Metro: Chess world rocked by rumours of anal beads and artificial intelligence

[Corcaigh]

On 10/20/2022 at 5:15 PM, mistertim said:

I was watching a breakdown of why they think Niemann cheated, and it's actually pretty compelling. Basically his moves coincided with what high level chess AI programs (which are ridiculously good and basically unbeatable now) would do in that situation by a huge amount...almost perfectly IIRC, compared to other grandmasters who were closer to the 40-50% range. Which is almost impossible unless he's literally an AI or he has an IQ of 400.

Can you share the link?

 

I have not seen an analysis by anyone with an understanding of statistics that supports this.

 

https://en.chessbase.com/post/is-hans-niemann-cheating-world-renowned-expert-ken-regan-analyzes

[mistertim]

Not really 100% germane but I was in Austin for an AI technology expo over the last 2 days and Garry Kasparov was there as a keynote speaker. 

 

He did a simultaneous exhibition match against 10 people at the same time, which I signed up for.

 

I was the second to last person to resign and got to keep the chessboard we played on, which he signed. 

 

Super nice guy.

 

[TheGreatBuzz]

@mistertim are the nerd on the left or the nerd on the right?

[Forehead]

15 hours ago, mistertim said:

Not really 100% germane but I was in Austin for an AI technology expo over the last 2 days and Garry Kasparov was there as a keynote speaker. 

 

He did a simultaneous exhibition match against 10 people at the same time, which I signed up for.

 

I was the second to last person to resign and got to keep the chessboard we played on, which he signed. 

 

 

Did you do the pawn - queen - bishop - checkmate thing?  I figure a guy who has seen everything chess has to offer would never expect you to try the sequence used to beat six year olds.

 

I Googled it...apparently it has a name..."Scholar's Mate."  I would have figured "Moron's Defense" or something like that.

[Corcaigh]

17 hours ago, mistertim said:

Not really 100% germane but I was in Austin for an AI technology expo over the last 2 days and Garry Kasparov was there as a keynote speaker. 

 

He did a simultaneous exhibition match against 10 people at the same time, which I signed up for.

 

I was the second to last person to resign and got to keep the chessboard we played on, which he signed. 

 

Super nice guy.

 

You should have trolled him by wearing a IBM t-shirt

 

[Sacks 'n' Stuff]

20 hours ago, mistertim said:

Not really 100% germane but I was in Austin for an AI technology expo over the last 2 days and Garry Kasparov was there as a keynote speaker. 

 

He did a simultaneous exhibition match against 10 people at the same time, which I signed up for.

 

I was the second to last person to resign and got to keep the chessboard we played on, which he signed. 

 

Super nice guy.

That’s awesome.

4 hours ago, The Almighty Buzz said:

@mistertim are the nerd on the left or the nerd on the right?

That’s Kasparov on the left so mistertim is the nerd on the right.

[Corcaigh]

13 hours ago, Forehead said:

 

Did you do the pawn - queen - bishop - checkmate thing?  I figure a guy who has seen everything chess has to offer would never expect you to try the sequence used to beat six year olds.

 

I Googled it...apparently it has a name..."Scholar's Mate."  I would have figured "Moron's Defense" or something like that.

One of the most popular online chess sites, lichess.org, makes their entire database of games available with several hundred million games played by non-experts. The Scholar’s Mate position with the white light-squared bishop and Queen attacking the f7 square by the Black king appears thousands of times, and in about 20% of the games White doesn’t deliver checkmate.

 

 

[PokerPacker]

1 hour ago, Corcaigh said:

One of the most popular online chess sites, lichess.org, makes their entire database of games available with several hundred million games played by non-experts. The Scholar’s Mate position with the white light-squared bishop and Queen attacking the f7 square by the Black king appears thousands of times, and in about 20% of the games White doesn’t deliver checkmate.

 

 

I wonder if that 20% is the cheetah playing with its food, or if it's incompetence.

[Corcaigh]

7 hours ago, PokerPacker said:

I wonder if that 20% is the cheetah playing with its food, or if it's incompetence.

 

Based on the win rate it’s incompetence. 

[mistertim]

On 11/4/2022 at 8:52 AM, Forehead said:

 

Did you do the pawn - queen - bishop - checkmate thing?  I figure a guy who has seen everything chess has to offer would never expect you to try the sequence used to beat six year olds.

 

I Googled it...apparently it has a name..."Scholar's Mate."  I would have figured "Moron's Defense" or something like that.

 

 

Nah, in these sort of simul exhibition matches the player doing the simul is always white, so Scholar's mate wouldn't be an option.

 

As far as play, in these matches the exhibitor is mostly playing on pattern matching as he goes to each board, as opposed to actually keeping every full game in his/her head and calculating moves far in advance (which would be pretty much impossible for even the best players, like Kasparov).

