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{{Short description|American chess player}}
{{Short description|American chess player (1929–2017)}}
{{Infobox chess player
{{Infobox chess player
| name = Hans Berliner
| name = Hans Berliner
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| title = [[International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster|ICCF Grandmaster]] (1968)
| title = [[International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster|ICCF Grandmaster]] (1968)
| ICCFworldchampion = 1965–1968
| ICCFworldchampion = 1965–1968
| ICCF_rating = [https://www.iccf.com/player?id=510006&tab=3 2726] (October 2003)
| rating =
| ICCF_peakrating = 2763 (July 1992)
| peakrating =
}}
}}
{{Infobox academic
{{Infobox academic
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}}


'''Hans Jack Berliner''' (January 27, 1929 – January 13, 2017) was a Professor of Computer Science at [[Carnegie Mellon University]], and was the World [[Correspondence Chess]] Champion, from 1965–1968. He was a [[International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster|Grandmaster of Correspondence Chess]]. He directed the construction of the chess computer [[HiTech]], and was also a published chess writer.
'''Hans Jack Berliner''' (January 27, 1929 – January 13, 2017) was an American [[chess player]], and was the World [[Correspondence Chess]] Champion, from 1965–1968. He was a [[International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster|Grandmaster of Correspondence Chess]]. Berliner was a Professor of Computer Science at [[Carnegie Mellon University]]. He directed the construction of the chess computer [[HiTech]], and was also a published chess writer.


==Life and career==
==Early life==
Berliner was born in Berlin. One of his classmates at school was future Estonian President [[Lennart Meri]], whose father was serving as Estonia's ambassador to Germany.<ref>[https://ekspress.delfi.ee/ee30/berliini-poisid-leidsime-ameerikast-lennart-meri-lapsepolve-mangukaaslase?id=87794937 Berliini poisid: Leidsime Ameerikast Lennart Meri lapsepõlve mängukaaslase], [[Eesti Ekspress]] (retrieved 31 January 2020)</ref>
Berliner was born January 27, 1929, in Berlin<ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}</ref> to a Jewish family.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/link/iconoclast |title=The Iconoclast |date=7 May 2012}}</ref> One of his classmates at school was future Estonian President [[Lennart Meri]], whose father was serving as Estonia's ambassador to Germany.<ref>[https://ekspress.delfi.ee/ee30/berliini-poisid-leidsime-ameerikast-lennart-meri-lapsepolve-mangukaaslase?id=87794937 Berliini poisid: Leidsime Ameerikast Lennart Meri lapsepõlve mängukaaslase], [[Eesti Ekspress]] (retrieved 31 January 2020)</ref>
In 1937, the 8 year old Berliner's family, who were Jewish,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/link/iconoclast |title=The Iconoclast |date=7 May 2012}}</ref> moved to America to escape [[Nazi]] persecution, taking up residence in Washington, D.C. He learned chess at age 13, and "it quickly became his main preoccupation."
In 1937, Berliner's family moved to the United States to escape [[Nazi]] persecution, taking up residence in Washington, D.C. He learned chess at age 13, and "it quickly became his main preoccupation."<ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}</ref>


Berliner is mentioned in "How I Started To Write", an essay by [[Carlos Fuentes]], where he is described as "an extremely brilliant boy", with "a brilliant mathematical mind". "I shall always remember his face, dark and trembling, his aquiline nose and deep-set, bright eyes with their great sadness, the sensitivity of his hands..."<ref>''The Art of the Personal Essay'', edited by Phillip Lopate, 1995, pp. 435–36</ref>
Berliner is mentioned in "How I Started To Write", an essay by [[Carlos Fuentes]], where he is described as "an extremely brilliant boy", with "a brilliant mathematical mind". "I shall always remember his face, dark and trembling, his aquiline nose and deep-set, bright eyes with their great sadness, the sensitivity of his hands..."<ref>''The Art of the Personal Essay'', edited by Phillip Lopate, 1995, pp. 435–36</ref>


