HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mouse@thunder.mcrcim.mcgill.edu (der Mouse)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: Christmas Songs [SPOILERS]
Date: 23 Dec 92 16:45:52 GMT
Organization: McGill Research Centre for Intelligent Machines

In article <1h2sm5INNfm0@gap.caltech.edu>, carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) writes:
> In article <1gt9bdINNsed@meaddata.meaddata.com>, jim@meaddata.com (Jim McIntire) writes:
>> Christmas Challenge - What song titles go with these song descriptions:
>> 3.  Celestial messengers from splendid empires.

Angels From The Realms of Glory?

>> 23. A trio of non-occidental potentates is our identity.
> We Three Kings
...Of Orient Are, to fill out the provided description.

>> 25. Yuletides desired dozen.

Twelve Days of Christmas, perhaps?  "desired" is unclear.

>> 30. A red and white projectile is arriving in the metropolis.
> Santa Claus is Coming to Town.  Again, your use of the term
> "projectile" here is just plain wrong.

At the speed he must travel, to visit the whole world in a night?  You
must be kidding.  "Projectile" doesn't say the half of it.  (Well,
okay, much less than the whole world: just that portion of the world
that believes in him.  Even visiting half of North America in a night
makes it a pretty brisk trot from chimney to chimney.)

					der Mouse

			    mouse@larry.mcrcim.mcgill.edu
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles,can.general
From: dave@lsuc.on.ca (David Sherman)
Subject: GST registration number check digit: puzzle and prize
Organization: The Law Society of Upper Canada
Distribution: can
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 92 04:41:37 GMT

Virtually all businesses in Canada are registered for the Goods and
Services Tax (GST) and receive a registration number, which is "R"
followed by nine digits.  This number goes on invoices and cash
register receipts (to allow business purchasing goods and services to
recover the GST they pay), so it's not at all secret.

Included in the 9 digits is a check digit.  Revenue Canada Excise,
which administers the GST, refuses to release the formula for the
check digit, stating that it "relates to an internal procedure for
verifying registration numbers".

I challenge rec.puzzles readers to work out the formula for the check
digit.  If you are in Canada, you can collect GST registration numbers
by simply looking at any receipts you have lying around.  If you're not
in Canada (despite the Distribution: can to this posting), here are some
valid numbers:

R123965659	R130134310	R111046959
R121425516	R100573278	R104757711
R121598072	R125509950	R132475302
R110191434	R102420296	R105233795
R120989157	R121560379	R106353063
R100976786	R122481427	R121320907
R102453032	R105059216	R105254007
R105072136

Please email solutions to me, dave@lsuc.on.ca.
Prize to the first correct answer: an autographed copy of the
"Practitioner's Goods and Services Tax, Annotated" (2nd edition)
-- 1,000 pages of annotated GST legislation and regulations, a
sure cure for insomnia!  Plus, if you want, honourable mention
in the "GST Times" newsletter that I write (read by thousands
of accountants and lawyers across Canada).

David Sherman
Toronto telephone # 416-889-7658, fax # 416-889-3246
Editor-in-Chief, "Canada GST Service" (looseleaf, 6 volumes)
From: weemba@sagi.wistar.upenn.edu (Matthew P Wiener)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: New Smullyan Book
Date: 27 Dec 92 19:19:25 GMT
Reply-To: weemba@sagi.wistar.upenn.edu (Matthew P Wiener)
Organization: The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology

What a delightful surprise.  I picked up a copy of Raymond Smullyan
SATAN, CANTOR, AND INFINITY that showed up sometime this past week at
a local bookstore.  It looks like another winner.  For those who want
to order their copy, sight unseen, the ISBN is 0-679-40688-3.  Price
is US$21, CAN$26.50.

Several chapters are reprints from THE SCIENCES, if you want to get
a flavor of what's in it.
-- 
-Matthew P Wiener (weemba@sagi.wistar.upenn.edu)
From: jayne@majestix.cs.uoregon.edu (Jayne Valenti Miller)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: rec.puzzles FAQ
Date: 29 Dec 92 19:57:07 GMT
Organization: University of Oregon Computer and Information Sciences Dept.

