0_Wizard
Hi! I'd like to have a conversation about Blackjack.
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Blackjack
Blackjack, also known as twenty-one, is a comparing card game between usually several players and a dealer, where each player in turn competes against the dealer, but players do not play against each other. It is played with one or more decks of 52 cards, and is the most widely played casino banking game in the world. The objective of the game is to beat the dealer in one of the following ways:   Players are each dealt two cards, face up or down depending on the casino and the table at which you sit. In the U.S., the dealer is also dealt two cards, normally one up (exposed) and one down (hidden).
Card counting
Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino games to determine whether the next hand is likely to give a probable advantage to the player or to the dealer. Card counters are a class of advantage players, who attempt to decrease the inherent casino house edge by keeping a running tally of all high and low valued cards seen by the player. Card counting allows players to bet more with less risk when the count gives an advantage as well as minimize losses during an unfavorable count. Card counting also provides the ability to alter playing decisions based on the composition of remaining cards.
MIT Blackjack Team
The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide. The team and its successors operated successfully from 1979 through the beginning of the 21st century. Many other blackjack teams have been formed around the world with the goal of beating the casinos. Blackjack can be legally beaten by a skilled player. Beyond the basic strategy of when to hit and when to stand, individual players can use card counting, shuffle tracking or hole carding to improve their odds.
Arnold Snyder
Arnold Snyder is a professional gambler and gambling author. He was elected by professional blackjack players as one of the seven original inductees into the Blackjack Hall of Fame which is hosted at Barona Casino for his record as a blackjack player and his innovations in professional gambling techniques. He was the first blackjack authority to publish the importance of deck penetration (depth of the deal) in card counting, in his 1980 book "The Blackjack Formula". He was also the first blackjack researcher to publish (in "Blackjack Forum", 1981–1983) that radical simplification of blackjack card counting systems did not hurt earnings.
King of Vegas
King of Vegas was a gambling series that first aired on Spike TV in the United States on January 17, 2006. It was hosted by boxing commentator Max Kellerman and co-hosted by handicapper Wayne Allyn Root, who gave color commentary and his odds-on favorites for each game. The tournament director was Matt Savage, who has also directed tournaments at the World Series of Poker. Unlike other gambling series on television, "King of Vegas" includes competition in eight different casino games; four per week, all starting with Blackjack and ending a final game of Texas Hold 'Em. All games are played with players getting a fresh set of $10,000 in chips (the format would later change a bit, but the $10,000 chip gain remained constant until the final episode).
Blackjack Switch
Blackjack Switch is a casino gambling game invented by Geoff Hall and patented in 2009. It is based on blackjack, but differs in that two hands, rather than one, are dealt to each playing position, and the player is initially allowed to exchange ("switch") the top two cards between hands. Natural blackjacks are paid 1:1 instead of the standard 3:2, and a dealer hard 22 pushes all player hands except a natural. Blackjack Switch was conceived after Hall - who was a card counter at the time - became frustrated at being dealt 2 weak hands when playing Blackjack that could be improved dramatically if the top two cards were allowed to be switched.
Stanford Wong
John Ferguson (born 1943) known by his pen name, Stanford Wong, is a gambling author best known for his book "Professional Blackjack", first published in 1975. Wong's computer program "Blackjack Analyzer", initially created for personal use, was one of the first pieces of commercially available blackjack odds analyzing software. Wong has appeared on TV multiple times as a blackjack tournament contestant or as a gambling expert. He owns a publishing house, Pi Yee Press, which has published books by other gambling authors including King Yao. Wong began playing blackjack in 1964 while teaching finance courses at San Francisco State University and getting his Ph.D in Finance from Stanford University in California.
1_Apprentice
oh good, I like blackjack
0_Wizard
Did you ever hear of the MIT Blackjack Team? It was a group of students from MIT that used card counting to beat casinos all over the world.
The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide.
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MIT Blackjack Team
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MIT Blackjack Team
The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide. The team and its successors operated successfully from 1979 through the beginning of the 21st century. Many other blackjack teams have been formed around the world with the goal of beating the casinos. Blackjack can be legally beaten by a skilled player. Beyond the basic strategy of when to hit and when to stand, individual players can use card counting, shuffle tracking or hole carding to improve their odds.
Card counting
Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino games to determine whether the next hand is likely to give a probable advantage to the player or to the dealer. Card counters are a class of advantage players, who attempt to decrease the inherent casino house edge by keeping a running tally of all high and low valued cards seen by the player. Card counting allows players to bet more with less risk when the count gives an advantage as well as minimize losses during an unfavorable count. Card counting also provides the ability to alter playing decisions based on the composition of remaining cards.
Bringing Down the House (book)
Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions is a book by Ben Mezrich about a group of MIT card counters commonly known as the MIT Blackjack Team. Though the book is classified as non-fiction, the "Boston Globe" alleges that the book contains significant fictional elements, that many of the key events propelling the drama did not occur in real life, and that others were exaggerated greatly. The book was adapted into the movie "21". The book's main character is Kevin Lewis, an MIT graduate who was invited to join the MIT Blackjack Team in 1993. Lewis was recruited by two of the team's top players, Jason Fisher and Andre Martinez.