==Chess career==
In 1949, he became a master, won the [[District of Columbia]] Championship (the first of five wins of that tournament) and the Southern States Championship, and tied for second place with [[Larry Evans (chess grandmaster)|Larry Evans]] at the New York State Championship. He also won the 1953 New York State Championship (the first win by a non-New Yorker), the 1956 Eastern States Open directed by [[Norman Tweed Whitaker]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], ahead of [[William Lombardy]], [[Nicolas Rossolimo]], [[Bobby Fischer]] (at age 13) and [[Arthur Feuerstein]], and the 1957 Champion of Champions tournament.<ref name="The chess games of Hans Berliner">[http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=24290 The chess games of Hans Berliner<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}, and {{Harvtxt|Brady|1973|pp=16–17}}</ref>
In 1949, he became a master, won the [[District of Columbia]] Championship (the first of five wins of that tournament) and the Southern States Championship, and tied for second place with [[Larry Evans (chess grandmaster)|Larry Evans]] at the New York State Championship. He also won the 1953 New York State Championship (the first win by a non-New Yorker), the 1956 Eastern States Open directed by [[Norman Tweed Whitaker]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], ahead of [[William Lombardy]], [[Nicolas Rossolimo]], [[Bobby Fischer]] (at age 13) and [[Arthur Feuerstein]], and the 1957 Champion of Champions tournament.<ref name="The chess games of Hans Berliner">[http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=24290 The chess games of Hans Berliner<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}, and {{Harvtxt|Brady|1973|pp=16–17}}</ref>
Berliner played for his country's Olympiad team at [[10th Chess Olympiad|Helsinki 1952]], drawing his only game on the second reserve board.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Főldeák|1979|pp=201–02}}</ref> Berliner played four times in the [[US Chess Championship]]. In 1954 at New York, he scored 6½/13 to tie 8–9th places; [[Arthur Bisguier]] won. The last three times Berliner played in the U.S. Championship, Fischer won the tournament. In 1957–58 at New York, Berliner had his best result, 5th place with 7/13. In 1960–61 at New York, he scored 4½/11, tying for 8th–10th place. Finally in 1962–63 at New York, he scored 5/11 for a tied 7th–8th place.<ref name="The chess games of Hans Berliner"/>
Berliner played for his country's Olympiad team at [[10th Chess Olympiad|Helsinki 1952]], drawing his only game on the second reserve board.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Főldeák|1979|pp=201–02}}</ref> Berliner played four times in the [[US Chess Championship]]. In 1954 at New York, he scored 6½/13 to tie 8–9th places; [[Arthur Bisguier]] won. The last three times Berliner played in the U.S. Championship, Fischer won the tournament. In 1957–58 at New York, Berliner had his best result, 5th place with 7/13. In 1960–61 at New York, he scored 4½/11, tying for 8th–10th place. Finally in 1962–63 at New York, he scored 5/11 for a tied 7th–8th place.<ref name="The chess games of Hans Berliner"/>


⚫
===Correspondence chess===
Berliner was talented at all aspects of chess. As a teenager he gave a multi-board [[Blindfold chess|blindfold]] [[simultaneous exhibition]] at the Washington Chess Divan, winning all six games against top local players.<ref>Hearst, Eliot and Knott, John,[https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Lv8KNuzjt1kC&pg=PA113&lpg=PA113&dq=Washington+Chess+Divan+six+players&source=bl&ots=swVZzzT0lK&sig=1NomcRdZZeHHFsm3SKvLMAdOE5Y&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiV5dPBuurKAhWESBQKHQ08A6IQ6AEIKTAB#v=onepage&q=Berliner%20six&f=false], ''Blindfold Chess: History, Psychology, Techniques, Champions, World Records, and Important Games'', McFarland & Co, 2009, p.112.</ref>
⚫
Berliner is remembered most for his feats in correspondence play, in which games played by mail can take months or even years to complete. He won the 5th [[World Correspondence Chess Championship]], beginning the final game on April 1, 1965, and finishing three years later.<ref>McClain, Dylan, Hans Berliner, 87, Master Chess Player and Programmer, New York Times, January 17, 2017, p.A15</ref> He won with the score of 14/16 (twelve wins, four draws), a margin of victory of three points, thrice that of any other winner in these championships.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}</ref>


