The universe of speculative fiction is an ever-expanding monstrosity, often merging with horror, science fiction, fantasy, and similar realms of weirdness. These genres can cover everything from full metal gore and peculiar truths to hidden monsters and secret conspiracies.

But whether theyre dry and deadpan or gloriously maximalist, many of these stories are often born from small inspirations. Some of the most unnerving narratives are anchored in the familiarideas and objects that were comfortable with in day-to-day life. Some of the most unsettling books, films, and games share roots with one of the most fascinating fictional worlds on the internetone that uses the mundane form of a wikipedia community to draw readers into the fold.

The supernatural work of Marshall, Carter and Darka cabal of black market auctioneersis a fitting mirror for our current reality of capitalism and resource exploitation, where the rich and powerful reign supreme. MC&D controls ungodly amounts of money because of its iron grip on the political elite, who remain captivated by the groups specialty: buying and selling strange phenomena. They deal in vinyl records that place listeners into a telepathic coma, a collection of walking sticks with thaumatological properties, SpongeBob Squarepants wristwatches that alter limbs and bones, and a group of people who all claim to be the former Prime Minister of Australia, Harold Holt, who vanished in 1967.

Of course, Marshall, Carter and Dark isnt real. Its just one canonic element of the SCP Foundationa collaborative online fiction project whose name stands for Secure, Contain, Protect. Taking a page from the Victorian appetite to collect and classify, the Foundations mission is to secure, contain, and protect special (and sometimes dangerous) objects, as well as to document events and persons of interest.

The result is a vast repository of seemingly banal items, each exhibiting what the Foundation calls anomalous behavior. Each SCP object or skip bears a number and classification. SCP-145, for instance, is a cordless phone, described in the sort of clinically precise, detached language one would normally find in a research report. Each object also has a special containment procedure developed through rigorous testing by SCP staff.

SCPs earliest known beginnings were on 4chans paranormal /x/ message board in the form of SCP-173, a statue that came to life when it wasnt being observed. It was posted on June 22, 2007, around the same time that Doctor Who aired an episode about an almost identical concept, and spurred some chicken-and-egg discussion about plagiarism. And while SCPs origins lie in creepypastashortform online horror writing that has its own storied place in internet culturethe rise of the Foundation marked the beginning of a new, complicated relationship between the SCP and mainstream pop culture, touching on issues of authorship and inspiration.

There is no simple way in for new readers who stumble across SCP by accidentthe only way to get into SCP is to read and keep reading. The wikis cold, scientific style lends itself well to speculative fiction and horror readers who are already willing to suspend disbelief. Coupled with the replicative memetic nature of creepypasta, the wikipedia format has become a defining method of how we treat knowledge as a shared resource. Should writers cherry-pick ideas from SCP? Its a controversial, polarizing issue, but one that cant be definitively resolved.

Take, for instance, the novel Horrorstr by Grady Hendrix, which shares a similar basic premise to SCP-3008both involve a tainted, supernatural version of IKEA. Many urban dwellers have probably been to an IKEA, and probably made jokes about getting lost or encountering corporate Morlocks in the notoriously labyrinthine megastore. But the idea that IKEA might be a living nightmare rather than a place for cheap sheets and meatballs isnt unique to SCP, even though SCP-3008s fame has seeped out into the normal worldits been recreated in Roblox, a mobile game, and a standalone PC game. The kernel of a weird, bad IKEA has been floating in our collective consciousness for years.

Consider Bird Box, Josh Malermans 2014 novel about mysterious creatures that induced madness on sight. The book conjured elements of SCP-370 (a contagious memetic infection), SCP-053, (a child who could induce paranoia and homicidal behavior), and SCP-096 (an entity which cant be viewed or recorded). David Wongs John Dies at the End series has long been a topic of SCP discussion because of its bleak, deadpan absurdism and supernatural incidents. Beyond film and books, SCP was also a big influence on the 2019 video game Control, which revolves around a mysterious federal agency that functions much like the Foundation, and text-based games like Neurocracy and Unit 322 (Ambiguation); Pastes Holly Green even made a suggested reading list of popular SCPs for Control fans.

Even some of the most beloved SCPs are a nod to the sites wry sense of self-awareness, like SCP-055, a self-keeping secret that cannot be remembered, or SCP-1756, a DVD player that only plays corresponding episodes of Siskel and Ebert at the Movies instead of your chosen movie. TV shows like The X-Files and Warehouse-13 (perhaps a nod to SCP-1730, once home of Foundation Site-13) have also spread their own mythologies across pop culture.

Given the heavy intertextual nature of SCPs content, this is a community that knows and understands the power of reproduction and remixes. SCP uses the Creative Commons Sharealike 3.0 license, which lets anyone take its material as long as its attributed. This means that you can pluck stories and art from SCP and use them for profit. Last year, the sites rich hoard of material spurred a Russian named Andrey Duskin to file a Russian and Eurasian Customs Union trademark for the SCP name and logo to safeguard his own merchandise projects. This is the most drastic known attempt to seize control of the SCP brand, which would arguably change the way that the SCP would function.

Its impossible to overstate how important the concept of remixing is to the modern creative landscape, especially in writing, where turns of phrase and boilerplate story tropes are constantly being used, re-used, and re-invented across borders, genres, and languages. Anyone can take SCP story elements and riff off SCP ideas, which means that SCP transcends simple, straightforward fiction to become a new kind of lorefolk tales for a new generation in new medium. Its too simplistic to call this approach plagiarism or piracy, because it ignores the beauty of reinvention (and, arguably, our entire history of popular culture).

What makes SCP such a formidable entity is how well both its form and function satisfy our love of conspiracy. Even if you view the Foundation as a one-stop shop of memetic ideas or new boogiemen, its story elements come from an existing pool of urban folklore, dystopian thought experiments, and communal imagination, making SCP a priceless repository for the internets weirdest and most terrifying ideas; of course, these could easily end up as Hollywoods weirdest and most profitable ideas, told through different eyes. Still, the community remains a powerful testament to collaborative writing: a holistic, living piece of writing that needs to stay free.

