In this article, we’ll take a humorous look at how these classic games work and what it takes to design MDPs (Markov Decision Processes) that can help our machines navigate them with ease.

First up: MountainCar. This game is deceptively simple you have a car stuck in a valley, trying to reach the top of a steep hill on the other side. The catch? Your car has limited power and momentum, so it’s not easy to get over that hump. But don’t be scared! With our trusty MDPs, we can teach our machines how to navigate this treacherous terrain with ease.

To design an MDP for MountainCar, you first need to define the state space in other words, what information does your machine have access to at any given moment? In this case, that might include things like the car’s position on the hill, its speed, and whether it’s accelerating or braking. Next, you need to determine the actions available to your machine in MountainCar, those are typically “accelerate” and “brake.” Finally, you need to define a reward function that will help guide your machine towards success (in this case, reaching the top of the hill).

Now, Pong. This classic arcade game has been around for decades but can our machines handle it? To design an MDP for Pong, you first need to define the state space in other words, what information does your machine have access to at any given moment? In this case, that might include things like the position of the ball and paddles on the screen. Next, you need to determine the actions available to your machine in Pong, those are typically “move left” or “move right.” Finally, you need to define a reward function that will help guide your machine towards success (in this case, winning the game).

Of course, designing MDPs for these classic games is no easy feat. There’s a lot of trial and error involved but with enough patience and persistence, even the most stubborn machines can learn to navigate MountainCar and Pong like pros. And who knows? Maybe one day we’ll see AI systems that are just as skilled at playing these classic games as human players themselves!

So grab your calculators and get ready to roll those dice because in the world of AI, there’s no limit to what we can achieve!