Fifty Things to Say - Who Knew?

This is my 50th contribution to PokerListings.
When I started writing articles I didn't know if I had 50 interesting things to say. You may feel that I didn't and that's OK, I guess.
But I'm still having fun, and, as I have counseled many times over this past year, that really should be the goal of all of us who play this game.
I've been having fun largely because I've been given the freedom to go down some roads that haven't been traveled much, if at all.
Let's face it, not many academically oriented psychologists play poker seriously, and not many serious poker marked cards players really know much about the hard-nosed scientific foundations of the field. In today's fractured vernacular I guess that makes me "very unique."
Psychologists like to carve the mind up into domains. The main divisions are ...

• cognition, which includes thinking, analyzing, deliberating, decision making - most of it conscious, although there are unconscious, intuitive aspects as well

• emotion and motivation, where feelings, hopes and desires and their impact on thinking are examined

• social psychology, where the role of other individuals impacts your emotional state and your thinking

• neuropsychology, where the roles of specific brain areas and neural structures are explored

What I've been trying to do in these weekly essays is to take some aspect of this wildly complex science, pull it out of the laboratory, brush away some of the complications and see how it pertains to poker. Let me explain why I've taken this approach.
First, it's a truism that inside every good poker player there lives a small psychologist. On occasion, one of these tiny Dr. Freuds jumps out and makes an effort to impart what he knows.
A good example of this approach appeared recently in the form of a book and a series of lectures by longtime player and tournament veteran Charlie Shoten.
Shoten has come to the conclusion, correctly, that one reason why a lot of poker players don't play nearly as well as they might is because they are stressed out. They are overwhelmed by stress in life, at work, with their families and at the poker tables.
Shoten's "psychological" approach is to provide ways in which you can reduce stress and thereby (hopefully) improve your poker game and, as a side benefit, the rest of your life.

If Arthur Reber had a self-help formula, here's one player who could use it.

There isn't anything wrong with this approach, other than the fact that it probably doesn't work quite the way Mr. Shoten thinks, but that's not really my point here.
Even if I had a "self-help" formula, I wouldn't present it in the way that Shoten has. The reason is that before I could put pen to paper (or fingers on the keyboard) the scientist in me would be hollering that, first, I need answers to some questions:
(a) Do these self-help programs really work?
(b) If they do, why?
(c) If they don't, why do people think they do?
Now, if I can get answers to these questions I can give poker players some serious advice.
Second, I try to do "applied" science. If I can find a basic psychological principle that looks like it can be applied to marked card tricks poker and improve how we play, I try to explain it.
So far I've been able to identify quite a few of these, from how rewards work ("Partial Reinforcement" parts one and two), to the role of intuition in making the right decisions in a hand ("Intuition: Can Your Subconscious Help Your Game?" and "Listen to the Quiet Voice: More on Intuition"),  to the role of memory ("Memory") and the impact of fear ("Monsters Under the Bed").

The definition of living like a millionaire: going broke before you go home.

Third, I've tried to find psychological explanations for dynamics that others have identified. This led to a rethinking of some pretty basic things like why players who've been having a rough session almost always go broke before they go home ("Beyond Pain" and "Beyond Being Beyond-Pain"), why it's so hard to quit a game ("The Last Word on Quitting") and why bots can play Limit poker but not No-Limit ("Bot This" one and two).
Fourth, I've tried to use what we know about psychological well-being and satisfaction to guide advice about poker. This approach has led me to conclude that it is better to have fun and enjoy the game than to make being a "winning" player the total focus ("A Little Riff on Zen" and "Good Players vs. Winning Players"). There's some deep psychology in here and, interestingly, a few readers didn't like what I had to say.
Fifth, I've made it a goal to encourage players to think in long timeframes, to view the game in the context of the rest of their lives and their goals. I find it lamentable, and psychologically unwise, to focus on immediate outcomes. It tends to distort reality and it messes up your thinking ("The Gambler's Fallacy").
If you take the long view, you won't think you're a better player than you actually are when you win, and you won't think you're worse when you lose ("Regression to the Mean"). It's a basic principle that without a sufficient data base, all conclusions must be treated as tentative.
Sixth, when appropriate I've done quantitative analyses, calculated expected value, worked out the odds and probabilities and looked toward statistical factors.

Bill Chen: killing the quantitative analysis aspect of poker.

