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TWikiGuestSecondEssay 2 - 30 Nov 2024 - Main.BenMingov
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< | -- JiHyunPark - 29 Nov 2024 | >
> | Chess as Esport: An Inevitable Decline | | | | |
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> | Chess has long been described as a marriage between art and science – a pursuit that rewards calculation and logic, but one that also expresses the personalities of its practitioners. For centuries, chess has remained largely unchanged and its appeal has endured. Chess greatness, throughout cultures and eras, has almost invariably been connected with the idea of genius. More than this, the game has occupied a prominent place in shaping culture around the world, arguably reaching its pinnacle in 1972 when Bobby Fisher and Boris Spassky represented the USA and the Soviet Union, respectively, in the World Chess Championship. The champion would earn their respective superpower the reputation as the other’s intellectual superior. | | | | |
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> | In recent years, however, the marketing of chess to the world has undergone a dramatic transformation – from being presented as a timeless game associated with classicality and intellect into a modern esport. While this modernization has brought new energy and enthusiasm to the game and has expanded its player pool and audience, I argue that this sudden and fundamental change in the way chess is communicated and shared will have negative effects on its long-term survival in the mainstream, if it is not tempered at least in part.
Chess’s transformation to esport has three main features that I think will be most negative for its longevity. These are faster time controls, instant analysis provided by chess engines, and the trend toward both professional and casual chess being played on monitors rather than across the board from an opponent. | | | | |
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> | Faster Time Controls | | | | |
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< | The Digitalization of Print Sources and the Loss of Libraries | >
> | For most of chess’s history, master-level games have been played at very slow time controls. There is also a rich history of recording chess games using chess notation. It is because of this combination of both deep thought and meticulous recording that each successive generation of chess players and fans have been able to stand on the shoulders of their predecessors. | | | | |
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> | Fast forwarding to today, games are still recorded, but faster time controls have become the norm, on both the professional circuit and in casual chess. I believe the reason for this is the shorter attention span of audiences that have so much more competition for their attention than did generations past. But causation aside, chess will suffer both in substance and in its appreciation by fans in the long-term if this is not addressed. Shorter games produce fewer creative or novel ideas. All chess fans know the creative genius that is Mikhail Tal, the dynamic aggression that is Garry Kasparov, and the boa constrictor that is Anatoly Karpov, but far fewer fans now can associate even the most well-known players of today with any particular style. Could this be because the modern game has favored a more universal approach? It is possible, but I find it unlikely to be the main reason for this. | | | | |
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> | Instant Analysis | | | | |
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> | One of the most profound changes in the chess world has been the rise of powerful chess engines. While undeniably useful for training and analysis, they have fundamentally altered how players and fans interact with the game. | | | | |
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< | Ever since the widespread access to the digital electronic medium of words on screen, there has been a steady decline of a physical material medium to store, share, and enjoy words manifested from the minds of humans. Instead, from carving “words” into nature and the development of ink onto paper, the new medium for the human language has escaped the material physicality it has historically used in digital electronic format. The digitalization of books, words, of images, has been met with exciting fanfare where the world has moved from putting ink on paper to tapping keys on a keyboard to create and write (or now type) their thoughts. Increasingly, the physical medium of ink on paper has been replaced with electronic versions. Perhaps my generation will be one of the last few that experience the educational transition from a paper medium to an electronic one as I step through the American educational system. Personally, my elementary and middle school placed crucial importance on school libraries and offering a physical place to borrow and read books. However, at the tail end of my middle school years, all students were offered iPads and increasingly, the physicality of written materials declined into some form of electronic digital medium. I shifted from combing the modest collection of books offered by my school library to scrolling the enormous digital access granted to me by the internet. Before long, the lack of a library in my high school did not concern me nor did the 1000-page pdf of my Calculus textbook that I crtl-F through to reach the correct page. Before I knew it, the world beyond my classroom was also digitalized. The plastic-wrapped newspapers tossed in front of my home slowly disappeared, replaced with pre-formatted emails offering a subscription service to receive tailored news “right in my mailbox.” | >
> | In the pre-engine era, analyzing a game was often a multi-person and thought-intensive exercise. Friends or club members would gather to dissect a master game, discussing possible alternatives and variations. This process deepened people’s understanding and appreciation for the game’s intricacies. Today, engines instantly deliver the “best move,” bypassing the need for critical thinking or debate. This shift risks turning chess into an exercise of passive consumption rather than an active exploration of human ingenuity. | | | | |
