CHESS PRACTICE

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The article below first appeared in French, on «FE: France Echecs», October 28, 2002 :

   «© France Echecs - Correspondance VI : Depth of Chess»


In addition, you'll not be surprised if we express here all our enthusiasm for the very great talent of Larry Elmore, to which we owe the illustration of this page. We thank very much him for this!!... Don't be missing to vist four sites suggested here; his own website and three others which are partially devoted to him.


Correspondence  VI

Depth of Chess

(By Michel BRUNEAU)


Magic of Chess holds so that, also intense is our concentration, major our analysis, clear-sighted our vision of the game, we do not menage to exhaust its infinite richness.
However the "Noble Game", if it remains unattainable with the pinnacle of its perfection, adaps, good child, to the level of each one and lends itself ready to an exploitation in minor mode.
Yes, we reach an intense joy to detect a pretty move and, one moment, dazzled by our own intelligence, which seems to irradiate the chessboard, our hand very nearly trembles when we seize the piece which we have decided to play and pose it on the suitable square.
Then, the mirror swivels and our adversary, fighting in its turn a memorable battle of the spirit, produces a seizing counterpart... And this game of comings and goings continues endlessly, such a well regulated ballet, such the haunting oscillation of an immaterial pendulum.
Thus is established, at the mercy of alternation of the moves, an advance mid-term between mediocrity and sparkling gleams, where, the inadequacy of the answers has equal only impertinence of the questions.
Similar considerations are neither free poetry nor verbal delirious, but testify to some swift observations, in the course of the chessboard.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** A STRATIFICATION QUASI UNTIL THE INFINITE ***

What I perceive of the chess game is incomparable so that a Master can detect there, and the latter does not manage to foresee the shade of what one of the largest Masters is ready to discover. And then, that a genius occurs, it will propel the comprehension of Chess on a level ever reached. Nevertheless, early or late his vision will be exceeded by more illuminated than him... And however, always well beyond, it will have, superimposed the ones with the others, quasi ad infinitum, strata of the inaccessible.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** AN ARMY OF RODENTS
TO THE CATCHES WITH
A SINGLE WHOLE CHEESE ***

There are many million chess players in the world. The software, they have at their disposal, multiplies by ten with pleasure their potentialities. Thousands of works, devoted to the Noble play, flood the libraries of the more scholars of them. Thus, since tens of years, without speaking about the former centuries, increasingly more and always more voracious, an army of rodents is always after a single whole cheese, without never managing to reach its heart.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** SPECULATIVE STUDIES AND
EXHAUSTIVE STUDIES ***

What do we know rightly with the Chess game, after so much of joint efforts? Some results as best one can acquired, some quasi-convictions, unceasingly called into question... And rare certainties all the same.
In fact, it's easy to establish that the widest fields of our present knowledge, even when we baptize them with the pompous name of theory, concern mainly pure speculations, whereas the only certainty we have correspond only to the very narrow field whose analysis was really exhaustive.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** AN OPENING THEORY
UNDER CONSTRUCTION ***

Let us see each stage of Chess more closely. It is as well necessary to start with the opening. The theory developped in this regard is the fruit of reflexion and play of best grandmasters. Is it really stabilized? Can one speak about an enclosure of certainty? I don't beleive that.
On the one hand, including in the very first moves, some innovations appear here or there, which call into question the acquired convictions, on whole sides of our pseudo-knowledge. In addition, the appreciations diverge largely from one theorist to another. He is to only see, in the Informant for example, the contradictory judgements that strongest grandmasters relate to such or such move, such or such line of play, however duly indexed in the theory.
One could further push the argumentation by admitting that one day it would be undoubtedly established that: 1.Nf3 is the strongest beginning for White. That would change the deal of Opening Theory in a very radical way. However, probably this never occur; but how to know?

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** AN HIGHLY SPECULATIVE
EXIT FROM OPENING THEORY ***

In a given line of play, the exit from Opening Chess Theory shows the two interesting following characteristics: i) A considerable number of players, including among the greatest ones, express a great interest in such things. ii) Uncertainty and controversy culminate there.
However, in spite of the high number and the quality of players attempting to treat these questions, the use of software increasingly more powerful, the long periods of reflexion made profitable, the innumerable discussions and exchanges of ideas on this subjects, an artistic blur remains, illustrating, as if it was necessary, at which point we are here far from apprehending the subject in its entirety.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** AN INEXTRICABLE MIDDLEGAME ***

Following a (theoretical?!) novelty, more or less interesting and often doubtful, one plunges in full unknown. The game is more complicated than ever, but the originality of the position makes that one only finds abandoned oneself to the inextricable complexity of the data. What people can understand, even strong players allocating an appreciable time of reflexion, could be only ridiculous.
And starts then interminable solitary travel where, no matter what it occurs, no matter what one does, the overwhelming certainty is essential we are tarnish gradually priceless prospects; each adventurous move always moving us away from this optimal line of play, to which we had had the weakness to dream, but whose however mysteries will remain to us hidden forever.