We've been able, using this approach, to get some novel insights into things like hot streaks ("Hot Hands") and rushes ("The Truth About Playing 'Rushes'"), and the role of randomness and why it is so often misunderstood ("On Randomness").
Seventh, I've tried to balance objectivity with subjectivity, quantitative analysis with intuition. Poker is a ridiculously complicated game, and there is no one best way to play it ("There Is (Probably) No 'Best' Way to Play Poker").
It's important to see that some approaches emphasize the quantitative factors, and they can work. It's equally important to appreciate that other poker aficionados play with little knowledge or even recognition of these mathematical elements and, you know, a lot of them do fine. Balance is the key, and I've tried not to fall too unfairly on one side or the other ("Poker Advice").
Finally, my real message is have fun. Really, isn't this what it's all about? For me this has meant balancing the serious scientist with the degenerate gambler, blending my love of knowledge with my affection for the soft underbelly of life, and feeling comfortable with the Nobel Prize winners and bracelet winners who are my friends.
Now, on to the next 50.

Blind

The blinds in poker are designed to start the betting action. In flop games like Texas hold’em and Omaha the blinds are posted by the two players to the left of the dealer button.
The first player to the left of the dealer button is the “small blind.” The player in the small blind is marked cards required to put in half the amount of the big blind.

The player in the “big blind” is required to put in an amount equal to one full first round bet. The minimum amount you can bet on the pre-flop and post-flop rounds is an amount equal to the big blind. So if the Big Blind is $50, all players must put $50 in the pot. If no one has raised before the Big Blind player, he has the option to fold, check or raise, but if someone has raised he can fold, call or raise. If no one at the table has placed a bet, the player at the Big Blind can check. In order to stay in the hand, the Small Blind player must put an amount in the pot, which is equal to the difference between the two blind bets.
The min/max buy-in for a poker cash game is always in relation to the size of the blinds, with most players starting chips ranging from 40 to 100 big blinds.

Gambling at Casinos in Romania

The only legal form of gambling in Romania is in casinos, so it doesn't look like Romania's casinos have much competition for the gambling dollar. This is something of a change for the country, as until 1989 it was run by a rather unspeakable dictator called Nicolae Ceauscescu. Certainly nothing as liberal and open as allowing people to do as they wished with their own money would have been allowed. This meant that while there was indeed easy cards tricks gambling (as of course there is everywhere), it was underground, in the black economy. When there was an uprising and the dictator, alongside his wife, was shot, then the country started to move back into the more normal state of affairs. Legalizing gambling, allowing Romania's casinos to start up, was an obvious part of this process.

A list of Romania's casinos includes:

Arad: Casinoul Astoria Arad

Bucharest: Astoria Casino

Casino Blindo Hotel Sofitel

Casino Bucharest Hotel Inter-Continental

Casino Bucur

Casino Kings

Casino Palace

Casino Paris & Hotel

Casino Victoria

Casino Vox

Grand Casino

Lido Casino & Lido Hotel

Marriott Grand Hotel & Casino

Mirage Casino Hotel Ambasador     marked cards

Perla Princess Casino

Planet Princess Slot Casino

Plaza Casino Club

Princess Casino Havana

Constanta: Cazino

Felix: Casino Salzor

Galati: Sofin Hotel & Casino

Iasi: Bond Casino Mokdova

Mamaia: Casino Best

Rimnicu Vilcea: Casino Royal

Sinaia: Hotel Palas

Peles Castle and Casino

Timisoara: Casino Senitor

Casino Sterling

As you can see, there is a thriving casino sector. However, it does need to be said that Romania's casinos might not all meet the usual description of a casino. Many of them have no gaming tables at all, or do not offer roulette, or have other omissions. Some of them have only video poker games and similar electronic games available, for example.

In common with much of Eastern Europe and the ex-Soviet Union these days (and Romania, despite the 1989 events, was something of a slow starter), there are a goodly number of people who have made very large sums of money very quickly. Some legally, some not, and some in a grey area inbetween. Romania's casinos are a frequent stopping place for all three of these groups, and it does pay to find out which are the best casinos in any specific town you are visiting.

In the best high quality Romania casinos, you might still find those who have made their money all too quickly, but you will be assured that everything from the decorations to the quality of the food and the drink will be of the very best.

Is investing in stocks equal to gambling?

