Chess computers in popular culture

[Adam Hair]

From an episode (37) of a cheesy cable show called 1000 Ways To Die (very loosely based on real stories, if at all), a Soviet chess master plays against a dedicated chess super computer with a robotic arm. The game does not go as easily as the chess master thought it would, which causes him to sweat profusely. As he touches a piece to make a move, his sweat drips on to the board, causing him to be electrocuted.

A cautionary tale for Steve Blincoe


I will see if I can find a clip of it online.

Actually i have prepared for that possibility years ago
whenever i play one of my dedicated computer's i always use those rubber glove thingies that the folks wear when serving you at a Deli Check out counter
Soup Nazi Regards
Steve

May I suggest an upgrade in your protection gear? After all, just one accident and Mrs. Blincoe will flood the market with dedicated chess computers.



Heart Stopping Regards,
Adam

[Albert Silver]

I have not read The Hitchhiker's Guide yet, but I will do so.

IMO, for Adams to work, you have to put your mind into 1970s England because the jokes and social commentary really only resonate in that specific milieu. It's exactly the same situation for "Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy". If you've never been immersed in issues of that time (from either having lived through it or from studying it in depth), it will be difficult to fully grok (or otherwise escape into) the story's atmosphere.

While I completely agree that having a feel for the Cold War fears and paranoia is crucial to getting into to Tinker Taylor (the movie is a mess IMHO - though the BBC miniseries is very true to the book), I don't for Hitchhikers.

It is worth mentioning it was born as a radio play, and is absolutely hysterical. Up until ... I think it is part of book two, the narrator is one of the best voice actors I ever heard. the sense of understated irony smacks of genius IMHO. In any case, I read these books as a teenager the first time round, loved them, and knew nothing of 70s English social issues.

Granted some of the jokes are *very* British, such as the Sunday bath references, but much of it can be taken as is, such as the question to life, the universe and everything, or the numerous short bits like the Pangalactic Gargle blaster, the most useful item in the universe (towel), the sccne with Marvin and the ultra tank, and many others.

[CRoberson]

Got these references from another thread from years ago here.

These are from Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles:

This one is a human actor playing an android that is playing chess.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B09lJa6Vv8w

The Queens Gambit
http://terminator.wikia.com/wiki/Episod ... 27s_Gambit

The Turk
http://terminator.wikia.com/wiki/Episode_103:_The_Turk

http://www.qwipster.net/sarahconner3.htm

Oh, yes. There was a reference to computer chess in the original Star Trek series. Spock was playing chess against the computer and won. Bones stated that didn't make sense. Spock said given that he programmed the computer to play chess the best that could have happened was a draw.

I programmed my computer to play chess and I don't get draws with it. Then again, I am not a "green blooded Vulcan".

[CRoberson]

This has to be my favorite commercial pertaining to computers and chess.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUqXr9Jlhwc

[Adam Hair]

This has to be my favorite commercial pertaining to computers and chess.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUqXr9Jlhwc

Very funny!

[MrEdCollins]

Many of you might remember the old 1960s and 1970s "Mission Impossible" TV series.

In a January 1968 episode, called "A Game of Chess" Rollin poses as an amateur chess player entering first chess tournament. He wins the tournament, with the help of a computer that Barney and Jim are running. Cinammon fees the moves to them with a camera trained on the large display board. Jim relays the computer's reply to Rollin via a receiver in Rollin's ear.

You can see the clip here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUElKW6D6gc

Very entertaining. They use descriptive notation, which, of course, was popular at the time.

The description says this is clip #2 of 5, so apparently this entire episode is available on YouTube.

Chess appeared in American TV shows a LOT after Fischer won the championship in 1972. But you don't see too many clips like this from the 1960s.

Here's a description of that episode, from IMDb:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0649205/

[JuLieN]

I don't think this has been posted before, but in Outer Limit's first 90ies season, episode three, the wheel-chaired engineer plays chess with yet another MB robot (this chess set was a movie star!):

[Dr.Wael Deeb]

I don't think this has been posted before, but in Outer Limit's first 90ies season, episode three, the wheel-chaired engineer plays chess with yet another MB robot (this chess set was a movie star!):

Hilarious Julien

What model is this dedicated chess device

[JuLieN]

What model is this dedicated chess device

You'll have to ask Steve: he would tell the difference between the three models two miles away with naked eyes

[lucasart]

As I stumbled upon a chess computer story while reading a comic strip, I thought it would be a good idea to make a thread about chess computers and popular culture. Have you done such an encounter, then please share it with us.

Here's my finding. It comes from one of my favorite french/belgian comic strips : Génial Olivier. Olivier is a mischievous genius kid, always inventing new things (mostly designed to annoy his teacher, but not only). It first was published in the Spirou comic strips magazine on August the 8th, 1963, and up to the death of his author, Jacques Devos, in the early 90ies. It has been remorselessly ripped off by the American TV program "Jimmy Neutron" (even his robot dog was copied! )



Raw Translation

[0] Title:
Echec au fou : this is a word play, as the "bishop" is called "fou" (crazy/joker) in french. It means "check to the crazy/joker".

[1] First square:
Igor : Hi, Olivier and his friend.
Olivier: Oh! Hello Igor, please step in!
Flafla: Hello!

[2] Second square:
olivier: Igor Titurbine is a russian friend! He is a fanatic of chess. He received a new chess computer from a japanese diplomat. Right, Igor?
Igor: Da! But... Errr... To tell the truth... Errr...

[3] Third square:
Igor: Da-da! My tjapanese friend Tora Pathkado ("Uwont Getagift") gave to me! Him verrrry nice and me verrry happy receiving machine. Now its is kaputt!

[4] Fourth square:
Igor: This machine I defeating it in seven moves game and it say strange word! Me not understand!

[5] Fifth square:
Flafla: A talking machine?
Olivier: My friend, today, electronic devices talk, commenting your moves using a synthetic voice.
Flafla: Come on! Come on!

[6] Sixth square:
Igor : Machine said "c'est beaucoup" (it's a lot) afterrr me defeating it; then look, machine splitting in two! Look!?
Flafla: My goodness!
Olivier: Rats! "c'est beaucoup" is not a coined chess terminology!

[7] Seventh square:
Flafla: Eh! Are you sure this was this sentence? What if it was in a foreign language?
Olivier: That's possible! Let's check my universal electronic translator.
Igor: Boje moï.

[8] Eighth square:
Flafla: but why did this chessboard exploded in two parts like that?
Igor: this big big mysterrrium!
Olivier: Let's see?

[9] Ninth square:
Olivier: Careful, friends! I'm giving the sentence to my translator : "c'est beaucoup!"

[10] Tenth square:
Translator: Trik-trik-trik-trik-trik-trik! In-cor-rect pr--noun-cia-tion! Spea-ker pro-ba-bly meant "sé-pou-kou"!...
Igor: Yaas! This being this!

[11] Eleventh square:
Translator: "Seppuku" : noble name for "hara-kiri"! End. Trik-trik-trik!
Igor: Nitchevo!
Olivier: Yet another cultural conquest by electronics! Pfff!

lol, I loved the sepuku joke... a typical japanese computer. Unfortunately the joke just doesn't translate in English, as the rime doesn't work

maybe I can program a sepuku function in DoubheCheck: when it's losing, instead of continuing to play, it will crash and the executable argv[0] will be deleted. I can also declare a sepuku option to the UCI interface

Code: Select all

option name Sepuku type check default false

so it will lose in a true samurai way

The sepuku option would be a novelty going somewhat further than the usual resign xboard option