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Chess is the gymnasium of the Mind- Blaise Pascal

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Chess is the gymnasium of the Mind- Blaise Pascal

We know Blaise Pascal as the inventor of Pascaline, the first mechanical calculator and we believe there is a story to every invention or discovery. The story behind the invention of the first mechanical calculator is quite simple. Pascal’s father was working as a tax collector in the French city of Rouen in the year 1642, and in order to help his father with the calculations, pascal developed the world’s first mechanical calculator.

A noble cause that left the windows of opportunity open for others, to take inspiration from the raw format of a mechanical calculator and advance its functions. That’s life, you need inspiration, and you can find them anywhere. From people, things or just words. One such quote by Blaise Pascal is ‘chess is the gymnasium of the mind’.

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“No one ever won a game by resigning” – Savielly Tartakower

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“No one ever won a game by resigning” – Savielly Tartakower

Savielly Tartakower is a French Grandmaster, a leading chess journalist and a successful author in the 1920's and 1930's. Even though he was a strong player he is mostly remembered for his wit, maverick and aphorism also known as Tartakoverisms. He grew out to be one of the most notable chess players of his time even with his impactful quotations and statements. In his quote, "No one ever won a game by resigning" he wanted to state that unless and until you continue to play the game till the very end, you would never know that you ultimately won or lost. Chess is a game that you play with skilful tactics and proper strategic planning. You decide your action before making a move with scanning and browsing over the situation in and around your position.

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (Explained) Part - 4

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (Explained) Part - 4

Benjamin Franklin's essay, the morals of chess, is still celebrated among the chess lovers. All the four virtues are abided by people to succeed in chess and in life. There is a strong notion that exists among players ‘There are times when a well-placed pawn is more powerful than the king.' So, the placement of the pawn is crucially important to overpower the game. Very similar to life, where trivial circumstances or situations lead you to define the course of your life. In this blog, we would discuss, Benjamin Franklin's fourth and final virtue of chess.

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (Explained) Part-3

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (Explained) Part-3

Indeed true, the upheavals in one's life fly away swiftly leaving a clear sky, and then life goes on. But for some people, a storm is a dramatic magnificent dance of nature that needs to be enjoyed. True to its saying, Benjamin Frankin was different, he was one that fell in love with the storm. His deep love for oceans and storms stimulated him to discover the modern understanding of the Gulf stream. Among his numerous voyages that took him to places, he encountered violent storms in the ocean. During his frequent sailing between Europe and North America, he started to notice a pattern to these storms and concluded the understanding of Gulf stream, an ocean current that effects weather on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (explained) Part -2

Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (explained) Part -2

A person's outlook towards life interprets a great deal about him/her. While people chase over materialistic things to make life easy, Benjamin Frankin was one such curious soul who was dedicated to make life simpler for others, through his inventions and discoveries. The Pennsylvania Stover and the Lightning Rod are examples of him being a naturally inquisitive individual who spreads happiness among people by transforming nature from being destructive to constructive. His eagerness to know things introduced him to the world of chess and its virtues. So, we would discuss, what is the second virtue of chess according to Benjamin Franklin's 'The Morals of Chess'?

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (explained) Part -1

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Benjamin Franklin: The Morals of Chess (explained) Part -1

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing" The American Superhero, Benjamin Franklin was a prominent figure of the early American history. What's incredible about his personality, he wasn't restricted to any particular profession. He played contrasting roles in different phases of his life, he was a leading author, civic activist, political theorist, diplomat and even a postmaster. He believed in an uninterrupted flow of life, just like a river.

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Explore the creativity of your child through robotics and coding

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Explore the creativity of your child through robotics and coding

Kids are known to be inquisitive. They would constantly have thousands of questions bubbling in their mind and they love to find the answers to them. The Sci-fi movies today even blow an adult's minds away. Back in the days, when we as kids used to be awestruck by watching movies like Jurassic Park or Star Wars, imagine the level of excitement for kids who belong to the present generation!

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How Chess Can Prove to be Great for Family Bonding

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How Chess Can Prove to be Great for Family Bonding

We say that 'no matter how far we go, we would always find our way back home'. For an individual, home symbolises family, warmth, love and the sense of togetherness and a child is no exception to that. Though the formation of nuclear families have shrunk the amount of time that a child spends with his/her entire family. The hectic schedule of parents and distance from grandparents have reduced their world to themselves.

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The Pursuit of a Better Brain

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The Pursuit of a Better Brain

In the critically acclaimed Hollywood movie, “The Pursuit of Happyness” – a biopic on Chris Gardener, the famous investor, inspirational speaker and author - there is a scene where the protagonist solves the Rubik’s Cube during a cab ride.

While sharing a ride with an enterprising stockbroker from a prestigious firm, Chris Gardener (played by veteran actor Will Smith) notices the man struggling with a Rubik’s Cube and offers to solve it. Apparently, Gardener solves the Cube before they reach the destination, impresses the man, lands a position as a trainee in the company and goes on to create history!

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Chess for kids - A game at leisure and a medium to surge grades at school.

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Chess for kids - A game at leisure and a medium to surge grades at school.