Alexis Ong is a freelance culture journalist with weak ankles who mainly writes about games, tech, and pop culture. Her work has appeared in The Verge, Polygon, Kotaku, Rock Paper Shotgun, VICE, Dazed Digital, and more; soft spots include science fiction, internet archaeology, comics, boxing, and old games. You can find her at her website or on Twitter.

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The Unsung Muse of Speculative Fiction Is a Wikipedia Community - tor.com

A few words of orientation first: I am fully aware of the context and the self-awareness from which I have arrived at the following realisation. For years I too have been part of the growth system mentioned in this text. Consequently, I must also accept criticism for having benefited from this system. I completely stand by that. When growth tempts you, it is difficult to look beyond what lies directly in front of you. But I would like to at least have the chance to exercise constructive self-criticism from my current, most certainly privileged, position. After all, I am also starting to observe a change of heart among many current and former colleagues. And this change of heart, I believe, comes at the right time.

An unprecedented rescue parachute at high speed, and just like that?

Around the world, airlines have received more than US$85 billion in rescue funds. Otherwise, Covid-19 would have wiped them out. This way, jobs at the directly impacted airlines as well as within the entire ecosystem around airports will be saved. Connections to places and markets will remain secured. In our closely interlinked world, flight connections that provide these access points for people and goods are essential, especially in times of crisis.

On the other hand, $85 billion is by no means a petty little matter. Such significant sums are certainly linked to far-reaching conditions arent they? Not really. The conditions attached to the rescue packages have been minimal at both national and international level. Depending on how you look at it, this is either a fortunate or a rather strange development. Remember how banks and financial institutions in many countries were given tough requirements in connection to the money they had received during the financial crisis?

Is this correct? Shouldnt states and regulators take a different approach and a harder line with aviation? More precisely, shouldnt they demand a greater resistance to future crises, in other words, a more sustainable handling of the national wealth they have accumulated?

One thing is certain: the next assertion of systemic relevance in an exceptional situation will, as much as we would prefer it not to, come back to haunt us much sooner than expected. The time to act and to use the crisis as an opportunity for change is now. This way, the lead time until the next event might be long enough so that the begging bowl held out for state aid will not be quite as big. A big pro-active liberating blow, one might say. But how to go about it?

Higher equity ratios, improved risk coverage, new principles for liquidity management: in Switzerland, the Basel III framework, the BIS regulations on banking regulation, has become much more restrictive in the wake of the financial crisis. At the time, there was a relatively broad consensus that people and people in these cases always means all of us did not want to bail out the banks again with billions of dollars in government money. In most international financial centres similar systematic measures could be observed. I would also like to point out that a number of systemically important banks subjected themselves to even more far-reaching security requirements. And these have taken effect, not least in the current crisis.

The various payments that Greece, as a nation state, received from the EU from 2010 onwards to save the country from bankruptcy were also linked to the implementation of numerous reforms and budget consolidation measures. In many other places, the EU Commission, the IMF and the ECB also imposed tough conditions for financial aid.

However, in the case of airlines which in the past have already been dependent on government support on more than one occasion the terms imposed are minimal. Although, depending on who you talk to, opinions do differ: for the Swiss confederation, for example, it is chiefly important that the funds that are spoken do not go to Germany. Strict is different. Airline-related businesses are also supposed to make sure that any of the funds received will not flow abroad. In other countries, the conditions for bailout money are even less stringent. I fully sympathise with taxpayers who are surprised about this.

A little bit of the misery is self-inflicted

In recent years, many airlines have invested massively in their growth, buying (not leasing) aircraft, expanding connections and launching price wars not just in the short-haul segment. In doing so, we have become highly dependent on a very volatile mass segment, and, as a matter of fact, in the past ten years even used this segment as our growth-engine. The result: the golden decade of aviation. This, however, had one side effect: we all exposed ourselves, fully unprotected, to the risk of straining the supply-and-demand principle to such an extent that the enormous growth in demand was driven by an oversupply of capacity. This has further reduced the already low margins. Provisions were made only very cautiously, if at all. In recent years, US airlines have spent more than 90 per cent of their profits to buy back shares and thus made short-term investors happy. All of us could work out that this fixation on growth and low margins make the industry dependent on precisely this highly volatile demand. Unlike any other sector, the airline business is thus highly sensitive to economic and social developments. And it is so on a global level.

Of course, it cannot be denied that in times of crisis even large cash reserves will not last for a long period of time. The airline business is capital-intensive. And it is of course a little unfair to make these observations during a global pandemic. After all, Lufthansa chief executive, Carsten Spohr, is right when he recently stated in Neue Zrcher Zeitung: It is almost impossible to prepare for a crisis of this dimension, in which 99% of the business disappears over months. The necessary buffer would be so immense that no globally operating airline could cope with it.

A little restraint and common goals would be win-win

Nevertheless, now is the time to stop turning a blind eye: airlines must better secure their business. They need to ensure stability as best they can and draw up future-oriented, sustainable financial plans. Solid risk management and business continuity strategies are the tools of the trade now more than ever. Lufthansa and United Airlines are already more consistently leasing aircraft rather than buying them and have started adapting their route networks.

The same applies to business planning and cash, health and safety and climate and security standards. Here too, I have long been convinced that the industry would be better off regulating itself. Individual airlines are making a major effort to contribute to climate protection. Swiss, for example, is investing in a particularly fuel-efficient fleet. Singapore Airlines has modified the Trent 900 engines of its A380 aircraft to reduce CO2 emissions. KLM saves weight. Etihad is experimenting with flights without the use of single-use plastic. But demands are high, and the road is long.

The challenge, whether it is about environmental, safety or accounting issues, is as follows: if the industry does not develop uniform standards or at least sets uniform goals , then others will do it for them. And they certainly will not do it in a coordinated way. This should be clear to the chief executive as well as to the chief financial officer and the head of corporate social responsibility.

