Chapter 141: Deep Blue
New York Mathematicians’ Gala, proposed by Lin Ran, and New York universities also hope to turn it into a tradition.
As for why the Christmas Party isn’t on Christmas Day but on Christmas Eve, who wouldn’t spend Christmas with family instead of with a bunch of baldy old timers.
Compared to last year’s Christmas Party, this year’s Christmas Party is somewhat different.
This year’s venue has moved from The Faculty House next to Columbia University last year to a luxury hotel in Manhattan.
IBM’s team has been working in this hotel, in which the Hearst family has a stake, for half a month.
From transporting the 10 IBM 7094 II units with the already written program completed and connected in parallel to the backstage, to the program’s debugging.
For Deep Blue’s grand debut this time, this mathematicians’ dinner invited a large number of media personnel in addition to the mathematicians.
Waiting behind the curtain, besides Deep Blue’s head Alex Bernstein, is IBM’s CEO Thomas Watson also waiting behind the curtain.
“Don’t be nervous, Bernstein, we’ve done it perfectly enough, haven’t we?” Watson saw that in the warm hall, sweat was already flowing down Bernstein’s forehead.
Bernstein nodded and said, “That’s right, but I’m still worried about accidents.”
Watson stared into his eyes and said, “Bernstein, even if the first debut isn’t perfect enough, Deep Blue is here.
People will realize that it is a epoch-making product.”
At this time, the visiting guests had all finished their meals, Lin Ran stood up and walked to the front of the curtain, saying:
“Gentlemen, ladies, today is a special day. Before starting, I told everyone there would be a small surprise.
Unlike last year’s Christmas Party ending this wonderful day with a ball, today I want to end this wonderful day with a surprise: let’s play a small intelligence game.”
After Lin Ran’s words fell, the curtain behind him dropped, revealing 10 large-scale computers arranged together in an extremely aesthetic way, and in front of it was a black box with a chessboard on it, filled with chess pieces.
Lin Ran stepped aside to the curtain, leaving the stage to Bernstein, whose sweat on his head had already been wiped clean after Lin Ran’s words:
“Professors, this is the artificial intelligence Deep Blue developed by IBM. Compared to past chess programs, it can reach the level of a true human player.
We need a professor to come up and play a match with it to test its effect.”
From the moment the curtain was revealed, the discussion voices from the audience never stopped.
How to put it, everyone knows about computers, and universities aren’t short of these things.
Not long ago at the International Congress of Mathematicians, Lin Ran used the Four Color Problem to elevate computers to an unprecedented height.
Lin Ran introduced a method called the charge method, telling everyone how to use computers to solve the Four Color Problem. These New York universities all have money and have bought some IBM computers to varying degrees.
But compared to this vast machine full of the beauty of rules in front of them, the computers they bought seem too outdated.
“It’s so beautiful, don’t you think? I’ve never seen such neat cables.”
Indeed, what Lin Ran brought is not only conceptual innovation, but also ahead of this era in how to package it.
Packaging is a technical job.
In later generations, starting from Apple’s Jobs, machine aesthetics became all the rage.
People of this era, who knew that just cabling could be played with such flair.
The world’s first programmable general electronic computer ENIAC, dominated by von Neumann, shows that although the cables are sorted, they still appear messy.
In later generations, it wasn’t until computers entered personal homes and users hoped for more compact, quiet, and aesthetic equipment that messy cables began to be seen as symbols of obsolescence or low-end.
And in the industry, it wasn’t until IBM launched the PS/2 series in 1987, emphasizing modular design, that cable layout began to become neat.
Under Lin Ran’s leadership now, these ten IBM 7094 II units have already been exquisitely wired in parallel using cable ties and cable trays.
The black and white chessboard on the Deep Blue box, and the exquisite and aesthetic large-scale computers behind it, bring a sense of beauty beyond the era.
After Bernstein’s words fell, the scene fell into a weird silence, reporters holding their breath, their prepared cameras flashing nonstop.
