KIMPLODES is an acronym for a human-oriented, systemic approach to analysis. [Acronyms are just shorthand for those moments when we're too lazy to spell something out. To be fair, acronyms are supposed to make it easier for us carbon-based units t...
Poor Capablanca! Thou wert a brilliant technician, but no philosopher. Thou wert not capable of believing that in chess, another style could be victorious than the absolutely correct one. - Max Euwe Chess quotes by and about Capablanca&nbs...
Tarrasch's 'dogmas' are not eternal truisms, but merely instructional material presented in an accessible and witty form, those necessary rudiments from which one can begin to grasp the secrets of chess. – Garry Kasparov Chess Quotes...
After surveying what might well have been over 1M could-be respondents with detailed, intrusive, and voluminous questionnaires, followed up by individual sessions where time and willingness allowed, science and statistics (not to be confused with ...
No fantasy, however rich, no technique, however masterly, no penetration into the psychology of the opponent, however deep, can make a chess game a work of art, if these qualities do not lead to the main goal – the search for truth. ...
Garry Kasparov said that Ivanchuk belonged in the same category as the world chess champions. Business Insider, 24 May 2017 [A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for a new image and accompanying caption). Feel fre...
I remember our class working on algebra. All the boys were quiet ... Suddenly Alekhine stood up excitedly, his face radiant ..."Well, Alekhine, did you solve it?' teacher Bachinsky asked him. "I did ... I sacrifice the knight, and the bishop mov...
[A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for a new image and accompanying caption that I think is viewer-worthy). Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents or to the Biography, but you should really scroll down to enjoy t...
Back to Top[A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for a new image and accompanying caption). Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents or even to the Biography.] [A note for my new readers: I believe it is useful to r...
I think that I have never seenA poem as lovely as trapping a queen. by KevinChessSmith (Apologies to my wife and to poet Joyce Kilmer; however, I've written a lot about trapping queens in my two books on chessable.com.) If it's Valentine's D...
[A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for a new image). Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents or even to the Biography.] [A note for my new readers: I believe it is useful to read the full introduction your first...
[A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for one particularly exceptional and new image). Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents or even to the Biography.] [A note for my new readers: I believe it is useful to read t...
[A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed (except for a new image). Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents or even to the Biography.] [A note for my new readers: I believe it is useful to read the full introduction your first...
[A note for my regular readers: This series is back! There was a long hiatus while I completed the twelve-part Quotemaster (QM) series and the twelve-part Chessplayers' birthdays series, but now it's time to kick this off again. The intro ha...
Confusion is a great state of mind. It leads you to question things, sometimes even assumptions. – KevinChessSmith We are in truth but pieces on this chess board of life, which in the end we leave, only to drop one by one into the grave ...
I am one of those unlucky skeptics who never overlook the dark side of even the happiest experience. – Tartakower, Chess Review, June 1951, page 170 Savielly Tartakower by Edward Winter We've reached the leader of the pack, th...
To be great is to be misunderstood. – Ralph Waldo Emerson, his essay "Self-Reliance" We've reached the #2 entrant into the Chess Quote Master (QM) Hall of Fame (HoF). If you missed any or all of numbers three through ten😢, don't worry....
Quixotic, querulous quests to qualify and question quote quality and quantity leave me dazed. Who actually said what, when, and why? Did someone else put some or all of those words in their mouth? - KevinChessSmith More on those concerns in ...
Play the opening like a book, the middlegame like a magician, and the endgame like a machine. (Rudolph Spielmann) Clearly, the Magician from Riga got that middle part down pat! Amusingly, Botvinnik scolded Tal for his poor study habits (not ...
A very good month for my side of the Smith family. Both my daughter and my son were born in September!! Bonus: There are plenty of big chess names born in September! Did any of that influence my children's path in the royal game? Tragically, tho...
To be great is to be misunderstood. Ralph Waldo Emerson A typical teenager's response (well, it was my response) to Emerson's quote might be the following, I'm the most misunderstood person in the whole world. Not sure if that's a he...
Leos are blessed with such self-confidence that they are natural entertainers--does that bring any chess streamers to mind? We'll find out! Meanwhile, Virgos are known for their attention to detail and analytical skills...sounds perfect for chess!...
Of chess it has often been said that life is not long enough for it – but that is the fault of life, not chess. William Ewart Napier To my fellow, esteemed quotologists, the opening quote was a follow-on to Alekhine's statement that, "...
Cancer (the Crab, but not "crabs") and Leo (the Lion, but not the cowardly one from Oz), do they form the nature of chess players born in July? The crab is intuitive, harnessing soft power inside a hardened shell that can thwart the meaningless ...
We do not see things as they are. We see things as we are. [probable Talmudic origin] [A note for my regular readers: The intro has not changed...much...except for the following paragraph. Feel free to jump to the Table of Contents.] To my...
Some key blogs:
Secrets of Trapping Pieces: One Blog to Link Them All
Provides links to all 2023 blogs I produced about trapping pieces.
KIMPLODES! Explosive Analysis Approach--Break it up, baby!
First in a series of 2024 blogs that offer an approach to analysis based loosely on prior work by others such as IM Silman.
Secrets of Trapping Pieces: Anastasia's Mate
First in a series of 2024 blogs on the secrets of trapping pieces with an emphasis on puzzles to test your skill at solving various mating configurations such as a Suffocation Mate, Arabian Mate, etc.
How to Cheat at Chess: Today's Tawdry Tricks to Tomorrow's Taunting Truths
