The number of possible variants of chess games. What you need to know about chess

Do you want to become a chess grandmaster? Let's be honest, to achieve your goal you will need to know a little more than the facts below. However, chess is one of the most famous strategic games on our planet; its history goes back several centuries and is extremely interesting in itself.

The birthplace of chess is India

25. The birthplace of chess is considered to be India, the era of the Gupta state (about 1400 years ago). From there the game moved to Eranshahr (the territory of modern Iran and Iraq), then to the Middle East, Europe and Russia. Perhaps this is what the first chess games looked like

24. The first pawn move to move two squares instead of one was invented in Spain in 1280. Exclusive right of a pawn on the first move

23. Chinese Emperor Sui Wen-di once executed two overseas chess players after hearing them call one of the pieces the emperor. Sui Wen-di's rage was caused by the mention of the high title of the ruler of the Celestial Empire in a simple game. Emperor Wen of Sui apparently did not approve of chess

22. The first mention of chess in America dates back to 1641 and is associated with the city of Esther Singleton, where Dutch settlers lived at that time. The first chess tournament in the United States took place in New York in 1857.
Lithographs of participants in the first chess tournament in the United States

21. The longest move in terms of time belongs to the Brazilian Francisco Trois: the chess player spent two hours and twenty minutes thinking about it.
It took the Brazilian chess player more than two hours to think about his move (pictured in a black vest)

The first game "Space - Earth"

20. The first game “Space - Earth” took place on June 9, 1970. She was played by the crew of the Soyuz-9 spacecraft and representatives of the cosmonaut training center on Earth. The game ended in a draw.
The match between the astronauts and the Earth ended in a draw.

19. Initially, the queen could only move one square diagonally, then two. This continued until Queen Isabella of Spain ordered that the queen (and in Europe she is called the queen) be made the most powerful piece on the board.
From the weakest piece, the queen has become the strongest

18. The oldest recorded chess game dates back to 900 - it was a game between the Baghdad chronicler and his student.
Illustration for the oldest chess game

17. Legendary scientist Alan Turing wrote the world's first computer program for playing chess in 1951. Since at that time there was no machine capable of processing this program, for the test game Turing had to perform algorithmic calculations himself, making one move in a few minutes.
Turing was also interested in chess

16. "Deep Blue" became the first program to lose to a grandmaster in November 1988. However, nine years later, it also won two games in a match with Garry Kasparov in 1997 and also became the first machine to beat a human.
The computer has learned to play chess no worse than a human

The oldest chess set

15. The oldest surviving chess set was found on the Isle of Lewis in Northern Scotland. It dates back to the 12th century AD, and is believed to have been created in Iceland or Norway. Its original performance served as a model for magical chess pieces in the film "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone". The oldest chess set played a role in the Harry Potter movie

14. Emmanuel Lasker remained the longest-serving world chess champion in history: 26 years and 337 days, from 1894 to 1921. Emmanuel Lasker remained invincible for many years

13. The second book printed on English language Following the stories about the Trojan War, a work on chess began. Illustration for one of the first printed books on chess

12. In 1561, the Spanish priest Ruy Lopez de Segura wrote the book “On the Ingenuity and Art of Chess,” which became the first serious study of this game. The name of Ruy Lopez is associated with the creation of the Spanish opening, since Lopez paid most attention in his work to the beginning of the game. The first theoretical work on chess was written by Ruy Lopez de Segura

11. Chess is often cited by doctors as an example of an effective means of improving memory. This game also trains the mind by solving difficult logical problems, so it is recommended to combat Alzheimer's disease.
According to doctors, chess improves memory and trains the mind

Where does the name chess come from?

10. The name "chess" comes from the Persian words "check" and "checkmate", which are often translated as "the king is dead", although a more accurate equivalent would be "the king is trapped" or "the king cannot escape."
The king cannot escape!

