Unsolved: teacher key

Chess, grade 11 edition, written for 11th grade. Why a game with a few simple rules has never been solved, and how theory, engines and new variants keep changing it.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What does the Shannon number estimate?
   • Pieces in a set
   • Move sequences possible in chess (answer)
   • Squares on a board
2. What did hypermodern players try to do?
   • Never move pawns
   • Avoid the center
   • Control the center with pieces (answer)
3. Which world champion trainer is called a father of computer chess?
   • Mikhail Botvinnik (answer)
   • Ruy Lopez
   • Steinitz
4. What must be true of the king in Chess960 at the start?
   • It must be on a corner
   • It must be next to the queen
   • It must be between the two rooks (answer)
5. What was AlphaZero given in 2017?
   • Millions of games
   • Only the rules of chess (answer)
   • A list of openings
6. Why does the Shannon number help show chess is not solved?
   • The tree of games is too big to search whole (answer)
   • It lists every winning move
   • It counts only draws

Words

• hypermodernism: new center idea
• zugzwang: forced bad move
• variant: changed version
• opening: first moves
• engine: chess program