   «© Fantasy Gallery - Elmore -
Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»



*** AN ARDUOUS ENDGAME ***

The exchange of Queens leads to the illusion of an impoverished play which, all in the opposite, quickly appears a labyrinth with an innumerable crossroads, junctions and culs-de-sac. The endgame itself has only the appearance of simplicity, while at the same time highest technicality governs it and than it can induce complications without end.

   «© Elmore - The Official Site
of Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»



*** A SOPHISTICATED AND
HOWEVER RUDIMENTARY THEORY ***

The Chess Theory is sophisticated by certain its assertions (which one thinks for example of "Pawn Power in Chess" of Hans Kmoch); and however rudimentary, insofar as its precepts represent only one general groundwork, well far from bringing explicit solutions to concrete problems which the player is confronted when he encounters a particularly rich position .
Who more is, this theory summarizes himself with a whole of postulates, founded on the practice of Grandmasters, by no means unified by a total conceptualization.

   «© Fantasy Gallery - Elmore -
Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»




*** A REDUCED CERTAINTY ***

It is very revealing to become aware that today the only exhaustive study, therefore specific to the field of the certainty, relates to the 5 pieces or less endgames. At ChessBase, this explicit study accounts for 4 CD-ROM! ... Endgames with 6 pieces were indexed only in particular cases, so much their complete study would require average data processing disproportionate.

   «© Animanga Picture Archive -
The Larry Elmore Gallery»




*** CHESS AND EXPONENTIAL GROWTH ***

The exponential growth, which is a simple mathematical concept, easily defies the imagination. It acts of the multiplication of a certain number, a great number of times by itself.
Let us see what it is concerning the chess game. It returns thus to the spirit this beautiful legend where Sissa ben Dahir, the Grand Vizer to Indian King, Shirham, required, as a reward for the invention of this game, that is laid out a grain of corn on the first case of the "Shatrang" (the first version of Chess), two on the second, four on the third etc... such is the exponential growth basic 2.
Now, let us seek to make us a very approximate idea of the number of technically playable games, without null concern of the quality of the play and even without refusing stupid moves, provided that they are in conformity with the chess rules.
Then, let us admit that, in each position given, one can on average play 16 different moves; such estimation is generally far from the reality. Then let us consider the duration average of games played in 50 moves. Our evaluations are weak, because they hold only moderately account of very long games, exceeding 150 to 200 moves, perfectly concevable between players of the same high level, delivering a pitiless combat, while sparing their forces reasonably.

   «© Fantasy Gallery - Elmore -
Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»



This provides the number N = 16 to power of 50. But, since 16 = 2 to the power of 4, our estimate, inevitably lower than reality, leads us to retain the number all the same fabulous: N = 2 to the power of 200.
One can have a picturesque idea of this number in the following way: take a cigarette paper sheet. Fold it, on itself, once, twice, three times... nothing simpler. The thickness obtained remains very low.
But, imagine now that you fold this sheet, on itself, 50 times; which thickness would you obtain? A simple calculation shows that the thickness, in this case, would be higher, largely, to 300 000 km, i.e. the distance from the Earth to the Moon! ... That leaves you think what would give a folding 200 times of your cigarette paper sheet.
On a purely comparative basis, humanity represents todays less than 2 with the power of 33 inhabitants. With constant population, one can thus estimate at 2 with power of 38 the number of human over one millenium.

   «© Fantasy Gallery - Elmore -
Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»



*** SAME IN THE CASE WHERE
ALL HUMAN PEOPLE AND ALL
COMPUTERS IN THE WORLD... ***

Even if all the human ones and all the computers in the world cooperate, during one millenium, to exhaust the Chess game, they would not reach that point... And even if their eagerness concentrated exclusively on such particular line of such or such opening, they could not succeed in their attempt.

   «© www.Aumania.it - Fantasy Art -
Fantasy Artist Larry Elmore»



*** FINITUDE, COMPLEXITY
AND BEAUTY ***

The mathematicians had invented the infinite to apprehend this difficulty specific to the very great numbers. The field of the small numbers gives place to a simple study consisting with an individually examination. The field of infinite, as for him, lends itself easily to the techniques of mathematical analysis.
The hyper complexity resides in spheres of knowledge whose finitude is irreducible, while at the same time it brings into play very great numbers. Thus, the Chess game proceed of an untameable finitude and complexity, whose attractive presence generates the beauty.

************

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Private collection»


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