If different rules of the game apply in every country, they become incredibly demanding and complex to comply with. And it potentially distorts competition even more. States that support airlines are the only ones that could introduce particularly loose regulations. I fail to understand why there is no greater momentum behind industry-wide efforts to regulate this once and for all, and on a large scale. That would certainly be beneficial for everyone.

Together into the future

Corona shows us again that it is not just the eleventh hour time is literally running out. The industry, preferably our entire ecosystem, must react now. That self-regulation can work in close cooperation with the authorities is shown by a recent example of the European Aircraft Associations and the European Aviation Safety Agency. Together with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, they have compiled guidelines for airports, airlines, and operators to ensure that passengers can travel safely even in times of corona. Which will make life easier for all of us.

We can no longer close our eyes to the fact that the world with and after Corona is a different one. Let us face this challenge together and reposition the industry in a new and better way. We are better equipped than others to do this.

More Information

Aviation analyst Peter Baumgartner is the chairman of the board of directors and Metrocore Aviation Group.

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Breaking Travel News investigates: If you do not self-regulate, others will make the rules for you - Breaking Travel News

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Schools are reopening this fall with the hope of providing some normalcy to children stressed by changes due to the pandemic. But their return will be anything but normal. The world they are about to re-enter will look drastically different than the one they are used to as schools adapt to create a learning environment that meets the COVID recommendations put in place. These changes and adaptations will cause confusion and disconnect in some children who are returning to school with the hope of reestablishing a foundation of normalcy and predictability that sadly no longer exists.

So how do we as teachers and parents support their emotional needs during this transitive time? As a preschool teacher who has guided parents for over 20 years through the transition into kindergarten, I can see that the same rules apply as your child now returns to the uncharted territory of a post-quarantine classroom.

We spend weeks, even months, preparing our children emotionally for kindergarten by reading books, talking about the bus ride, boasting about kind teachers and new friends, and selecting the perfect lunchbox because we know that it is natural to have anxiety when something is unknown or unfamiliar. This school year will look different than anything your child has experienced before. Feelings of confusion from this change in dynamic are to be expected.

Each school district has created an individual plan that suits the needs of their community best. Be sure to check your schools website, social media page or call your administration directly to understand exactly how your school is redesigning their day to meet their local COVID response.

Speak candidly to your child about what the changes will be so they are prepared for what to expect on their first day as best as possible. Helping them visualize what is ahead of them helps to lessen confusion and build confidence. Break out those Barbies and Batman action figures to play out the sequence of their school day, create a map of their day, or draw a picture of what the classroom may look like to help your child engage and internalize what is about to happen.

It is natural for your child to have some fear or uncertainty as they adjust to their new school dynamic. One of the best things that mitigates this fear is creating a routine of predictability at home.

We have all become disconnected from our scheduled lives since the beginning of quarantine, and it will take some time to adapt back to a structured lifestyle. Start a few days before school returns and begin to establish a daily routine of waking up around the same time as your school starts, getting dressed (yes, its time to pack up those pajamas weve been wearing for months), eating breakfast, and adding activity time when they would be attending class. Use this time to read books together, go over some math flash cards, learn a new word from the dictionary; build, craft, or engage in any other brain building activity your child enjoys. Flex those brain muscles again! Establish an afternoon routine that includes some time outdoors and self-directed play. Eat dinner around the same time each night and have a routine for bed.

Keep this routine once school starts. There will be days where you are tempted or even too overwhelmed to keep this structure, and thats okay. We all need some days to let things slide but try to get back to the schedule when you can because, in the long run, consistency will manage your childs anxiety much more effectively.

There is a good chance that some of your childs learning will be virtual. Do your best to maintain a similar schedule of in-school days during virtual days, but maybe allow those pajama pants to resurface on these days. Design a learning space together by following your childs lead about where they think they will work best. Some children prefer to work in the center of chaos with activity around them, i.e. the kitchen counter. Some children prefer to have a quiet, isolated corner with headphones on. My child loved to work curled up in a ball on top of her play bench. Who is to say what environment is right or wrong if the work is getting done effectively? As long as expectations are being met, allow your child the opportunity to experiment with self-regulation knowing that they will need your support at times to stick with it as they develop these skills. Demonstrating this trust and respect in your child to self-promote and regulate will go a long way in developing their self-awareness and inner confidence.

Children are very intuitive to emotions and easily pick up on feelings from the adults around them. As a parent, you have every right to feel overwhelmed or fearful about your child returning to school, but it is important to do your best to minimize expressing these fears and frustrations in front of your child. Children will easily internalize these emotions for themselves and carry our worry for us instead of us helping them to relieve their own. Be honest with yourself and your child that this new dynamic will present challenges and obstacles and its ok to be frustrated or upset about them. But also be mindful to speak in reassuring and positive ways, the same way you did when they were nervous about kindergarten, to build confidence in your child.

You can model this positive language by saying things like, Your school worked very hard to put a good plan in place to learn safely. It will be wonderful to see your teacher and friends during the week. Remind your child that these new restrictions arent meant to make them unhappy, but are put in place because their school wants to care for them as best as possible. Children reflect what we model for them. When we model positive language, they will internalize that and do their best to think positively as well.

Be sure to listen to your child and help their feelings be heard. As a parent, it is important to try not to respond with dont statements like dont feel that way dont cry or dont be upset. These statements can invalidate a childs feelings and add to their confusion. Instead, use reflective speech to show that they have been heard. I hear that you are sad that you werent able to play with your friend at recess. Do you want to talk about it?

Oftentimes, they are too little to have the words to express what they are feeling, so reading books that focus on emotions are very helpful to extend their emotional vocabulary. When a child doesnt have the words or confidence to express themselves verbally, allow them the ability to express themselves creatively instead. Help them set up a supportive outlet like a LEGO corner, create a music playlist together, leave markers and paper available for free expression, set up an easel, offer a journal for writing or drawing, or go for a hike where your child takes the lead. Providing this level of emotional support and respect will be monumental in their emotional management.

Even with all these supportive measures in place, your child still may have days where their emotions will overwhelm them proving they are not yet able to manage their inexperienced minds effectively. Meltdowns are to be expected. The biggest challenge as a parent is to not internalize them as a failure on our part, but as the result of an overwhelmed, underdeveloped and often exhausted child who just needs to release their emotions.

