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Optical Illusion: Are these two sets of chess pieces the same or different? This mind-bending optical illusion of two sets of chess pieces is taking the Internet by storm. Keep reading.

Optical Illusion: The Mystery Behind Two Sets of Chess Pieces

Optical Illusion: This mind-boggling optical illusion image has internet users perplexed as to how the two sets of chess pieces can be the same.

Yes, we are speaking about the optical illusion image shared by Tom Chivers on Twitter with the caption the top and bottom chess sets are the same colour.

The image below shows two sets of chess pieces that are different from each other in their appearance.

What if we told you that these two sets are identical?

Would you agree?

You wont.

Well, we will be explaining to you the mystery behind the statement that the two sets of chess pieces are the same.

Keep reading.

This optical illusion image was created by researchers Barton Anderson, from the University of Sydney, Australia, and Jonathan Winawer, of New York University and was published in the science journal Nature.

Have a look at the image again.

You can see that there are two sets of chess pieces against a smoky background. Interestingly, this image's upper set of chess pieces is against a dark smoky background, while the lower set is against a lighter background.

This illusion is created by the smoky background and is responsible for altering our perception.

This is possible due to the phenomenon of assimilation, which tricks our brain into thinking that these are different colours although they are the same.

In this phenomenon, when an object is placed in a darker background, it appears light, while the same object appears dark when placed in a lighter environment.

We hope you had a great experience reading this story; for more such exciting story pieces, stay connected with us.

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Optical Illusion: Black or White? The Mystery Behind Two Sets of Chess Pieces - Jagran Josh

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 2 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Premium water brand smartwater, owned by The Coca-Cola Company, has signed a partnership with Federation Internationale des Echecs (FIDE), to be the official and exclusive beverage partner for the 44th Chess Olympiad 2022. The Olympiad will be held in Chennai, India from 28 July to 10 August 2022.

This will be the first Chess Olympiad to take place in the country. Now sold as a premium product globally, smartwater was first introduced in 1996 in the United States, and by 2016 it was one of the top five bottled water brands in that country, with sales worth nearly USD 830 million in 2017. Barely two years later, India was already the fourth largest market globally for the brand, with a presence in over 10,000 outlets across the country.

Karthik Subramanian, Director, Marketing, Hydration Coffee and Tea Category, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia said, "Made through vapour distillation, water is evaporated to remove impurities, condensed and then re-mineralized with electrolytes for a crisp, pure taste, making smartwater a premium hydrating beverage. We are proud to partner with the first-ever Chess Olympiad taking place in India, as rehydration will be an important need for the participants, especially taking into account the high temperatures in Chennai at the time." The brand is also available in other countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, The United Arab Emirates, Croatia, Singapore, Serbia, Romania, Malaysia, and Canada. Renowned global celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston, Gal Gadot, and Zendaya, have endorsed smartwater.

In India as well, the brand has leveraged local celebrity brand ambassadors Rana Daggubati and Radhika Apte to drive brand edge, all the while experimenting with digital marketing strategies and expanding distribution in select channels to retain its position as a premium offering. In 2019, Smartwater alkaline and Smartwater antioxidant were introduced globally to meet the growing desire for hydration options throughout the day. These global innovations have continued with the launch of Smartwater flavors--inspired by the lightly infused waters found at spas-- Smartwater sparkling, and Smartwater+, infused with a range of fruit essences and rejuvenating extracts.

Coca-Cola India will supply 70,000 bottles of smartwater, to ensure that the participants in the Olympiad will stay hydrated, which is important for them to perform at their highest level. This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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smartwater Is the official beverage partner for 44th Chess Olympiad 2022 - Devdiscourse

By Venkatachari Jagannathan

Chennai, Aug 1 (IANS): Chess pieces that move on their own as if possessed by some spirit, artistic boards, handcrafted pieces made of camel bones and several other novelties are available in the Indian market.

There is also a 100-square chess board -- normal boards have 64 squares -- with new pieces like bull, camel, kangaroo and dragon.

India that exported 'chaturanga', or the game of chess, is now shipping out chess boards to several countries like the USA, UAE and others in sizable numbers.

According to the Department of Commerce figures, India exported USD3.27m worth of chess boards between April 2021 and January 2023 as against USD2.49m worth of shipment during FY21.

A chess-board manufacturer also said his company has taken steps to make digital boards which are currently being imported.

"Smart chess boards are in demand as people want to move away from watching the screens -- mobile, laptops and desktops. The chess pieces move in an automated manner powered by robotics. There are also rollable electronic boards," said PN Naveen Karthikeyan, proprietor of My Chess Dreams, the Indian distributor for the US-based Square Off.

