Human Intuition and Computer-Assisted Chess
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!UGUSTô USCHESSORG &/BBFKHVVJDPHVB$.)BUBFKHVVOLIH303DJH Correspondence Chess *ZI^M6M_?WZTL" 0]UIV1V\]Q\QWVIVL +WUX]\MZ̉I[[Q[\ML+PM[[ How a gang of amateurs bested some of the strongest players on earth By Howard Sandler, Ph.D. and the Chessgames.com World Team Vietnamese woman living in Alaska, over a correspondence world champion. presented to the GM. Members can also a lawyer from Toronto, a polymath To understand their success we need to vote to offer or accept draws, actions which ) from Ireland, an accountant from look at the role of computer analysis in require a simple majority to approve. Dur- India, a scuba diver from Brazil, an elec- the rapidly-evolving world of correspon- ing the game, the World Team privately trical engineer from Virginia, a biologist dence chess (CC). After that, we will look discusses its strategy and analysis to help from Norway, and over 5,000 others make at critical moves in each game in an reach a consensus on the strongest plan. up the Chessgames World Team. They attempt to perceive how the World Team Under this format, the World has played six are all chess fans who registered in Chess combined human intuition and com- games to date: two with correspondence games.com’s series of massive online con- puter evaluations to steer the games to GM Arno Nickel (win, draw), and one each sultation games known as the Chessgames victory. Finally, we will speculate about with 2008 U.S. Champion GM Yury Shul- Challenge, that pits the members of the the future of CC as well as the Chess- man (win), 15th Correspondence World website against famous grandmasters games Challenge. Champion 1996-2002 Gert Jan Timmer- (GMs). Is it even possible that such a The format of the game is straightfor- man (win), 13th Correspondence World loose confederation of amateurs could ward. The GM makes a move within a Champion 1989-1998 Mikhail Umansky hold their own against strong opposi- specified time control, usually two or three (draw), and WGM Natalia Pogonina (draw). tion? Apparently so: The World Team days per half-move. The World Team votes Let’s take a whirlwind tour through these has a record of three wins, three draws, democratically, with each member voting for modern masterpieces of collaborative chess. and no losses—all against very strong one move. The move that gets the most Our story starts on August 18, 2006, players, including a scintillating victory votes is actually played on the board and when the Chessgames World Team played 32 Chess Life — August 2011 uschess.org &/BBFKHVVJDPHVB$.)BUT[SBFKHVVOLIH$03DJH its first move, 1. e4, against Correspon- dence chess and over-the-board chess that time, he has been one of the top dence GM Arno Nickel. Among his many are nowadays two extremely different dis- American players with an outstanding successes, in 2009 GM Nickel finished ciplines, more so than ever, because performance at the 2001 World Open clear first in the Simon Webb Memorial (a correspondence players in contrast to (tied first), and wins at the 2006 U.S. category 15 event) against a field of 12 of over-the-board players have full access to Open Championship and the 2008 U.S. the strongest correspondence GMs in the computer engines and databases.” Championship. He also is generous with world. According to the Chessgames co- Neither the World Team nor the GMs his time in support of U.S. chess at all lev- founder Daniel Freeman, “Nickel was blindly played the moves generated by els. Once again, the outcome of the game chosen as the first opponent precisely their computers. In fact, the key move in was to be found in the many human because of his success in defeating com- the World Team’s first game against GM moves that were made by both sides. puters, especially his convincing victory Nickel was generated by human intuition, Although the World Team played over the monstrously strong cluster com- and only later was it checked thoroughly “human moves” 17. ... f4 and 25. ... Qf7! puter, Hydra. We had every reason to by computers. Let’s take a look. (neither was the computer’s first choice), expect the World Team would lose, but the move that perhaps best illustrates learn a valuable lesson in the process.” the need for an overarching human strat- Mr. Freeman’s opinion soon changed, The World versus Arno Nickel egy was played in this position: when he witnessed the World organize “Brave New World” itself and ultimately defeat Nickel: “The word challenge had reversed its meaning: ++++ Yury Shulman versus The World it wasn’t so much the members we were “Not a Care in the World” challenging, it was the grandmasters!” +++kp Controversy about