Chess

Quote from Hansel H:

I used to play speed chess 30 years ago at the Toronto Chess Club. Once in a blue moon I would beat a player with a 2000+ rating but could never pass 1860 myself. There was a player there with a 1300 rating who would slaughter me every time.

Early in the game he would dig into his nose and pull out a bit of snot then hold it above the board and roll it between his thumb and forefinger while he pondered his next godawful move. This was a bit of chess strategy that worked perfectly with me but apparently not everybody or he would have had a higher rating.

Even so it must have worked with at least a couple of other players. He was a terrible player and I suspect that without his snotball technique his rating would have been <1000.
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Chess sadly attracts weirdos, at least social misfits. The problem with these sort of people is that real friends will tell you when your behavior is detremental. Deducively, he had no friends because no one wants to be associated with such an individual, hence it perpetuates.

There are many ways to become an expert, a bit harder to become a master. Playing as many tournaments as possible, closely analyzing the losses is a great way. The key is purposeful training/practice and avoiding TMI (Too much information).

I rate myself as a teacher by how many rating points my students are able to improve in a year. 300 is my goal. To give perspective, Carlsen at the age of nine went from a 900 rating to 1900 rating in a year, which is out of this world. A good coach has produced at least two 1350 players from scratch (not picked up someone elses hard work). A super trainer has produced several masters while not ruining the zest and enjoyment of the game.
 
Quote from Hansel H:

I used to play speed chess 30 years ago at the Toronto Chess Club. Once in a blue moon I would beat a player with a 2000+ rating but could never pass 1860 myself. There was a player there with a 1300 rating who would slaughter me every time.

Early in the game he would dig into his nose and pull out a bit of snot then hold it above the board and roll it between his thumb and forefinger while he pondered his next godawful move. This was a bit of chess strategy that worked perfectly with me but apparently not everybody or he would have had a higher rating.

Even so it must have worked with at least a couple of other players. He was a terrible player and I suspect that without his snotball technique his rating would have been <1000.

Man, this guy was a booger! Pun intended.
 
One of the hardest thing I struggle with kids is that sometimes they are so wound up, they cannot sit still long enought to concentrate and focus to learn. Girls are far more likely to be able to sit still and focus, but many boys are a disaster when it comes to achieving that zone of learning. In fact, I believe that school learning, and therefore school hours are too long for most boys and probably many girls and doesn't leave enough time for activities that developes character, endurance, emotional well being and even intellectual prowess.

Is this then, the future of chess education?

