Thursday, March 18, 2010

Hazel's Mind Bender

Not too tough...

Freddie is a talented chess player. After only three years, he is close to reaching master rating, yet he claims to have never touched a (chess) piece in his life. All his games are played in front of his opponent, and since he is a quiet boy, he never says his moves out loud. How is this possible?

Answer: Freddie must be very shy. Over the three years, he has only played against one opponent, his computer. Although he plays in front of his "opponent", he never "touches" the pieces on the screen. Instead, he simply clicks and drags them.

Seeing that his rating is limited to his computer-playing abilities, it is debatable whether or not his talent is overestimated (it is difficult to reach master rating within three years of actual tournament play).