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Do you see any difference between these two  S7's
(aside from the bar code, which is used for the automatic dealing
machine)?
The bottom one is from a normal deck. To prevent cheating, the
World Bridge Federation developed the top one.
Cheating, you ask? Do you see how
asymmetrical the lower image is? If you were on defense and played
the 7,
you could place it on the table so that the extra pip is pointing
in any direction. Such a placement could be a signal. Meanwhile,
the top 7
is completely symmetrical. No matter how it is placed, there is no
top or bottom.
Yes, all of this assumes that anyone who
would even think of such a thing is a crook to begin with. I
suppose that these symmetrical cards won't really stop anyone
determined to cheat (for example, you could still place them on
the table either vertically or horizontally, or somewhere
in-between). However, it at least takes away one option.
There have been several cheating scandals in
top-level bridge, most notably the Buenos
Aires affair. The books "Story of an Accusation" and
the "Great Bridge Scandal" told the "for and
against" sides of the story. Reese & Shapiro were accused
of signaling how many hearts they held by the way they held their
cards during the bidding. Such issues are now rendered moot by the
use of screens.
After the toe-tapping of the foot
soldiers in 1975, the screens were extended all the way down
to the floor.
I don't expect any of my readers are
cheaters. I sure hope not! Rather than discuss blatant cheating, I
prefer to talk about "unintentional" cheating. Next
month, please be sure to read my important article regarding
"breaks in tempo," or some might call it,
"hesitation disruption."
Meanwhile, here are a few more pictures of
the "anti-cheating" cards. In each case, the symmetrical
cards are on the left side.
Next month -- more on "the Lone
Wolff" (which will expose some cheating scandals) and ethics.
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