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“Forget chess,” said the Wall Street Journal on June 11. “To understand geopolitics in Taiwan or the Indian Ocean, U.S. strategists are learning from Go.” David Lai (r), a professor at the Army War College, has been telling senior military officials in the U.S. and overseas in recent months that go “holds the key to understanding how the Chinese really think—and U.S. officials had better learn to play if they want to win the real competition,” wrote reporter Keith Johnson in “What Kind of Game Is China Playing?” Lai authored a 2004 paper called “Learning From the Stones,” that described China’s long-term and indirect approach to acquiring influence and “zeroed in on concrete geopolitical challenges such as Taiwan, which he described, in terms of Go, as a single isolated stone next to a huge mass of opposing pieces.” The paper caught the attention of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who the WSJ says “quickly became a convert to his way of thinking.” Kissinger refers to go throughout his new book, “On China,” (“Flawed” Use of Go in Kissinger’s New Book? 6/5 EJ). One of Lai’s first fans was Air Force Gen. Steve Lorenz, formerly the head of Air University, where Lai then taught, reports the WSJ. “Gen. Lorenz heard one of his lectures in late 2005 and summoned him for a full briefing about the insights that Go could offer.” In recent months, Lai has briefed officers at Pacific Command, the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command, the Center for Army Analysis and the Australian Defence College. “One officer at the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command, where Mr. Lai gave a presentation at a commander’s conference in March to about three dozen officers, said ‘the game analogy really sparked fascination’ and was useful for Air Force officers who might have to consider China a potential adversary one day. He conceded, though, that the briefing’s heavy academic content left ‘plenty of heads hurting.’ ‘You’ve got to think like the other guy thinks,’ said the officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.” Other say that comparing national strategic thought to popular sports and games is an over-simplification. “Go is a very useful device for analyzing Chinese strategy, but let’s not overdo it,” James Holmes, an expert on Chinese strategy and professor at the Naval War College said. The 6/11 article also features a video of the WSJ’s Christina Tsuei getting a lesson on the game from 35-year go veteran – and Brooklyn Go Club organizer — Jean-Claude Chetrit (left).

The Tampa Go Club was included in a May 20 St. Petersburg Times write-up on area gaming clubs:
The board game Go has been around for more than 2,000 years and enjoys widespread popularity in East Asia. But around here, there’s just one game in town. John Russell, a 28-year-old librarian, formed the Tampa Go Club nearly two years ago. The weekly meeting attract upwards of 15 people who play on three board sizes, the largest being the most difficult. Often compared to Chess and Backgammon, Go has simple rules but a high degree of strategy. Two players alternate turns by placing black or white stones on the board to amass the larger territory. The club has a core group of regulars but often gets drop-ins from USF who may have seen the game played in A Beautiful Mind, Pi and other movies. Tampa Go Club meets from 3 to 6 p.m. Sundays at the International Boba House and Internet Cafe, 2764 University Square Drive, Tampa. Click here or email goclubtampa@gmail.com.
– photo courtesy St. Petersburg Times

The 13th Iberoamerican Go Tournament will be held in Mexico City October 8-10. “The Ibero Tournament is the biggest event in the Latin America go scene, and we would be really happy to have visitors from the USA,”  Mexican Go Association President Vladimiro González tells the E-Journal.

Registration is now open for Feng Yun 9P’s August 22-26 Summer Go Workshop in New Jersey. “This is a good opportunity for players of all ages to study go with a 9 dan pro in a relaxed atmosphere with a lot of personal attention,” reports Paul Matthews. Workshop registration is limited; click here for more details.

Last weekend’s DC-area North American Ing Masters (NAIM) qualifier spanned two states and as many days. The battle between six strong players commenced Friday night, June 18 as more than a dozen players gathered at the Greater Washington Go Club in Bethesda to watch Yuan Zhou 7d, Daniel Chou 6d, Zhengying Gu 5d, Juan Pablo Quizon 5d, Keith Arnold 4d and Justin Teng 4d play. Tournament Director Zhiyuan ‘Edward’ Zhang did the pairings with a set of fans signed by professionals, which the players were allowed to keep. The Board 1 game between Zhou and Teng was broadcast live on KGS by E-Journal Managing Editor Chris Garlock; see below for the game record. Three rounds were scheduled across the river on Saturday in the Northern Virginia (NOVA) Go Club, and the “1+3” schedule was favored by many players, who felt it was more physically manageable, allowing for a higher quality of games. Yuan Zhou 7d and Daniel Chou 6d both finished 3-1, with Keith Arnold 4d and Justin Teng 4d tied in 3rd place. Photos by Yang Jiao

Tim Huang, longtime member of the Vermont Go Club and a tireless promoter of the game of go passed away June 14 after a long battle with leukemia and its after-effects. Tim attended several U.S. Go Congresses and included many of his students – he was a Associate Professor of Computer Science at Middlebury College — in AI studies of the game. His contributions to AI research helped lead to many of the critical developments in computer science and artificial intelligence, according to Middlebury President Ron Liebowitz. Huang is survived by his wife, Chae Sim Huang, and daughter, Lydia; his parents, Dr. and Mrs. Charles and Karen Huang; two sisters, Judy Huang and Jennifer (Huang) Stiller; and eight nieces and nephews. A memorial service was held on June 18 at Mead Memorial Chapel. “Here in Vermont we are mourning of our colleague and friend,” reports Pete Schumer.