Many people believe that putting your money in stocks is equal to gambling. But is it? The answer is yes and no.

There are people in the Indian share market who treat the trading as a means to make quick money. They will buy on rumors or tips from friends, relatives, online forums in the hope of making a fast buck. They may have not even heard of the stock they want to buy. They have no use for fundamentals, state of industry or economy. They dabble in penny stocks. And they always have unreasonable expectations of return, without a true appreciation of risks. This sort of trading is in a way gambling trick cards.

There are millions of other investors who make informed decisions while buying stocks. These decisions may be based on technical analysis, fundamental analysis, financial, understanding of a company, understanding of risk and reasonable expectation of return. These investors aren't gambling. They are basing investment decisions on a proper study of the markets, prices and weighing the risks.

These investors usually have a long term perspective on the Indian share market. They don't check live online prices every few minutes on the stocks they own. They are, usually, indifferent to short-term price action. And have no use for rumors and ‘insider' tips.

Of course, profits are never guaranteed in the share market. But, informed investors lower the risk of loss juice cards and reduce the chance aspect in their investments.

Another fundamental difference between stocks and gambling is the ability to cut your losses. Consider that an individual bets on a number in roulette and loses. There is no way he can cut his loses. The money he has invested is gone. However, if the same individual buys shares of a company and tracks the stocks, which can be easily done by observing and analysing online share prices, he/she can pull the money out if he/she senses a risk of the stock losing value in the future, or minimise losses if the share price comes down.

Gambling whether on stock markets is a zero sum game. There is no creation of new wealth. Whereas investing in the stock markets is a way of providing funds to companies to provide services or manufacture products. And over the long-term leads to wealth creation. Hence, it is not a mere transfer of wealth from one hand to another, but creation of new wealth. 

Top Gambling Strategies for Craps

When you want to come out of a craps game like a winner, having a sound strategy is second to none. The game of craps is crazy and loud and extremely changeable. Nobody knows for sure what numbers are going to come up on the rolls, and so many bets can be made on the table that you are going to lose all your money in a flash if you don't have a strategy going into the marked cards game.
You just need three basic things for a good strategy: a calm attitude, a solid betting scheme, and proper bankroll management. The most important thing here, in my opinion, is bankroll management. How you manage your gambling money during play will mean the difference between cleaning out and walking away a winner. No need for complexities here, folks. Just set a limit on how much you are prepared to lose, and even by how much you should win. Lots of people go into a game without a set limit, lose their initial bankroll, then keep playing to regain their losses, losing more money than they were prepared to lose in the first place.

Sometimes the opposite is also true. You may get a good start on the game and keep on winning until you reach a good enough amount. It's time to walk away, but you've decided to keep at it since you're "hot", but then the tides turn and you go on a losing streak, losing all your winnings and including your initial bankroll. This is the reason why bankroll management is so important.

Let's use a bankroll of $800 as an example here. Pretty good bankroll if you ask me. Now let's suppose that you've had a bad day and you lose it all. You've set your limit at $800 before you got into the game, remember? So you should have no problems walking away from that day's losses. Don't ever try to stay and win your money back at that exact time and day, because it's almost guaranteed that you'll end up losing more money than ever easy cards tricks. Now, if you've set a winning limit of $300 to $400 and you do win, it's a wise decision to take your winnings and play with them from that point forward. You're still playing, but this time it's the casino's money you're playing with, and your own money is still safe in your pocket.

Now let's get into the game itself. You are allowed to bet as many as you please in a craps game. There are so many bets to be made in craps, but some of them aren't even played by more experienced players because of the high improbabilities of these bets ever winning. The best bet that i can recommend here is to play the passline bet on the come-out roll, then after the point is established, you can play the come bet. You will not win huge amounts here, but then again, you won't run the risk of losing big either. This is not the bet to make if you're looking to make a pile of cash in a short time. There are other strategies for playing that offer bigger rewards, but the risks are also higher.

The last piece of advice I can give you is to stay calm and composed throughout the game. This is especially important if you're losing. You are gambling, remember? So there are certain risks involved here, and there are no guarantees that you'll always come out a winner. Anyway, much of the excitement from gambling is that you always stand to win or lose with every roll of the dice or turn of the card, so remember that and have fun.