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< | The digitalization of books has many benefits that are enjoyed and celebrated today. However, the shift from physical paper books to e-books has resulted in the loss of not only the actual paper books but also the spaces that hold them. The greatest loss of the electronic reproduction of books is not the loss of the physical paper book but the loss of the spaces that hold them; the loss of libraries. | | | | |
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> | Less IRL Competition | | | | |
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> | The last major problem with the new approach to modern chess is that most games are played online rather than over-the-board. There are even many professional tournaments conducted with players competing in the same room, but each in front of their monitor. I believe this removes the essential element of human interaction from the game. | | | | |
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< | The Role of Libraries | >
> | This type of interaction with the game renders your opponents faceless and nameless, and takes away the feeling of sharing the game with your adversary. It also obviates the need for players to conduct a post-game analysis together, which has long been a great tradition of the game. While, of course, it wouldn’t make sense to recede from the era of online chess, which has provided people with the ability to play many more games than ever before. But at the very least, tournaments of any significance should be held in person and over-the-board. | | | | |
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< | Libraries are more than a storage unit that house physical volumes of books. Libraries are places that play a critical role in our communities. They manifestly represent places of opportunity, learning, and freedom for many people. Libraries are a public space for meeting both information and people [pg 101]. What’s crucial about libraries is the fact that they often offer free public space for people to meet and access a plethora of information. While information may become more accessible on the internet, physical spaces for nurturing creativity and concentrated reading away from the noise and short bursts of electronic media are critical in our current society. | | | | |
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< | Beyond just communities, libraries are especially important for the academic ecosystem of college campuses. Libraries on college campuses are places that offer not only knowledge but a place to connect students as a community. They play a critical role in campus culture [1]. Looking closer to home, an article by Ben Ratcliff for the New York Times explores Columbia University’s historical Butler University and notes that the library is a haven for the body and the mind [2]. While Butler is accessible to us as Columbia law students, the loss of our law library indicates that our law school community may be critically altered. | >
> | But There Are Benefits . . . | | | | |
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> | The transformation of chess into an esport is not inherently negative. In fact, it has revitalized the game, introducing it to new audiences and ensuring its relevance in a fast-changing world. However, it is crucial to strike a balance between embracing modernity and preserving the essence of what makes chess special. | | | | |
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> | The modernization of chess has undeniably broadened its appeal. Platforms like Twitch and YouTube? have turned chess into a spectator sport, attracting audiences who might never have otherwise engaged with the game. Moreover, this new approach aligns with modern consumption habits. Traditional chess broadcasting – long games with minimal commentary – would struggle to captivate a modern audience, whereas chess streams are lively, interactive, and often feature shorter, fast-paced formats like blitz and bullet chess. | | | | |
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< | Access to Information | >
> | Lastly, this shift has shattered traditional barriers. Today, fans can watch Carlsen or Nakamura play live, listen to their thought processes, and even interact with them in chat or through play. This unprecedented access has fostered a sense of community and connection that was unimaginable in previous eras. | | | | |
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< | Contrary to the idea of improved access provided by technology, the digitalization of libraries also presents a critical issue to our freedom to access information. While we are now privy to more information due to having the internet at our fingerprints, the loss of physical libraries prevents access to information due to the commercialization of books. Legal methods of obtaining free books or information have become severely limited by commercial paywalls. Even reading the news has become difficult with multiple different news mediums preventing access to their information without paying. | >
> | Final Thoughts | | | | |
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< | The ability and ease with which the internet can manipulate, and feed information is an enormous concern for our freedom of access to information [pg 103]. In the library’s physical space, while the contents of the library may have been curated by an individual librarian, there is true freedom to explore the knowledge of books without additional interference. A person can parse through the many volumes gathered in the bookshelves without the fear of a third-party search engine tracking and feeding specific types of information to them.
Additionally, national and historic libraries preserve and carefully collect cultural and historical heritage which provide a rich source of information from political, ideological to social and cultural worth. Libraries, through the preservation of books, newspapers, and other physical mediums present values of cultural diversity, freedom to think and inspire, freedom of expression, and freedom of speech [pg 104]. The importance of libraries to gather, preserve, and offer a space for people to reach and explore these cultural pieces is truly an opportunity to access information that facilitates the freedom to think. However, the digitalization of these paper mediums and the removal of physical access to libraries will not continue or increase access as initially considered. Instead of providing quality information, the internet offers too much information and disinformation that is controlled and monitored.