⚫
Berliner played the [[Two Knights Defense]] to defeat [[Yakov Estrin]] in that tournament. Berliner's opening novelty in that variation is still considered critical.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Burgess|Nunn|Emms|2004|pp=309–15}}, and {{Harvtxt|Evans|1970|pp=217–21}}</ref>
⚫
Berliner returned to school in 1969 to get a PhD.<ref name="Hoffman-Archimedes">Hoffman, Paul. "Archimedes' Revenge", 1988. p. 176.</ref> He graduated from [[Carnegie Mellon University]] in 1974 under the supervision of [[Allen Newell]]. His thesis was titled: "Chess as Problem Solving: The Development of a Tactics Analyzer". He died on January 13, 2017 in Riviera Beach, Florida, fourteen days away from his 88th birthday.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/business/hans-berliner-master-chess-player-and-programmer-dies-at-87.html?partner=IFTTT&_r=0 |title=Hans Berliner, Master Chess Player and Programmer, Dies at 87 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=17 January 2017 |last1=McClain |first1=Dylan Loeb}}</ref>


⚫
As of March 31, 2005, Berliner still had by far the highest [[International Correspondence Chess Federation]] (ICCF) [[Elo rating|rating]] of any player in the United States, at 2726, 84 points above the second-highest rated player.<ref>{{Citation |title=Top 50 ICCF-US Players as of 3/31/2005 |journal=[[Chess Life]] |issue=May |pages=37 |year=2005}}</ref> Berliner's 2726 rating placed him third on the ICCF's world list, behind [[Joop van Oosterom]] (2777) and [[Ulf Andersson]] (2737).<ref>{{cite web |title=ICCF Ratings |author=Nol van't Riet |url=https://kszgk.com/iccf/?page_id=990 |website=Celebrating 60 years of the ICCF |access-date=April 18, 2022}}</ref>
⚫
===Correspondence play===
⚫
Berliner is remembered most for his feats in correspondence play, in which games, played by mail can take days, months or even years to complete. He won the [[Correspondence chess#ICCF World Champions|5th World Correspondence Chess Championship]] in 1965, beginning the final game on April 1, 1965 and finishing three years later.<ref>McClain, Dylan, Hans Berliner, 87, Master Chess Player and Programmer, New York Times, January 17, 2017, p.A15</ref> He won with the extraordinary score of 14/16 (twelve wins, four draws), a margin of victory of three points, thrice that of any other winner in these championships.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Berliner|1999|p=176}}</ref>


==Computer chess research==
⚫
Berliner's game in which he played the [[Two Knights Defense]] to defeat [[Yakov Estrin]] in the 1965 World Correspondence Chess Championship is one of the most famous and important games in correspondence chess.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Burgess|Nunn|Emms|2004|pp=309–15}}, and {{Harvtxt|Evans|1970|pp=217–21}}</ref>
Berliner started a new career in 1969, enrolling in the doctoral program at [[Carnegie Mellon University]] to study [[computer science]], under the supervision of [[Allen Newell]]. His 1974 thesis was titled: "Chess as Problem Solving: The Development of a Tactics Analyzer".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Hans Berliner, 1929-2017 |author=Alex Dunne |magazine=Chess Life |date=May 2017 |pages=43-45 |url=http://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/2017/2017_05.pdf}}</ref>