Following everyone else, I guess...Could someone please send me
the FAQ too? Thanks so much, jayne
jayne@cs.uoregon.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: mzabel@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Mark A Zabel)
Subject: Re: Chess problem of causing probelms.
Organization: The Ohio State University
Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1992 05:02:53 GMT

>>> K . k r b . . .   Now certainly KRBP should be enough material to mate
>>> P . . p . . . .   against KPPP. In this particular position, however..
>>> . . . P . . . .
>>> . P . . . . . .   White (caps) to move.
>>> . . . . . . . .
>>> . . . . . . . .   C. S. Kipping (Chess 1936)
>>> . . . . . . . .
>>> . . . . . . . .   2X
>>>
>>> Harri H.
>>
>> Not quite. Move the bishop, the rook goes free, and the board changes.
>Whoops, my mistake. White does have a forced mate. I missed that white moves
>first in this problem.

Quite!  The other point to the problem is that White *must*
mate Black, as no other legal moves are possible.
In other words, 1.b6,B to f7 or g6 or h5 2.b7# is forced
for both White and Black.

-Mark
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: hau4@ellis.uchicago.edu (sven  hauptfeld)
Subject: Re: Pardon Fischer?
Reply-To: hau4@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 06:09:57 GMT

Well, I really don't feel like continuing the discussion with that 
D(ull) M(oronic) C(lown), so I'll jump to a so-far-unmentioned thing about
the match. Many people have asked what good the match was for Yugoslavia, if
it took $5M _out_ of the country, and many of them were not that convinced
that the propaganda effects were sufficient.

So far, nobody has pointed out that the match had a big positive effect on
the morale of Serbian people - note that chess is much more popular there 
than here in the US. It is a situation opposite to the one that arose when 
Yugoslavia was banned from the European Soccer Championship - it was the 
hardest consequence of the war that had hit the Serbs up to that point!

But now they were entertained, placated, their attention drawn away from
their growing economic misery, and their wish to overthrow the fascist
government weakened. They even re-elected them!

Now this was worth (for Milosevic&Co.) far more than $5M.

I hope there is not many more than one person who doesn't see the difference
between participating in this entertainment business and just playing chess.

	Sven
From: douillar@JSP.UMontreal.CA (Douillard Pierre-Jean)
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: Softwares & Ratings !
Date: 27 Dec 92 09:46:14 GMT
Organization: Universite de Montreal

Hi ! I was reading a lot of comments about chess programs that are strongs.
I'm actually playing CM3000 on a 486/33 and wonder what could be is 'true'
rating.  It would be great if someone could post it.

Also, I never saw anything on Mchess and the ChessMachine in any computer
stores.  Are they softwares?  And where can I get them? (There rating would
also be greatly appreciated!)

Thank to All
-- 
  #--------------------------                   --------------------------#
  # ----------------        -T E R M I N A T O R-        ---------------- #
  # E-mail: douillar@jsp.umontreal.ca |' Anybody out there got the cheat  #
  #         douillar@ere.umontreal.ca | for Windows! Or a good trainer!! '#
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: juffi@ai.univie.ac.at (Johannes Fuernkranz)
Subject: Re: computer chess postings
Organization: Dept. Med.Cybernetics & Artif.Intelligence, Univ.Vienna, Austria, Europe
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 14:08:45 GMT

In article <1992Dec11.035031.3407@cis.uab.edu> hyatt@cis.uab.edu (Robert Hyatt) writes:
>Now that I've opened this floodgate, I will try to defend my position
>against the rebuttals that are sure to come.  However, it would be
>interesting to find out how many postalites use a computer to "check out"
>their moves!  I don't play myself, but this has been discussed a lot in
>the past.  This use is very similar to the "training" except that it is
>used to replace a "real" opponent.  I don't condone it, but you can be sure
>that it goes on.....

I agree with Bob that computers *can* help you a lot. I have a friend who rose from
about 1400 to over 2000 (add 150 for USCF :-) ) and this definitely started when he
got mad that my computer, a Mephisto II weakling (can anyone remember those dinosaurs?)
constantly beat him. Even then this machine was unforgiving to all tactical mistakes, 
but could easily be outplayed with positional maneuvres. And *that* is where my friend
got good at, but he needed advice from other guys (me) and books to realize the
weaknesses of the machine. Nevertheless the machine was very important in his rapid
improvement, because I wouldn't have been willing to beat him 3 times a day in long
distance games (now HE wouldn't have the patience with me!).

I personally don't play computers very often and when I play them, then only in Blitz.
This is, I guess, just a matter of temperament. I  play long games about once a week
and that is enough for me. I can only force myself to concentrate and think in 
tournament games.