For most parents, the arrival of a child is a vow to work towards the well being of their bundle of joy. As the child grows, their expectations and aspirations from the child increases gradually. What remains constant, is their wish to mould their child into a good human being, imbibing the basic humanitarian qualities and moral virtues.

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“By all means let’s be open-minded. But not so open-minded that our brains drop out.”

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“By all means let’s be open-minded. But not so open-minded that our brains drop out.”

The words of Dr. Richard Dawkins, the evolutionary biologist & author, seems quite applicable in the way our youngest generation is sprouting up. Raised in the lap of technology, Gen Z is all wired up in technology 24/7. The American Academy of Paediatrics reports that on an average, kids spend up to 7 hours a day on some or other random electronic device.  The question is what do they filter and what goes into their brains?

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Not just practice, but these activities help in improving your game of Chess

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Not just practice, but these activities help in improving your game of Chess

Is your child a passive plodder who needs to be pushed around? Or is he/she a silent observer or perhaps a hyper energy-ball who requires some toning down? At Mind Mentorz we believe that the behavioral patterns of a child are closely associated with his or her mental development. We aim to season and temper the young minds in a magic pot of brain-games, channelizing their energies, creativity, and thought-process in a well-balanced and productive way.

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At Mind Mentorz, kids program their own Robots and condition their young minds!

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At Mind Mentorz, kids program their own Robots and condition their young minds!

With an impending future where our children will be doing jobs that are ‘not yet invented’, it is essential that we prepare them for a highly competent and hi-tech world where intelligence would rule and machines might dictate. A generation that grew up on life and its circumstances will soon be extinct. We have before us a whole new breed of “tech-lings” who are born into a matrix of coding and programing and being warped in the way they need to grow.  

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Did you know that Learning to Code helps in playing Chess?

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Did you know that Learning to Code helps in playing Chess?

“The way one plays chess always reflects the player’s personality. If something defines his character, then it will also define his way of playing”. The words of Vladimir Kramnik, the Russian chess grandmaster, eloquently sum up the impact of cognitive training. A strategic game like chess not only mirrors the child’s personality but the 'moves' give a peek into the child’s innate character.

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You have been wrong about Rubik’s cube all this long!

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You have been wrong about Rubik’s cube all this long!

A child is a curious soul, full of energy, inquisitive and innovative. They have the potential to build an imaginative kingdom around them and bring out their artistic self. The only needful aspect is to give a direction to those art and imagination. They need to have steady and gradual all-round development. We at Mind Mentorz work to put the kids at the forefront and provide them with tools, devices and instruments that harness their mind.

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Is it kids to code or coding to kids?

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Is it kids to code or coding to kids?

Learning to code for kids is becoming increasingly common these days and one cannot dismiss the fact that it is a fast paced technological world and one needs to make complete use of it, be it to use them for convenience or use it to help kids learn the various skills much needed these days.

A relatively new topic for kids to learn, coding, as many people think, is no rocket science. As against the popular knowledge, young kids have an added advantage. Statistics show that kids learn coding faster, as compared to an adult. One can also view it as another language learnt another type of literacy.

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Rubik’s cube – A colorful nourishment for the young mind

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Rubik’s cube – A colorful nourishment for the young mind

There is almost no household without this tiny but significant piece of puzzle – The Rubik’s Cube. Most of us just fiddle with it, try and rotate it in all possible directions to get at least on side of the cube to the same color. It is usual to give it up after a few minutes, mostly out of helplessness of not being able to solve it. As per statistics, less than 45% of the people can solve this puzzle. When the founder of this puzzle– Erno Rubik, himself took about a month to solve it, it is definitely not an easy nut to crack.

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6 Life lessons to learn from chess players

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6 Life lessons to learn from chess players

Though many more adjectives can be used to describe a Chess Player, the above, gives an overall depiction of a person who has made playing chess, a profession in itself. If we have ever had the opportunity to meet a Grandmaster of Chess, we will know that; though they are a celebrity, they are in fact normal people just like us, normal, but in a little extraordinary way. The brilliance of their mind is clearly seen in the way they handle their game and the game of life. They are trained to think on the spot, plan their moves, strategize and succeed.

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A Pawn Morphing Into a Queen Is How We Must Excel In Life

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A Pawn Morphing Into a Queen Is How We Must Excel In Life

It is a competitive world, yes, and though many may disagree, it is a fact and extremely necessary to keep yourself ahead of the competitors. Though it is definitely hard work which takes someone to their desired goal, a thought ought to be given to the young budding ones in our home and what the future holds for them, what issues would they face? Will the problems be the same as what we are dealing with or will it be different. Nevertheless, there can be no harm in preparing them for whatever comes.

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Brain Areas That Chess And Other Mind Games Activate

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Brain Areas That Chess And Other Mind Games Activate

Just like our body muscles require a physical workout to stay healthy, even our brain needs some mental exercise to work properly and stay healthy. Some people have a misconception that the learning techniques deployed by the schools are enough and it helps the kid’s brain stay active. But in reality, most of the schools are teaching the children to mug up information instead of understanding the basics of each topic. So can a brain develop by just memorizing things? Definitely not!

Gift your child a new skill.