9. In 1972, during the Fischer-Spassky match in Reykjavik, the Soviet delegation suspected challenger Fischer of using various electronic and chemical devices to throw the world champion off balance. Spassky's chair was guarded around the clock, and after the games it was sent to the laboratory, but nothing unusual was found in it.
The psychological pressure of Robert Fischer on Boris Spassky was never established

8. Filipino boy Alekhine Nuri became the youngest FIDE Master in the world. Now he is 9 years old.
The youngest FIDE Master is 9 years old

7. In English, the word rooky, denoting an outstanding chess player, comes from “rook” - rook. As a rule, rooks come into play closer to the endgame and, together with the queen, are the most powerful pieces.
A strong chess player is like a rook

6. The folding chessboard was invented in 1125 by a chess priest. The church forbade priests from playing chess, so the ingenious pastor simply folded the board in half to make it look like books stacked on top of each other.
An inventive priest found a way to circumvent the ban on chess

Thomas Wilson invented the chess clock

5. The chess clock was invented by Thomas Wilson in 1883, before that time the hourglass was used. Chess clocks acquired their modern appearance by 1900, when the switching mechanism was invented.
It is impossible to hold a chess tournament without a watch

4. In 1985, Garry Kasparov became the youngest world chess champion at the age of 22 years and 210 days. Until now, the thirteenth world champion is recognized by many experts as the greatest chess player in history.
Garry Kasparov became the youngest world champion

3. The longest match in terms of the number of moves was played between chess players Nikolic and Arsovic in Belgrade in 1989. The game lasted 20 hours and 15 minutes and ended in a draw. 269 ​​moves were made during the game. After this match, FIDE introduced the 50-move rule: if not a single piece is captured in 100 moves, the players have no right to delay the game any longer and a draw is declared.
The longest match in chess history ended in a draw

2. However, theoretically, the longest chess game can have 5,949 moves.
It is possible to make more than five thousand moves in a chess game

1. The number of possible unique chess games is greater than the number of electrons in the entire universe. The number of smallest particles of matter is about 10 to the 79th power, while the number of non-repeating chess combinations is more than 10 to the 120th power.
All kinds of chess games are unlikely to ever be played

Many scientists do not doubt that chess has an extremely positive effect on a person: it develops memory, trains the mind, and it is not for nothing that it is even considered a sport, and therefore there is no doubt that this unique game will not go down in history for a long time.

Good day, dear friend!

Possible variations of games in chess can be classified in different ways. There would be a desire. That’s what we’ll try to do in today’s article.

More for educational purposes than practical. Although, who knows... it is known that mathematical calculations (more on this below) formed the basis of modern computer chess. I offer several classification methods:

In count

By the number of possible chess games and by the number of possible positions. These numbers are different.

We won't reinvent the wheel. There are “specially trained people” for this). For example, an American mathematician Claude Shannon.

By number of parties

Number of possible non-repeating batches amounts to 10 120

This is the so called Shannon number . The following assumptions were used for the calculation:

1. Each game lasts on average 40 moves
2. With each move, the chess player makes a choice from 30 alternative moves.

The number 10,120 can hardly be somehow comprehended with the mind. Let's make a comparison: the number of atoms in the universe varies, according to various estimates, from 4*10 79 before 10 81 . In other words, less than the Shannon number in 10 40 once.

By number of positions

The same Claude Shannon made a calculation on the number of possible possible positions in chess. This number is 10 43

Quite a lot too, you’ll agree. Although fewer than atoms in the universe.) Here the universal scale turned out to be greater than chess. Which, however, personally doesn’t upset me much.

By format

There are quite a large number of different variations of chess games that existed both previously and now. I will dwell on the most famous and familiar to the author of these lines.

Classical game

This is the chess that the vast majority of us play. Classic rules, 2 player.

By correspondence

Everything is the same, only remotely and extended in time. Sometimes .

Moves are transmitted using mail, the Internet; previously, telegraph or telephone were sometimes used to transmit moves. With the development of computerization of chess, this type is gradually losing popularity for obvious reasons.

