Chess Problems, Compositions and Studies

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A Chess Problem or Composition, set by a composer, is presented to (human) solvers with a particular task to be achieved. Chess problems include the sub-genre of directmates, helpmates and selfmates in a pre-determined number of moves, and retrograde analysis problems. Beside chess problems in classical or orthodox chess, Fairy chess offers an own branch of problem solving. Unlike problems, which often present very artificial looking positions, Studies or endgame studies often appear that they could occur in a game, and represent a sort of puzzle, usually not requiring a solution in a fixed number of moves. Dedicated chess problem and composition software is used as composition tool, and to prove correctness and uniqueness of chess problems. Chess aesthetics or beauty in chess is generally appreciated by both players and composers, awarded in certain championships also in the world of chess composition.

Studies in CPW

• Behting Study
• Computer Judgment (Arthur detects blockage in Penrose position)
• Djaja Study
• Lasker-Reichhelm Position (Fine #70)
• Réti Endgame Study

Chess Composer

• Category:Chess Composer

See also

• APwin
• Chess Problem Solving Engines
• Chesthetica by Azlan Iqbal
• Endgame
• Endgame Tablebases
• Retrograde Analysis
• Test-Positions

Leonid's Positions

• Zugzwang

Selected Publications

1960 ...

• Vladimir E. Alekseev (1969). Compilation of Chess Problems on a Computer. Technical translation FSTC-HT-23-124-69, US Army, NTIS AD 689470 (Problemy Kibernetiki, 19, 1967)

1970 ...

• Martin Gardner (1979). Chess Problems on a Higher Plane, Including Mirror Images, Rotations and the Superqueen. Scientific American, Vol. 270
• Donald Michie (1979). The Computer Attacks Moravec Problem. Personal Computing, Vol. 3, No. 10, pp. 73
• Editor (1979). Chess Ratings from Problem Solving. Personal Computing, Vol. 3, No. 12, pp. 77 » CAPS II, Playing Strength

1980 ...

• Walter Korn (1980). Electronic Chess: Changing Aesthetics and Mores. Personal Computing, Vol. 4, No. 7, pp. 74
• John Roycroft (1981). The Chess Endgame Study. Dover Publications Inc., New York
• László Lindner (1982). How the Computer Helps the Composer. ICCA Newsletter, Vol. 5, No. 2
• Norman A. Macleod (1983). Is the Computer Going to Take Over from the Composer? ICCA Newsletter, Vol. 6, No. 2
• László Lindner (1983). Experience with the Second Human-Computer Problem Test. ICCA Journal, Vol. 6, No. 3
• Andrew N. Walker (1984). Uniqueness in Game Trees. ICCA Journal, Vol. 7, No. 4
• Göran Grottling (1985). Problem-Solving Ability Tested. ICCA Journal, Vol. 8, No. 2
• László Lindner (1985). A Critique of Problem-Solving Ability. ICCA Journal, Vol. 8, No. 3
• László Lindner (1985). A Test to Compare Human and Computer Fairy-Chess Problem Solving. ICCA Journal, Vol. 8, No. 3
• Paul Wiereyn (1985). Problem-Solving Ability Tested II. ICCA Journal, Vol. 8, No. 3
• Paul Wiereyn (1985). Inventive Problem Solving. ICCA Journal, Vol. 8, No. 4
• László Lindner (1985). Problem Solving: The Present and Possibilities for Development. Advances in Computer Chess 4
• Henk le Grand (1986). The Impact of Computers on Chess-Problem composition. ICCA Journal, Vol. 9, No. 3
• Michael Schlosser (1988). Computers and Chess-Problem Composition. ICCA Journal, Vol. 11, No. 4
• László Lindner (1989). Performance Improvements in Problem-Solving Programs since 1984. Advances in Computer Chess 5

1990 ...

