The Dots and Boxes Game Sophisticated Child's Play AK Peters/CRC Recreational Mathematics Series

The game of Dots-and-Boxes, the popular game in which two players take turns connecting an array of dots to form squares, or "boxes" has long been considered merely a child's game. In this book, however, the author reveals the surprising complexity of the game, along with advanced strategies that will allow the reader to win at any level of gameplay desired. This book is an essential guide to the game of Dots-and-Boxes and its mathematical underpinnings. Chapters of strategy are interspersed with dozens of sample problems and their solutions. Furthermore, the strategies can be applied to several other games, such as Strings-and-Coins and Nimstring.

Preface, 1. Dots-and-Boxes—An Introduction, 2. Strings-and-Coins, 3. Elementary Chain Counting Problems, 4. Advanced Chain Counting, 5. Advanced Chain Counting Problems, 6. Nimber Values for Nimstring Graphs, 7. Elementary Problems with Nimbers, 8. More about Nimstring, Arrays, Mutations, Vines, etc, 9. Advanced Nimstring Problems, 10. Playing Dots-and-Boxes with Very Close Scores, 11. Dots-and-Boxes Problems with Close Scores, 12. Unsolved Problems, Bibliography, Index

General and Professional Practice & Development

Elwyn R. Berlekamp