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Monday, August 8, 2022

Gukesh vs Abdusattorov


To wonder is human. To drive hard enough to be able to achieve anything takes a certain disquiet..



 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S-1BFc2zvo


Chess is a conversation between two players. Like other forms of conversation it has set pieces (its vocabulary) and moves (its syntax). The arrangement of pieces and the sequence of moves is how one player converses with the other. Conversations played out over a chess board are objectively coherent because the rules that regulate it are rigid to the extreme. But within this closed system lies an eternity of possibilities: those observing a game will always agree on what’s been said but do not typically agree on how to proceed. In chess each player plays to win. Or, when a win is not possible, to draw. This is not the case for most conversations. The structure of human interaction is rarely predicated by confrontation and strategic play. Except in sociopaths. And games like chess. A win shows an opponent - as well as those observing - who played better during a particular game. Winning and, especially winning regularly, is an indication of value to the wider community of chess players and observers. In human terms the desire to be valued is the desire to be loved. 


At this level conversations are always tense, often complicated, sometimes beautiful, and very addictive.