Gambling And Super Powers

X Ray Vision:
The ability to see thru other objects would be a great help in casino games such as poker, blackjack, and baccarat. You would be able to know what every other player had in their hands and what the next cards to be dealt were. So you could know when you should fold and when you should raise the bet in poker. You would know when to bet on the house and when to bet on the player in baccarat and when to hit when playing Blackjack. This ability would not really help much for roulette or craps. 
Invisibility:
This super power easy cards tricks may be good as a teenager to sneak into the locker room of the opposite sex, but it definitely is not the best for gambling in a casino unless you are working with a partner. With a partner you could find out what the other players have in their hands for poker, and in Roulette the invisible one could stop the ball on a certain number or could move your bets to the winning number as soon as the ball stops on its own.


Rubber Dude:
The power to stretch and bend could be really cool and it can be helpful in a casino, but you have to be careful. If you are going to move your bet on after the dice has been rolled in craps you have to be careful there are 4 people that work at a craps table watching you, but it can be done.

The Thing:
The things super power was that he was made of stone and had almost unlimited strength. This would be good if he wanted to become a professional wrestler or an UFC fighter. He would be undefeatable. How to you punch something made of stone. What submission hold works on rocks, but how strong you are is no advantage to cheating in a casino.

Manipulate Fire:
This would not be a good power for casino gambling. There is lots of wood in a casino and a small fire could quickly become a big hotel fire trapping and killing thousands.

 

Speaking to Animals:
This would be really cool if you were trapped in the woods or if you fell off a boat or from an airplane, but unless you are playing poker and there is an aquarium or some caged animal behind the other players I really do not see the advantage juice cards.


Kinesis:
If I could pick any power at all I would want to be able to move small and large objects with my mind. This would allow me to cheat at craps and roulette by manipulating the outcome of the game without anyone seeing.

Telepathy:
This super power would fall right under X Ray Vision because you would know what everyone had in their hands, but you could never know what was the next card in the shoe like you would if you could see thru things. So this would be helpful but not the best one to have.

Super Hearing:
The only way I can think of to make money with super hearing in a casino would be blackmail. I am sure people talk about things they should not discuss in public in a casino thinking they are safe with all the noise of the casino.

The Flash:
If had the ability to move faster then the eye could see, you could have a big advantage in a casino. You could change your bets or change the cards in your hand without anyone being able to see you

Mind Control:
This would be one of the best of them all even better then X Ray Vision. It would not matter what you had in your hand you could make everyone think you won. This is the only super power that would work in an online casino, and that is assuming that you can control the minds of people who may be across the world.

If you should ever gain a super power you should know nothing says you have to use it for good. 

Cutting in Card Making

Some of us could have this traumatic experience when we were still little kids and we were asked by our teachers to make a handmade card, one boring afternoon. Of course, we are all excited. Making a card is new to us and at a very young age, we are already overflowing with ideas. Card making knows no rules or boundaries. We could do whatever we want with our cards trick cards.

However, when we are already in the process of card making, things start to get messy. Many ornaments and decors won't stick the way we wanted them to be. Our so-called masterpiece is not working as planned. Little by little, it has become a complete failure. Our output at the end of the class is certainly not the card that we visualized hours back. What could even be worse is that we are already dead tired after the activity. We are all tired, stressed and yet our output is even more toxic to look at. Not to mention that we got a failing mark with that piece of garbage.
What could be more painful that? Putting your heart and mind into something and yet it ends up as an eyesore or worse garbage to someone else's perspective. After such horrible experience, who would want to work in a card making project again, right?

But then again, we should not dismiss card making altogether. It may have had our heart broken once but certainly, there is still a chance for us to come up with a beautiful and attractive card. We could also take into consideration that now that we are already older, we already know better. We already know the tricks of the trade. And without us realizing it, we could have already known some things that we should have known when we were asked to work on our first card making project once upon a time.
In working on a card making project, our best friend should be our scissors. Cutting is the most prominent activity or skill that is required in a card making project. If you don't know how to cut or you don't have a durable scissors to work for you, then you are all set to fail. Indeed, scissors forms a very integral part of the card making process.
Now, we already know better. We are somewhat familiar with the different kinds of scissors available in the market. Specialized cutting tools like the craft knifes and trimmers would work well in achieving our planned card making concept. It would also be better and smooth if we would use cutting mats, which come in various sizes and are available at any craft stores.