In a gaming convention back in 2012, a board game creator challenged mathematician Eric Harshbarger to devise a set of dice that could determine the starting player without the risk of a tie, aiming to expedite the game’s kickoff. Harshbarger, a senior lecturer at Auburn University, found the problem engaging due to its lack of an obvious solution, a common lure for mathematicians.
After years of collaboration with computer scientists and mathematicians worldwide, Harshbarger and his team successfully crafted a set of four 12-sided dice that guaranteed a clear winner for two, three, or four players. However, devising a solution for five players posed a significant challenge, as creating physically feasible dice aligned with the complex mathematical requirements proved daunting.
Despite initial theoretical predictions suggesting dice with an impractical 1,440 sides, the team persisted in refining their approach, eventually settling on a set of five 120-sided dice proposed by an Australian researcher. Subsequently, Canadian software engineer Paul Meyer made a breakthrough by developing a solution using five 60-sided dice, a discovery validated by Harshbarger after extensive verification.
The resulting golf-ball-sized dice, available for purchase, have sparked debate among researchers regarding their real-world efficacy. Harshbarger remains confident in the dice’s fairness, attributing any deviations in outcomes to manufacturing imperfections rather than flaws in the underlying mathematics.
As the research continues, the team is exploring the feasibility of fewer sides for a five-player set, considering 30 sides as the minimum requirement, and contemplating the extension of the concept to accommodate six players. Despite current limitations in mathematical and computational tools, Harshbarger anticipates unexpected breakthroughs, emphasizing the allure of tackling challenging yet seemingly trivial mathematical puzzles.