I am Baron Gossett Euler PhD.

This post on my website is my initial foray into backgammon ideas on the web. 

But first, a bit about me. In 1976, newly wed to the love of my life, I finished my undergraduate degree, carefully planned my graduate studies, and learned to play two wonderful board games – the haunting and ineffable ancient game of Go and the beguiling yet frustrating ancient game of Backgammon.  Then and now I am absorbed by both Backgammon and Go, each game fulfilling what the other game lacks.  After graduate school I became a research scientist at a Canadian national laboratory.  There I used my math and physics skills to bring insights into hundreds of practical scientific and technical problems – often as an intellectual gun for hire.  “Have wit. Will travel.” on my business card. 

Upon retirement after thirty-one years I became researcher emeritus at the lab.  In that gig a very smart person (my boss) tries to get another smart person (allegedly me) to continue working for free.  I agreed, but rarely showed up and only acted as a mentor for some scientists and engineers should they contact me.  A few years later I went into the lab for a “big meeting” and security promptly informed me that I had been “deleted”.  It seemed appropriate.

Early in retirement I wrote a free ebook that tried to capture either the clear thinking or the muddled misunderstanding of checker plays that often occur in backgammon.  I received positive feedback and, even better, thoughtful criticism.  I am happy to say that Everyday Errors In Checker Play was the second-best backgammon book of that publishing year – and Mary and Marty’s brilliant book on game plan certainly got my vote!

That brings us to now.  As a shameless dilettante of Zen ideas since 1976, the only thing I gleaned is:  There is no I in I.  Thus the rest of this website will not be about me – only backgammon.

Now my business card says: “Halfwit. Will travail.” Anyway, please enjoy

the baron talks backgammon