Autism, Rumors, and Word Association

Five years ago, having learned that 'April is National Autism Awareness Month', I posted on Chess and Autism. I was reminded of that post earlier this year in an article on Chessbase.com, VG Interview with Magnus Carlsen, which contained a relevant paragraph.

9 About the rumors • Many years ago someone actually asked me if I suffered from autism. I thought the question was stupid, so I replied "well, isn't that obvious?" That was silly – I'm obviously not suffering from autism. Later I realised that not everyone shares that view, and I probably shouldn't have made that thoughtless remark. I feel I'm miles away from anyone with autism. I consider myself to have normal social skills and to be functioning normally.

This was followed by a brief mention of IQ and the comment,

Another word associated with you on Google is "girlfriend".

As for 'word associated with you on Google', this might mean the dropdown list that Google suggests when you start typing a query. It might also mean the following suggestions appended to the results for 'magnus carlsen'.

It's curious that the search for 'magnus carlsen autism' has as the first result the 'VG Interview' mentioned above, but the second and third results -- from cbsnews.com and wikipedia.org -- don't include the word 'autism' in any of its forms. Where do these 'rumors' get started? Is Google inventing associations in response to a frequent query?

FIDE Election: Time for a Change

In last week's Monday, Monday post, I decided to spend some time updating my page on Kasparov's Tournament, Match, and Exhibition Record (TMER), but first there's more important business calling. Most chess fans who follow international chess are aware that 2014 is a FIDE election year. I'm not sure on what date the balloting is scheduled, but it will occur during the forthcoming Tromso Olympiad, which according to the FIDE Calendar : World Events will take place during the first half of August.

The two candidates for FIDE President and their campaign sites are

• Kirsan Ilyumzhinov: fidefirst.com, and
• Garry Kasparov: kasparov2014.com

In the previous election -- 2010 Ilyumzhinov vs. Karpov -- I announced that I was firmly straddling the fence in Three Elections and Election Links:-

I don't have a personal preference between Karpov and Ilyumzhinov. Both candidates have too many skeletons in the closet.

Kasparov is weighted down by fewer skeletons than Karpov, but he is an unabashed elitist and has failed in all previous attempts to influence a political process. He has never learned the art of compromise; either you are with him or you are against him and there is no middle ground. I last criticized his approach earlier this year in FIDE Electioneering.

As for Ilyumzhinov, his record is shady beyond redemption; see Secrets of Kirsan for more about his career. He first became FIDE President in an unusual election in 1995, and has held sway in FIDE for 19 years. He has a number of successes to his credit, but he also has many failures, particularly in commercial endeavors where FIDE is badly lagging other major sports.

For that reason, it's time for a change. I'm not sure Kasparov can do a better job, but I would like to see him given four years to try. If he's not up to the challenge, other candidates will surely step forward in 2018.

For an in depth view of the nose counting in this election, see FIDE Election: Kasparov or Ilyumzhinov; be or not to be, that is the question. The link is a Google translate of Spanish analysis posted on lanacion.com.ar.

Fischer Insecure?

Here on Top eBay Chess Items by Price, Fischer autographs are frequently featured. The last one I can remember was Fischer's Doodle, although there might have been another since then.

If the only unusual aspect of the item pictured below was the signature itself, I wouldn't use it, but the item tells a story about Fischer. It was titled 'Chess Champion BOBBY FISCHER - Autograph Letter Signed' and sold for US $850.00, Buy-It-Now.

The description added,

8½" x 11" autograph letter signed on the bottom of a collector’s letter to him requesting a photograph, February 21, 1962.

The full request in the letter said,

As a great admirer of your superb talents in the field of chess, I would appreciate a momento in the form of a personal note signed, and if possible, an accompanying photograph.

Fischer replied,

Thanks for your kind letter. Since I wish you to remain an admirer I won't send you my picture.

Was the 18-year-old Fischer not as sure of his looks as he was of his chess?

A Lovely Day for Chess

I thought I had already featured the Chess Hall of Fame on Flickr Friday, but the only post I could find was a video: World Chess Hall of Fame and Museum.

World Chess Hall of Fame © Flickr user MBK under Creative Commons.

Looks like it was a lovely day to play chess outdoors.

Chess Comics No.6: Mad About Animated GIFs

The piece I featured in Chess Comics No.5: Mad About Chess? wasn't the only chess related drawing in Mad Magazine, September 1958. One of the four articles in the 'Don Martin Department' was 'The Chess Game' (p.23). Rather than copy the entire page, I split it into frames to create an animated GIF.

'The Chess Game' by Don Martin

After splitting the original cartoon, I used the web site Free Online Animated GIF Maker - Make A GIF Easily to create the final composite image. It's far from perfect, but I think it still works.

Ahzee King

This music video has more chess action than I've ever seen in a non-chess clip.

Ahzee - King (Official Video) (3:31) • 'Aprés son tube BORN AGAIN - Découvrez le nouveau single d'AHZEE'

The translated description says, 'After his hit BORN AGAIN - Discover the new single AHZEE'. • 'Le Clip du Jour...!!' from Happy Music France.

Monday, Monday

My most recent Monday post was a short filler:-

• 2014-04-07: Early Influences II

It followed a series on upgrading my basic tool set:-

• 2014-01-20: Gone Fishing
• 2014-01-27: Fishing on the River Chess
• 2014-02-03: Testing an Engine [Komodo]
• 2014-02-10: Frontend and Backend [SCID and Arena]
• 2014-02-17: Searching for an Online Chess Database
• 2014-02-24: Short List for an Online Chess Database
• 2014-03-03: Short List Is Longer
• 2014-03-10: Choosing an Online Chess Database
• 2014-03-17: Resurrecting an Online Chess Database [Chesslab]
• 2014-03-24: Sicilian Najdorf 6.h3
• 2014-03-31: 2014 Candidates Openings

Now it's time to get back to 'Tournament, Match, and Exhibition Record' (TMER) projects:-

• 2013-11-25: TMERs : One Step at a Time [still some open actions]
• 2014-01-13: Carlsen TMER: Last updated 2014-01-13

The first stop is:-

• Garry Kasparov's Tournament, Match, and Exhibition Record (1973-); [Last updated 2003-03-17]

I searched the TWIC PGN database for Kasparov games played since the last update, and found about 150 games. I also have a list of corrections++ to the published file that needs addressing. More to follow...