American Go E-Journal

The Traveling Board: One library at a time

Friday June 28, 2019

*photo: Bill and David of the Boise (ID) Go Club, on the cover of the Meridian Library magazine, Meridian, Idaho, courtesy David Bogie.*

by Zhiping You

A couple of months ago, I was in the library of my town (Lexington, MA), and found several people playing chess in the library lounge (they call it the living room). I talked with one of them and found out that the library had bought a chess set and put them in the library lounge, and encourage people to play chess there. So I went to one of the librarians and asked if they could also buy a Go set and encourage people to play Go in the library. I also told them that if they want (or need), I could give them a lecture on Go.

Here’s the email I got from them today:
Hello, Mr. You: Some months ago you approached me at the Reference Desk to ask that the library purchase a Go set for public use. I’m writing to let you know that we now have one and it is set up on a table in the Living Room area of the main floor, near the chess set. I’ve given your contact information to our new program director, Meena Jain, in case she would like to contact you about a Go program or classes.
Best regards,
Jean Williams, Reference Department, Cary Memorial Library
Lexington, MA 02420

I am delighted and wanted to share this with E-Journal readers. Imagine if every library in the U.S. bought a Go set; that would be a splendid way to popularize Go.

Categories: U.S./North America

It’s elementary: students explore history and culture of Go in Chicago field trip

Thursday June 27, 2019

by Xinming (Simon) Guo

Just one month after we discovered Weiqi (Chinese for Go) in the new exhibition at the Chinese American Museum of Chicago (Go featured in Chicago museum exhibit), we welcomed the first school field trip visitors: 30 students and chaperones from Cherokee Elementary School, who visited the museum and participated in our on-site go game workshop.

These elementary students first learned how to play Go for 45 minutes in the workshop area, and then moved to the the gallery areas to see the exhibitions. The students were very surprised and excited to discover that Go was played by Chinese workers on the Transcontinental Railroad in the mid-19th century. Depending on the schedule, a Go workshop can also be provided after the museum tour. For workshops like this, the same teaching method is used as the one we use to introduce go as a math manipulative in schools. Usually we play on size 6 or 7 mini go board in the math classrooms.

“This is a brand new combo tour service, which combines the regular tour and hands-on Chinese culture/art workshop,” said Ben Lau, the executive director of Chinese American Museum of Chicago. School group visitors, especially students from Chinese language classrooms from Chicago Metropolitan Area, now have the opportunity to reserve their field trip to the museum, and choose one Chinese culture and art related workshop. Besides Go, calligraphy, Chinese painting, paper cutting, origami and more are on the list. See more photos here.

Guo organized the Go workshop and is the founder of the Go and Math Academy.

Categories: Main Page,U.S./North America

Bob High Memorial Song & Poetry Contest planned for U.S. Go Congress

Thursday June 27, 2019

A studious player named Jones
Tried capturing a group of stones
His opponent gave them
He just didn’t save them
And from the observers came groans.

A fearless young player named Joe
Was trying to stir up some woe
He made a big cut
His opponent said “What?!”
As calmly he retook the ko.

They call it Go in Japanese
In China they call it Wei Chi
The Korean books
All call it Baduk
But call it whatever you please.

The limericks above are meant to demonstrate how easy it is to create submissions for the 2019 US Go Congress’ Bob High Memorial Song & Poetry Contest. For those who keenly felt the contest’s absence last year, Frank Brown has picked up the gauntlet and will be herding bards and judges at this year’s gathering in Madison (July 13-20; click here for details).

Rules and entry forms will be available at the Congress beginning Sunday afternoon. “So prepare to pick up your writing devices, plunk down some verses, fill out an official entry form and drop them in the submission box,” says Brown. “You too could be a winner!”
NOTE: AGA members unable to attend this year’s Congress may submit entries in absentia by emailing them to fcnzyo@protonmail.ch — please use ‘2019 Song & Poetry Contest’ in the subject field.”

Categories: Main Page,U.S. Go Congress,U.S./North America

Congress to host Teachers’ Workshop

Wednesday June 26, 2019

Renowned teachers of teachers Toshifumi Mizuma 7P and Yuto Tajiri 5P will lead the Teachers’ Workshop at the upcoming U.S. Go Congress. The workshop is sponsored by the Iwamoto North American Foundation (INAF) and the Nihon-kiin. Open to all go players who want to become more effective in teaching beginners and high-kyu players, the INAF wishes to encourage those who have not previously participated in a Congress teachers’ workshop by providing them with $200 stipends. Those interested in participating in the Workshop should contact Mark Rubenstein at mark@evanstongoclub.org.