Let them cry. Let them scream. Provide them space and safety while establishing that throwing, hitting, and other potentially hazardous behaviors are not allowed. These moments may happen right as they return from school or other unexpected times during the day.

If your child is having a reaction bigger than the situation presented (who hasnt had a child lose it over the color of their macaroni and cheese?) it may be a resulting build up from earlier in the day. If the meltdowns are occurring regularly, remember that you have a team of helpful resources at your aid. Speak with your childs teacher, pediatrician, school social worker or psychologist for further support in meeting your childs emotional needs. You are not in this alone.

Transitions into unknown territories are challenging and emotional. Give yourself and your child the time and patience to learn how to regulate, develop and build lifelong emotional skills that will carry you through this new school dynamic. You have successfully made it through the Kindergarten experience before, and you will be able to do it again!

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5 Kindergarten Strategies That Will Help Kids Of Any Age This School Year - Scary Mommy

Imani Ellis, Founder of The Creative Collective NYC and CultureCon

In the midst of a season where stay-at-home orders are in full effect, what does it look like to grow a community dedicated to curating events specifically for creatives of color? For Imani Ellis, Founder of The Creative Collective NYC and CultureCon, answering this question meant that the team behind what has become the go-to conference for creatives of color had to completely reimagine their core offerings.

Like so many, weve had to pivot and go back to the drawing board, said Ellis in our recent interview. Were constantly asking ourselves, What does our community need more of? and What are we going to do about it? With the help of these routine questions, The Creative Collective NYC (CCNYC) team has been able to reach an unprecedented breakthrough for their community. Ellis was kind enough to share here what their followers can expect next and how she and her team have been able to remain innovative, reaching higher heights during a time thats presented them with quite possibly their most unique challenge yet.

Remember Why You Started

Having in-person events has been a part of our DNA from day one, Ellis expressed referring to events like the annual CultureCon conference. What began as a Bible-study-sized brave space in Ellis Harlem, NY apartment had ballooned to nearly 2,500 attendees by 2019. Striving to keep the same vibe of intimate connection established from its inception, the NYC-based brand had still grown rapidly enough to have planned a much-anticipated expansion to Atlanta in the upcoming year.

Prior to the rolling shutdowns triggered by the rapid-fire spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, CCNYC had been hosting up to four in-person events per month. By CultureCons third year theyd welcomed some of the industrys most successful creatives of color to join the cause for their community like Will Smith, Tracee Ellis Ross, Regina King, Spike Lee, Lena Waith and Elaine Welteroth. They also had plans of creating a job fair and a market featuring Black-owned businesses. But just as things were beginning to pick up, the nation shut down, leaving Ellis and her team in the same boat as many other event-focused brands who needed to quickly figure out ways to reach and serve their communities.

CCNYCs solution had to be as creative as the thousands of loyal attendees who flocked to their community-hosted events each year. So when postponements quickly turned into cancellations, CCNYC stayed true to their mission of collective effort in service of their communities and wasted no time in reaching out to their community to see what they wanted most during this time.

Lean On What You Know

Recognizing that a large part of their community had begun to use the time during the pandemic as an opportunity to reimagine what their true interests looked like and improve their skill sets, the CCNYC team reached out across their increasingly busy social media channels for feedback on which direction they should move next. We polled about 5,000 of our community members and asked them what they wanted more of - virtual happy hours or skill-based workshops, Ellis recalls. 95% said they preferred a skill-based workshop, so we set out to build a digital platform that would deliver that and then some.

Once it was decided that they were creating a brand new platform, the colleagues that Ellis mentions as some of the most incredibly talented and hard-working people she knows, jumped right to work. We talked through course ideas and prioritized topics wed actually want to learn more about, then started identifying talent and building out curriculums. With an enduring mission to help those creatives who identify as POC to live and learn unapologetically as their full selves, CCNYC leaned on their 360-degree approach of catering to their audience by building the Creative Curriculum, a dynamic learning website curated specifically for creatives of color launching today.

Team photo, CultureCon & The Creative Collective NYC

Creative Curriculum originally began as short takeovers on the brands Instagram page that showcased helpful skills on a variety of topics. Today this space has transformed into a full-service digital suite meant for community empowerment and invaluable resource sharing. This new digital platform will be presented by the all-in-one website building platform, Squarespace. Catering to the specific needs and lifestyles of CCNYCs most curious and ambitious Black and Brown community members, the Creative Curriculum will feature four tailored tracks focusing on entrepreneurship, creative innovation, professional and personal development as well as financial health and literacy.

We're proud to partner and collaborate with The Creative Collective NYC to help develop their new Creative Curriculum program, which we see as an incredible digital resource for creatives of color looking for support in getting their projects off the ground, said Kinjil Mathur, Chief Marketing Officer, Squarespace. The Creative Collective NYC's mission of providing a hub to inspire and educate the multicultural creative community aligns perfectly with Squarespace's mission to equip anyone with an idea or dream the tools they need to succeed."

Employing keynote conversations and masterclasses given by larger-than-life creative minds like Gabrielle Union-Wade, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Grammy-Award winning artist Kandi Burruss, guests will have the option to follow suggested tracks of learning or combine their favorite courses to create a custom curriculum of their own. And with on-demand videos (workshops can be watched nonstop for up to 30 days) making it easier for creatives to learn on their schedules, its obvious how enthusiastic the CCNYC team remains when it comes to creating spaces that address the whole individual.

We believe that establishing these creative ecosystems can lead to real change and that over time, this can lend itself to an overall economic shift with an emphasis on the importance of ownership, shares Ellis.

Never Forget What Youve Been Working For

Through their focus on having the right people in the right roles, putting effective processes in place, and striving for excellent performance no matter the project, the CCNYC team has demonstrated the importance of both leadership in service as well as effective teamwork. No one is self-made - not even those who refer to themselves as such, Ellis asserts. Its the team behind the mission that moves the needle. Its the collective effort of many that makes it all possible. Theres a common misconception that as an entrepreneur youll finally get to work for yourself...WRONG, she emphasizes. Youre working for your team, for your community, and for the vision youve created.