 

So what they're mostly waiting for is for you to make a blunder that gives them an opportunity to attack and end it. I mostly tried to play a sound tactical game with good lines. Semi-defensive but also didn't want to be too passive so I made a couple of aggressive moves and managed to put him in check once.

 

My main goal was last past the opening game into the middle game, and if possible check him once. I achieved both, so I'm content.

 

 

Add: Here's the chessboard we played on and he signed.

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by mistertim

[China]

 

[China]

Chess.com, Hans Niemann have made their peace over 2022 cheating scandal

 

Last September, the Internet was abuzz for weeks about a chess cheating controversy that erupted during the third round of the Sinquefield Cup. The reigning chess world champion, Magnus Carlsen, lost to a 19-year-old upstart named Hans Niemann in what was widely considered a shocking upset. Carlsen withdrew from the tournament the next day—an incident considered "virtually unprecedented' at such a high level of chess—and his cryptic comments on Twitter fueled rampant speculation that Niemann had cheated.

 

Things snowballed from there, with a full investigation and a $100 million lawsuit filed by Niemann in October. A judge dismissed the lawsuit in June. Now, Niemann and Chess.com have finally "resolved their differences" and settled the matter. Niemann can now return to Chess.com and is eligible to play in any event. All the parties involved are free to voice their opinions about the controversy.

 

The Carlsen/Niemann dustup is considered the most serious chess cheating scandal since the 2006 World Chess Championship, dubbed "Toiletgate" because Veselin Topalov accused his opponent, Vladimir Kramnik, of going to the bathroom too often. (Topalov thought Kramnik was getting computer assistance during the match via these bathroom breaks, later insisting that network cables had been found in the bathroom ceiling.) Anti-cheating measures have since been upgraded for future chess events in response. Those measures include nonlinear junction detectors to detect electronics, an RF machine to detect infrared signals, confiscating electronics from spectators, a 30-minute broadcast delay for US chess championships, and even retaining a medical doctor to inspect players' ears for hidden transmitters.

 

The fact that Niemann admitted to cheating a few times in online chess matches when he was 12 and 15 didn't help his case, but he steadfastly insisted he never cheated in over-the-board games. Chess.com removed Niemann from their platform following the Sinquefield Cup. Three weeks after withdrawing, Carlsen released a statement explaining his decision, saying he believed Niemann had cheated more often (and more recently) than Niemann had admitted and that he didn't want to play Niemann.

 

Opinions among others in the chess community were divided as the controversy fueled rampant speculation. For instance, former world champion Anatoly Karpov said that Carlsen had a bad opening and couldn't cope with the consequences, calling the claims of cheating "complete nonsense." Others, including former world champion Garry Kasparov, criticized Carlsen for making accusations of cheating without evidence. Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura supported Carlsen, claiming that Niemann had previously been banned from Chess.com for cheating in online games.

 

The fierce debate even produced a bizarre viral conspiracy theory that Niemann had used anal beads to receive coded messages during the match—a charge the grandmaster vehemently denied, even volunteering to play chess naked to prove his innocence.

 

A 72-page report released by Chess.com last October found that Niemann had cheated online far more frequently than he admitted—in over 100 games as recently as August 2020—but found no concrete statistical evidence that he had cheated in his game against Carlsen or any other over-the-board games. Chess.com also noted evidence of many other grandmasters cheating in online games, redacting the names of 24.

 

Niemann responded with a federal lawsuit alleging a "malicious conspiracy" between Chess.com and its Chief Chess Officer Daniel Rensch, Carlsen and his company (Play Magnus Group), and Nakamura to defame and "unlawfully collude" against Niemann. He asked for $100 million in damages, citing canceled upcoming matches after the allegations. With that lawsuit dismissed, the main parties involved have set aside their differences and resolved to move forward.

 

Here is the full statement from Chess.com:

 

Quote

We are pleased to report that we have reached an agreement with Hans Niemann to put our differences behind us and move forward together without further litigation. At this time, Hans has been fully reinstated to Chess.com, and we look forward to his participation in our events. We would also like to reaffirm that we stand by the findings in our October 2022 public report regarding Hans, including that we found no determinative evidence that he has cheated in any in-person games. We all love chess and appreciate all of the passionate fans and community members who allow us to do what we do.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Cooked Crack]

Quote

The winner of a Xiangqi, or Chinese chess, tournament has been stripped of his title after allegations of inappropriate behaviour. 

 

Yan Chenglong has also been accused of cheating by using a communication device analogous to anal beads. 

 

The 48-year-old has been stripped of his title and banned from playing for a year.

Quote

According to the CXA, Mr Yan started drinking with friends in his hotel room shortly after winning the title of "Xiangqi King" at a national tournament held on the Chinese island of Hainan last week. 

 

He then defecated in the bathtub of his room in an act "that damaged hotel property and violated public order and good morals", said the CXA statement.