⚫
His subsequent research at Carnegie Mellon eventually led to the creation of [[HiTech]]. At first it performed well, but only until it ran into transitions, that is, points in the game when the balance between the players changed. This led Berliner to conclude that HiTech was weak in board evaluation.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}} He decided that to explore the problem, he should write an evaluation function for another game: [[backgammon]]. The result was BKG, written in the late 1970s on a DEC [[PDP-10]]. Early versions of BKG played badly even against poor players, but Berliner noticed that its critical mistakes were always at transitions. He applied principles of [[fuzzy logic]] to smooth out the transition between phases,{{citation needed|date=April 2022}} and by July 1979, BKG 9.8 was strong enough to play against the ruling world champion [[Luigi Villa]]. It won the match 7–1, becoming the first computer program to defeat a world champion in any game. Berliner states that the victory was largely a matter of luck, as the computer received more favorable dice rolls.<ref name="berliner-acm">Berliner, Hans, et al. "Backgammon program beats world champ", ''ACM SIGART Bulletin'', Issue 69. January 1980. pp. 6–9.</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Computer Backgammon |author=Hans J. Berliner |magazine=Scientific American |volume=242 |number=6 |date=June 1980 |pages=64-72 |url=https://bkgm.com/articles/Berliner/ComputerBackgammon/}}</ref>
⚫
As of March 31, 2005, Berliner still had by far the highest [[International Correspondence Chess Federation]] (ICCF) [[Elo rating|rating]] of any player in the United States, at 2726, 84 points above the second-highest rated player.<ref>{{Citation |title=Top 50 ICCF-US Players as of 3/31/2005 |journal=[[Chess Life]] |issue=May |pages=37 |year=2005}}</ref> Berliner's 2726 rating places him third on the ICCF's world list, behind [[Joop van Oosterom]] (2741) and [[Ulf Andersson]] (2736).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iccf.com/ratings/toplisth.doc |title=Archived copy |access-date=2008-05-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325092758/http://www.iccf.com/ratings/toplisth.doc |archive-date=2009-03-25}} (accessed 2008-05-08)</ref>

⚫
In his 1999 book ''The System'', Berliner claimed that the move [[b:Chess Opening Theory/1. d4|1.d4]] gives White a large, and possibly decisive, advantage.

===Programming===
⚫
Berliner began designing computer chess programs in the early 1960s while employed by [[IBM]]. He entered [[Carnegie Mellon University]] at the age of 40 to earn a Ph.D. in computer science. While there, he came up with idea for HiTech, a more advanced chess computer program. It performed well, but only until it ran into transitions, that is, points in the game when the balance between the players changed. This led Berliner to conclude that HiTech was weak in board evaluation. He decided that to explore the problem, he should write an evaluation function for another game: [[backgammon]]. The result was BKG 9.8, written in the late 1970s on a DEC [[PDP-10]]. Early versions of BKG played badly even against poor players, but Berliner noticed that its critical mistakes were always at transitions. He applied principles of [[fuzzy logic]] to smooth out the transition between phases, and by July 1979, BKG 9.8 was strong enough to play against the ruling world champion [[Luigi Villa]]. It won the match 7–1, becoming the first computer program to defeat a world champion in any game. Berliner states that the victory was largely a matter of luck, as the computer received more favorable dice rolls.<ref name="berliner-acm">Berliner, Hans, et al. "Backgammon program beats world champ", ''ACM SIGART Bulletin'', Issue 69. January 1980. pp. 6–9.</ref>
He also developed the [[B* search algorithm]] for game tree searching.
He also developed the [[B* search algorithm]] for game tree searching.


HiTech was the first computer chess system to reach the 2400 (senior master) [[U.S. Chess Federation#Ratings|USCF rating]] level.<ref>{{cite journal |title=HITECH Becomes First Computer Senior Master |author=Hans Berliner |journal=AI Magazine |volume=9 |number=3 |date=Fall 1988 |pages=85-87 |url=https://ojs.aaai.org//index.php/aimagazine/article/view/946}}</ref> It won the Pennsylvania State Chess Championship several times. Students who worked with Berliner on the project included [[Carl Ebeling]] and [[Murray Campbell]].
Some of Berliner's PhD students, such as [[Carl Ebeling]] and [[Murray Campbell]], went on to become noted researchers in [[computer chess]] themselves. Campbell was part of the [[Deep Blue (chess computer)|Deep Blue]] team that defeated [[Garry Kasparov]] in 1997.

Berliner was elected a Founding Fellow of the [[Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]] in 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Elected AAAI Fellows |url=https://aaai.org/about-aaai/aaai-awards/the-aaai-fellows-program/elected-aaai-fellows/ |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=AAAI |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Writing and retirement==
Berliner retired from Carnegie Mellon in 1998.

In 1998 he self-published a booklet, ''From the Deathbed of 4. Ng5 in the Two Knights Defense'', analyzing the opening of his game with Estrin, as well as attempted improvements upon it by subsequent commentators.