• László Lindner, Michael Schlosser (1991). New Ideas in Problem Solving and Composing Programs. Advances in Computer Chess 6
• Michael Schlosser (1991). Can a Computer Compose Chess Problems? Advances in Computer Chess 6
• Brian Gosling (1992). Chess computers and endgame studies. ICCA Journal, Vol. 15, No. 1
• Jan van Reek, Henk van Donk (1992). History of endgame study composing in the Netherlands and Flanders. ARVES. ISBN 90-72939-12-3
• Rainer Staudte, U. Erdmenger (1994). Hilfsmattaufgaben als arithmetische Constraints In: N.E. Fuchs, G. Gottlob: Proceedings of the Tenth Logic Programming Workshop, WLP 1994, Universität Zürich, Berichte des Institutes für Informatik, Nr. 94.10.
• Michael Schlosser (1994). Können Computer Schachprobleme komponieren? Teil 1: Deutsche Schachblätter/Schach-Report, 143(1994)5, S. 53-55 Teil 2: Deutsche Schachblätter/Schach-Report, 143(1994)6, S. 57-60
• Richard K. Guy, John Roycroft, Kenneth Solja (1996). Richard Guy's Chess Endgame Studies. Prime Actions
• Rainer Staudte (1997). Constraints for Solving Helpmates. Advances in Computer Chess 8, ps
• M. Hirose, Hitoshi Matsubara, T. Itoh (1997). The Composition of Tsume-Shogi Problems. Advances in Computer Chess 8
• Paul Wiereyn (1997). Genius-3 Cooked Endgame Studies. ICCA Journal, Vol. 20, No. 3
• Makoto Sakuta, Hiroyuki Iida (1999). Solving Problems with Uncertainty: A case study using Tsuitate-Tsume-Shogi. Proceedings of Game Programming Workshop in Japan '99, pp. 145-152, Hakone, Japan, pdf
• Noam D. Elkies (1999). On numbers and endgames: Combinatorial game theory in chess endgames. pdf, differs only in trivial stylistic details from the (1996) version published in Games of No Chance edited by Richard J. Nowakowski
• Yaakov HaCohen-Kerner, Nahum Cohen, Erez Shasha (1999). An Improver of Chess Problems. Cybernetics and Systems, Vol. 30, No. 5

2000 ...

• Harold van der Heijden (2001). Endgame Tables and Endgame Study Composition. ICGA Journal, Vol. 24, No. 2
• Noam Elkies (2001). Endgame Tables and Chess Composition. ICGA Journal, Vol. 24, No. 2
• Michael Schlosser, Rainer Staudte, Manfred Zucker (2002). 90 Jahre Schachkomposition in Chemnitz, (German) pdf
• Noam Elkies (2005). New directions in enumerative chess problems. Electronic Journal of Combinatorics, Vol. 11, No. 2, arXiv:math/0508645
• Azlan Iqbal, Mashkuri Yaacob (2006). A Systematic and Discrete View of Aesthetics in Chess. Journal of Comparative Literature and Aesthetics, Vol. XXIX, Nos. 1-2
• Fridel Fainshtein (2006). An Orthodox k-Move Problem-Composer for Chess Directmates. M.Sc. thesis, Bar-Ilan University, pdf
• Fridel Fainshtein, Yaakov HaCohen-Kerner (2006). A Chess Composer of Two-Move Mate Problems. ICGA Journal, Vol. 29, No. 1, pdf
• Yaakov HaCohen-Kerner, Fridel Fainshtein (2006). A Deep Improver of Two-move Chess Mate Problems. Cybernetics and Systems, Vol. 37, No. 5
• Gady Costeff (2006). How I Became A Great Composer. EG, Vol. 11, 159-163, ARVES, pdf
• Azlan Iqbal, Mashkuri Yaacob (2008). Theme Detection and Evaluation in Chess. ICGA Journal, Vol. 31, No. 2
• Azlan Iqbal, Mashkuri Yaacob (2008). Advanced Computer Recognition of Aesthetics in the Game of Chess. WSEAS Transactions on Computers, Vol. 7, Issue 5, pdf
• Torsten Linß (2008). Databases for Chess Problems. Workshop Chess and Mathematics

2010 ...

• Matej Guid (2010). Search and Knowledge for Human and Machine Problem Solving. Ph.D. thesis, University of Ljubljana, pdf
• Azlan Iqbal, Harold van der Heijden, Matej Guid (2010). Research Grant to Investigate Multi-Dimensional Aesthetic Perception using Endgame Studies. EG, Alexander Rueb Vereniging voor Schaakeindspelstudie (ARVES), No. 180, Vol. XVI
• Azlan Iqbal (2010). Aesthetics in Mate-In-3 Combinations, Part I Combinatorics and Weights, ICGA Journal, Vol. 33, No. 3
• Azlan Iqbal (2010). Aesthetics in Mate-In-3 Combinations, Part II Normality, ICGA Journal, Vol. 33, No. 4
• Azlan Iqbal (2011). Increasing Efficiency and Quality in the Automatic Composition of Three-Move Mate Problems. Entertainment Computing - ICEC 2011, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol. 6972, Springer. ISBN 978-3-642-24499-5
• Guy Haworth, Eiko Bleicher, Harold van der Heijden (2011). Uniqueness in Chess Studies. ICGA Journal, Vol. 34, No. 1
• Guy Haworth, Harold van der Heijden, Eiko Bleicher (2011). Zugzwangs in Chess Studies. ICGA Journal, Vol. 34, No. 2
• Guy McCrossan Haworth, Árpád Rusz (2011). Position Criticality in Chess Endgames. Advances in Computer Games 13, pdf
• Azlan Iqbal, Harold van der Heijden, Matej Guid, Ali Makhmali (2012). Evaluating the Aesthetics of Endgame Studies: A Computational Model of Human Aesthetic Perception. IEEE Transactions on Computational Intelligence and AI in Games, Vol. 4, No. 3
• Guy Haworth, Eiko Bleicher, Harold van der Heijden (2013). The data-mining of Studies Database HHdbIV. EG, Vol. 19, pp. 27-30
• Harold van der Heijden, Guy Haworth (2015). Chess Study #16206. Die Schwalbe, 32.271