"With these boards, one can play chess anywhere with anyone in the world who is connected with certain chess portals," Karthikeyan, a FIDE arbiter and the author of the book 18x64 that links the 64-square chess board and the 18 chapters of Bhagavad Gita, said.

At the ongoing 44th Chess Olympiad venue, chess board manufacturers, who have put up stalls, are smiling as they are getting enquiries from several foreign participants.

"The demand for wooden chess boards and pieces will never go away even though there are vinyl boards there," Nikhil Dhir, partner, Paramount Dealz, told IANS.

Dhir, a mechanical engineer formerly with Reliance Industries at Jam Nagar in Gujarat, in partnership with Pratik Matlawala started his chess board company in 2018.

"We ship our boards to the US, UK and UAE. Our total turnover is about USD0.7 million and this year we hope to touch USD1 million," Dhir said.

Liking the wooden chess boards to the iconic 350cc Enfield Bullet bike, Dhir said, "Everyone wants to own a Bullet bike for its unique engine noise. But they also want modern features like button start and others. Similar is the case with wooden chess boards.

"The chess pieces are handcrafted as per the FIDE specifications," he added.

While vinyl chess boards are foldable and easy to carry, Paramount Dealz has come out with a wooden chess board that can be rolled up.

"We are planning to have a prototype of the digital chess board ready soon. Currently it is being imported," Dhir said.

For the 44th Chess Olympiad that is being held at Mamallapuram near here, the digital chess boards were sent by the international chess federation (FIDE).

Simply put, digital and electronic chess boards are the ones where the moves made by the players are automatically transferred to computers and also enables live transmission.

Be that as it may, apart from wooden chess boards and pieces, manufacturers also make metal boards and carve chess pieces out of camel bones.

"We also make chess pieces with camel bones apart from regular and special pieces in wood for domestic and export markets," Ricky, CEO, Taj Chess Store told IANS.

The five-year-old Taj Chess Store, after focusing on exports to the US, UK and Australia, has started retailing in India for the last two years.

The wooden chess boards and pieces are made with rose wood, box wood, maple wood, ebony wood, acacia wood and others.

According to Dhir, garden chess sets -- huge chess boards and pieces -- are in demand from hotels and other institutions.

The industry players said the holding of the Olympiad has further increased interest in chess and board sales are brisk.

"Owing to Covid-19, sales of chess boards went down. People were in lockdown due to the pandemic and the sale of chess boards went down. But now it is picking up," AL Muthukaruppan, the owner of 8x8 that makes rexine chess boards and plastic chess pieces, told IANS.

India exports chess boards and pieces made of wood, rexine and plastic.

"We export rexine boards and plastic pieces to Europe, Sri Lanka, UAE, Canada and the US. In the domestic market we sell across the country," Rajendra Sagar, owner of Sagar Sports told IANS.

Interestingly, his wife and two daughters are strong chess players -- elder daughter Tejaswani Sagar is a Woman International Master with an ELO rating of 2,166, while his younger daughter Siya Sagar has an ELO rating of 1,831 and wife Anjali R Sagar has a rating of 1,836.

See more here:
Of chess pieces that move on their own and handcrafted pieces made of camel bones - Daijiworld.com

44th Chess Olympiad 2022: Prime MinisterNarendra Modiwill inaugurate theworlds biggest chess event the 44th International Chess Olympiadat the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai Thursday. It will is scheduled to take place from July 28 to August 10 at Poonjeri village in Mamallapuram.

On July 22, Minister of Environment Climate Change and Youth Welfare and Sports Siva V Meyyanathan tweeted that according to the directions of the states CM M K Stalin, a review meeting to discuss the arrangements for the event with officials was also conducted.

The Olympiad was originally scheduled to take place in Russia but due to the ongoing Russian-Ukraine war, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) started looking for new bidders. India emerged the topper among other countries and won the opportunity to host the high-profile event for the first time. The Union Government provided the hosting rights of the worlds biggest chess event to Tamil Nadu.

Chief Minister M K Stalin said the authorities are expecting over 2,000 participants from 187 countries across the globe to take part in the event for which the state government has set aside Rs 92 crore. On June 19, PM Modi flagged off the first-ever torch relay for the Chess Olympiad. The torch was aimed to be taken to 75 cities within the country before arriving in Mamallapuram.

The Tamil Nadu Government also announced a holiday for schools, colleges, and other non-essential government offices in four districts for Thursday, July 28, in view of the opening day of the Olympiad.

Tamil Nadu CM Stalin chaired a meeting at the venue a few weeks ago to review the arrangements ahead of the event. He directed the officers to set up a 247 control room to assist the participants, guests and public, and ensure that the accommodation and other facilities such as parking, water and power supply, road facilities, etc are being taken care of. The authorities have been directed to provide wide publicity of the event in all districts.

