kottke.org posts about table tennis
Sony’s AI division has designed a robot that can beat elite human players at table tennis. From the paper:
Evaluated in matches against elite and professional players under official competition rules, Ace achieved several victories and demonstrated consistent returns of high-speed, high-spin shots. These results highlight the potential of physical AI agents to perform complex, real-time interactive tasks, suggesting broader applications in domains requiring fast, precise human–robot interaction.
Ace is a fine name, but I might have gone with something like WALL-E Supreme instead. (Robbie Supreme?)
I did not think I was going to watch this whole video when I started but I totally did. Some absolutely incredible shots & rallies in here. (thx, dunstan)
This is probably the craziest and most unlikely table tennis shot you will ever see. Just watch. The guy who pulls it off is Christopher Chen from the Trondheim Table Tennis Club in Norway. I haven’t watched ESPN in years so I don’t know if “getting on SportsCenter” is as big a deal as it used to be, but if so, this should get on SportsCenter.
See also the table tennis volley that sounds like the Super Mario Bros theme song and The Community of the Tables.
The Tables is a short documentary about the ping pong tables in NYC’s Bryant Park and the cast of characters who play there frequently — homeless folks, pro players, bike messengers, and a guy who uses a block of wood for a paddle.
This volley played during a game of ping pong sounds a lot like the first few bars of the music from Super Mario Bros. (thx, david)
If I made New Year’s resolutions, one of them would be to play more table tennis. (via stellar)
From The Morning News comes this collection of photographs of celebrities playing table tennis. Among those pictured are Henry Kissinger, Billie Jean King, Lauren Bacall, and Bob Marley. Here are Bill and Hillary Clinton:
I’d just like to take this opportunity to point out just how full of useless knowledge I am: under the rules of the USATT (specifically 10.10), you’re not allowed to touch the table with your free hand during a volley as Hillary is doing here. Point to Bill.
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