For any entrepreneur whos just begun their journey or whos maybe even become an expert in their own right, during uncertain times its not at all out of the ordinary to question whether or not you were built for such an unpredictable season. But according to Ellis, whos shown remarkable resilience during this time, self-awareness is key to coming out on top. You shouldnt believe every thought that you have - especially when youre going through a difficult time, urges Ellis. I would advise every entrepreneur to constantly take inventory of how theyre doing personally and professionally, she explains. There is a difference between a difficult moment and a difficult life and you have to be honest with yourself [about what] youre experiencing.

Find Joy In The Journey

Entrepreneurship isnt for everyone and thats totally okay, continued Ellis. There is no shame in trying something new or closing one chapter to begin a new one. Mentioning how weve all begun to reframe what success looks like, Ellis hopes that Millennial creatives continue to pursue the things that they love; no longer glorifying burn out culture, but doing those things that make them happy. Taking to estate sales on the weekends, Ellis has kept her curiosity high and her stress low by digging through piles of historical artifacts in her free time. Viewing the joy shes gained from the activities shes grown to love as absolutely necessary for achieving and maintaining success, the thriving entrepreneur is committed to living a full life not entirely defined by business decisions and career highlights.

You truly have to live in your truth and do your best to step out of the shadow of the worlds expectationseverything else will follow.

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No Events, No Problem: How The Creatives Behind The Annual CultureCon Conference Are Leveling Up With New Digital Offerings - Forbes

Here are some Rules of Thumb for navigating the new US Chess Internet Rules (Chapter 10): https://new.uschess.org/news/7th-edition-rule-book-chapters-now-available-download.

Test Your Equipment: Playing online will probably motivate you to get slightly better digital connection equipmentlike a more responsive mouse for example, or a better modem, etc. Test out your gear before you essay your first online contest.

Know Your Rating: You have a variety of online ratings from US Chess: Online Quick, online Blitz, online regular, or an assigned online rating from the TD. To make matters a bit more confusing some of you already have earned some sort of rating at your favorite online site. Sometimes the online tournament entry info lets you in on the rating that will be used for the event you are entering. If not, find out what rating you will be assignedcheck with the TD. If you dont have an online rating then ask the TD how they plan to give one for pairing and prize purposes. BTW, there is no dual rating for US Chess online ratings.

Know Your Host Site Settings: Each of the major online platforms have slightly different settings available to youget to know them! Make sure the TD will allow you to turn them on or off.

Know How to Make Online Draw Offers: Offer a draw before you make your move. Once you make your move the online software executes itafter that it is too late to make an offer.

Know the Players with Disabilities Rules: Players that are disabled may make use of Game Assistantsmuch like they do in OTB chess. An assistant may make a players announced move for them. While organizers and TDs can help a disabled player find an assistant, the player is ultimately responsible for arranging their own Game Assistant.

Know the Fair Play RulesSteps to take if you think your opponent is cheating: Cheating is the bane of chess. It is hard to catch players cheating OTBit is even harder to catch and prove they are cheating online. Some event organizers may require the use of electronic (or human) monitors at every site. Game service providers typically have proprietary software that analyzes each game and provides and then determines if there is a likelihood that cheating occurredthat software is not the same for each site. Not only are individual games analyzed, but the won-loss record of a typical player with that rating may enter into that determination. Even your opponents contests with other players may get analyzed.

If you think your opponent is, or was, cheating contact the TD. You can also file an Ethics complaint, but you will need evidence. The US Chess Ethics Committee only considers the material you presentthey do not investigate the claim for you. And dont be surprised if the on-site proprietary software coding, or detailed reports, are not available to you upon request. TDs may hold off turning in the online tournament to US Chess until they receive the fair play report from the service provider.

Using Online Handles: Players online handlesused on their favorite chess playing siteare not the same as their US Chess ID and name. Wood pushers have a right to know the US Chess name and ID for everyone registered for the tournament.

What are Acceptable Online Formats: US Chess only allows the Swiss, Round-Robin, Quad or Match Play formats to be US Chess online rated

Tips for Registration: Entering US Chess online events will probably have an earlier cut-off date than you are used to. That-a-way TDs can verify all entry info.

Pairing Systems to Expect: Know which pairing system will be used to match up players. TDs can use the standard pairing software that they own and use in OTB tournaments; however, site platforms also offer their own pairing systems.

Viewing Pairings, Standing, and Wallcharts: All players have a right to view the tournaments pairings, standings, and wallcharts.

Follow Organizer Directions: Organizers and TDs are currently given a wide berth when it comes to creating online contests. Each tournament may have special rules and options that apply only to that single event. All players should have access to those rules.

Additionally, organizers and TDs are given a truckload of advice in this new set of rules on how run successful online events.

The free, updated as of 9-1-20, US Chess Rules (Chapters 1+2 + 10 +11 from the 7th edition rulebook) are now downloadable and available online. Past Just the Rules columns can be viewed here.

Tim Just is a National Tournament Director, FIDE National Arbiter, and editor of the 5th, 6th, and 7th editions of the US Chess Rulebook. He is also the author of My Opponent is Eating a Doughnut & Just Law, which are both available from US Chess Sales and Amazon/Kindle. Additionally, Tim recently revised The Guide To Scholastic Chess, a guide created to help teachers and scholastic organizers who wish to begin, improve, or strengthen their school chess program. Tim is also a member of the US Chess Rules Committee. His new column, exclusive to US Chess, Just the Rules will help clarify potentially confusing regulations.

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Just the Rules: New Internet Chess RulesEssential Player Tips - uschess.org

Originally rescheduled due to the coronavirus crisis, the Norway Chess tournament is planned to take place October 5-16. The original list of 10 participants has been reduced to six players but still includes GMs Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana.

The other four players participating this year are GMs Levon Aronian, GM Anish Giri, and GM Aryan Tari (who were also in the original field) as well as GM Alireza Firouzja, who is a new addition.

