© Mark Ollig
Turochamp is a simple computing strategy for chess created by Mathematician Alan Turing in 1948.
The program was written (coded) on slips of paper and used logical-searching decision trees for making the best chess moves.
Surprisingly, the computer needed to run Turing's chess program did not exist in 1948.
A 22-year-old Russian chess player named Garry Kasparov participated in a chess exhibition June 6, 1985, where 32 tables with a chessboard atop each encircled him.
Walking in a circular pattern, he stopped for a brief moment at one table to play his chess move and then continued to the following table.
It should be noted the competition he was playing against wasn’t human.
On each of the 32 tables sat a chess-playing computer model made by various manufacturers.
After five hours, Kasparov won 32 games; defeating all 32 computer model chess boards; thus reassuring the human brain was superior to a computer’s programming in 1985: insofar as playing chess goes.
Just five months later, Kasparov became the World Chess Champion.
Deep Thought, an enhanced chess-playing computer created in 1988 by computer scientists from Carnegie Mellon University, defeated many human players, including Danish chess grandmaster Bent Larsen.
In 1989, Kasparov was still the undisputed World Chess Champion, and Oct. 22, he agreed to play a two-game chess match against the highly-touted Deep Thought.
It was said Deep Thought could analyze about 500,000 chess positions per second, while Kasparov reportedly could “see” or think 15 chess moves in advance.
Kasparov easily won both games, defeating the computer many thought would provide some real competition for the World Chess Champion.
During the next eight years, IBM worked with the computer scientists who created Deep Thought with their next version of a chess-playing computer they hoped would have enough processing power to defeat a World Chess Champion.
In May 1997, Kasparov found himself competing in a six-game chess match against the new-and-improved Deep Thought, which had evolved into the $10 million IBM supercomputer named Deep Blue.
Public interest was high; the cover of Newsweek magazine called this man-versus-machine contest “The Brain's Last Stand.”
Kasparov was in for the ultimate chess challenge. Deep Blue could analyze an incredible 200 million chess positions per second, or 50 billion unique situations within the three minutes allotted each player for a single move during a chess game.
The match began, and after 45 moves, Kasparov won the first game, leading many to believe the human brain would once again prove superior.
However, Deep Blue rebounded, and Kasparov resigned the second game.
The third, fourth, and fifth games ended in a draw.
The Deep Blue computer “crashed” during some chess games, and needed to be restarted.
Suspense set in, as the sixth game would determine the winner of the chess match.
This final chess game of man-versus-machine took less than an hour to play and was broadcast live on television May 11, 1997.
Shockingly, after 18 moves, Deep Blue took Kasparov’s chess queen.
After the 19th move, chess history was made when Kasparov resigned, giving Deep Blue the game and the match.
Using software and a powerful mass-parallel processing system, a computer – a machine – defeated the reigning human World Chess Champion and Grandmaster.
During the post-match press conference, Kasparov appeared physically drained and very disappointed.
Understandably, Kasparov wanted a rematch with the computer; IBM quickly refused.
Deep Blue would never compete in a chess match again, and was turned off in 2001.
Kasparov retired from participating in professional competitive chess tournaments in 2005, although there was still one chess computing program out there waiting for him to play.
June 23, 2012, was the 100th anniversary of Alan Turing’s birth, and a celebration took place at the University of Manchester.
In attendance were computer scientists and internet pioneers, such as Vinton Cerf. There was also a special appearance by chess grandmaster and former World Chess Champion Kasparov.
Kasparov took to the podium and commented on Turing’s contributions to computer technology.
The audience applauded and then waited in anticipation for him to play one game against Turing's 1948 Turochamp computer chess program loaded into a modern-day computer located on the stage.
The audience watched the large display screen as Turochamp, playing the white chess pieces, opened the game against Kasparov with the Queen’s pawn, or e3 move.
The former chess champion methodically and quickly took control of the game, taking mere seconds between chess moves.
“I’m sorry!” Kasparov smilingly said while capturing chess pieces and finally checkmating white’s king in only 16 moves.
After the game, Kasparov complimented Turing’s chess program, saying, “It was a start. It was something that definitely changed our lives.”
“Although it’s only thinking two moves ahead, I thought it would give the amateur player some serious problems,” he said of Turing’s chess program, adding, “it was an outstanding accomplishment.”
Video of Garry Kasparov playing against Alan Turing’s Turochamp chess program is at https://bit.ly/3HKLrda.
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| Garry Kasparov (L) playing against Alan Turing’s Turochamp chess program while the moderator (R) describes the action to the audience. |