They had received notice from IBM in advance. Lin Ran said small surprise, but IBM told the reporters it was a big surprise.
So those who came besides Jenny are all editor-in-chief level figures from major newspapers and television stations.
Seeing the room somewhat quiet, Lin Ran smiled and said, “Everyone don’t be nervous, it’s not sitting on it and getting electrocuted. This is an artificial intelligence. Anyone confident in their chess level can come up and play a game with it.”
Ralph Fox, head of Columbia University Mathematics Department, raised his hand and said, “Can I do it?”
Lin Ran nodded and said, “Of course, Professor, come on, but you have to sit on the white side; the black side is controlled by the computer.”
Ralph Fox sat in front of the chess table, with only one chair in front of him, empty.
He adjusted his glasses, took a deep breath, fingers lightly tapping the table; this strange feeling was unprecedented.
The match began. Fox, playing white, steadily picked up the pawn in front of the king and advanced it two squares. His movements were composed, eyes intently scanning the chessboard, thinking about how many possibilities there were.
The corners of his mouth slightly raised, with a confident smile, thinking to himself: “It’s just a machine, I can find its flaws.”
One minute later, black’s pawn automatically advanced forward.
After he sat down, he noticed that there were guide rails under the chessboard. Fox guessed the chessboard slides via the machine guide rails below.
And during his game against “air,” the machines behind him were running wildly, making a buzzing sound.
Combined with the discussion voices from professors and reporters in the audience, the entire space seemed extremely noisy.
“Why did Fox go up? He’s so bad, if he loses, wouldn’t it be embarrassing?” Stephen Smale, who came from Princeton to attend the New York Mathematicians’ Christmas Party, complained to Harvey Cohen beside him.
Harvey Cohen turned sideways and said, “It’s okay, Fox has some chess skills.”
Stephen Smale was stunned, okay? Before, when Fox was at Princeton, every time playing Go with me, he had to let me at least two points, and still couldn’t win with two points handicap.
Chess is similar to Go. In Stephen’s view, if Go is played so poorly, chess won’t be much better.
Hearing Harvey Cohen’s words, Stephen understood in his heart that the other was probably as bad as Fox, “em”
While the audience discussed, the match on stage continued.
Fox frowned slightly, a flash of surprise in his heart: “Reacting so fast? It seems its algorithm is more efficient than I expected.” He adjusted his sitting posture, fingers hovering between pieces, ultimately choosing knight to f3.
His fingers trembled slightly when touching the piece, clearly weighing the mathematical significance of every move.
As the game deepened, Fox’s movements became cautious. He sometimes rested his chin, sometimes ran his hand through his gray-white hair, staring at the situation on the chessboard.
Deep Blue’s every move took about the same time, around two minutes.
Lin Ran had already returned to the audience, Jenny whispering in his ear, “Professor, you’re really unexpected.”
Lin Ran replied, “Compared to aerospace, artificial intelligence is the future.”
Jenny nodded, “I’ve seen reports on chess programs before; at that time, it seemed they couldn’t even beat beginner players, and its calculation time was at least five minutes.
And now, Deep Blue can actually threaten a mathematician like Fox; this is already huge progress.
From this perspective, artificial intelligence will indeed be the future.”
Then she said, “So, Professor, if artificial intelligence is really as smart as humans, with computing power even stronger than humans, then what is the significance of human existence?”
Lin Ran did not answer.
The match on stage continued.
Deep Blue’s every move was absolute cold calculation results, without a hint of hesitation, which made Fox feel an invisible pressure.
By the twentieth move, fine sweat beads appeared on Fox’s forehead. He took off his glasses, wiped with a handkerchief, put them back on, trying to calm down. The situation on the chessboard was increasingly unfavorable to him; Deep Blue’s step-by-step pressure made him feel trapped in an invisible net. He attempted a counterattack, sliding the bishop to g5 to create chaos,
but Deep Blue immediately resolved his threat with a cold pawn move. Fox’s breathing became rapid.