⚫
In 1999 he published a book explaining his opening repertoire, ''The System''. He claimed that the move [[b:Chess Opening Theory/1. d4|1.d4]] gives White a large, and possibly decisive, advantage.


⚫
He died on January 13, 2017, in Riviera Beach, Florida, fourteen days away from his 88th birthday.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/business/hans-berliner-master-chess-player-and-programmer-dies-at-87.html?partner=IFTTT&_r=0 |title=Hans Berliner, Master Chess Player and Programmer, Dies at 87 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=17 January 2017 |last1=McClain |first1=Dylan Loeb}}</ref>
In his later years Berliner lived in [[Florida]] and worked to develop [[computer chess]] programs.


== Books==
== Books==
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|rl|nl|bl|ql| |rl|kl|
| Position after 13...exf3
| Position after 13...exf3
|reverse=true
}}
}}
Yakov Estrin–Hans Berliner, 5th CC World Ch Final 1965; [[Two Knights Defense]], Ulvestad Variation (''[[Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings|ECO]]'' C57)
Yakov Estrin–Hans Berliner, 5th CC World Ch Final 1965; [[Two Knights Defense]], Ulvestad Variation (''[[Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings|ECO]]'' C57)
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'''Bibliography'''
'''Bibliography'''
* {{Citation |first=Hans |last=Berliner |title=The B* Tree Search Algorithm. A Best-First Proof Procedure. |journal=[[Artificial Intelligence (journal)|Artificial Intelligence]] |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=23–40 |year=1979 |doi=10.1016/0004-3702(79)90003-1 |url=http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA059391}}
* {{Citation |first=Hans |last=Berliner |title=The B* Tree Search Algorithm. A Best-First Proof Procedure. |journal=[[Artificial Intelligence (journal)|Artificial Intelligence]] |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=23–40 |year=1979 |doi=10.1016/0004-3702(79)90003-1 |url=https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA059391.pdf |access-date=2018-04-29 |archive-date=2017-09-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170927022753/http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA059391 |url-status=live }}
* {{Citation |last=Berliner |first=Hans |title=The System: A World Champion's Approach to Chess |year=1999 |publisher=[[Gambit Publications]] |isbn=1-901983-10-2}}
* {{Citation |last=Berliner |first=Hans |title=The System: A World Champion's Approach to Chess |year=1999 |publisher=[[Gambit Publications]] |isbn=1-901983-10-2}}
*{{Citation |last=Brady |first=Frank |authorlink=Frank Brady (journalist) |title=Profile of a Prodigy |year=1973 |edition=2nd |publisher=David McKay}}
*{{Citation |last=Brady |first=Frank |authorlink=Frank Brady (journalist) |title=Profile of a Prodigy |year=1973 |edition=2nd |publisher=David McKay}}
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* {{Chessgames player|24290|Hans Jack Berliner}}
* {{Chessgames player|24290|Hans Jack Berliner}}
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811172833/http://archive.computerhistory.org/projects/chess/related_materials/oral-history/hans_berliner.oral_history.2005.102630824/berliner.oral_history_transcript.2005.103630824.pdf |title=Oral History of Hans Berliner at ComputerHistory.org}}
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811172833/http://archive.computerhistory.org/projects/chess/related_materials/oral-history/hans_berliner.oral_history.2005.102630824/berliner.oral_history_transcript.2005.103630824.pdf |title=Oral History of Hans Berliner at ComputerHistory.org}}
* [https://en.chessbase.com/post/hans-berliner-chess-master-and-programmer-dies-at-87 Hans Berliner, chess master and programmer, dies at 87]

