Babson task

[Brunetti]

The claim is that in the position of this thread there is only one winning move.

Ok!
Thanks,
Alex

[nnnnnnnn]

the older (1983) study by Jarosch, L.V., see quoted diagram

https://www.yacpdb.org/#search/QnExQjFL ... LzEvMA==/1

That's a problem, not a study, because the number of of moves to mate is required in the specification.

[peter]

You're right, I just gave the link to this one position too, because it was shown with diagram here

viewtopic.php?p=970464#p970464

, quoted out of an older one thread, and it deals with Babson task too, regards

[towforce]

I wonder how one would code the composition of a Babson task? My first thought would be to use a genetic algorithm. Maybe there's a way to work backwards from the checkmate.

Tim Krabbe (link) has written a book about the Babson Task challenge. Didn't he used to be a contributor to R.G.C.C.? Maybe even this forum for a period? For all its faults, RGCC did have some quality contributors! Either that or my memory is playing tricks on me.

[nnnnnnnn]

You're right, I just gave the link to this one position too, because it was shown with diagram here

viewtopic.php?p=970464#p970464

, quoted out of an older one thread, and it deals with Babson task too, regards

One nice aesthetic feature of the Costeff study as compared to the Yarosh problem is that the rook promotion stalemate in the Costeff study requires that one of the white pieces vacate the line between the black rook and the black king, which allows the stalemate. In the Yarosh problem, the stalemate line is right there and the rook just needs to move to it. There are technical terms for these distinctions which, unfortunately, I do not know, but one can just tell intuitively that the Costeff rook stalemate feels more surprising.