21 (2008 film)
21 is a 2008 American heist drama film directed by Robert Luketic and starring Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Bosworth, Liza Lapira, Jacob Pitts, Aaron Yoo, and Kieu Chinh. The film is inspired by the true story of the MIT Blackjack Team as told in "Bringing Down the House", the best-selling book by Ben Mezrich. Despite its largely mixed reviews and controversy over the film's casting choices, "21" was a box office success, and was the number one film in the United States and Canada during its first and second weekends of release. MIT math major Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) is accepted into Harvard Medical School, but cannot afford the $300,000 fee.
Mike Aponte
Mike Aponte, also known as MIT Mike, is a professional blackjack player and a former member of the MIT Blackjack Team. Aponte was part of a team of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) students that legally won millions playing blackjack at casinos around the world by counting cards. He is the basis for one of the main characters, Jason Fisher, in the book, "Bringing Down the House", by Ben Mezrich, which inspired the motion picture, "21". Growing up Aponte rarely played cards. He was the son of a U.S. Army tactical instructor, and his family moved on a regular basis, both within the United States and overseas.
Blackjack
Blackjack, also known as twenty-one, is a comparing card game between usually several players and a dealer, where each player in turn competes against the dealer, but players do not play against each other. It is played with one or more decks of 52 cards, and is the most widely played casino banking game in the world. The objective of the game is to beat the dealer in one of the following ways:   Players are each dealt two cards, face up or down depending on the casino and the table at which you sit. In the U.S., the dealer is also dealt two cards, normally one up (exposed) and one down (hidden).
Ken Uston
Ken Uston (January 12, 1935 – September 19, 1987) was a famous blackjack player, strategist, and author, credited with popularizing the concept of team play at blackjack. During the early to mid-1970s he gained widespread notoriety for perfecting techniques to do team card counting in numerous casinos worldwide, earning millions of dollars from the casinos, with some bets as high as $12,000 on a single hand. He then became famous for being banned from casinos around the world, and thus became a master of disguise as he would adopt various costumes in order to conceal his true identity and still be able to play.
1_Apprentice
Wasn;t that what the movie 21 was based off of?
0_Wizard
Yeah, it was based on the book "Bringing Down the House" by Ben Mezrich, which was based on the true events.
The film is inspired by the true story of the MIT Blackjack Team as told in "Bringing Down the House", the best-selling book by Ben Mezrich.
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21 (2008 film)
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Ben Mezrich
Ben Mezrich (born February 7, 1969) is an American author. Mezrich was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Molli Newman, a lawyer, and Reuben Mezrich, a chairman of radiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He was raised in a conservative Jewish household and attended Princeton Day School, in Princeton, New Jersey. He graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Social Studies from Harvard University in 1991. Some of his books have been written under the pseudonym Holden Scott. He is known for his non-fiction books. He lives in Boston, Massachusetts. He has been married to Tonya M. Chen since 2006.
The Social Network
The Social Network is a 2010 American biographical drama film directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin. Adapted from Ben Mezrich's 2009 book "The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal", the film portrays the founding of social networking website Facebook and the resulting lawsuits. It stars Jesse Eisenberg as founder Mark Zuckerberg, along with Andrew Garfield as Eduardo Saverin, Justin Timberlake as Sean Parker, and Armie Hammer as Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. Neither Zuckerberg nor any other Facebook staff were involved with the project, although Saverin was a consultant for Mezrich's book.
Sex on the Moon
Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History is a book by Ben Mezrich, author of New York Times Best Seller "Bringing Down the House" and of "The Accidental Billionaires". It retells the theft and attempted sale of lunar samples plus a Martian meteorite from a vault at NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center by a cooperative education student assisted by another co-op, an intern, plus an acquaintance. The book received mainly negative reviews, criticized for its purple prose and overly-sympathetic discussion of Roberts. The story follows Thad Roberts, a University of Utah student and high-achieving NASA co-op in Houston, dreaming of doing great things such as becoming an astronaut; his love interest Rebecca; and his accomplices Sandra and Gordon McWhorter.
Bringing Down the House (book)
Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions is a book by Ben Mezrich about a group of MIT card counters commonly known as the MIT Blackjack Team. Though the book is classified as non-fiction, the "Boston Globe" alleges that the book contains significant fictional elements, that many of the key events propelling the drama did not occur in real life, and that others were exaggerated greatly. The book was adapted into the movie "21". The book's main character is Kevin Lewis, an MIT graduate who was invited to join the MIT Blackjack Team in 1993. Lewis was recruited by two of the team's top players, Jason Fisher and Andre Martinez.
John D'Agostino (financial services)
John Joseph D'Agostino is an American business executive and entrepreneur. Currently, D'Agostino is a Managing Director at the world's largest fund governance firm DMS Offshore, where he also serves on the board of hedge funds providing independent oversight. He was previously a managing director at Alkeon Capital Management, a multibillion-dollar registered investment adviser. Prior to this, D'Agostino was known primarily for his involvement in the early development of the Dubai Mercantile Exchange. His story was the focus of the book Rigged, the True Story of an Ivy League Kid who Changed the World of Oil by New York Times best-selling author Ben Mezrich.