{{s-start}}
{{s-start}}
{{succession box
{{succession box
| before= [[Vladimir Zagorovsky]]
| before= {{flagicon|Soviet Union}} [[Vladimir Zagorovsky]]
| title = [[World Correspondence Chess Champion]]
| title = [[World Correspondence Chess Champion]]
| years = 1965–1968
| years = 1965–1968
| after = [[Horst Rittner]]
| after = {{flagicon|Germany}} [[Horst Rittner]]
}}
}}
{{s-end}}
{{s-end}}
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{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Berliner, Hans Jack}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berliner, Hans}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2017 deaths]]
[[Category:2017 deaths]]
⚫
[[Category:World Correspondence Chess Champions]]
⚫
[[Category:Correspondence chess grandmasters]]
[[Category:American chess players]]
[[Category:American chess players]]
[[Category:American chess writers]]
[[Category:American chess writers]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
⚫
[[Category:Correspondence chess grandmasters]]
⚫
[[Category:World Correspondence Chess Champions]]
⚫
[[Category:Chess Olympiad competitors]]
[[Category:Computer chess people]]
[[Category:Computer chess people]]
[[Category:Jewish chess players]]
[[Category:Jewish chess players]]
⚫
[[Category:People from Berlin]]
[[Category:Carnegie Mellon University alumni]]
[[Category:Carnegie Mellon University alumni]]
⚫
[[Category:Chess Olympiad competitors]]
⚫
[[Category:People from Washington, D.C.]]
⚫
[[Category:Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States]]
[[Category:Carnegie Mellon University faculty]]
[[Category:Carnegie Mellon University faculty]]
⚫
[[Category:Chess players from Berlin]]
⚫
[[Category:Writers from Washington, D.C.]]
⚫
[[Category:Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]]

Latest revision as of 03:40, 10 May 2024

Hans Berliner
Full nameHans Jack Berliner
LandUnited States
Germany
Born(1929-01-27)January 27, 1929
Berlin, Germany
DiedJanuary 13, 2017(2017-01-13) (aged 87)
Riviera Beach, Florida, U.S.
TitelICCF Grandmaster (1968)
ICCF World Champion1965–1968
ICCF rating2726 (October 2003)
ICCF peak rating2763 (July 1992)
Professor
Hans Berliner
Academic background
Alma materCarnegie Mellon (1974)
Thesis"Chess as Problem Solving: The Development of a Tactics Analyzer"
Doctoral advisorAllen Newell
Academic work
DisciplineComputer science
InstitutionsCarnegie Mellon
Notable worksHiTech

Hans Jack Berliner (January 27, 1929 – January 13, 2017) was an American chess player, and was the World Correspondence Chess Champion, from 1965–1968. He was a Grandmaster of Correspondence Chess. Berliner was a Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. He directed the construction of the chess computer HiTech, and was also a published chess writer.

Early life

[edit]

Berliner was born January 27, 1929, in Berlin[1] to a Jewish family.[2] One of his classmates at school was future Estonian President Lennart Meri, whose father was serving as Estonia's ambassador to Germany.[3] In 1937, Berliner's family moved to the United States to escape Nazi persecution, taking up residence in Washington, D.C. He learned chess at age 13, and "it quickly became his main preoccupation."[4]

Berliner is mentioned in "How I Started To Write", an essay by Carlos Fuentes, where he is described as "an extremely brilliant boy", with "a brilliant mathematical mind". "I shall always remember his face, dark and trembling, his aquiline nose and deep-set, bright eyes with their great sadness, the sensitivity of his hands..."[5]

Chess career

[edit]

In 1949, he became a master, won the District of Columbia Championship (the first of five wins of that tournament) and the Southern States Championship, and tied for second place with Larry Evans at the New York State Championship. He also won the 1953 New York State Championship (the first win by a non-New Yorker), the 1956 Eastern States Open directed by Norman Tweed Whitaker in Washington, D.C., ahead of William Lombardy, Nicolas Rossolimo, Bobby Fischer (at age 13) and Arthur Feuerstein, and the 1957 Champion of Champions tournament.[6][7]

Berliner played for his country's Olympiad team at Helsinki 1952, drawing his only game on the second reserve board.[8] Berliner played four times in the US Chess Championship. In 1954 at New York, he scored 6½/13 to tie 8–9th places; Arthur Bisguier won. The last three times Berliner played in the U.S. Championship, Fischer won the tournament. In 1957–58 at New York, Berliner had his best result, 5th place with 7/13. In 1960–61 at New York, he scored 4½/11, tying for 8th–10th place. Finally in 1962–63 at New York, he scored 5/11 for a tied 7th–8th place.[6]