The Greater Chennai Police have put in place a five-tier security arrangement and have deployed 22,000 personnel ahead of Prime MinisterNarendra Modis visit to the city on July 28. Flying of drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles has been banned in the city limits on July 28 and 29 underSection 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code. According to a statement issued by the police, under the City Commissioner of Police, four Additional Commissioners, seven officers of the rank of Joint Commissioner/DIG and 26 officers in the rank of Deputy Commissioner/Superintendent have been deployed for security duty.

The state government has already started dedicated efforts to give maximum promotion for the mega event. The official mascot Thambi, a horse clad in the traditional Veshti Sattai, and the logo was also unveiled.

Stalin flagged off buses bearing Namma Chess, Namma Pride promotional slogans to travel across the city.

Superstar Rajinikanth launched a teaser video of the event and said it is a great pride that the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad is being hosted for the first time in India and that too in Tamil Nadu.

The teaser, directed by Vignesh Sivan, was shot at the citys British-era Napier Bridge near Marina Beach and also at ancient monuments in Mamallapuram. The video featuring Stalin and also Oscar winner A R Rahman was set against the backdrop resembling a chessboard.

Apart from giving a makeover to the entire bridge in Chennai, the mascot Thambi was also placed at Namma Chennai selfie point, at ECR and other areas. Billboards featuring the details of the event are installed at major bus stands.

Promotions were also done at Chennai Metro stations. In other cities such as Coimbatore and Trichy, the district administration had made arrangements like pasting stickers on the buses as part of boosting publicity for the event.

To make the programme more interesting, the organisers have announced a few contests as well where the people have been asked to take pictures with the mascot and post them on social media to stand a chance to win tickets to the opening ceremony at Nehru Indoor Stadium.

You can book tickets by logging into https://tickets.aicf.in./

There are two playing halls Hall 1 and Hall 2. According to the website, the prices for Hall 1 are high as it will feature top ranking teams (28 boards in open and 1 in womens section).

To witness the competition at Hall 2, the ticket price is Rs 2,000 for one person, and Rs 6000 for a foreigner. Students aged below 19 years, women and Tamil Nadu government staff can avail the ticket at a discounted price of Rs 200.

The price of a ticket to Hall 1 that will feature top-ranking teams is Rs 3000, whereas a foreign national needs to pay Rs 8,000. Students under 19 years, women and Tamil Nadu government staff will get the benefit of discounted ticket price at Rs 300.

According to the organisers, the visitors would be allowed to enter the venue after a thorough security check. As no electronic device, including mobile phones, is allowed inside the tournament hall, the gadgets of the visitors can be deposited at the counter.

From Monday, the Tamil Nadu Tourism Department is planning to run five hop-on hop-off buses for tourists to and from Mamallapuram, free of cost.

Speaking to Indianexpress.com Sandeep Nanduri, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) said the buses would start services from Madhya Kailash and will run via the IT corridor Rajiv Gandhi Salai to Sholinganallur junction and then take the East Coast Road route.

The hop-on hop-off bus services were in action 10 years ago. Now we are relaunching them alongside this Olympiad. We have identified 19 stops, a total of five buses will be used to take the visitors every one hour and it will be free of cost, he said.

Further, the Tamil Nadu Tourism Department is planning to rebrand the auto-rickshaws in the coastal town as Tourist-friendly Autos. Close to 25 auto-rickshaws have been identified and they are set to be decked up in new designs.

Director Nanduri said the department is providing behavioural training for the auto drivers so that passengers do not experience issues, especially on fleecing. The drivers would also provide a snippet about the destinations to tourists.

Link:
Chess Olympiad 2022: World's biggest Chess championship to begin today, here's all you need to know - The Indian Express

Gilbert Perez dreams of the day when thousands of Canadians with disabilities take up competitive chess.

Perez, a retired doctor who lives in Brandon, Man., was the only Canadian to compete in last years World Chess Championship for People with Disabilities. People with physical, vision or hearing impairments from 44 countries competed online, and he finished 63rd in a field of 249 players.

It was his second time competing in the international event, and he says the online format made it easier for many people to take part.

Chess is a game where people with disabilities can beat people without disabilities, he says. For people who are isolated or sometimes bullied, its a good way to make friends and socialize.

Perez contracted polio in his native Philippines when he was two, and he spends most of his time in a wheelchair. He has also lost vision in one eye. But he says chess puts him on a level playing field, and even severely disabled people can compete successfully.

Last years world championship was the first where blind players could play without any physical or virtual assistance.

Before the pandemic, he taught chess to kids in schools, and he hopes to resume his teaching and coaching as soon as conditions allow.

There is a forced mate after 1. Qe7, threatening Rf8+ and mate.

Read more here:
Disabled chess player from Manitoba represents Canada on the world stage - The Globe and Mail