This week we are joined by the economist, award-winning author, and top Australian player, GM David Smerdon. David is a professor at the University of Queensland. With a statistical background, David is a particular expert in the intersection of statistics and chess and is frequently able to combine his chess expertise with his academic research. Since chess cheating has been in the news again, we begin by getting David’s thoughts on the renewed allegations against GM Hans Niemann, as well as the recent concerns about rampant online cheating voiced by GM Vladimir Kramnik. David drew some interesting comparisons between these cheating scandals and a recent one in the academic world. David also had some recently published chess research to discuss, as he and a team of collaborators have recently launched the “Gender Equality in Chess Index. (GECI)” What is the goal of his index and how did they arrive at the numbers? Lastly, we catch up on David’s chess career. As David details, he doesn’t have a ton of time to study, but is competing when he can with a specific goal in mind. There is always lots to learn from GM Smerdon, and it was a pleasure to catch up with him Timestamps of topics discussed are below.
Thanks to our presenting chess education sponsors, Chessable.com! Help support Perpetual Chess by signing up for Chessable pro using this link:
https://www.chessable.com/pro/?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=benjohnson&utm_campaign=pro
0:00- Intro
Mentioned: Tarjei’s Svensen’s article, Dojo Talks EP 101 with GM Vladmir Kramnik
0:02- David discusses cheating in the chess world, and draws parallels to some scandals in the academic world.
Mentioned: Did an honesty researcher fabricate data?, GM Alex Fishbein
10:00- Has any good come of the recent chess cheating scandals?
Mentioned: GM Mamedyarov withdraws from 2018 tournament after accusing opponent of cheating, Hans Niemann competes in London Chess Classic after stunning result in Zagreb
17:00- Chess.com statement regarding Kramnik allegations against Nakamura
23:00- Do continued allegations against Niemann cause concern about the viability of the future of OTB chess?
Mentioned: Poker pro alleged to have used special contact lenses to see through a deck
26:30- Can statistics help detect “smart cheating”?
29:00 What was the genesis of the idea for a “chess gender index”?
Mentioned: Mongolia Tops Chess Gender Index by Leon Watson
34:00- Did Queen of Katwe likely contribute to the success of women’s chess in Uganda?What did he notice about other high ranking countries?
41:00- What are the components of the index?
51:00- David discusses his other chess-related research
52:00- How is David’s chess game, and what is his current chess goal?
Mentioned: Episode 30, The Complete Chess Swindler
Thanks to David for joining me again, here are links to keep up with him:
X: https://twitter.com/dsmerdon
David’s Blog;
https://www.davidsmerdon.com/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
EP 321- GM Cristian Chirila on Past and Upcoming World Championship Matches, his OTB game, and the Growth of the C Squared Podcast
EP 320- Adult Improver Ben Hunt of “Chess Boot Camp" YouTube Channel on going from 0-1500, “The Goldfish Method” and Transitioning to OTB Chess
EP 319- Dr. Howard Burton- An Award Winning Documentary Filmmaker and Author on the Growth Opportunity for Chess, the Genius of Morphy, Fixing FIDE, and Whether Chess Skills Transfer to Other Domains
EP 318 - Trainer and Chessable Author IM Yaacov Norowitz on How he Became a Blitz Specialist, His Early Encounters with Hikaru and Gothamchess & His Unique Approach to Chess Learning
Book Recap #31- San Luis 2005- Dr. Christopher Chabris on a A Tournament Book featuring Sparkling Games and Annotations, A Mini Cheating Scandal, at a Crossroad Moment in World Championship Chess Hist
EP 317- GM Jorden van Foreest- The Dutch Chess Champ on Working with Magnus and Anish, How he Became Known as a “Creative Player” and What he is Doing to Work on His Own Game
EP 316- GM Mihail Marin: The Renowned Author and Trainer on Learning from Larsen, Tal, Polgar and other Legends
EP 315- Dr. Jon Edwards- The Correspondence Chess World Champion on what Top Engines think of Different Openings and his Road to the World Title
Bonus pod- Tata Steel in the Home Stretch- FM Michiel Abeln assesses the Tournament so Far
EP 314- Adult Improver Kamryn Hellman on How Discovering Chess via Queen's Gambit turned her into a Fast Improving Chess Obsessive
Bonus pod- Dispatch from the Tata Steel Chess tournament with Renowned Author, FM Michiel Abeln
EP 313- FM James Canty on Staying Motivated and His Grind Toward the IM Title and Beyond.
EP 312- GM Noel Studer- The Swiss National Champ Turned Trainer Shares Advice on Overcoming Plateaus, Calculating, Analyzing Games & More
EP 311- GM Jonathan Speelman- A British Chess Legend on His Time as a Top 10 Player and His Encounters with Anand, Korchnoi, Tal and many more!
EP 310- John Hartmann joins to Review the Year in Chess: A Carlsen/Niemann Update, A New Cheating Scandal, The Chess.Com/PM Merger, & lots more
EP 309- Dr. Joel Sneed- An Author and Psychology Professor on How to Regain One's Chess Motivation, Curbing "Blitz Tilt" and How he Made Unusual Rating Gains as an Adult
Book Recap #30- 10 Underrated Chess Books for Different Ratings Levels, with FM Carsten Hansen
EP 308- GM Srinath Narayanan- Lessons Learned from Training Some of the Chess World's Brightest Young Talents
EP 307- IM Dean Ippolito- A Longtime Trainer, Author and Champion Competitor on the Adjustments one Should Make for the Modern Tournament Landscape
EP 306- Adult Improver Vishnu Warrier. Can a 31 year old USCF 2100 become a GM? Vishnu wants to find out!
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
That Don‘t Sound Right
Gun Talk
来都来了 | 听了再走
Adeptus Ridiculous
BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Podcast