2020 ...

• Dieter Müller (2020). A program for analyzing two move chess problems. ICGA Journal, Vol. 42, Nos. 2-3

Blog & Forum Posts

2000 ...

• Chess problem solving by Timo Saari, CCC, October 04, 2001
• Test Position = Study by David Przepiorka [Vorwärts, 1910] by José Antônio Fabiano Mendes, CCC, February 05, 2004

2010 ...

• Problems, problems, problems by Ted Summers, CCC, April 16, 2010
• Troitzky, 1930 by Jesús Muñoz, CCC, March 25, 2013
• Draw by stalemate (Campbell, easy position for engines) by Jesús Muñoz, CCC, July 31, 2013 » Stalemate
• Study solved by Carlsen by Jesús Muñoz, CCC, August 15, 2013
• Helpmate-programs - and some problems for you.... by Jens Bæk Nielsen, CCC, August 26, 2013
• First prize for studies in Šachová skladba 2011-12 by Jesús Muñoz, CCC, August 20, 2014

2015 ...

• Wrong chess studies by Lyudmil Antonov, CCC, February 21, 2015
• Penrose Puzzle by Erin Dame, CCC, March 14, 2017 » Penrose Puzzle
• A Coup(e) of Duchamp by Ken Regan, Gödel's Lost Letter and P=NP, February 16, 2018
• Marcel Duchamp endgame "splits" engines / hash phenomenon by Kenneth Regan, CCC, February 19, 2018 » Marcel Duchamp, Transposition Table

External Links

• Chess problem from Wikipedia
• WFCC | World Federation for Chess Composition
• Glossary of chess problems from Wikipedia
• World Federation for Chess Composition - Wikipedia
• World Chess Solving Championship - Wikipedia
• World Championship of Chess Composition - Wikipedia
• International Judge of Chess Compositions - Wikipedia
• Tsumeshogi from Wikipedia
• Chess aesthetics from Wikipedia
• Chess Problems by Computer by François Labelle

Endgame Studies

General

• Endgame study from Wikipedia
• ARVES - Home (Alexander Rueb Vereniging voor SchaakEindspelStudie)
• Chess Composition in TORUN by Marek Kwiatkowski
• Chess Endgame Study Composition by Árpád Rusz
• Practical Chess Endgame + Computer Analysis by Brian Gosling

Studies

• "The Georgian peasant" YouTube Video
• Saavedra position from Wikipedia
• Computers solving chess problems by Frederic Friedel, ChessBase News, September 08, 2020

Problem Blogs

• chess-problems-gr

Magazines

• EG (magazine) from Wikipedia
• EG issues from ARVES
• ChessProblems.ca Bulletin
• Harmonie by Torsten Linß (German)
• Schwalbe - deutsche Vereinigung für Problemschach (German)
• Die Schwalbe fom Wikipedia
• Chess Problem Database Server

Software

• Software for handling chess problems from Wikipedia
• Software - WFCC
• Software for solving chess problems / puzzles / endgame studies from Ron Murawski's Computer-Chess Wiki

Penrose Puzzle

 » Roger Penrose, Penrose institute puzzle #1 • lichess.org

• Can you solve the chess problem which holds key to human consciousness? by Sarah Knapton, The Telegraph, March 14, 2017
• Humans Can Solve This Chess Puzzle, But A Supercomputer Can't by Tom Hale, IFLScience, March 14, 2017
• Sure you're not a robot? Solve this chess puzzle and prove it by Lance Ulanoff, Mashable, March 14, 2017
• Will This Position Help Understand Human Consciousness? by Peter Doggers, Chess.com, March 15, 2017
• A chess problem holds the key to human consciousness? by Frederic Friedel, ChessBase News, March 16, 2017
• Can You Solve This Chess Puzzle That AI Software Can't? by Terry Berman, Interesting Engineering, March 19, 2017

References

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