But I am convinced that Bob's advice of systematic trying of openings could be really
helpful. I have discovered a couple of interesting new ideas by playing with a computer.
On the other hand you just don't know what's good and bad. I have first seen the
1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bc4 Ne4: 4. Qh5 Nd6 5. Bb3 line when playing it with black 
against (I think) Maxwell (gnuchess) on ICS. I continued with the main line 5. .. Nc6
6. Nb5 g6 7. Qf3 f5 8. Qd5 and thought I was busted and resigned. How surprised was I
when I learned that black is supposed to have compensation after 8. .. Qe7! I would
have believed that 3. .. Ne4 is an opening trap.

So, to make it short: Computers are patient partners and thus very helpful, but you
need other sources  for learning important concepts.

					Juffi
-- 
Johannes Fuernkranz                                 juffi@ai.univie.ac.at
Austrian Research Inst. for Artificial Intelligence    +43-1-5336112(Tel)
Schottengasse 3, A-1010 Vienna, Austria, Europe        +43-1-5320652(Fax) 
--------------- "Life is too short for Chess." -- Byron -----------------
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: ekw@world.std.com (Elliott C Winslow)
Subject: Re: Steve Martin:  Fischer fan
Summary: He was at K-K in NYC
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 04:10:59 GMT

In article <2645@rwzl01.zld.rws.nl>
hoffmann@rwzl01.zld.rws.nl (Rob Hoffmann) writes:
>In article <1hqqb0INNej7@agate.berkeley.edu>
>jeff@emily10.Berkeley.EDU (Jeffrey C. Ely) writes:
>> The San Francisco Chronicle tells me that Steve Martin, in an interview in
>> Playboy, admits to having asked for only three autographs in his entire life.
>> One of the three was Bobby Fischer, whom he calls " a legendary genius."
>
>Allright, but does Steve Martin play a decent game of chess?

He showed up at the Kasparov-Karpov match in New York, following the game in
the audience.  But I don't think he made it to the press room.

And note, if you have access, the story by Gary Simms in the next-to-last or
so copy of Texas Knights, about getting a call to be a "chess consultant" in
Leap of Faith.  If pressed, I'd find it and post excerpts...

  --elliott
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: jmh@athena.mit.edu (J Michael Hammond)
Subject: another anagram (with apologies)
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 21:16:58 GMT

From the "Beating a dead joke" department (of which I am a charter member):
Don't take Robert J. Fischer to the amusement park with you, for he is
known to have perfected the

ferris retch job

--JMike
Organization: University of Illinois at Chicago
Date: Friday, 1 Jan 1993 19:37:27 CST
From: Howard Wachtel <U13054@uicvm.uic.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: 1992 Pan-Am Intercollegiate result
Distribution: na

   The 1992 Pan-American Intercollegiate Championship, held December
27-30 in Detroit, was won by the top-ranked team from the University of
Minnesota with a perfect 6-0 match score.  Michigan Tech finished
second with 5-1, losing only to Minnesota.  The 1991 champions from
the University of Illinois (Urbana) tied with SUNY at Buffalo for 3rd
and 4th with 4.5-1.5.  Wright State University (4-2) won the Class A prize,
and teams from Florida International University won the Class B and
C/below prizes.
________________________________________________________________
Howard K. Wachtel              University of Illinois at Chicago
U13054@UICVM.CC.UIC.EDU        Phone (312) 975-7970
From: drchip@cup.portal.com (MYRON A LIEBERMAN)
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: Re: Fischer indicted
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 92 20:04:05 PST
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
  <1992Dec16.023156.27727@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
  <1992Dec16.232132.526@uoft02.utoledo.edu>
  <1992Dec21.084550.1@pa881a.inland.com>

>The media will always refer to Spassky as a Russian, and Fischer an American,
>regardless of his citizenship.  There is a resonable probability that Fischer
>may apply for citizenship in some European country.  Can we imagine him being
>called the Serbian Grandmaster Fischer or the German Grandmaster Fischer???
>
>--
>My opinions are my own and not those of my company.
>Free advice is worth its cost.
>--- John M. Nason - NA9U ---|--------------------------------------------|
>Inland Steel Company        |  -- nason@pa881a.inland.com                |
>Process Automation Dept.    |  -- Fax:   219-399-7856                    |
>                            |  -- Voice: 219-399-2450                    |
>----------------------------|--------------------------------------------|

