10 facts about chess

We offer you a selection of interesting facts about chess.

1. The origin of the name

Chess originated from the ancient Indian game "chaturanga" of the 6th century, whose name is translated from Sanskrit as "four divisions of troops," which includes infantry, cavalry, elephants and chariots, which are presented in chess pawn, knight, bishop and rook.

In the 7th century, the game came to Persia and was renamed shatranj. It is from the Persian language was the name of chess. Players said "Shah" (from the Persian "king") attacking the opponent's king, and "Shah mat" (from the Persian - "the king is dead

2. The Turk who blew all

In 1770, a Hungarian inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen created The Turk. The machine is a figure of "Turk" as a man who sat behind a huge wooden cabinet whose doors opened, showing the audience the complex mechanisms.

The mechanical arm moved the pieces on the field and defeated such famous opponents as Napoleon Bonaparte and Benjamin Franklin.

As it turned out, many years later, The Turk was not the machine. Inside the machine is a chess player, who moved in and hiding when the public showed the complex mechanisms intelligent "machines."

3. The shortest and longest chess game

The shortest game of chess is called the Fool's Mate, consisting of two moves: 1. f3 e5 and 2. g4 Qh4 ++. A draw or loss can also occur before the players start to make moves, as in the case of a specific scenario in the standings, and as a result that the player did not come to play. The longest game of chess was played between Ivan Nikolic and Goran Arsovichem in Belgrade in 1989. It lasted 20 hours and 15 minutes, the game was made 269 moves, and it ended in a draw. Theoretically, the party can last even longer, but after the introduction of rules for 50 moves, this number can be somehow limited.

4. Chessboxing

Garry Kasparov once said that "chess - it is the mind of flour." Probably why someone decided to combine chess with physical testing by creating Chessboxing. Dutch painter Ipe Rubingstal ancestor chessboxing, after seeing the idea of ​​combining chess and boxing in a book-comic.

In chessboxing alternating rounds of chess and boxing, and its motto is "Battles take place in the ring and wars are waged on the board."

Chessboxing is gaining popularity and is managed by the World Organization chessboxing.

5. Dynamic queen

Chess piece queen or queen has undergone many changes in the history of chess. It all started with the fact that she was able to walk only one cell at a diagonal, she later moved into two fields and then farther, like a horse.

Now, this figure could go as diagonally, and horizontally and vertically. At first she was advisor to the Prime Minister or the King.

But later it became the most powerful piece in chess.

6. Chess blind

Chess blindfold - this version of the game, where the player makes all the moves without looking at the chessboard. As a rule, in the game there is a mediator, which moves the figure. Blind chess is an impressive ability possessed by many of the best players in chess. One of the champions in chess became blind Hungarian shahmatistYanosh Flash, who played 52 opponents simultaneously blindfolded and won 32 games.

7. Endless possibilities

After three strokes on each side there are over nine million possible positions. American mathematician calculated the minimum number of non-recurring chess games and brought the number of Shannon.

According to the number of possible unique party number exceeds the number of atoms in the visible universe. The number of atoms is estimated as 10 ^ 79, and the number of unique chess games is 10 ~ 120.

8. The strength of chess computers

Chess computers are now an important part of chess. World champion Garry Kasparov, considered the best player in chess history, lost the computer Deep Blue in 1997, and it was a real shock to the world of chess.

In 2006, world champion Vladimir Kramnik was plunged computer Deep Fritz, which once again highlighted the strength of chess computers. Today, chess programs are often used by players to analyze and improve the game, and they are often put on a par with GMs.

9. A chess clock - not to sleep

Initially, chess games were played without a clock. In this case, the players can play many hours and even days on end, bringing each other up to the point of exhaustion. In 1851, during a chess tournament, an assistant judge recorded that "the party has not been completed due to the fact that players in the end, fell asleep." After that, in a year in an international tournament entered time control in the form of an hourglass, and in 1883 came the first mechanical chess clock by British Thomas Wilson.

10. Chess and our brain

Psychologists often refer to chess, as an effective way to improve their memory. It also allows you to solve complex problems and think through ideas.

It is no wonder that chess began to recommend in the fight against Alzheimer's disease.

Many people believe that chess - a game for those who by nature has a high intellect. This is partly true, but you can also significantly increase your intelligence by playing a game of chess. Moreover, studies have shown that chess activate the two hemispheres of the brain, improve creativity, concentration, critical thinking and reading skills.