Myths about chess busted!

There are many myths about chess out there. And a good amount of them aren't true. Here are some that aren't true.

1. Chess is thousands of years old.

Chess was founded at around 600 A.D. That makes it about 1400 years old. After chess survives for another 100 years, we could round up the age to 2000 years and then say that it is thousands of years old.

2. Chess is for nerds.

In fact, this isn't a myth, since chess is for everyone. It is for nerds, geeks, eggheads, and boffins, as much as it is for anyone else. People who need to call other people unpleasant names should better say, 'chess is only for nerds', but this is decidedly false. Even if it were true, so what? Smart, awkward, quirky people have made more contributions to the advancement of humanity than have the rest. If they want to play chess, that's their business.

3. Chess has been solved by computers.

Computers have made impressive strides chipping away at the front and back ends of chess. Opening theory extends beyond 10-15 moves in some popular openings, endgames of up to five pieces (counting the two Kings) have been perfectly solved by gigantic databases, and endgames of six pieces are also yielding their secrets. In contrast, computers have made little progress tackling the intractable complexities that lie between the opening and the endgame. Chess is not a simple game.

4. Chess is a waste of time.

This is better classified as an opinion than as a myth. Of course, chess is 'only a game'. Unlike many games, it also incorporates elements of logic and art. If these are wastes of time, then so is chess. • For many people in our modern world, anything not related to economic development is a waste of time. For those people, chess is certainly a waste of time. So be it. Let each person choose his or her pleasures in life.

5. Computers play chess better than humans.

In 2006, the best computers play chess better than 99.99% of humans, but are evenly matched in games against the best humans. If, as some experts consider, computers are gaining 20-30 rating points per year, the time will soon come when humans have no chance against the best machines. • It should not be overlooked that computers are always trained by teams of human specialists who program them in psychological areas like opening repertoire. Removing this advantage would erase their superiority.

6. Women can't play chess as well as men

To date it is true that women have not performed as well as men in chess events. There are many possible reasons for this. One may be that male players are often expert at making female players feel uncomfortable at chess events. The Polgar sisters have gone a long way to convince the chess world that women can play very well. Perhaps one day we will discover that women can even play better than men. No one really knows.

Info found at: https://www.mark-weeks.com/aboutcom/aa06f17.htm