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![image.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmR3avp94VKP85SUfQWQqpTnNDA16mK987J2RaNb5XeH6S/image.png)
<sup>Source: <a href="http://www.correodelorinoco.gob.ve/maracaibo-tendra-internacional-de-ajedrez/">correodelorinoco.gov.ve</a></sup>
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Many people who follow my publications know that I am a chess player. Five years ago I began to practice this sport and since then I have actively participated in competitions at the state, national and even international level. In my entire chess career I have met a lot of people, from doctors to a large number of people in computer science or systems engineering  (curiously, many chess players study technology-related careers)

*I also really like computers and everything that has to do with technology in general. My curiosity about technology began when I was 12 years old, but that's another matter.*

But, the detail here is this: **Is that a coincidence?** 

Is it a coincidence that a large number of chess players are involved in careers related to mathematics or technology, or does chess increase their skills in these areas? These are questions that I have asked myself throughout my career since I am very curious, so I have read articles on the Internet that talk about different topics about chess, but, there is a more general question and many people have asked: **Does chess make people smarter?** I found this very interesting and I want to share my opinion in this community created by @jaki01 


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![image.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmdPdynU8uUkjBzcihgPqhdt2f4zjjJgdR1cZhgshc6sU5/image.png)
<sup>Source: <a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estrategia_(ajedrez)#/media/Archivo:Editatona_-_Ajedrez_para_la_convivencia.jpg">es.wikipedia.com</a></sup>
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First of all, what do I mean by smart? The definition of intelligence has been the subject of much debate over time, and I even read a theory about <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_multiple_intelligences">multiple intelligences</a></i> by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Gardner">Howard Gardner</a> some time ago. It's a really interesting theory, but it doesn't apply in this definition, why? For me, intelligence is something general, the ability of a person to perform any activity that occurs in his or her daily life. *And this is where chess predominates*

Chess is a science-sport that requires a lot of research and practice, chess is based very much on theory, that is, the information stored in the player's brain, the more information the player has the better his performance in the game. This is true in most cases, mastering openings, basic tactics and the huge amount of chess endgames makes the player exceptional. **Be clear, the more information, the better**.

> There are also cases where natural talent makes a chess player incredible, this is where intuition comes in, but personally, I haven't met anyone who performs phenomenally in chess without having studied theory, I think these are very specific cases, but I don't deny the existence of them. 

This is where chess begins to relate to the definition of intelligence I mentioned earlier, the ability to perform any activity that life presents us. Research is something that anyone knows, I mean, even in school you have to research to do a task. Chess players are forced to research any kind of information if they want to improve their game, learn new endgames, study new variations of some opening, things that simply improve their game on a theoretical level, expanding the amount of information further and discovering new things they didn't know before. 

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![image.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmZ5iPQFJrpSD3AZVvQiW49TxBnMZ7iEUfM3ns4vbvDi6o/image.png)
<sup>Source: <a href="https://www.telesurtv.net/news/cuba-brasil-olimpiada-ajedrez-femenino-20181005-0031.html">telesurtv.net</a></sup>
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This helps their research skills to improve a lot and no, I am not the only person who says this, a <a href="https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/272071/1-s2.0-S0160289618X00051/1-s2.0-S0160289618301831/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjELT%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJHMEUCIQDksL%2BZjqwBqtW6Yqh%2FUOJn8ZIYJq%2B%2BtpjUiwxJ6soVXQIgZPvF58Xdjfh9U0r0vILakcGdskMSk9sh88x1y30bRSkqtAMITBACGgwwNTkwMDM1NDY4NjUiDM2qp%2F8v3DuPr%2FrRgiqRA2S25pr4f%2BNyBKHTWSXA1RcOR2eZPYdgOlE1J3uVkrVz2jtxj2X%2B7ZRCe4uhMspJU4wtDxmPQS1EidXil07ZJvEyh4G5DguDff1iR%2BzTX4CyY3GvflyP6G4hiFsyuzS5STFNMlzFe7DRqbEAD5sgqgg%2Fvv8pBvInUYebsHx5Lc5b%2BofYBe6LP1AathYpT%2F4DyL2aQap66m4LRbv0UkwevUNqxzW0Cidu0xr8gVwGwKAoA5cUUSWneI2BSN%2BHg5hdsd9%2FVXYBmTsok5qYO5R2ceWKORIE9k2wGgcECs%2FObfS9Oip1e%2FxbGDwu2unBQ2qb2q2swte3CsClC69YvsTAvLyAgu10QepUC629%2BSEjsBgj3hkIFXXG8pzBtvRiVMWfZg6H%2BXIT5w3MYAsLftIgFshHXGdgR8YnRFDf5Ve6XjlbSyIiRZV9muHhuXSCDzZLbUh9uUpxd5ADgOD6APyvCCvWJHAAJX9Qj4I2iUXo%2BhAyb%2BxeysW81Rx7%2BCV9CaWEU3SDb1%2Bj8UYpXVAr4bD%2FDvAbMJHip%2FEFOusBRoE9bRKnl5nA4zKFrYmTUx6aX8CZaWbdWcJZgeg5h7oGxEd9OxesamDlVwpQvN69HSxYocTJQxakZRMdG748vNxe1QUF%2BAPpx8cJ67qbz5YhOSXpeN7uoeqoKBlCSz18ee8dqGYoXMiuj3Hwx8DAOE%2F9%2FhX1L517UlaLFHbRKBdvrMbC6A%2BpECpOGREirsZoMKaCAhPDMqvqczj5MdvzZpfTv2mbCsOUG6RCxQbOeEZtCFv919bRGuWywWvYCPvGA0sRi%2F15vgYVZscIk166CFeGOmRvXH2MyaZJ7hIZyKG9I%2B6Xuv%2FmINeZ%2BA%3D%3D&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20200123T204202Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTY3R7UNK37%2F20200123%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=11069f194856d49b0a2242e3db66ca40a06ec0aae6ddf494ef125c6c96bd5e65&hash=68a223305e179207329177d3b811ffe963971645c6b29b8dc8194141eb765494&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0160289618301831&tid=spdf-53717af2-ebc4-4db0-9ffb-1c3c76867370&sid=f6074f052b496842884bad77dcb550b02f3fgxrqa&type=client">study</a> conducted by some students at Michigan State University shows that the level of the chess player is related to cognitive ability.

Also, much of the chess community claims that chess can develop intelligence through concentration and the way the brain works to win a game. But, unfortunately I did not find studies that could support this, on the contrary, I found an article that talks about this, there are no studies that can demonstrate that chess is an activity that develops intelligence due to the concentration and stress that the brain undergoes to get the best moves in certain positions.

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![image.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmaPRaiZWiBpK4SA37wbu1SvBaajrvEv1XFDcEHGVsgTxz/image.png)
<sup>Source: <a href="https://www.tekcrispy.com/2018/11/03/aprender-ajedrez-android/">tekcrispy.com</a></sup>
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Chess is really a fun and very interesting sport, personally, chess has made me improve a lot as a person, I learned to think and reflect better before making decisions in my daily life and it has also allowed me to meet people who have helped me throughout my life. It really is a sport that gives you many opportunities and benefits if you practice it daily. You should be encouraged to play chess some day :)