Conclusion
While the natural progression and shift from physical books to digitalizing the printed medium may promote access to these books, the loss of libraries indicates not only a physical place of respite but can affect critical access to information. This loss of cultural information may affect our freedom to think and learn in ways that could be detrimental to our society and culture. | >
> | The appreciation of deep, complex positions with enough time to examine them, less computer-led analysis, and more in-person competition must remain central to the chess experience. This can be achieved by favoring slower time controls for tournaments with prizes and rating points, turning off the engine during commentary and training, and mandating over-the-board chess in tournaments. |
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TWikiGuestSecondEssay 1 - 29 Nov 2024 - Main.JiHyunPark
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-- JiHyunPark - 29 Nov 2024
The Digitalization of Print Sources and the Loss of Libraries
Ever since the widespread access to the digital electronic medium of words on screen, there has been a steady decline of a physical material medium to store, share, and enjoy words manifested from the minds of humans. Instead, from carving “words” into nature and the development of ink onto paper, the new medium for the human language has escaped the material physicality it has historically used in digital electronic format. The digitalization of books, words, of images, has been met with exciting fanfare where the world has moved from putting ink on paper to tapping keys on a keyboard to create and write (or now type) their thoughts. Increasingly, the physical medium of ink on paper has been replaced with electronic versions. Perhaps my generation will be one of the last few that experience the educational transition from a paper medium to an electronic one as I step through the American educational system. Personally, my elementary and middle school placed crucial importance on school libraries and offering a physical place to borrow and read books. However, at the tail end of my middle school years, all students were offered iPads and increasingly, the physicality of written materials declined into some form of electronic digital medium. I shifted from combing the modest collection of books offered by my school library to scrolling the enormous digital access granted to me by the internet. Before long, the lack of a library in my high school did not concern me nor did the 1000-page pdf of my Calculus textbook that I crtl-F through to reach the correct page. Before I knew it, the world beyond my classroom was also digitalized. The plastic-wrapped newspapers tossed in front of my home slowly disappeared, replaced with pre-formatted emails offering a subscription service to receive tailored news “right in my mailbox.”
The digitalization of books has many benefits that are enjoyed and celebrated today. However, the shift from physical paper books to e-books has resulted in the loss of not only the actual paper books but also the spaces that hold them. The greatest loss of the electronic reproduction of books is not the loss of the physical paper book but the loss of the spaces that hold them; the loss of libraries.
The Role of Libraries
Libraries are more than a storage unit that house physical volumes of books. Libraries are places that play a critical role in our communities. They manifestly represent places of opportunity, learning, and freedom for many people. Libraries are a public space for meeting both information and people [pg 101]. What’s crucial about libraries is the fact that they often offer free public space for people to meet and access a plethora of information. While information may become more accessible on the internet, physical spaces for nurturing creativity and concentrated reading away from the noise and short bursts of electronic media are critical in our current society.
Beyond just communities, libraries are especially important for the academic ecosystem of college campuses. Libraries on college campuses are places that offer not only knowledge but a place to connect students as a community. They play a critical role in campus culture [1]. Looking closer to home, an article by Ben Ratcliff for the New York Times explores Columbia University’s historical Butler University and notes that the library is a haven for the body and the mind [2]. While Butler is accessible to us as Columbia law students, the loss of our law library indicates that our law school community may be critically altered.
Access to Information
Contrary to the idea of improved access provided by technology, the digitalization of libraries also presents a critical issue to our freedom to access information. While we are now privy to more information due to having the internet at our fingerprints, the loss of physical libraries prevents access to information due to the commercialization of books. Legal methods of obtaining free books or information have become severely limited by commercial paywalls. Even reading the news has become difficult with multiple different news mediums preventing access to their information without paying.
The ability and ease with which the internet can manipulate, and feed information is an enormous concern for our freedom of access to information [pg 103]. In the library’s physical space, while the contents of the library may have been curated by an individual librarian, there is true freedom to explore the knowledge of books without additional interference. A person can parse through the many volumes gathered in the bookshelves without the fear of a third-party search engine tracking and feeding specific types of information to them.
Additionally, national and historic libraries preserve and carefully collect cultural and historical heritage which provide a rich source of information from political, ideological to social and cultural worth. Libraries, through the preservation of books, newspapers, and other physical mediums present values of cultural diversity, freedom to think and inspire, freedom of expression, and freedom of speech [pg 104]. The importance of libraries to gather, preserve, and offer a space for people to reach and explore these cultural pieces is truly an opportunity to access information that facilitates the freedom to think. However, the digitalization of these paper mediums and the removal of physical access to libraries will not continue or increase access as initially considered. Instead of providing quality information, the internet offers too much information and disinformation that is controlled and monitored.
Conclusion
While the natural progression and shift from physical books to digitalizing the printed medium may promote access to these books, the loss of libraries indicates not only a physical place of respite but can affect critical access to information. This loss of cultural information may affect our freedom to think and learn in ways that could be detrimental to our society and culture. |
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