When The Chips Are Down

Although still barred from professional competition, computers have come to dominate the chess world in the past quarter of a century, as world champion Garry Kasparov knows only too well. Many of the modern chess programs were designed under Kasparov’s guidance and are capable of beating most humans. Kasparov was defeated by IBM’s Deep Blue computer last year. But next month (June 9-13) in the Spanish city of Leon, Kasparov will challenge 23-year-old Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria in the first competition where humans play with - rather than against - computers. The six-game contest, in which each player has access to the Chessmaster 5500 program, will seek to eliminate human error while retaining human imagination and creativity.