This week we are joined by the economist, award-winning author, and top Australian player, GM David Smerdon. David is a professor at the University of Queensland. With a statistical background, David is a particular expert in the intersection of statistics and chess and is frequently able to combine his chess expertise with his academic research. Since chess cheating has been in the news again, we begin by getting David’s thoughts on the renewed allegations against GM Hans Niemann, as well as the recent concerns about rampant online cheating voiced by GM Vladimir Kramnik. David drew some interesting comparisons between these cheating scandals and a recent one in the academic world. David also had some recently published chess research to discuss, as he and a team of collaborators have recently launched the “Gender Equality in Chess Index. (GECI)” What is the goal of his index and how did they arrive at the numbers? Lastly, we catch up on David’s chess career. As David details, he doesn’t have a ton of time to study, but is competing when he can with a specific goal in mind. There is always lots to learn from GM Smerdon, and it was a pleasure to catch up with him Timestamps of topics discussed are below.
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0:00- Intro
Mentioned: Tarjei’s Svensen’s article, Dojo Talks EP 101 with GM Vladmir Kramnik
0:02- David discusses cheating in the chess world, and draws parallels to some scandals in the academic world.
Mentioned: Did an honesty researcher fabricate data?, GM Alex Fishbein
10:00- Has any good come of the recent chess cheating scandals?
Mentioned: GM Mamedyarov withdraws from 2018 tournament after accusing opponent of cheating, Hans Niemann competes in London Chess Classic after stunning result in Zagreb
17:00- Chess.com statement regarding Kramnik allegations against Nakamura
23:00- Do continued allegations against Niemann cause concern about the viability of the future of OTB chess?
Mentioned: Poker pro alleged to have used special contact lenses to see through a deck
26:30- Can statistics help detect “smart cheating”?
29:00 What was the genesis of the idea for a “chess gender index”?
Mentioned: Mongolia Tops Chess Gender Index by Leon Watson
34:00- Is it likely that Queen of Katwe contributed to the success of women’s chess in Uganda?What did he notice about other high ranking countries?
41:00- What are the components of the index?
51:00- David discusses his other chess-related research
52:00- How is David’s chess game, and what is his current chess goal?
Mentioned: Episode 30, The Complete Chess Swindler
Thanks to David for joining me again. Here are links to keep up with him:
X: https://twitter.com/dsmerdon
David’s Blog;