Correspondence chess

[edit]

Berliner is remembered most for his feats in correspondence play, in which games played by mail can take months or even years to complete. He won the 5th World Correspondence Chess Championship, beginning the final game on April 1, 1965, and finishing three years later.[9] He won with the score of 14/16 (twelve wins, four draws), a margin of victory of three points, thrice that of any other winner in these championships.[10]

Berliner played the Two Knights Defense to defeat Yakov Estrin in that tournament. Berliner's opening novelty in that variation is still considered critical.[11]

As of March 31, 2005, Berliner still had by far the highest International Correspondence Chess Federation (ICCF) rating of any player in the United States, at 2726, 84 points above the second-highest rated player.[12] Berliner's 2726 rating placed him third on the ICCF's world list, behind Joop van Oosterom (2777) and Ulf Andersson (2737).[13]

Computer chess research

[edit]

Berliner started a new career in 1969, enrolling in the doctoral program at Carnegie Mellon University to study computer science, under the supervision of Allen Newell. His 1974 thesis was titled: "Chess as Problem Solving: The Development of a Tactics Analyzer".[14]

His subsequent research at Carnegie Mellon eventually led to the creation of HiTech. At first it performed well, but only until it ran into transitions, that is, points in the game when the balance between the players changed. This led Berliner to conclude that HiTech was weak in board evaluation.[citation needed] He decided that to explore the problem, he should write an evaluation function for another game: backgammon. The result was BKG, written in the late 1970s on a DEC PDP-10. Early versions of BKG played badly even against poor players, but Berliner noticed that its critical mistakes were always at transitions. He applied principles of fuzzy logic to smooth out the transition between phases,[citation needed] and by July 1979, BKG 9.8 was strong enough to play against the ruling world champion Luigi Villa. It won the match 7–1, becoming the first computer program to defeat a world champion in any game. Berliner states that the victory was largely a matter of luck, as the computer received more favorable dice rolls.[15][16]

He also developed the B* search algorithm for game tree searching.

HiTech was the first computer chess system to reach the 2400 (senior master) USCF rating level.[17] It won the Pennsylvania State Chess Championship several times. Students who worked with Berliner on the project included Carl Ebeling and Murray Campbell.

Berliner was elected a Founding Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence in 1990.[18]

Writing and retirement

[edit]

Berliner retired from Carnegie Mellon in 1998.

In 1998 he self-published a booklet, From the Deathbed of 4. Ng5 in the Two Knights Defense, analyzing the opening of his game with Estrin, as well as attempted improvements upon it by subsequent commentators.

In 1999 he published a book explaining his opening repertoire, The System. He claimed that the move 1.d4 gives White a large, and possibly decisive, advantage.

He died on January 13, 2017, in Riviera Beach, Florida, fourteen days away from his 88th birthday.[19]

Books

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  • Berliner, Hans (1999), The System: A World Champion's Approach to Chess, Gambit Publications, ISBN 1-901983-10-2
  • Berliner, Hans and Messere, Ken (1971), The Fifth Correspondence World Championship, British Chess Magazine Quarterly No. 14 (no ISBN)

Notable games

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This section uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves.
hgfedcba
1
g1 white king
f1 white rook
d1 white queen
c1 white bishop
b1 white knight
a1 white rook
h2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
d2 white pawn
b2 white pawn
a2 white pawn
g3 white knight
f3 black pawn
h4 black queen
g4 black bishop
d4 white pawn
d5 black knight
b5 white bishop
d6 black bishop
h7 black pawn
g7 black pawn
f7 black pawn
c7 black pawn
a7 black pawn
h8 black rook
d8 black king
a8 black rook
1
22
33
44
55
66
77
88
hgfedcba
Position after 13...exf3

Yakov Estrin–Hans Berliner, 5th CC World Ch Final 1965; Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation (ECO C57)

