Bill Spight's Go Theory Research

[Robert Jasiek]

http://home.snafu.de/jasiek/GoTheoryResearch.html#Bill_Spight


Preface


Bill Spight's teaching of go theory, especially endgame theory, and
minor inventions are not listed. He may have done further research I
am not aware of. His real name is William L. Spight.

The research is by Bill Spight unless other names are stated. Two or
more names without attributes are listed in decreasing order of
contribution. Names separated by a slash indicate equal contribution.
Besides his ground-breaking structural insight, bold font denotes his
most important contribution to the advance of go theory.


Endgame


Theorems

- Generalised thermography allowing complex and multiple kos [IGTD]
[p] [Bill Spight, Elwyn Berlekamp, Martin Müller et al]

- Timing in a neutral threat environment and dependency on Fibonacci
numbers [IGT] [p]

- Equivalence of conditions (gote / sente count versus gote /
follow-up move value versus sente / follow-up move value versus gote /
sente move value) of local endgame with one simple follow-up [IGT]
[bm] [proofs Robert Jasiek, conjectures Bill Spight]

- Non-existence of local double sente [IGT] [bm] [Francisco Criado,
Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Equivalence of conditions (gote / sente count versus gote / sente
move value) of local endgame with a player's simple gote and sente
options [IGT] [bm] [proofs Robert Jasiek, conjectures Bill Spight]

- Method of comparing the opponent's branches, 3-move traversal,
evaluation due to reversal [IGT] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

- Timing during the late endgame at low temperature of the creator
playing in a local endgame with one follow-up in an environment [IGT]
[bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

- Method of comparing two sequences combined with the method of
comparing counts during the late endgame in a local endgame with one
follow-up in an environment [IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Method of comparing two sequences combined with the method of
comparing net profits during the late endgame in a local endgame with
one follow-up in an environment [IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek, Bill
Spight]

- Method of comparing three sequences combined with the method of
comparing counts during the late endgame of the creator playing in a
local endgame with gote and sente options in an environment [IGT] [bm]
[Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Timing during the late endgame at low temperature of the creator
playing in a local endgame with gote and sente options in an
environment [IGT] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

- Timing during the early endgame at low temperature of the creator
playing in a local endgame with gote and sente options in an
environment [IGT] [bm]

- Creator starting in the larger local endgame with one follow-up
[IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Preventer starting in the larger local endgame with one follow-up
[IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Additional details for playing in the larger local endgame with one
follow-up [IGT] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

Other Theory

- Neutral threat environment [ICGD] [pm] [Elwyn Berlekamp / Bill
Spight]

- Continued research in temperature theory [G] [pm]

- 'Ambiguous' local endgame (hybrid of local gote and sente) [ICGD]
[m]

- Local endgames with gote and sente options require their own
evaluation. [G] [m]

- Preliminary theory of evaluating sequences [G] [m]

- Comparison of gote versus sente strategies in multiples [C] [m]

- Clarification of gain [CGW] [m]

- Translation of theory on unconnected reductions of corridors [IGT]
[pm] [theorem + proof: David Wolfe, translation: Bill Spight]

- First examples of a few rare cases [I] [m]

- Doubly ambiguous shapes [W] [m] [Bill Spight / Robert Jasiek]

- Verify types of local endgames to determine their correct values.
[IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek / Bill Spight]

- Fast evaluation of long sequences by the method of comparing the
opponent's branches [IG] [b] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek et al]

- Do not always play in decreasing order of move values but use better
theory. [IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek, Bill Spight]

- Interrupt local sequences in time. [IGT] [bm] [Robert Jasiek / Bill
Spight]

- Strategy depends on the local endgame / ensemble, the environment,
its temperature and sometimes its second-largest value. [IGT] [bm]
[Robert Jasiek / Bill Spight]

- Use of the sente move value for the timing during the late endgame
of playing in a local gote. [IGT] [bm]

- Application to strategy and positional judgement during the middle
game [IGT] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

- Earliest and latest moments of playing in a local endgame in sente
or reverse sente depending on the enironment [IGT] [bm] [Bill Spight,
Robert Jasiek]

- Translation of relevant combinatorial game theory (including
low-level theory and corridors) to go theory. [IGT] [bm] [Robert
Jasiek, Bill Spight et al]

- Types (local gote, local sente, ambiguous of a local endgame with
one simple follow-up. [ID] [m]

- Test sequences for a local endgame with one follow-up in an
environment [ID] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert Jasiek]

- Test sequences for the creator starting in a local endgame with gote
and sente options in an environment [ID] [bm] [Bill Spight, Robert
Jasiek]


Ko


- Correct play in multiple n-tuple kos [IGT] [m] [Bill Spight / James
Davies / John Rickard]

- Komonster [ICGD] [m]

- Primary, secondary, tertiary ko threats [ICG] [m]


Rules


- Spight Rules [I] [m]

- Pass stones (aka book-keeping stones) [ICG] [p]

- Research in button go [C] [m]

- A type of superko rules [I] [m]