Categories: Main Page,U.S. Go Congress,U.S./North America

Your Move/Readers Write: No Exit update? LeeLa Zero go bot site

Wednesday June 26, 2019

No Exit update? “I played at the No Exit club a few times many years ago, but had no idea it was gone (Go Spotting: Remembering the No Exit)” writes Dewey Cornell. “Perhaps someone could add a few sentences of explanation for readers who do not have insider knowledge.”

LeeLa Zero go bot site: “I would like to inform you about a new website zbaduk.com you can use to play against the go bot ‘LeeLa Zero’ from your webbrowser without registration,” writes Bram Vandenbon. “But even more important, if you do create an account, then it also offers a ‘smart review’ tool, which uses a powerful GPU server to review your game records. The website can also be used on smart phones and tablets. And you can store your games online.”

Categories: Main Page,Your Move: Readers Write

Go Spotting: Remembering the No Exit

Tuesday June 25, 2019

Via EJ photog Phil Straus, Howard Rosen sent us this great shot of a mural that “was on the wall by the train tracks near where the No Exit (go club) used to be” in Chicago, Illinois.

Categories: Go Spotting,Main Page,U.S./North America

Jasiek releases two new endgame books

Tuesday June 25, 2019

Robert Jasiek has released two new endgame Go books, his 15th and 16th. “Endgame 3 – Accurate Local Evaluation” distinguishes local gote from sente endgames objectively and evaluates local endgames accurately. “Even for long local sequences, we determine the right moments of playing elsewhere,” Jasiek says. Click here for sample pages. “Endgame Problems 1” has 150 problems, of which 20 are new tactical problems on the 11×11 board and 130 are evaluation problems. “Their detailed and correct answers calculate the counts, move values and, if necessary, gains of the initial local endgame and every follow-up position,” says Jasiek. Click here for sample pages.

Categories: Main Page,Tools: books, software & hardware

Albert Yen on the World Amateur Championship

Tuesday June 25, 2019

[link]

White: Albert Yen, 7D
Black: Timur Sankin, 6D
June 4, 2019, in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture, Japan
Commentary: Albert Yen, 7D
Game editors: Kiren Polara, Myron Souris

Albert Yen placed an outstanding 4th in this year’s World Amateur. Albert graciously gives us an enlightening commentary of his 5th round win against Russia’s Timur Sankin. For the game moves, Albert also includes LeelaZero’s (AI) winrates.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.

Categories: Game Commentaries,Main Page

Registration opens for 24th Pandanet Cup Internet World Amateur Go Tournament

Monday June 24, 2019

Registrations are now being accepted for the 24th Pandanet Cup Internet World Amateur Go Tournament. The deadline is July 17. Registration is free; click here.

There are five divisions: Main Class (6-dan and up); A Class (5-dan~2-dan); B Class (1-dan~3-kyu); C Class (4-kyu~7-kyu); D Class (8-kyu~).

Categories: Main Page,World

Your Move/Readers Write: Why we play Go

Monday June 24, 2019

By Mark Rubenstein

Why do we play this game? Some might say it’s just for fun, but I believe it goes deeper than that. I think many of us have discovered that Go is more than a game; it’s a space where we can experiment with a way of thinking that helps us engage more fully in life.

When we play Go, the fundamental question we are asking throughout the game is; what’s important? Every move we play, we ask ourselves; where is the most important place for me to be playing now? Every time our opponent makes a move, we ask ourselves; is that move important? What does he want? Why is he playing there? Do I need to respond to that move? Do I agree that what he finds important is also important to me? These questions resonate deeply within us, even when they are only being asked in the context of a game of Go. They trigger a way of thinking that we find engaging and meaningful.

Some people say that you can see aspects of someone’s personality in the way they play Go. I think there’s some truth in that. Do you live and let live on the Go board? Do you try to kill everything? Do you shy away from a fight? Are you willing to sacrifice unimportant stones? I think as we ask these questions on the Go board, we also see their application in our daily lives. If these questions only applied to the game of Go, I don’t think we would all find ourselves as deeply interested in and enamored of the game. I think these questions tap into something more fundamental in our nature, and stimulate our desire to express our personalities more fully in the world.

As we review our games, we are replaying our thoughts and feelings. We aren’t looking for the perfect move we missed; we’re looking for the thought that kept us from seeing that move. The game story is not a list of the moves that were played; it’s a narrative of a conversation each player is having with himself and his opponent.

In this new era of AI, I fear that we are orienting ourselves to a narrow goal; to win the game. Of course, we all want to win games. But there’s much more to each game we play than just winning; there is the discovery of what we find important, and how that affects the course of the game… and maybe the course of our lives.

Rubenstein runs the Evanston (IL) Go Club

Categories: Main Page,Why We Play,Your Move: Readers Write