In the blind

That is, without looking at the board. Or rather, the board may be present in front of the player’s eyes, by agreement, but there are no pieces on it. Moves are expressed using chess notation.

Blind can be played by one player or both.

In the first case, as a rule, a strong chess player plays against a weaker one in order to somehow equalize the chances. Or gives a session to several players. At one time, such sessions, on 30 or more boards, were given by Alexander Alekhine .

Consulting

Such games have been practiced in the past. Typically, a strong chess player would play against less skilled players, who could consult and advise each other.

Fischer Chess

The difference between this type of chess and classic chess is the initial setup. The figures are also located on the first and last horizontal lines, but arbitrarily. For example, the king may stand on b1.

Live chess

Living people act as pieces and move around the board at the command of the players. It is clear that the board must be of the appropriate size and the attire of the “pieces” must be such as to distinguish the king from the queen, for example.

Typically, live chess is a public decorative event used at holidays.

This is an incomplete list of course. But we agreed that embracing the immensity is not our method)

By time control

Classic

In classical control, each player is given at least an hour per game to think. Most popular control 1.30 hours for 40 moves . The following are possible options: 30 minutes to go 20 minutes with the addition of seconds for each move made and some others.

Rapid

Rapid or rapid chess is a game format in which each player is given time to think more than 10 but less than 60 minutes .

Control can be with or without adding seconds for each move made. Today the most popular time control in rapid is 15 minutes +10 seconds added per move.

To the question How much in total? various options Is it possible to play chess? given by the author hoard the best answer is PawnMaster's answer, starting from the 3rd line, is no longer correct. The number of options on the 2nd move depends on the specific first move made, and the total number of options is already greater on the 2nd move.
Further quotes:
Irrational complications first!
Why?
Answer: because irrational complications and - I will add - attacks on material targets that accompany irrational complications are closest to the true and undistorted nature of the chess game. The latter is identified by me with the nature of chess chaos.
Chaos is primary. In chess, chaos is an infinite and primordial set of all possible, that is, all chess games allowed by the rules of the game. I repeat: all chess games without exception. Including meaningless games!
The important thing is that chaos is capable of self-ordering. Order is secondary. Let me add: the transition from chaos to order occurs on its own, that is, spontaneously, without external influence on a complex dynamic system. Internal system parameters are working. They – these parameters – are responsible for “everything without exception”!
...
According to my most conservative arithmetic calculations, the position on the diagram is just one “real” chess position out of... tens of thousands of possible and failed final chess positions. Those positions in which a chess player interrupts the calculation of options and begins to assess the situation on the board. One accurate position for hundreds, thousands of inaccurate positions!
...In the beautiful variations I have just given, both the attack and the enemy’s counterattack (from White’s point of view – defense), and strategic play are intertwined. Together they define the so-called mixing layer - the central concept of the theory of dynamical systems. Chaos reigns in the mixing layer, uncertainty and His Majesty Chance reign. At the same time, we – chess players – need to absolutely understand the transparent truth: His Majesty Chance is not the result of our incompetence or dishonesty. He - His Majesty Chance - is just a symbol of our true ignorance, a symbol of the fundamental impossibility of absolutely accurately assessing a chess position. Order in chess is an island of knowledge in an ocean of chaos. We are doomed to wander in the jungle of chess variations. Chess is an almost inexhaustible game.
...
1. The model of a chess game will become a dynamic model when we guess to “inject” into the model the well-known scientific principle of “lineaminoris resistentiae” (the principle of “line of least resistance”). I would like to note the fact that this principle, which is most important for any solid theory, was introduced into the theory of the chess game by Em. Lasker is the second world chess champion.
2. Chess chaos is primary. It represents an infinite set of all possible chess games. Or in other words: chess chaos is the totality of all chess “trajectories” without exception (chess tree). The physical analogue is thermodynamic chaotic systems in Nature. “Laws” are the rules of the chess game.
The most important nuance: the values ​​of all chess pieces without exception are equal to zero. Including the king!
3. By postulating the infinite chess value of the king, we will instantly partially order the chess system. The actual chess game will arise (the goal of the game is checkmate of the enemy king). What is important for us is that during the transition from a chaotic chess game to a partially ordered game, elements of chaos will remain in the system. They - these elements of chaos - are indestructible.
4. A dynamic system, if it is sufficiently complex, does not need a “supervisor”. The system itself “makes” decisions. “Makes” decisions randomly.
...
I will answer briefly and unequivocally: the game of chess does not fit into the narrow box of classical scientific concepts. I will add: when we describe the chess system, we will need to supplement the traditional two-valued logic, with its classical “yes” and “no”, with a new, third-valued one.
Source:

Answer from insanity[guru]
unknown. there are an endless number of them!

Answer from Qualitative[guru]
CHESS – ancient intellectual game, which has a centuries-old history. Now it is one of the most common board games. Combines elements of sports, science and art. It has educational value: it contributes to the development of personality, teaches you to think logically and plan your actions, develops concentration and perseverance. When playing chess, many features of the human personality are revealed, so they are sometimes used as a model for scientific research in psychology and pedagogy. They were also used to identify the capabilities of computers in solving problems of the so-called search type, when the best one must be selected from the possible elements of the solution.
IN different countries this game has its own name: in England - chess, in Spain - axedres, in Germany - check (Schach), in France - echecs. The Russian name comes from the Persian “checkmate” - the ruler is defeated.
INDIAN ORIGINS
There is an ancient legend that attributes the creation of chess to a certain Brahmin. For his invention, he asked the rajah for an insignificant, at first glance, reward: as many wheat grains as would be on the chessboard if one grain was placed on the first square, two grains on the second, four grains on the third, etc. It turned out , that there is no such amount of grain on the entire planet (it is equal to 264 − 1 ≈ 1.845 × 1019 grains, which is enough to fill a storage facility with a volume of 180 km³). It’s hard to say whether it was true or not, but one way or another, India is the birthplace of chess.
No later than the beginning of the 6th century, the first known game related to chess, chaturanga, appeared in northwestern India. It already had a completely recognizable “chess” appearance, but was fundamentally different from modern chess in two features: there were four players, not two (they played pairs against pairs), and moves were made in accordance with the results of throwing dice. Each player had four pieces (chariot (rook), knight, bishop, king) and four pawns. The knight and king moved the same way as in chess, the chariot and bishop were much weaker than today chess rooks and an elephant. There was no queen at all. To win the game, it was necessary to destroy the entire enemy army.
ARAB TRANSFORMATIONS
In the same 6th or perhaps 7th century, chaturanga was borrowed by the Arabs. In the Arab East, chaturanga was transformed: there were two players, each received control of two sets of chaturanga pieces, one of the kings became a queen (moved diagonally onto one field). They gave up the bones and began to walk one move at a time, strictly one at a time. Victory began to be recorded not by the destruction of all [the enemy's] pieces, but by checkmate or stalemate, as well as by completing the game with a king and at least one piece against one king (the last two options were forced, since checkmate with weak pieces inherited from chaturanga, it was not always possible). The resulting game was called shatranj by the Arabs, and shatranj by the Persians. Later, when it came to the Tajiks, shatranj received the name “chess” in Tajik (translated as “the ruler is defeated”). The first mention of Shatradzhe dates back to approximately 550. 600 - the first mention of shatranj in fiction - the Persian manuscript "Karnamuk". In 819, at the court of Caliph al-Mamun in Khorosan, a tournament was held between the three strongest players of that time: Jabir al-Kufi, Abyljafar Ansari and Zairab Katan. In 847, the first chess book was published, written by Al-Alli.
APPEARANCE OF CHESS IN Rus'
Around 820, chess (more precisely, the Arabic shatranj under the Central Asian name "chess", in Russian turned into "chess") appeared in Rus', coming, it is believed, either directly from Persia through the Caucasus and the Khazar Khaganate, or from the Central Asian peoples, through Khorezm. In any case, the Russian name of the game was inherited from the Tajiks or Uzbeks, the names of the figures in Russia are also consonant or similar in meaning to Arabic or Middle Eastern

