David Kane wrote:
A large number of players who play the game seriously don't have a rating of
2700, so it's fairly easy to disprove that one. Putting an upper bound is
fairly easy. Anyone who thinks it would be over 1200 is really got to be mad.
Similarly, those with experience with players in the
x00's range, also believe that 1000 is mad.
I don't doubt that. If I had said 1000, there might have been some
argument about it, so 1200 seemed a sensible upper limit.
Anyone who is a member of the USCF would have to be reasonably serious about
the game, so they would have played many times before. I don't believe someone
will learn the rules, then join USCF and play their first ever game in a rated
competition.
Not true. For better of for worse, many kids do start playing rated
games knowing very little.
Having just learned the rules? Which is what I thought we were talking
about.
I could see that someone might learn the rules of chess from a book or
the Internet and not having a human opponent, go onto ICC, FICS or
whatever and play their first game. I doubt they would join USCF and
play their first game there.
I guess there is always the parent who wants his/her child to play
chess, so they pay for membership and get them doing it from the
beginning. I used to teach maths to someone who did not really want to
learn mathematics, but his Dad wanted him to. (I'm not a mathematician
BTW).
As mentioned elsewhere, 0 has no special significance in the rating system.
Sorry, I thought it did, but I see you are right.
In fact the minimum rating in the USCF system is 100. 1200 (or 1000, or 800)
can be refuted in the same way that 2700 can be refuted - by showing
that players with those ratings can beat average intelligence
adults. (Whether the adults have strictly just learned the rules is
just a detail, unless you are suggesting that player's ratings would
*decline* by playing)
I was talking about someone who had JUST LEARNED THE RULES, which is
what I believed the other threads were referring to. In that
circumstance, by playing several games an average (or even somewhat
below average) intelligence human can't fail to learn and so improve.
--
Dave (from the UK)
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