These six players will be playing a double round-robin. Otherwise, the format of last year is maintained: in case of players drawing their game, an armageddon game is played. A classical win yields three points, a loss 0, a win in armageddon 1.5 points, anda loss in armageddon one point.

Altibox Norway Chess 2020 | Participants

The players on the original list of participants who are no longer participating are GMs Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Wesley So, and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.

The reason for this is that some of the players are prevented from entering Norway due to border restrictions related to COVID-19. Benedicte Westre Skog, project manager for the tournament, explained:

"The Norwegian border is open for people with passports from the EU or Schengen member countries or for people that have a residence permit in EU/Schengen. So, unfortunately, Ding, Mamedyarov, Nepomniachtchi, and So are not able to participate because of this."

The reasons that Caruana can play are that he has a dual passport (Italy as well as the U.S.) and he plans to be in Germany ahead of the tournament, a country from where people can travel to Norway without a 10-day quarantine period.

"I'm not too concerned because Norway is one of the least affected countries and the tournament is not especially big," Caruana said. "I'm sure the organizers will be responsible and take any necessary precautions."

According to the organizers, all players have signed their contract, but yesterday Giri tweeted: "I have indeed signed the contract of participation under the condition that the COVID-19 situation will be safe. I have not yet confirmed my participation to organizers, due to safety concerns."

Right now,travelers from most EU countries, including the Netherlands, arriving in Norway from abroad need to be in quarantine for 10 days. That means Giri would need to travel to Norway on September 26 at the latest.

The Dutch top grandmaster told Chess.com that such a quarantine period is "one of many things to take into account" before making a final decision to play. He emphasized that if both the Netherlands and Norway are declared relatively safe around that time, without travel restrictions and such, he would have no reason not to play.

For Norway, France falls in the same category as the Netherlands. Firouzja, who lives in France, will have to follow the quarantine requirement. Vachier-Lagrave could have participated under the same conditions but is not playing as he felt the tournament would be too close to the Candidates tournament.

FIDE Director General Emil Sutovsky couldn't provide details just yet about the dates for the second half of this major tournament but said it was "unlikely" to start before November.

Now that the Sinquefield Cup has been quietly canceled as well, Norway Chesswill be the first super tournament since March, when the coronavirus started to cause global lockdowns. The strongest tournament held this summer was the Biel Masters, where players were playing with plexiglass between them or with face masks.

It's not clear yet if that will be the case in Stavanger, but Norway Chess will have its measures as well. Besides the 10-day quarantine for players, their team members, and crew (which can be done at the hotel), the numberof people at the playing venue will be limited.

"There will also be a limitation on the physical audience; possibly there will be no physical audience at all," said Skog.

Apart from arranging the playing hall differently, with more space between tables and such, the organizers have invested in protection equipment and are in touch with health professionals.

"We have had much communication with government health officials about preventative measures, both nationally and locally," said Skog. "We also have people involved such as medical doctors and other staff that will be there to make sure that our corona preventive measurements are followed."

Norway has had 10,162 total cases of patients with COVID-19, from which 8,857 have recovered. With a population of 5.4 million in the country, 264 people have died from the virus.

The Norway Chess tournament is one of the strongest chess tournaments where usually the top 10 players in the world are playing. This year, it will be held for the eighth time.

Link:

Norway Chess Oct. 5-16 With Reduced Field Of Participants - Chess.com

The bad news: the popular New York-based chess program Chess NYC wont reopen its doors anytime soon. The good news: it doesnt need to! Chess NYC has used this period of quarantine to redefine the game of chessonlineand the program is more exciting, fast-paced and alive than ever. One might even call it...the Chess Renaissance. For kids, at least.

"We've built our operationour reputationon the belief that kids shouldn't be asked to sit still for unreasonable periods of time," Chess NYC director Michael Propper says. "And we've taken that approach to our online programs."

Until they believe its safe for kids to resume play in-person again (and even after its safe again), . Why? First and foremost, they're proud that online chess cuts down borders. Kids get to meet, chat with and match with kids from all around the worldEngland, Africa, Canada and, of course, the United States. During this turbulent time, we could all use a little bit of cultural harmony, right?

Alsomost importantlyChess NYC has revolutionized the way kids play chess online. Their Play N Stay online programming cuts out the three areas that had previously given chess its stodgy reputation. One: kids have been known to complain, Chess is too slow. Well, Play N Stay eliminates that by only allowing 20-minute sides (this means the game is, max, 40 minutes). Another one of the complaints is that kids say that there are too many draws. Boom: Play N Stay doesnt have draws, instead, instituting a tiebreaker system. Three: kids often say, Chess is hard to learn! Well, not anymoreChess NYC promises that, with their system, youll be ready to compete in Level 1 matches after three short lessons.

Full article here:

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We're In the Chess Renaissance - Chess Daily News

Altibox Norway Chess today announced that this years event will be held in Stavanger, Norway from October 5-16. The previously announced 10-player field has been cut to six, but with Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian, Anish Giri, Alireza Firouzja and Aryan Tari in action the event aims to be the first undisputed super-tournament to be held in person since lockdowns began in March.

It was announced in March that Altibox Norway Chess would be postponed from June until October due to the coronavirus situation. With that still so unpredictable any scheduling for such events is an act of faith, but the organisers believe it can go ahead. Their press release includes:

First top-tournament post corona! The world as we know it has changed and people all over the world are facing challenging times. Sport events of all types have been cancelled as we together have been distancing ourselves to avoid the spread of the virus. For chess, this has been the case as well, where tournaments all over the world have been cancelled. However, chess online has grown exponentially during this period as tournaments and other chess events have been organized online. This has certainly been positive for chess, as it is a perfect sport to follow online!

The time for chess across the physical board is back!

Back in March a 10-player field was announced, but since then five players have dropped out Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Wesley So and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. One has been added, however - the worlds top junior, 17-year-old Alireza Firouzja. The 6-player field consists of players who all have European passports or residency:

Since the Candidates Tournament had to be stopped halfway through, elite chess has moved online, most notably with the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour that is just reaching a thrilling conclusion. With the first wave of the virus over in most European countries over-the-board chess is gradually coming back, however, with the Biel Chess Festival the first to witness a group of international top players compete at a common venue.