Answer from Substance[newbie]
If you play chess, then it may seem to you that the number of different games possible in this game is infinite. However, it is quite calculable.
Initially, the player who receives the right to make the first move has a set of 20 possible moves. Then the second player also makes his choice from 20 options. This means that after the first exchange of moves, the number of possible combinations on the board is 400.
After one more round, this number will increase to 20 thousand.
American mathematician Claude Shannon calculated the exact number of all possible combinations. It turned out that the number of different chess games that can be played is 10 to the 120th power. And this number significantly exceeds the number of atoms in the Universe, which is only 10 to the 80th power.

Answer from forward[newbie]
Calculation for one side:
1 move - 20 options
2nd move - a total of 40 options, but there are 12 blocking moves (for example, a knight's move blocks 2 options for a pawn on move 2) as a result, with a certain option for move 1, on the 2nd move there are either 39 or 38 options left, until the 3rd they did not count .

Mastering chess is a long process that can take several years, but you don't have to be a great chess player to win almost every game, you just need to understand the mechanics of the game. By learning to recognize some moves and read your opponent, you can effectively defend your king, attack your opponent's king, and come out victorious in almost every game.

It is assumed that you are already familiar with the basic rules of chess. If you are just getting started with the game,

Steps

Part 1

Understand the value of each piece and protect them accordingly. It is clear that the king is the most important piece on the board, because its loss leads to defeat in the game. Despite this, you should not consider the remaining figures to be useless cannon fodder. According to the mathematics and geometry of the chessboard, some pieces are more valuable than others. Remember this when you take other people's pieces. For example, you shouldn’t put your most valuable rook at risk just to get rid of your opponent’s knight.

Understand the goals of a good debut. The opening is the first few moves in the game, which determine your overall strategy and placement of pieces for the entire game. The goal of the initial moves is to deploy (move away from the initial fields) as many strong pieces as possible. For good start There are a few key points to consider:

• Move pawns to the center of the board to open the way for stronger pieces.
• Your opening will also depend on whether you are playing with black or white pieces. Since White goes first, you should play aggressively and not let the initiative go to your opponent. Black should organize a defense, waiting for White to expose himself to attack.
• Never move the same piece two moves in a row unless it is in danger of being swept off the board. The more pieces you can move, the more moves your opponent will need to counter.
• With all this in mind, check out the list of openings that grandmasters make in chess tournaments.

1. Think through your strategy 4-5 moves ahead, making each move part of a more sophisticated attack. To win at chess, you must constantly think several steps ahead, preparing extensive and complex attacks to outsmart your opponent. Your first move determines the entire subsequent game and leads to the first attack or control of certain areas of the board. The best way learn to plan ahead - practice several common openings:

   Perform a 4-move "Children's Checkmate" to instantly win the game. The problem is that this strategy will only work once, as an experienced player will see through your plan and take the king away from the attack. Despite this, a child's mat is in a great way catch a newbie by surprise and quickly win the game.

   Control the center of the board to control the game. During a game of chess, your main task is to control the center of the board, especially the four squares in the middle. This is because from there you can attack in any direction, allowing you to control the pace and flow of the game. A knight, for example, has 8 potential moves from the center of the board, but only 1-2 from the edges of the board. There are two main ways to achieve control over the center:

   • You can gain a foothold in the center of the board by slowly moving several pieces there. Let the knights and bishops stand on the edges and play the role of support, there they will be able to attack the enemy pieces in the event of an attack. This kind of leisurely development of events is used most often.
   • But flanking is a more modern style of play, according to which control of the center is exercised along the edges of the board. Your rooks, queen and knights rise along the edges of the board, thereby preventing the enemy from capturing the center for free.

