My dope nim game
From the Wikipedia page: Nim is a mathematical game of strategy in which two players take turns removing objects from distinct heaps or piles. On each turn, a player must remove at least one object, and may remove any number of objects provided they all come from the same heap/pile. The goal of the game is to avoid taking the last object.
Variants of Nim have been played since ancient times.[1] The game is said to have originated in China—it closely resembles the Chinese game of 捡石子 jiǎn-shízi, or “picking stones”[2]—but the origin is uncertain; the earliest European references to Nim are from the beginning of the 16th century. Its current name was coined by Charles L. Bouton of Harvard University, who also developed the complete theory of the game in 1901,[3] but the origins of the name were never fully explained.
Cover pic is from the Dhamma Wheel.
Anytime when there is idle time - waiting at a restaraunt or being bored in class - you can make little pebbles out of toothpicks, paper balls, etc to play this game!
It would be fun, as always, to generalize the Nim game and find a complete solution for any number of pebbles left to win (currently 1 pebble). Together with my buddy Justin Stone, an economics major and a fan of game theory, I have found a solution that is good enough for frustrating friends who do not know the solution.