I can see it now. FS III: Western challenger Boris Spassky of France tries
to wrest the title from Eastern champion Robert Fischer of Serbia.  :-)
From: dcrosgr@uoft02.utoledo.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: Re: Don't blame lawyers!
Date: 29 Dec 92 22:59:42 EST
Distribution: world
Organization: University of Toledo, Computer Services

In article <1hqeeaINNfte@life.ai.mit.edu>, joltman@cookie-crisp.ai.mit.edu (T. Andy Frakes) writes:
> In article <1992Dec29.172256.7142@CSD-NewsHost.Stanford.EDU>, frants@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Leonid Frants) writes:
> |> Now, let's skip the rhetoric and get to the point here. And the point
> |> is, drum roll here, YOU ARE AN IDIOT or as T. Andy Frakes so precisely
> |> puts it, A MORON. People like Elliot Winslow are far too nice to
> |> seriously reply to the drivel you produce. You sound like Dennis Baker
> |> before he ever learned how the chess pieces move. Except that his
> |> articles at least were honest and carried some chess value. 
> |> 
> |> Leonid Frants.
> 
> Thank you, although it probably wasn't worth the price in returning line noise
> for me to reply in the first place, but oh well....it's too late to change that
> now.  I hadn't read any of his former barrages so I didn't know what I was
> getting into (I guess I am no longer one of the lucky few who are not familiar
> with his posts).  It's obviously pointless to argue intelligently with the
> guy and I certainly don't have the abundance of free time that he has (judging
> by the abundance of his posts) to refute him when he simply gives you 10 more
> things to refute in return.  I think I'll restate what was already mentioned
> by some intelligent soul (Tracy Monaghan, I believe).  Seriously, if everyone
> stops replying to everything he writes, we'll probably contain the problem (I'm
> not counting Sven, but I think we can separate the DMC/Sven wars easily
> enough).  Another good idea may be to change the subject lines of discussions
> when he tries to weasel his way into them so that it's easier to kill the
> appropriate threads.  Well, hope this helped a little.
> 
> -Andy

Yeah Andy, it is a good thing you are going to stay out of it. Abraham Lincoln
warned me about arguing with people like you...

> 
> -- 
> ================================================================
> =             T. Andy Frakes (joltman@ai.mit.edu)              =
> =                                                              =
> = This user does not believe in smiley faces.  Insert your own =
> ================================================================
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: sloan@cis.uab.edu (Kenneth Sloan)
Subject: Re: USCF Lifetime Titles Question
Organization: CIS, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 16:02:18 GMT

In article <1992Dec24.151535.7379@samba.oit.unc.edu> Marty.Moore@launchpad.unc.edu (Marty Moore) writes:
>...
>Background: Before the US G/60 Championship, my label showed 1889/B4, 
>...
>I did pretty well in the G/60, gaining about 30 rating points and making a
>1900 norm.  This should give me 2 norm points toward A (1900) and 5 toward
>a (1800), giving me a total of 9 toward a.  So far so good--my new label
>shows 1920/B9.
>
>HOWEVER...it was my understanding that achieving an established rating in
>any 100-point level automatically gave one the title one level below that.
>... expect my
>label to show 1920/a2.
>
>Am I wrong, or is the labelling software wrong?

I think you are right, but can't lay my hands on a printed description
of the title system to check.  If you really care, send a letter to New
Windsor and see what they have to say about it.

[Elliott?  Are you listening?  Can you get an official response? Is
1920/a2 a legitimate rating listing?]




-- 
Kenneth Sloan                   Computer and Information Sciences
sloan@cis.uab.edu               University of Alabama at Birmingham
(205) 934-2213                  115A Campbell Hall, UAB Station 
(205) 934-5473 FAX              Birmingham, AL 35294-1170
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: jrb@Ingres.COM (John Black)
Subject: Re: It is legal to play chess in Yugoslavia
Organization: Ingres, an ASK Company, Alameda CA 94501
Date: 25 Dec 92 20:10:35 GMT

In article <1992Dec24.153554.629@uoft02.utoledo.edu> dcrosgr@uoft02.utoledo.edu writes:
>In article <1992Dec24.001423.23983@pony.Ingres.COM>, jrb@Ingres.COM (John Black) writes:
>> In article <PHR.92Dec23124354@napa.telebit.com> phr@telebit.com (Paul Rubin) writes:
>>>    > Obligatory chess question:  Does there exist a chess position in
>>>    > which Black has enough material to mate White in theory, but Black
>>>    > cannot mate White even with White's cooperation, while on the other
>>>    > hand White can mate Black without Black's cooperation?
>>>
>However, it depends on "has enough pieces". Obviously, neither side has enough
>pieces to mate the other, and yet is they were in a different position, they
>could mate. (So to speak.) Interesting problem. Any other solutions?
>

