[extropy-chat] About ESP, etc.

[gts]

On Mon, 30 Apr 2007 02:30:39 -0400, Stathis Papaioannou  
<stathisp at gmail.com> wrote:

> I always wondered about that. How do they know that someone is counting
> cards rather than just lucky?

I spent almost an entire year of my misspent youth (circa 1984) counting  
cards at the blackjack tables in Nevada, during which time six casinos  
barred me from play (three in Las Vegas, two in Reno and one in Carson  
City).

Many pitbosses and some dealers are trained to count cards, as are many of  
the 'eyes in the sky' (the hidden security personnel who watch the gaming  
tables on closed circuit tv). These casino employees look for players who  
increase their bet size when the deck is rich in aces and high-valued  
cards --
exploiting conditions which favor the player -- and who play their cards  
in sophisticated ways.

Casinos don't especially care whether the counter is winning or losing. A  
casino in Carson City barred me even while I was down quite a large sum!  
Grrr. But of course winning is a sure way to attract their attention.

Counting is a matter of skill and ought not be considered illegal or  
unethical, so a group of indignant counters once sued the Atlantic City  
casinos for barring them from play. The courts ruled rightly in favor of  
the players. The casinos in Atlantic City countered by simply changing the  
rules of the game to thwart the counters. :/

-gts