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 b5 6. Bf1 Nd4 7. c3 Nxd5 8. Ne4 Qh4 9. Ng3 Bg4 9...Ne6 10.Bxb5+ Bd7 11.Bxd7+ Kxd7 12.Qf3 Nef4 13.d4!+/−; 9...Bb7 10.cxd4 0-0-0 11.d3 Nf4 12.Bxf4 exf4 13.Qh5 Bb4+ 14.Kd1 Qe7 (Jovcic–Karaklajic, Jugoslavia 1960) 15.Ne2!+/− (Gligorić) 10. f3 e4 10...Nf5 11.Bxb5+ Kd8 12.0-0 Bc5+ 13.d4 exd4 14.Ne4!+/− (Kopylov) 11. cxd4 Bd6 12. Bxb5+ Kd8 13. 0-0 exf3 (see diagram) 14. Rxf3 14.Qb3! fxg2 (14...Nb4!! 15.Rxf3 c6!! 16.Be2! Bxf3 17.gxf3 Bxg3 18.hxg3 Qxg3+ =/+, Berliner) 15.Rf2 Be6 16.Qf3 Rb8 17.Bc4 Qxd4 18.d3!+/− (Estrin) 14... Rb8 15. Be2 15.a4!+/− Jovcic–Koshnitsky, corr. 1969 (Gligorić) 15... Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qxd4+ 17. Kh1 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Rb6 19. d3 Ne3 20. Bxe3 Qxe3 21. Bg4 h5 22. Bh3 g5 23. Nd2 g4 24. Nc4 Qxg3 25. Nxb6 gxh3 26. Qf3 hxg2+ 27. Qxg2 Qxg2+ 28. Kxg2 cxb6 29. Rf1 Ke7 30. Re1+ Kd6 31. Rf1 Rc8 32. Rxf7 Rc7 33. Rf2 Ke5 34. a4 Kd4 35. a5 Kxd3 36. Rf3+ Kc2 37. b4 b5 38. a6 Rc4 39. Rf7 Rxb4 40. Rb7 Rg4+ 41. Kf3 b4 42. Rxa7 b3 0–1[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Berliner (1999, p. 176)
  2. ^ "The Iconoclast". 7 May 2012.
  3. ^ Berliini poisid: Leidsime Ameerikast Lennart Meri lapsepõlve mängukaaslase, Eesti Ekspress (retrieved 31 January 2020)
  4. ^ Berliner (1999, p. 176)
  5. ^ The Art of the Personal Essay, edited by Phillip Lopate, 1995, pp. 435–36
  6. ^ a b The chess games of Hans Berliner
  7. ^ Berliner (1999, p. 176), and Brady (1973, pp. 16–17)
  8. ^ Főldeák (1979, pp. 201–02)
  9. ^ McClain, Dylan, Hans Berliner, 87, Master Chess Player and Programmer, New York Times, January 17, 2017, p.A15
  10. ^ Berliner (1999, p. 176)
  11. ^ Burgess, Nunn & Emms (2004, pp. 309–15), and Evans (1970, pp. 217–21)
  12. ^ "Top 50 ICCF-US Players as of 3/31/2005", Chess Life (May): 37, 2005
  13. ^ Nol van't Riet. "ICCF Ratings". Celebrating 60 years of the ICCF. Retrieved April 18, 2022.
  14. ^ Alex Dunne (May 2017). "Hans Berliner, 1929-2017" (PDF). Chess Life. pp. 43–45.
  15. ^ Berliner, Hans, et al. "Backgammon program beats world champ", ACM SIGART Bulletin, Issue 69. January 1980. pp. 6–9.
  16. ^ Hans J. Berliner (June 1980). "Computer Backgammon". Scientific American. Vol. 242, no. 6. pp. 64–72.
  17. ^ Hans Berliner (Fall 1988). "HITECH Becomes First Computer Senior Master". AI Magazine. 9 (3): 85–87.
  18. ^ "Elected AAAI Fellows". AAAI. Retrieved 2024-01-01.
  19. ^ McClain, Dylan Loeb (17 January 2017). "Hans Berliner, Master Chess Player and Programmer, Dies at 87". The New York Times.
  20. ^ "Estrin vs. Berliner, 1965". Chessgames.com.

Bibliography

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Preceded by World Correspondence Chess Champion
1965–1968 		Succeeded by
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