2. Develop one figure at a time. Having finished the opening, we move on to the deployment of battle formations. You must remove all your pieces from the initial squares, moving them to places that are more effective for them.

   • If you can, move the pieces one at a time. Do not move the same piece twice in a row, unless, of course, you need to take it away from attack or wear out the enemy’s forces.
   • It is also not necessary to move all the figures. Advancing all the pawns will not help you win, as it will break the key line of defense protecting your king.

3. Learn castling. Castling is a special move in which the king “jumps” over the rook, which acts as a wall against an upcoming attack and is protected by pawns placed above it. This is an extremely effective defensive tactic, especially for chess beginners. You will need to do the following:

   Don't neglect exchanging pieces. Feel free to trade pieces if you end up with a material advantage, such as sacrificing a knight to gain the enemy queen. When the pieces are more or less equal, the exchange process becomes quite confusing. In short, you should not make an exchange when:

   Think over your strategy 5-6 moves ahead. It may be difficult, but to win games regularly, you must make long-term plans. Each move of the pieces must pursue three main goals. Keeping these points in mind, you will soon be able to calculate multi-move moves on the go to win the game:

   Use your advantage to the maximum, do not rush headlong into the attack. Rhythm of the game is what chess is all about, so keep it there as long as possible. If your opponent only reacts to your actions and constantly removes pieces from attack without being able to counterattack, continue to slowly reduce the number of his pieces. Remember that winning a battle does not guarantee you will win the war. Don't let your opponent make counterattacks in response to your moves. Instead, take out his defensive pieces, capture the center of the board, and then wait for the moment to launch a crushing attack.

   Learn how to bind. Pinning is an attack in which an enemy piece is cornered or taken hostage, deterring the opponent from using it effectively at the risk of losing it. This passive type of combat is great for controlling the flow of the game and defeating the enemy. First, analyze the options for moving the figure. Pay special attention to figures with limited set moves. Then position your pieces to attack the connected piece wherever it moves, effectively rendering it useless for a while.

   Evaluate each move objectively. You must think in terms of the entire board, analyzing every move available to you. Don't make a move just because it's your turn, take your time and try to find the best move available. Of course, it all depends on the situation, but you can ask yourself a couple of questions before each move to understand whether you are doing the right thing:

   Get rid of enemy pieces as a united front. You need to maintain control of the center while attacking as a unit. Your pieces are like pieces in an orchestra - they all serve a unique purpose, but work best together. By eliminating your opponent's pieces, you will increase your chances of bypassing the king's defense, and by organizing 2-3 support groups, you will provide a material advantage.

   Protect your queen at all stages of the game with the help of your bishop and rook. The queen is considered the strongest piece on the board for a reason, so do not rush to exchange it for another enemy piece, even for another queen, such a move is rarely justified. The queen is your most versatile attacking piece, use it for its intended purpose. Always protect and support your queen, as most players are willing to sacrifice almost any piece (except their own queen) to get rid of it.

   Don't surround your bishops with pawns. Bishops attack from long distances, and to control the board, especially in the early stages of the game, it is extremely important to use both of them. There are many opening moves you can learn, but their main purpose is to expose your strong pieces.

Part 3

Think through the course of the game from beginning to end. A game of chess basically has three stages, which are closely related to each other. The best chess players world plan their game 10-12 moves ahead, while simultaneously developing 3-4 strategies based on the enemy's moves. They know that moves and pieces spent early on will greatly affect the final stage of the game and plan their actions accordingly.

