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Subject: Re: I think Van Wely is still the Stronger Player

Author: Dann Corbit

Date: 11:18:16 02/22/02

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On February 22, 2002 at 14:10:11, Derrick Ford wrote:

>Excellent result for Century, but I think Van wely demonstrated that he is the
>better player, game 1 should have been a Draw, Van wely demonstrated that he
>could win as white at Will. Rebel Definitely played like a 2600 player however.

I think it is a clear triumph for Rebel.  What I mean is that under stringent
conditions with a lot on the line, Rebel played nose to nose against a 2600
player and it was a standoff.

Sure, van Wely lost due to time pressure.  But that is simply an aspect of human
play where the humans are at a disadvantage.  What about the big strategic
advantage humans have in making positional moves?  Rebel can't cry about that,
because that's just the way it is.  Humans and computers play chess differently,
with different strengths and weaknesses.

I congratulate both parties.

The Rebel team risked a lot, because they not only had to cough up a big chunk
of cash, but could also have easily lost 4-0 (with the exact same program) and
had people mistakenly conclude that Rebel was not ready for the big time against
great players.

Loek van Wely risked a great deal as well.  These contests have a very large
"John Henry/Paul Bunion" atmosphere about them and gather a very large amount of
scrutiny because of it.  I suspect that a very large amount of ego is at stake
in a public match of this nature.  It took a lot of guts for van Wely to accept
the match.

To both teams, I say "Well done!"



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