Electronic Tick-Tack-Toe (Aug, 1950)
How do you cheat in Tick-Tack-Toe?
Tick-Tack-Toe brain is invention of 18-year-old Noel Elliott, finalist in the Westinghouse science talent search. After three years’ work, involving a study of the 362,882 possible variations, he perfected the machine so that it either wins or ties every game. It responds with a light flash when you pull a switch in any square. Sometimes it’s caught cheating a little.
By changing the lit squares or lighting two at once?
I may have got my sums wrong, but I calculated 362,880 combinations. Where are the other 2?
One of the other ones, is not to play the game.
– WOPR