• Debut: This is where the tone of the game is set. In the first 4–5 moves, an accelerated mobilization of many pieces occurs and the fight for the center of the board begins. You can go on the offensive, transferring the battle to the enemy’s side, or go on the defensive, waiting for the enemy to make the first move.
• Middlegame: its only purpose is to prepare for the endgame. At this stage, there is an exchange of pieces, seizure of control over the center of the board and the establishment of 1-2 lines of attack, which can move at any moment. Trading, of course, can be beneficial, but you must understand that with each lost piece, your chances of winning decrease.
• Endgame: the stage when very few pieces remain on the board, and their value increases noticeably. You might think that the endgame will be where the main showdown will take place, but in fact, most of the work has already been done. The player who “wins” the middlegame and is left with the best material will easily end the game with checkmate.

1. Bishops are much more useful than horses at the end of the game. At the beginning of the game, bishops and knights are approximately equal in strength. However, by the end of the game, bishops will move across the empty board many times faster than the still slow knights. Remember this when exchanging pieces - even if in the short term the bishop is not very useful, then already at the last stage of the game it becomes one of the most valuable pieces.

2. Take advantage of the numerical advantage of pawns on an empty board. Pawns only seem useless, but by the end of the game they become key figures. They can support strong pieces, advance along the board, unnerving the opponent, and are also an ideal shield for the king. However, this advantage can be lost if you start doubling them at the beginning of the game (two pawns on the same vertical line). Keep your pawns close so they can cover each other. When there are very few pieces left on the board, a swift attack to promote a pawn to a queen can decide the outcome of the game.

   • Look for problem sets on the Internet or grab a book on chess strategies from the library; they will certainly contain example problems.

• Play confidently with a winning mindset.
• Don't stop practicing and don't give away pieces foolishly.
• Go on the offensive in groups. If you have to move away from the group to attack, make a plan to regroup your forces.
• In some computer chess games there are tips that you can use. These tips may be useful to you in official matches.
• When you're ready, take part in a tournament or play in a chess club. This can improve your skills and provide an official chess rating.
• Keep in mind the meaning of each piece and plan your game accordingly. For example, a rook is worth five points, while a bishop is only three. You can gain an advantage if you sacrifice your bishop to neutralize your opponent's rook.
• Before moving a piece, think through your move in detail.

Warnings

• Don't use cheap tricks like four-way checkmate. If your opponent knows about them, you are almost guaranteed to lose.
• It's okay if you don't win! It takes a lot of practice to become a pro!
• Do not rush to take the “free” pieces. Perhaps your opponent sacrificed this piece in order to exchange it for a stronger piece of yours or to carry out a diversionary maneuver.
• Don't risk the queen - it's the most valuable piece on the board!

Shannon Number April 18th, 2015

Every time we sit down to play chess, the game is on in a new way and almost never repeated. And it really never repeats itself - this was proven by the American mathematician Claude Shannon. He calculated the minimum number of non-repeating chess games.

This number is equal to...

... ten to the one hundred and twentieth power and it is named after its discoverer “Shannon number”.

Claude Elwood Shannon (1916-2001) – famous engineer and mathematician, is the “father of information theory”. He was fascinated by chess and is the first to recalculate with great accuracy the complex tree of the game, i.e. number of possible chess games. The basis of his calculations is the theory that any game contains on average 40 moves and on each move players choose from approximately 30 possibilities. This equals approximately 10,120 possible games. In the end, it turns out that the approximate number of non-repeating chess games is these ten to the one hundred and twentieth power. This is more than the total number of atoms in the observable Universe:

This number is known as Shannon's number.

Shannon also calculated the number of possible positions on the chessboard - it is ten to the forty-third power.

Peterson came to the same conclusion in 1996. An interesting comparison with the Shannon number is that the total number of atoms in the universe is 10 to the 81th power. But Peterson puts limits on calculations and defines real chess moves by 1050.

All these calculations will change when new chess rules, such as the Sofia Rule, begin to be applied. The numbers are close enough to real numbers to show the deep meaning and diversity of chess.