Altibox Norway Chess, with four of the worlds Top 10 and the hottest junior, is a different prospect. Cutting the field to six players means its now going to be a 10-round double round-robin, but the twist of Armageddon after each classical draw remains. The scoring system will be:

The tournament will be broadcast live with commentary and video of the players on chess24 and Norwegian TV.

See also:

Continue reading here:

Norway Chess to be 1st over-the-board super-tournament since March - chess24

Part 1: Introduction | Part 2: India| Part 3: China| Part 4: Egypt| Part 5:Myths, legends

So far we have analyzed, if not all assumptions (one can always omit something in such avast subject), at least a large part of the theories relating tothe originsof chess.In all of them,the original act of invention is ascribed to a single entity, a person or a deity. It is notable thatin none of themthe idea of a shared effort is considered, so plural contributions are not verified, and even less the participation ofdifferent cultures or civilizations.

The criterion of uniqueness, which is the one that has prevailed over time, was very expressively argued by William Jones for whom chess, due toits beautiful simplicity and extreme perfection, could only have been invented by one ofgreat genius:[1]Jones considered thatfrom a more rudimentary version of the game created by a single entity asubsequentprocess of successive changes followed until the appearance ofthe current version, which turned out to be more sophisticated. On the contrary, his compatriot Hiram Cox said that complexity occurred first and only then came simplification.He inferred thata gradual process that was subsequently verified led to the creation ofchess, as the result of a cooperative phenomenon.

In line with Coxs theory, which for a good part of history was forgotten, in recent times the theory that chess emergedfrom diverse and complementary sources has gained strength. It is believed that it comes from a plurality of games that led to the creation of a unique and new variant of proto-chess, which served as the basis in the Eastern world to other modalities or versions of a game that, after successive mutations in particular those that happenedin the Middle Ages inWestern Europe led tothe consolidationof the currently-used format.

The time interval in which this magical synthesis could have occurred can be placed between the 2nd century BC and the 3rd century AD. For its part, it is very likely that this happened at some imprecise Asian point on the Silk Road that went from China to Persia and Arabia, and beyond, and that passed through, among other nations, India. This route was a dynamic meeting place of cultures characterized by the richness of their extreme interconnectivity.

The aforementioned practices, which would have made their respective contribution to the creation of a different game altogheter, were the gamespetteia, ashtpada and liubo, respectively corresponding to the Greek, Indian and Chinese cultures. From their symbiosis,a single variant of proto-chess was created.For those who defend the theory that the game came fromIndia, this variant is none other than chaturanga (or eventually chaturaji[2]), and for those who think the game came from China, the variant would bethe xiang-qi. Although, of course, it should not be ruled out thatchaturanga andxiang-qicould have appeared independently with some degree of synchronicity.

When trying to determine the geographical point where this powerful encounter took place, researches point to awide arealocatednorthwest ofIndia where the kingdom of Bactria (Bactriana) and the Kushan Empire (Ku)[3] settled successively, both characterized by a great cultural openness. It is a space that covered vast territories, with its centre locatedin the valley of the Indus River, in todaysAfghanistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, which were under Greek influence (legacy of Alexander the Great) and had commercial bridges established with the Chinese throughthe Silk Route, whichbegan to operate approximately in the 1st century BC.

In this context, it is entirely conceivable that a proto-variant of chess with contributions from different sources would be able to emerge in a territory of suchcultural openness. Analysing the Indian, Chinese and Greek peoples, this hypothesis gains strength,asarchaeological finds of the oldest pieces of the game were located in that territory.

This line of research, being so convincing, is nevertheless relatively new, having been fundamentally supported by the German researcher Gerhard Josten[4] who, in a way, revolutionized the study of the origin of chess, by applying an approach based on the study of the internal structure of the game and not on thecontributions from the fields of history, literature of, even, archeology.

Yuri Averbakh, partially agreeing with the idea of a confluence of contributions, thinks that the game was created based onpetteia and ashtpada, which in his opinion gave way to the chaturanga, implying an evolution from twosourcesto a third unified strategic game. Thisprocess would have led tothe elimination of the use ofdice[5], and the participation of four players was reduced to two. This symbiosis, according to Averbakh, would have happened thanks to a remarkable cultural fact:Hinduismhad lost, momentarily, relevance in Indian society in favour ofBuddhism. In short, while admitting a possible inheritance of diverse cultures, which is not usual, the erudite Russian chess player strengthens the predominant Indian theory, without acknowledgingany contribution proceeding from China.

The scholar Myron Samsin,[6] meanwhile, supports the possibility that chess is a hybrid game of Greco-Indian origin, being made up of two types of entities: pawns, which would be the Greek contribution, andpieces, which would have anIndian legacy. This symbiosis would have taken place, according to him, shortly afterAlexander the Great invaded theEast.

Josten makes the issue more complex by abandoning the bilateralism and considering the presence of a third source. In his view, the contribution made by the Chinese culture should not be overlooked. In his very original work, which is based on the discernment of the internal logic of the game, he identifies three types of pieces: those that are essential targets,represented by the king or general; others that have long movements in various directions, which are the main pieces; and others that merely move forward, represented by the pawns. From this distinction, he suggests thatchess was based onthree different games. According to him, the king would comefrom China, probably from the gamewei-ki and, perhaps more precisely, from the more ancestral liubo; the pieces wouldhave a Mesopotamian origin, more specifically from a Sumerianastrolabe [7]; while the pawns typical pieces that advance after throwing dice would come from India, from the gamespachisi / gyan chauper.[8]

Thaayam and Pachisi / Chaupur, taken fromChess A living fossil by Gerhard Josten

The first proto-variant of chess, according to Josten, which wasthe product of this confluence, would have had a circular board (in the style of Byzantine chess), which would later be replaced by a square board, also contributed by the Indians, from ashtpada. At that time, a game could have emerged in India for four participants (with the use of the dice), chaturanga; while the gamexiangqiappeared in China, with its special characteristics (among them the presence of a river, which it inherits from the liubo). This is also stated by Petzold[9] who, in addition to supporting this hypothesis, considers that these contributions, coming from India and China, were made independently and simultaneously.