Well, mine wasn't truly a solution since White could not force a win.  But
maybe the idea (Paul Rubin's, I think?) of giving Black two same-colored bishops
will work.  Try this: Black has two black-squared bishops and White has two
queens.  Now, Black has enough *material* to mate White in theory (i.e. if the
bishops were on different colored squares and White were kind enough to keep
his queens out of the way, then a mate could be arrived at).  But with the
bishops both on the black squares, no mate can be constructed even with White's
help.  And it's pretty obvious that even without Black's cooperation in this
position, White will force a win (assuming a starting position where White does
not immediately lose material).

john//
jrb@ingres.com
From: libwca@emory.edu (Bill Anderson)
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: Re: Pardon Fischer?
Date: 30 Dec 92 16:30:22 GMT
Organization: Emory University, Atlanta, GA
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL3

dcrosgr@uoft02.utoledo.edu writes:
: 
: It is 'ridiculous' because it is a limit on one's work/art/love. Christ.
: If an American were to write a book of poems entitled--
: 
: "Suffering of the Serbs" (or whatever ethnic group you fill in) and sold
: copies of it outside of the FS match, would the State department be calling
: for blood? Tell us Sven, would you be as in favor of locking them up?
: 
: And, if not, please explain how what that person did would be any different
: than what Fischer did.
: 
: (This should be good!) 


I'm not in favor of locking Fischer up, but I do think that what
he did was contemptible.  From what I understand, the Serbs 
considered the match something of a propaganda coup, and 
Fischer surely knew that, just as surely as he knew of the
attrocities his sponsors were committing.  He shouldn't be 
prosecuted, but he should be ashamed.
It's hard to see, by the way, how the sanctions were a limit
on Fischer's ability to play chess.  The match could just as
easily have been played elsewhere.

Bill
From: rick.franks@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Rick Franks) 
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: ANOTHER GAME?
Date: 21 Dec 92 22:58:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: HAL 9000 BBS, (313)663-4173, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Reply-To: rick.franks@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Rick Franks) 

->    If you want to play another and try not to throw away your queen,
->    I'm game.

Ok...
---
 . Cam-Mail . The Chess Board BBS 803-236-7711 : Myrtle Beach, SC
                                                                                           
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: mzabel@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Mark A Zabel)
Subject: Re: Dennis Baker et al
Organization: The Ohio State University
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 16:14:53 GMT

>Kudos to worthless non-GM D. Goldfarb and to worthless non-GM B. Harper
>for somehow resisting the inexorable tidal wave of fluff that seems
>to be buffeting us from the midwest.

C'mon iM Ginsburg, don't try to blame the midwest.  The
original comments didn't really deserve a response from
someone rated 2450 (or so) points above him!

To all:
Anyway, I have a suggestion - why don't we agree to require
each post to have an obligatory chess section to each article?
For example,

obchess:  Where does White get comp for the piece after
          1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.Qf3+ Kg8
          6.Ng5?? Qxg5!  ???  Why is this book?

or obchessreply: After 7.Qxd5+ Be6 8.Qxe6 is mate!  You patz!

or obchess:  I have problems with my Fidelity Travelmaster.
             The batteries don't last long enough!

or whatever, as long as it has something to do with chess.
It doesn't have to be deep, but it does have to relate to
chess.

I know this idea probably won't take off, as it seems there are
too many non-players on r.g.c. who regularly post.  Nevertheless,
perhaps we can work out something else.  I'm sure that most
r.g.c. readers agree with me that there needs to be more CHESS
on rec.games.CHESS.

-Mark

p.s.  Let me know how you feel about this, and tell me whatever
      ideas you have to try to get a handle on this problem.
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
From: sol.steinberg@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Sol Steinberg) 
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess
Subject: CHESS GAME
Date: 11 Dec 92 19:11:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: HAL 9000 BBS, (313)663-4173, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Reply-To: sol.steinberg@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Sol Steinberg) 

     I have started game #5 (I hope) as black so we can play again.
                  Sol
---
 . Cam-Mail . The Chess Board BBS 803-236-7711 : Myrtle Beach, SC
                                                                                                
Newsgroups: rec.games.chess