And a dozen more interesting things about chess:

1. Origin of the name

Chess originates from the 6th century Indian game of chaturanga, whose name translates from Sanskrit as "four divisions of army", which includes infantry, cavalry, bishops and chariots, which are represented in chess by the pawn, knight, bishop and rook.

In the 7th century the game came to Persia and was renamed Shatranj. The name chess comes from the Persian language. Players said “Check” (from Persian for “king”) when attacking the opponent’s king, and “Checkmate” (from Persian for “the king is dead”).

2. The chess machine that fooled everyone

In 1770, Hungarian inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen created a chess machine. The machine was a human-sized figure of a “Turk” who sat behind a huge wooden cabinet whose doors opened, showing the public complex mechanisms.

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

As it turned out many years later, the chess machine was not a machine. Inside the machine was a chess player who moved around inside and hid as the complex mechanisms of the smart “machine” were shown to the public.

3. The shortest and longest chess game

The shortest chess game is called stupid mate, consisting of two moves: 1. f3 e5 and 2. g4 Qh4++. A draw or loss can also occur before players begin making moves, either due to a certain scenario in the standings or as a result of a player not showing up to play.

The longest chess game was played between Ivan Nikolic and Goran Arsovic in Belgrade in 1989. It lasted 20 hours and 15 minutes, 269 moves were made during the game, and it ended in a draw. Theoretically, the game could last even longer, but after the introduction of the 50-move rule, this number can be somehow limited.

4. Checkbox

Garry Kasparov once said that “chess is a torture of the mind.” Apparently that's why someone decided to combine chess with physical tests by creating chessboxing. Dutch artist Ipe Rubing became the founder of chessboxing after he saw the idea of ​​combining chess and boxing in one comic book.

Chessboxing alternates rounds of chess and boxing and its motto is “Battles are fought in the ring, but wars are fought on the board.”

Chessboxing is becoming increasingly popular and is governed by the World Chessboxing Organization.

5. Dynamic queen

The Queen or Queen chess piece has undergone many changes throughout the history of chess. It all started with the fact that she could only move along one square diagonally, later she moved two squares, and then further and further, like a knight.

Now this figure can move both diagonally, horizontally, and vertically. At first she was the king's advisor or prime minister.

But later she became the most powerful figure in chess.

6. Backhanded chess

Blindfold chess is a variant of the game in which the player makes all his moves without looking at the chessboard. As a rule, there is an intermediary in the game who moves the pieces.

Blindfold chess is an impressive ability that many of the top chess players possess. One of the record holders in blindfold chess was the Hungarian chess player Janos Flesz, who played 52 opponents simultaneously blindfolded and won 32 games.

7. Endless possibilities

After three moves, there are more than nine million possible positions on each side. An American mathematician calculated the minimum number of non-repeating chess games and derived Shannon's number.

According to this number, the number of possible unique batches exceeds the number of atoms in the visible Universe. The number of atoms is estimated to be 10^79, and the number of unique chess games is 10^120.

8. The power of chess computers

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

In 2006, world champion Vladimir Kramnik was defeated by the Deep Fritz computer, further highlighting the power of chess computers. Today chess programs often used by players to analyze and improve their games, and are often ranked on par with grandmasters.

9. Chess clock - to avoid falling asleep

At first, chess games were played without a clock. At the same time, players could play for many hours, or even days in a row, driving each other to exhaustion. In 1851, during a chess tournament, the assistant referee recorded that "the game was not completed due to the players eventually falling asleep."

After this, a year later at an international tournament, time control was introduced in the form hourglass, and in 1883 the first mechanical chess clock appeared, created by the British Thomas Wilson.

10. Chess and our brain

Psychologists often mention chess as effective method improve your memory. This also allows you to decide complex tasks and think through ideas.

Many people believe that chess is a game for those who are naturally highly intelligent. This is partly true, but you can also significantly increase your intelligence by playing chess. Moreover, studies have shown that chess activates both hemispheres of the brain, improves Creative skills, concentration, critical thinking and reading skills.