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Test

********>
new PgnViewer(
{ boardName: "game1",
movesFormat: "main_on_own_line",
pgnString: '[Event "2.f"][Site "Leningrad"][Date "1974.??.??"][Round "3"][White "Karpov, Anatoly"][Black "Spassky, Boris"][Result "1-0"][ECO "E91"][WhiteElo "2700"][BlackElo "2650"][Annotator "JvR"][PlyCount "109"][EventDate "1974.??.??"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 c5 7. O-O Bg4 $5 { Spassky chooses a sharp opening.} 8. d5 Nbd7 9. Bg5 a6 10. a4 Qc7 11. Qd2 Rae8 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 e6 $5 14. b3 Kh8 15. Be3 Ng8 16. Be2 e5 $5 17. g4 Qd8 18. Kg2 Qh4 $5 {Black takes the initiative on the kingside.} 19. f3 ({ The tactical justification is} 19. Bg5 Bh6) 19... Bh6 $2 { Tal, Keres and Botvinnik condemn this provocative move} ({and prefer} 19... f5) 20. g5 Bg7 21. Bf2 Qf4 22. Be3 Qh4 23. Qe1 $1 Qxe1 24. Rfxe1 h6 25. h4 hxg5 $2 ({A defence line against an attack on the queenside creates} 25... Ra8 26. Reb1 Rfb8 27. b4 Bf8 28. bxc5 Nxc5) 26. hxg5 Ne7 27. a5 f6 28. Reb1 fxg5 29. b4 $1 Nf5 $5 30. Bxg5 $1 ({Keres analyses} 30. exf5 e4 31. Bd2 exf3+ 32. Bxf3 gxf5 { Black has counter-play.}) 30... Nd4 31. bxc5 Nxc5 32. Rb6 Bf6 33. Rh1+ $1 Kg7 34. Bh6+ Kg8 35. Bxf8 Rxf8 36. Rxd6 Kg7 37. Bd1 Be7 ({Tal mentions} 37... Bd8 38. Na4 Bc7 39. Nxc5 Bxd6 40. Nxb7 {and 41.c5. White wins.}) 38. Rb6 Bd8 39. Rb1 Rf7 40. Na4 Nd3 41. Nb6 g5 42. Nc8 Nc5 43. Nd6 Rd7 44. Nf5+ Nxf5 45. exf5 e4 46. fxe4 Nxe4 47. Ba4 Re7 48. Rbe1 Nc5 49. Rxe7+ Bxe7 50. Bc2 Bd8 51. Ra1 Kf6 52. d6 Nd7 53. Rb1 Ke5 54. Rd1 Kf4 55. Re1 1-0',
pauseBetweenMoves: 500
}
);
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Good interview with Carlsen. I have seen a great deal of maturity in the responses to deep questions, almost as if he is reflecting on the questions he is asked and giving them serious consideration later. Like any good chess player, he is seeing patterns that people ask him, and he wants to deliver there too. The problem is, he doesn't know what it is like to fail, so he has nothing to compare it too. You can tell that shrugging his shoulders no longer cuts it. He is definitely a deeper thinker now than ever. People want to a recipe to what makes him special, as if there is some answer. Thing is, great players very rarely make great teachers and trainers. I think I know why he succeeded, but I will hold out on that for a bit.

When his first chess book comes out, it will be interesting to see if it is of as high a quality or higher than say the Kasparov books. Will he inspire some child the way that Kasparov inspired him in "My Great Predecessors" ?

Too bad we cannot live two lives where things had gone slightly differently, and then be able to remember our experiences in both. The answers would then be incredible. That said, I am going to take all the questions asked and answer them as if they were asked of me. Then you can compare.

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Let's not forget that Carlsen almost didn't make it to the championship match. He should be thanking Chucky for not only not packing it in against Kramnik the final round but fighting hard to beat him, which allowed Carlsen to move on.

Moreover, this championship match was practically over before any moves were made on the board. Anand is not even a top 5 player. His best days are behind him and he barely defeated an old Gelfand in the prior championship match. It was obvious that Anand was intimidated by Carlsen and lacked confidence going in. Witness his shutting down everything to prepare his championship defense and he still got mauled.

Carlsen does deserve credit for not choking under the pressure.
 
http://www.businessinsider.com/magnus-carlsen-advice-2014-1

I find playing against computers very depressing. … I don’t like losing. And I also think it’s not so useful practice [for playing with] humans, because computers — even though computers have become more human in computer style, the basic computers play an amazing dynamic and positional game. Still, it doesn’t help you too much in preparation for playing humans, which are still my main opponents.”
 
Harmony Zhu, World Youth Chess Championship, where a seven-year-old was dominating the under eight group.

http://en.chessbase.com/post/the-remarkably-talented-harmony-zhu

She is also a concert pianist:

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/WBabka7kYHI?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The US is going to get its ass kicked by the Asians and Indians in the next 100 years, and I am not just talking about Chess.
 
Hnaging mate in one was unfortunate for Bill. If he were my student, I would immdiately have him do 100 one move mate problems to increase his tactical vision.

Most of us improve simply by playing many games, accentuating that with study and training. Someone like Bill probably doesn't have the time for this, hence tactical puzzles are probably the best compromise.


kerry888 said:
http://www.businessinsider.com/bill-gates-v-magnus-carlsen-in-chess-2014-1

Watch Bill Gates Lose To The World's Best Chess Player In One Minute:D

Bill is a great sport here
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