|
|
Kramnik vs Deep Fritz. A Brain Games Event
| Man vs. machine press conference report
by James Coleman 31st July 2001 The salubrious Galleria Suite overlooking the pitch at Chelsea Football Club was the elegant venue for the Man v Machine press conference. Considering it was billed as being bigger than the Thriller In Manila, and hotter than the Rumble in The Jungle, proceedings got off to a slow start - by 11.30 am (the event was due to start at 11.00) there was no sign of any of the celebrities. Where were all the football stars? And the boxers? More to the point, where was Big Vlad? Surely he hadn’t taken them all out clubbing the night before? Still, at least Ray Keene had made it. Suddenly though, it all kicked off (pun intended) and to the usual fanfare that accompanies your average chess competition (loud music, strobe lights, smoke simulations etc) Ray Keene, Franz Morsch (the Fritz programmer) and Vladimir Kramnik made their way on stage to speak about the match. The first interesting thing that was revealed was that the games in the match are to be adjourned after sixty moves, a revelation that provoked some surprise from the audience. Whilst a logical idea, it could lead to the strange situation whereby Vladimir can use his own opponent to prepare for the resumption of the game ! Both sides seemed upbeat about their chances, Franz Morsch saying the main difference between this version of Fritz compared to its predecessors did not lie so much in greater chess knowledge but more due to the machines newfound ability to deal with anti-computer chess strategy, and to learn from its mistakes. He also said that he believed that this incarnation of Fritz is every bit as strong as the Deep Blue II that defeated Kasparov and has far greater "chess knowledge". Kramnik meanwhile said that he very much wanted to win because: " I (Kramnik) feel that after the Kasparov Deep Blue Match in 1997 the computer is already stronger than the best human chess-player in the mind of the public and I want to prove that this is not the case." He also said that his preparations for the match would begin on the 1st August and involve one month of "experimentation" followed by a month of planning match strategy with his new knowledge of the computer. When asked how he was planning to celebrate victory in the match, Vlad, serene as always, pointed out that he didn’t want to think about that, as it would then be likely that he would end up with nothing to celebrate ! He certainly looked like a man that was taking the match seriously. Then came a few more words from Ray Keene about the format of the match before Vladimir, Nigel Benn and a few chess die-hards adjourned to the car-park for a photo-shoot, while the less energetically inclined amongst us preferred to stay and enjoy more drinks and caviar in the Galleria Suite. The eight game match will take place in Le Royal Meridiene Hotel in Manama, Bahrain, 12th October - 1st November, with the host, Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Issa al-Khaleifa offering $1 million to Kramnik if he wins, $800,000 if he draws and $600,000 if he loses. Internet site for the match: http://www.brainsinbahrain.com The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of TWIC, Chess & Bridge Ltd or the London Chess Center. |
