(ORDO NEWS) — Scientists warn that the results of the new study apply to all people who are involved in knowledge work in polluted areas.
When studying 121 chess players from three tournaments in Germany from 2017 to 2019, the researchers analyzed 30,000 moves and then compared them with the optimal moves provided by the special Stockfish program.
Thus, a computer model for analyzing the quality of games played found that with a slight increase in the content of fine particulate matter in the air, the probability that chess players will make a mistake increased by 2.1%, and the criticality of these errors increased by 10.8%.
Bad air and health
At the tournament venues, scientists installed three air quality sensors to measure carbon dioxide, PM2.5 concentration and temperature.
Each tournament lasted eight weeks, which meant that players were faced with a variety of aerial conditions.
“We found that when people are exposed to higher levels of air pollution, they make more mistakes, and these are serious mistakes,” says Juan Palacios, an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology‘s Sustainable Urbanization Laboratory, USA.
The researchers examined historical data to see if their conclusions are consistent, using data from 20 years of games in the first division of the German chess league.
After taking into account other causes – noise, temperature changes and carbon dioxide concentration – it was found that air pollution is the cause of the decrease in the overall performance of the players.
“It is the accidental exposure to air pollution that affects performance,” Palacios noted.
“In the same tournament round, exposure to different levels of air quality makes a difference to the quality of movement and the quality of decisions.”
Problems of chess players
Chess.com’s Leon Watson added that professional players were already monitoring air quality during the game: “Some of the best players like Magnus Carlsen and Anish Giri have already realized how important air quality is.
Competing from home in major Champions Chess Tour tournaments, players now regularly monitor CO2 and particulate matter levels with [air monitors] and use the data to create ideal playing conditions.
As in any other sport, margin is important. The difference may not be significant, but players will inevitably try to eliminate any competitive shortcomings.”
While the study focused on chess players, the scientists said there are implications for anyone doing knowledge work in the polluted areas.
“The idea is to provide accurate assessments to politicians who make difficult decisions to clean up the environment,” concluded Juan Palacios.
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