Backgammon computer program beats world champion

摘要

On July 15, 1979, a backgammon computer program beat the World Backgammon Champion in a match to 7 points. This is the first time a world champion in a recognized intellectual activity has been defeated by a man-made entity. This paper examines the scientific issues involved in constructing the program, an analysis of its performance, and the scientific significance of the win. We also present our SNAC method of constructing evaluation functions.