text: what is the specific problem dealt with in minesweeper? the problem of probability with limited information. the specific problem is early on in the game, you have an underdetermined system of equations in that you have fewer equations than you have unknowns.  this situation typically results in numerous possible solutions, but there exist some thechniques, notably jayne's formalism, that use entropy maximization techniques to find a "good" solution even though a unique solution cannot be found.  it is the branch of mathematics known as decision making in the presence of uncertainty.