As the match neared its end, on the thirtieth move, Deep Blue advanced an unremarkable pawn to a6, a seemingly ordinary move that completely locked down Fox’s kingside.
Fox was somewhat stunned, hand suspended in mid-air, bewilderment flashing in his eyes.
He tried simulating in his mind, but found no matter how he adjusted, defeat was certain.
His shoulders slightly sank, lips pursed tightly; finally, he slowly knocked over the king, signaling concession. As he stood up, his hand supported the table, knuckles slightly white, face showing complex emotions.
This expression held both admiration for Deep Blue’s computing ability and helplessness at his own defeat.
Discussion voices erupted from the audience.
“Professor, this is unbelievable!”
Even Jenny had never thought Deep Blue could beat a mathematician.
In her view, being able to play this long was already a remarkable technological breakthrough.
Lin Ran smiled at her, then prepared to go on stage; everything was as expected.
In the short distance of just over ten meters, reporters crowded around him.
“Professor, is this your latest achievement?”
“Professor, besides playing chess, what other roles can artificial intelligence play?”
“Professor, could you say a few words?”
“Professor, is this a show? Did Professor Fox have some acting in it?”
Reporters swarmed, surrounding him, questions thrown like bullets.
Lin Ran raised both hands, trying to part the reporters, “Sorry, I’ll explain it in detail to everyone after I get on stage, about it and our work.”
The mathematicians in the audience were discussing how exactly this machine did it, and complaining about Fox.
“I said we shouldn’t let Fox go up; his level isn’t even as good as the 12-year-old youth group chess champion.”
“Shouldn’t we discuss how Randolph did it?”
“It’s really unbelievable; now I finally know why Randolph emphasized computers to us at the mathematician conference.”
“You say, since the computer can beat Fox at chess, could it one day replace human mathematicians’ work?”
“I want to go up and try.”
Lin Ran first hugged Fox, patted his back, “Professor, you performed very well.”
Fox smiled bitterly, “No no no, I lost to Stephen at chess and thought he was good; now I can’t even beat a machine.”
Lin Ran laughed, “Professor, later we’ll invite other mathematicians on stage to play against it; you’re definitely not the only one losing to Deep Blue.”
Fox froze directly; that’s even worse than no comfort.
Lin Ran stood in the middle, Alex Bernstein to his left, and IBM’s CEO Thomas Watson to his right.
Thomas Watson spoke first, “As you all have seen, Deep Blue, the artificial intelligence chess program developed by IBM, already possesses a level equal to human players.
To dispel everyone’s doubts, we’ll open the equipment for reporters and mathematicians to examine closely.
Additionally, any mathematician who wants to come up later and play against Deep Blue is welcome anytime.
Considering time is limited, today we can invite at most two more mathematicians up.
But IBM has rented the Times Square Theater around New York Times Square; we’ll modify it into the Deep Blue Exhibition Hall, open to the public from the first day of 1963.
The Deep Blue Exhibition Hall will be free to the public, and the public can purchase match tickets to play against Deep Blue.
Therefore, including you reporters, everyone can buy a Deep Blue match ticket to play a game with it.
If you win, we’ll fully refund the match ticket money, and put your name next to Deep Blue as a commemoration.”
Impacted by movies and television, Broadway theaters in Times Square at this time had long declined badly, with plenty of theaters around Times Square lacking high-end drama, reduced to screening low-cost movies or even adult content halls.
Like the Times Square Theater in the core area of Times Square, from 42nd to 47th Street, the cost to buy and modify is very low.
It has a fan-shaped audience hall that can accommodate over a thousand people; the spacious internal space plus the foyer and audience hall is very suitable for transformation into an exhibition hall.
After Watson finished speaking, the reporters’ doubts were dispelled, and warm applause rose from the audience.
Then it was Alex Bernstein; he said, “I’ve always been committed to developing a chess program; Professor Lin helped me realize this dream.
Deep Blue has unprecedented potential; welcome everyone to experience it. We’ll continue to improve Deep Blue afterward until it can defeat all human players.”
Finally, it was Lin Ran.
