But ship's scanners show no evidence of any war. Long story short, they "fight" the war with neighboring planet Vendakar with computers only, without physical damage. But one to three million inhabitants per year voluntarily enter disintegration (death) machines if they are registered as casualties.

And now the Enterprise, being in orbit, is also a "legitimate" war target, and wouldn't you know, just at this moment there happens to be an attack from Vendakar hitting both the city and the Enterprise. Oops. Everyone still aboard the Enterprise is registered as dead, and the landing party is taken hostage to ensure their cooperation in voluntary immolation of all other Enterprise personnel. Good luck with that!

Thus endeth the exposition.

The transition from exposition to development (complications) usually involves a scene of normalcy / pause / stasis / domesticity. This episode actually has two: 1) Kirk et al being confined as hostages, with some development as Mea-3 reveals that she has been declared a casualty, and 2) Scotty on the bridge, with some development as Anon-7 tries to fool him with a ventriloquism of Kirk's voice.

Chess Engine Paradox

There seems to be a paradox with regard to chess engine evaluations. Basically, 1) the deeper the depth of search, the better (more accurate) the engine evaluation, and 2) engine evaluations do not converge with depth -- going one ply deeper in search can completely overturn the previous evaluation. What does this mean?! Are evaluations completely meaningless ultimately, are evaluation only to be considered relative and not absolute at any fixed position, or are evaluations always a function of both depth and position? I suspect the latter, and thus that both of the others are also essentially true. Of what use are relative-only evaluations in comparing positions whose only common ancestor is horizon-effect distant?