Dana Brunetti
Dana Brunetti (born June 11, 1973) is an American film producer and social networking entrepreneur. Brunetti has been nominated for two Academy Awards for producing "The Social Network" and "Captain Phillips". Brunetti grew up in Covington, Virginia, and attended secondary school at Alleghany High School. As a child, Brunetti delivered morning and evening editions of his local newspaper. He joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1992. During his enlistment, Brunetti moved to New York. He met actor Kevin Spacey through a chance introduction from a mutual friend while Brunetti was working at a start up digital wireless network company.
The Accidental Billionaires
The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal is a 2009 book by Ben Mezrich about the founding of Facebook, adapted by Columbia Pictures for the 2010 film "The Social Network". Co-founder Eduardo Saverin served as Mezrich's main consultant, although Mark Zuckerberg declined to speak with him while the book was being researched. After Zuckerberg and Saverin settled their lawsuit, Saverin broke off contact with the author. Ben Mezrich maintains that the book is not a work of fiction despite his narrative style of writing. Some of his sources are his conversations with Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin and the court documents made available to him because of "all these college kids suing each other."
1_Apprentice
oh that's pretty awesome! Counting cards is crazy
0_Wizard
Yeah, I wish I was able to count cards, it'd make gambling a lot less risky and I'd lose a lot less.
Card counting allows players to bet more with less risk when the count gives an advantage as well as minimize losses during an unfavorable count.
partner_Card_counting_2
Card counting
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Blackjack
Blackjack, also known as twenty-one, is a comparing card game between usually several players and a dealer, where each player in turn competes against the dealer, but players do not play against each other. It is played with one or more decks of 52 cards, and is the most widely played casino banking game in the world. The objective of the game is to beat the dealer in one of the following ways:   Players are each dealt two cards, face up or down depending on the casino and the table at which you sit. In the U.S., the dealer is also dealt two cards, normally one up (exposed) and one down (hidden).
Card counting
Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino games to determine whether the next hand is likely to give a probable advantage to the player or to the dealer. Card counters are a class of advantage players, who attempt to decrease the inherent casino house edge by keeping a running tally of all high and low valued cards seen by the player. Card counting allows players to bet more with less risk when the count gives an advantage as well as minimize losses during an unfavorable count. Card counting also provides the ability to alter playing decisions based on the composition of remaining cards.
Government policies and the subprime mortgage crisis
The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis was a set of events and conditions that led to a financial crisis and subsequent recession that began in 2007. It was characterized by a rise in subprime mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures, and the resulting decline of securities backed by said mortgages. Several major financial institutions collapsed in September 2008, with significant disruption in the flow of credit to businesses and consumers and the onset of a severe global recession. Government housing policies, over-regulation, failed regulation and deregulation have all been claimed as causes of the crisis, along with many others.
Make-A-Million
Make-a-Million is a card game created by Parker Brothers. It was copyrighted in 1934 and released to the public in 1935. The game was first released in Salem, Massachusetts, and then to New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, and Atlanta. The original game was designed for four players, with a three-player option with a dummy hand. Later, Parker Brothers adapted the game to accommodate six or eight players. The game enjoyed popularity through the 1930s into the 1950s. Major printings occurred in 1934, 1935, and 1945, with the last printing from Parker Brothers in 1957. The card style was modified slightly with each printing.
Stark Raving Dad
"Stark Raving Dad" is the first episode in the third season of the American animated television series "The Simpsons". It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 19, 1991. In the episode, main character Homer Simpson is mistaken for a "free-thinking anarchist" and sent to a mental institution, where he shares a room with a large white man named Leon Kompowsky who pretends to be American pop star Michael Jackson. Meanwhile, because he normally forgets her birthday, Bart promises his sister Lisa that he will get her the best present ever. Al Jean and Mike Reiss wrote the episode while Rich Moore served as director.
Craps
Craps is a dice game in which the players make wagers on the outcome of the roll, or a series of rolls, of a pair of dice. Players may wager money against each other (playing "street craps", also known as "shooting dice," "rolling bones," or any combination thereof) or a bank (playing "casino craps", also known as "table craps", or often just "craps"). Because it requires little equipment, "street craps" can be played in informal settings. Craps developed from a simplification of the early English game of "hazard". Its origins are complex and may date to the Crusades, later being influenced by French gamblers.
Online gambling
Online gambling (or Internet gambling) includes poker, casinos and sports betting. The first online casino was in 1994. Many countries restrict or ban online gambling, but it is legal in some provinces in Canada, most countries of the European Union and several nations in the Caribbean. In 1994, Antigua and Barbuda passed the Free Trade & Processing Act, allowing licences to be granted to organisations applying to open online casinos. Before online casinos, the first fully functional gambling software was developed by Microgaming, an Isle of Man-based software company. This was secured with software developed by CryptoLogic, an online security software company.
1_Apprentice
Yeah but you can also get in some scary situations if a casino finds out. Some of them don't hesitate to do bad things to a person who is counting