computer use was p+pr+p+ +r++k+ present from the start, and as computer chess engines have become more and Pq+p+Q +++pp more powerful since 2006, these com- +P++ p+l++ plaints were voiced more loudly in each successive game. Even before the World’s +++R+P ++Pq+ game with Nickel began, lengthy debates P++PK PpR++ emerged about whether computer assis- tance was necessary or appropriate. Why ++++ +n+++P did such strong reactions against com- White to play L+PL+ puter-assisted correspondence games continue to surface? Many team members It is White’s turn to play, and the move ++Q+K recall the days when correspondence 36. b4! quickly ended the game. (The pawn After 35. h3 chess was played on postcards, so their is immune to capture: 36. ... Qxb4? 37. reactions were generational. Other mem- Qd8 mates in a few moves.) Today’s chess In this complicated position, the World bers had played chess at online chess engines are able to take advantage of played a move not even in the top ten clubs, where computers are the lowest multi-core computers to find moves like computer candidates: 35. ... h6! The move and most loathsome form of cheating. 36. b4!, but in 2006, relatively few World created a sort of Zugzwang (especially However, members more familiar with Team members had computer engines of when followed by another non-computer computer-assisted correspondence chess such power. Those that did were rarely move, 37. ... Kh8) which GM Shulman pointed out that the computer’s evalua- able to delve 10 moves deep, even in was not able to overcome. Shulman took tions were often useless (in the opening overnight runs. The move came as a his defeat with grace and humor, saying phase), flawed (in closed positions), or shock to GM Nickel. After the game was that “You really did show wonderful team- artificially cut off (the horizon effect). over, he praised the choice of 36. b4 over work. When I heard about group forums They emphasized that to be successful it going into a complicated rook ending with … I was shocked how serious my opposi- took people to provide overall strategic 36. Qd8: “Practically speaking, I think tion is! … I will be happy to answer your guidance, and that blindly following the 36. b4 was the stronger move, as it left questions, if you do not mind advice from computer’s advice every move would not Black without any defense, whereas the someone whom you beat so flawlessly.” be a winning strategy. rook ending would have complicated As GM Shulman noted, the World Team The World Team was fortunate to have things unnecessarily, as the white rook is had an amazing ability to organize itself a member known as “RandomVisitor” who not well placed in front of its own pawns.” in order to best use the talents of all of its consistently provided a backbone of analy- (posted on February 11, 2007). GM Nickel members. The development of a forum sis with his high-end equipment and had kind things to say about the World system for analyzing variations and dis- engine. His analysis gave the World a Team’s strength as well. Shortly after tributing the work of the computer strong start as it branched out in many the game, he wrote “... in order to illus- analysts, the willingness of those with analytic directions. There is an art to trate on which level this very complicated chess engines to run analyses for those using the computer well: winning requires game has been played, I would suggest, without such resources, and the ability of computer analysis to be skillfully inter- that White managed to play on a 2700- the World to merge human input with woven with human intuition. All serious 2800 level (ICCF Elo), while Black played computer output all combined to make correspondence chess players are accus- about 200 Elo points weaker. ... One can the team both effective and enjoyable. tomed to this art. The strength of the GMs only congratulate the World Team for (even Shulman and Pogonina, who do not this fine achievement.” The World had the white pieces again ordinarily play correspondence) lies in in its third game, this time against the their keen instinct of when to regard their The Chessgames World Team’s second 15th World Correspondence Chess Cham- own judgments higher than the com- game was against GM Yury Shulman. pion, GM Gert Jan Timmerman. The puter’s numerical evaluations. GM Nickel GM Shulman was born in Minsk, Belarus, pressure of playing against a player of commented, “Well of course, correspon- and moved to the USA in 1999. Since Timmerman’s reputation raised the inten- uschess.org Chess Life — August 2011 33 &/BBFKHVVJDPHVB$.)BUT[SBFKHVVOLIH$03DJH Correspondence Chess sity level of the game and presented a puters are of little or no value in opening World Team.