The Left-Hander’s archive

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I look at chess from the edges: the brain that calculates, the player who doubts, and the society around them. Find my articles here, from newest to oldest.

73articles to explore
3 sections, another perspective

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The archive · Page 5

37–45 of 73 articles

Scattered seeds with a few blue shoots growing among them.

Science7 min read

Genetics and Chess Talent: Nature, Training and What We Can Measure

Training, cognitive abilities and environment contribute to progress. Research on the genetics of intelligence does not provide a percentage of inherited chess talent or an individual ceiling.

July 30, 2026

Several railway tracks converging into a single track.

Mind6 min read

5 Cognitive Biases to Examine After a Chess Blunder

Five ways to examine a mistake: the first idea, confirmation, anchoring, overconfidence and availability. What research can tell us, with its limitations.

July 27, 2026

A chess piece at the foot of a tall spiral staircase.

Society15 min read

Chess and Giftedness: Supporting Children Without Stereotypes

Chess may offer challenges and encounters to a gifted child, without guaranteeing success or well-being. Respecting interests, adapting support and reading research without stereotypes.

July 23, 2026

A raised drawbridge sealing the only crossing over a dry moat.

Mind6 min read

Fear of Losing in Chess: When Defeat Feels Present Before It Happens

Clarify what you fear, distinguish useful caution from avoidance and return in a manageable setting, without a promise of playing fearlessly.

July 20, 2026

A dark hand reaching toward dice beside a chessboard.

Society10 min read

Chess and Religion: A Thousand Years of Bans, Fatwas and Rehabilitation

A cardinal rebuking a bishop around 1061, a Saudi fatwa in 2016, an ordinance by Saint Louis and an Orthodox prohibition widely ignored: religious traditions have repeatedly restricted chess. Their concerns often extended beyond the board itself.

July 16, 2026

A floating model reduced to a few load-bearing beams, with the rest of the building absent.

Science10 min read

Chess and Spatial Cognition: Expertise and the Limits of Transfer

Representing a board, updating relationships and playing blindfold: what perception and imaging research describes without proving general spatial gains from chess.

July 13, 2026

A pawn stopped before the end of a checkered path.

Mind6 min read

Fear of Winning in Chess: Understanding a Missed Advantage

When you miss a favourable position, distinguish technique, time and perceived pressure before concluding that you are afraid to win.

July 9, 2026

An unfinished chalk footbridge connecting two platforms, with a checkerboard square.

Society9 min read

Chess in Schools: What the Research Supports

A modest meta-analytic effect, no attainment gain in a large English trial: considering school chess without promising better grades.

July 6, 2026

A hand polishing one spot on a smooth surface until it wears a hole into it.

Mind6 min read

Chess and Perfectionism: When High Standards Become Costly

When checking a move or analysing a game becomes difficult to stop: practical questions about standards, decision-making and the limits of satisficing.

July 2, 2026

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