I've noticed that many professionals blink when they read. Does anyone know the details of the technique being used?

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"Those who calculate greatly will win; those who calculate only a little will lose, but what of those who don't make any calculations at all!? This is why everything must be calculated, in order to foresee victory and defeat."-The Art of War

Blinking keeps the eyes moist so they don't dry out.

I mean like 2-3 times a second, it's very clear that the blinking pattern has something to do with their reading. I think it is significant that only professionals and strong amateurs usually do this. I don't see many Western amateurs doing it, either.

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"Those who calculate greatly will win; those who calculate only a little will lose, but what of those who don't make any calculations at all!? This is why everything must be calculated, in order to foresee victory and defeat."-The Art of War

Interesting question. I've noticed this, too, now that you mention it.

I'm interested to know the reason, too, though I suspect it is a result of some type of thinking, rather than a key to success in itself.

Behold, I offer you the last go players! What is a hoshi, they ask, and blink. Truly they are but a bridge between chess players and something greater.

Okay, to be honest I have never noticed an unusual amount of blinking. Can you link to a couple videos?

There are plenty of reasons people blink when they are trying to focus their eyes... Pay attention the next time you wake up. Moistens the eyes, gets off rheum, makes visual artifacts disappear, aligns the muscles that hold up the eyes.

I haven't heard about a blinking technique for "reading".
However that's a technique known to help your brain take snapshots.

People with good "visual memory" can look at something, blink quickly a few times and keep the eyes closed for a few seconds. The last image will be printed in memory for some time.

Somebody has been reading too much Neitzsche...

Seriously, if this is true, it could be a fascinating insight into how the brain works when playing go. Does anyone have links to any concrete data?

Practically, I have a good visual memory and focusing on a position for some time and then strongly blinking (closing my eyes suddenly 1 time) will help me print the image faster in memory. I read about this memorizing technique but I can't remember where.

The idea of blinking repeatedly reminds me of Subliminal Stimuli where a subject is presented with flashing images at a very fast rate.

The above is about memory, there has been some research done on the subject.

However, I have read some research about voluntarily blinking during a thinking process and it appears that blinking has a negative impact on attention. (i.e not good for reading go tactics)

http://www.amsciepub.com/doi/abs/10.246 ... 5.41.2.403

This article demonstrates that when you're thinking or focusing on something, the blink rate is reduced to a minimum.

http://www.journalofvision.org/content/4/8/401.abstract

This one is a study showing that eye-blinks inhibit cognitive processing.

Related to this, it might be that when the professionals are thinking about the position they aren't looking at it. If the position is imprinted into your memory, your eyes might just be on autopilot blinking away, while a weaker player who doesn't have as strong of a recall of the position spends more time and energy physically looking at the position (less blinking).

I am sure that I am not the only one still waiting to find out who are these many pro heavy blinkers! Personally I can't recall seeing any on Japanese TV.

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Dave Sigaty
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, "Where's the self-help section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
- George Carlin

It made me watch the NHK game closer to see if anyone was blinking heavily. I didn't see any either.

I don't think I've seen Japanese players do it, but many Korean pros do it a lot. So far, sefo's explanation seems to be the most plausible, but we still don't know the exact technique. I will try to ask Cho Hyeyeon or Choi Dongeun about it, I'm sure they would know the answer. (Though I'm pretty sure Cho Hyeyeon doesn't do it.)

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"Those who calculate greatly will win; those who calculate only a little will lose, but what of those who don't make any calculations at all!? This is why everything must be calculated, in order to foresee victory and defeat."-The Art of War

What if they’re just tired?

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My usual first chat line in an online game: “Hello, this is Tom in Germany”
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Is it qualitatively different than tapping your fingers with each stone you place mentally? All strong Chinese players do that, and I have picked up the habit.

This seems inconsistent with the feats of reading that I've heard about (reading a corner sequence that's 15 or 20 moves deep in two seconds).

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When you think your opponent has made a mistake, that's when you should be the most cautious.

I sometimes do that (in a pale imitation of strong players, I guess :p), and depending on situation each tap is either a stone or a complete sequence.

I tend to blink rapidly (unconsciously) when I'm focusing hard on a position, especially if I'm tired. I wouldn't be surprised if that's what happening with the pros you saw.

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a1h1 [1d]: You just need to curse the gods and defend.
Good Go = Shape.
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Okay, so I got a response from Choi Dongeun. She says that it is just a habit, and doesn't really mean anything.

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"Those who calculate greatly will win; those who calculate only a little will lose, but what of those who don't make any calculations at all!? This is why everything must be calculated, in order to foresee victory and defeat."-The Art of War

Nah, she just wants to keep the secret of strength to herself!

I think it has to do with altered states.

It's no secret that people go into altered states to accomplish different activities. Sports, driving and even spelling require you to shift your state of consciousness to varying degrees.

One of the behavioral signs of altered states is a marked change in blinking patterns and speed. It varies with the state, person and activity, but you'll notice this in children who are simply not listening and staring straight through you, the employee whose attention is sidetracked, people watching TV, people talking animatedly about something, etc.

I would imagine reading dozens of variations 30 moves deep would require you to alter your state drastically! What Choi Dongeun probably meant was that it wasn't something she did consciously. And she would be quite right!

This sort of unconscious blinking is also marked by slightly slower blinks. It's difficult to find changes in the speed of something like a blink but if you watch closely you should be able to notice it. (Protip: don't convince yourself something is slower just because you're expecting it to be!)

Other fun things you can watch for (with good quality video):
Eyes defocusing
Increased flaccidity of muscles, especially in the face
Slower muscle movements
Lower lip more engorged with blood
Lightening of skin pigment

I'm sure some of L19ers have more than enough free time to do this.