Living and extinct chess variants, taken from Chess A living fossil by Gerhard Josten

In short, these contributions support the theory that chess originated from an action typical of cultural syncretism, locating the initial event somewhere in Central Asia between 50 BC and 200 AD, during the period of the Kushan Empire.[10]

According to Cazaux, strenghtening the idea that the game originated in Central Asia:

There is no doubt that chess is... an Asian game. Three regions may claim to be their birthplace: Northern India; Central Asia, from Iran to Turkestan;and Eastern China. No one can object that there is a genetic linkage of all forms of chess that come from those areas.

In conclusion, the theory that points to a cultural confluence as the origin of chess, which was recently conceived, is highly persuasive. However, it is very difficult to prove it for various reasons, at least from a factual point of view. First, because of its own characteristics: since it is a process, and not a punctual fact, it is more difficult to catchit, and consequently explainit in a given moment of time; the same difficulty arises regarding the place where it happened. Secondly, due to the impossibility of finding literary sources that could have included the mention of a collective construction: generally speaking, stories have a strong nationalist bias; in this context, it is difficult to find claims for an invention that is not of ones own exclusive heritage.[11]

However, there is the possibility that archeological findings chess pieces or boards will support thissyncretic theory, as long as they coincidewith the places of the Silk Route in whichthe games would have converged, provided that they are datedwithin the lifespan ofthe Kingdom of Bactria or the Kushn Empire.

Therefore, and as it happens with regard to the possible findings that could arise supporting the other hypotheses about the origin of chess, nothing is set in stone yet. There is a wide field still to be explored. The historical search necessarily continues. We find ourselves following a path whose goal, being somewhat closer, cannot yet be clearly seen.

Part 1: Introduction | Part 2: India| Part 3: China| Part 4: Egypt|Part 5:Myths, legends

[2] There is no agreement about the sequence that was given regarding the order of precedence of these Indian games. For Cox the chaturaji was first, while for Jones that place was occupied by chaturanga. From Murray onwards this last theory has been imposed. Forbes even speculated that the chaturaji, rather than a game, could only be a chaturanga position, in its four-person mode, which is verified when one of the participants captures two of the three rival kings. In Theory of the Games it is usually discussed, without conclusive answer, which sequence should be more probable: if the evolution goes from simplification or instead if goes in the search of a greater complexity. In the first case the chaturaji should be prior; on the contrary it would be chaturanga. An analysis of this kind has been made about the order in which conventional chess and Tamerlanes chess (or big chess) appeared. In the search for the correct explanation, we should not forget the existence of a four-handed chess, aided by two dice, with the known pieces (chariot, horse, elephant, king and pawns) on a 64-square board which is mentioned by the Arabic sage al-Brn in Ta'rikh al-Hind (Chronicles of India), a classic book dated in the year 1030, at http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/cul/texts/ldpd_5949073_001/ldpd_5949073_001.pdf

[3] The Kushan Empire was based ethnically on a tribe that came from China which, in a test of the prevailing syncretism, took for itself the Hellenistic cultural legacy and also incorporated concepts of Indian Shivaism.

[5] It has also been said that this elimination of the dice occurred in India itself when Hinduism (which had a more rigid view of the bets associated with dice) takes over cultural controlwith the Gupta Empire, whichruled the Indian subcontinent between the fourth and sixth centuries of the Christian era.

[7] Because of this astrological connection, it is believed that many board games, including old versions of chess, were used as oracles.

[8] We have already seen that for Samsin thepawnsare a Greek contribution, specifically ofpetteia. In his opinion,gyan chauper (chaupur), which would proceed from the Sacred Game of Ur, is the one that contributes the pieces. But there is a problem in this regard:pachisiis not such an old game,asit is usually located only starting from the fourth century of the Christian era, so that the time frame inwhichit could have beena predecessort of the game that was born on the silk route, although it exists, is too narrow. This is not the case ofgyan chauper, which could have existed inprehistoric times.

[9] Source: Das knigliche Spie, Leipzig edition, 1987, p. 19, quote taken from Josten's work.

[10] Always within the path of the Silk Route, it has been claimed thatthe meeting point of the games could have been an oasis in the current Chinese location of Kashgar (where the Kushn people once established a Kingdom); as Horst Remus speculates. Source: The origin of chess and the silk road, at http://silkroadfoundation.org/newsletter/volumeonenumberone/origin.html.

[11] There is a classical exception to this assertion: Persians recognizing the Indian paternity of chess. But this actually occurred in the context of proving their intellectual superiorityand in the understanding that nard was superior to the game coming from India.

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On the origins of chess (6/7) - Chessbase News

World No. 2 Koneru Humpy believes India has a very strong side at the online Chess Olympiad beginning on Friday.

The star-studded squad comprises the likes of five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand, Pendyala Harikrishna, Vidit Gujrathi, Dronavalli Harika, R. Vaishali and teen sensations Nihal Sarin and R. Praggnanandhaa.

I am happy to be part of this team and I hope it will be an exciting tournament, Humpy told Sportstar over phone from Vijayawada on Wednesday. India has good chances but in rapid and blitz chess, reputations don't matter much.

India to take on China in online chess battle

India, which has been seeded directly to the top division, has some strong rivals in Group A. China will of course be a tough challenge, she said. But I think Iran, Germany, Georgia and Vietnam have also some very good players.

Humpy said she started to enjoy playing online chess more after the recent Women's Speed Chess Grand Prix series organised by FIDE. She had reached the final of the last leg.

I wasn't too keen about playing online or speed chess earlier, but I am more comfortable after the Grand Prix, she said.

India opens its campaign with what should be an easy match against Zimbabwe. Later on Friday, India will take on Vietnam and Uzbekistan.

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Humpy: China will pose tough challenge in Chess Olympiad - Sportstar