Chennai Chess Championship chomps calories

'...AND ANAND MOVES HIS BISHOP TO E6, OH MY, CROWD GOES WILD!!!' The World Chess Championship is under way with Magnus Carlsen scoring the first win in the 5th game of 12 to take a 3-2 lead. He will be on his way to becoming the greatest ever if he defeats Viswanathan Anand, although Kasparov and Fischer are still widely seen as los supremos. The organisers have tried to stir up a media storm and may yet succeed but it seems unlikely that the characters will inspire the public imagination like the eccentric Bobby Fischer or even the politically savvy Kasparov. Carlsen and Anand are just too normal while the cold war, which provided the backdrop for Fischer and Kasparov, is over. For all those chess buffs out there this is a chance to burn up some extra calories without leaving their seats. You can watch live and compute your version of the multiple combinations before the players actually commit. Do you in fact burn more calories when you think hard? The jury is out on this. It seems the brain chugs along most of the time, burning about 20% of our energy. But it's not certain that you consume more gas when you're trying to beat Larsen at his own game. One thing we do know is that brain is still some way ahead of machine. Sure, Deep Blue beat Kasparov in 1997 but, despite the exponential options thrown up in chess, the process is still essentially mechanical. Massive supercomputers like the Titan in Tennessee are probably only around 1/50th as efficient as a human brain. The Titan fills a house-sized building, while the brain is the size of a spanspek, yet makes far more computations. The QSL comes from Radio WKPT, Jonesborough, Tennessee. The station, using just 5kW was heard in Johannesburg in 1993. The station president sent best wishes for SA just before democracy in 1994.

FARC spark into politics

A malachite sunbird flits down onto our little sugar-water bottle, sips quickly, looks up and scans, sips again. That stuff is so sweet! But then the balance between sweetness and caution becomes too great and it zips away. It's all about how much to give up to get what you want. Peace seems to be breaking out all over the place. In the same week, we read of Iran and the US trying for a preliminary deal on Iran's nuclear programme, while in Colombia the rebel group FARC is talking with government about renouncing war for politics. Naturally, sceptics abound on all sides. No doubt Iran is hurting after tough sanctions have knocked back its oil exports and cut access to international banking networks. In Colombia the government has pursued a vigorous military campaign against FARC for many years, severely clipping its wings. Ex-president Alvaro Uribe, whose earlier clamp-down on FARC has ultimately led to this peace process, opposes any deal. Many remember the thaw a decade ago which FARC cynically used to regroup and relaunch its programme of kidnapping, terror and drug dealing. Deal-making is complicated. Both sides must get some of what they want and but neither can get most. Somewhere in between is a medium, not necessarily a happy medium, but one that can work. The alternative of continued conflict is lose-lose but often the sad outcome of failure. Colombia is one of my favourite economies with a steady record of good growth, low inflation and solid management. A deal with FARC would most likely reinforce this despite the sceptics. The QSL is from Radio Fantasia, heard on AM in Johannesburg in 1986, one of a small handful of Colombian AM stations I've verified.

All Black is the new green and gold

Some times I wouldn't mind being a New Zealander. Then, when the All Blacks run on the field against the Springboks I could support them without any feelings of guilt. Patriotism is a heavy burden. Born out of subliminal radiation right from the cradle and nurtured by shared experiences of time and space, it has a hold on you that's hard to snap. Many frown on those who attempt to break it. To illustrate how pervasive it can be, I still have these nostalgic moments when hearing the old SA national anthem, Die Stem, and seeing the old SA flag because they hark back to early morning trumpet reveilles in the army - a place I didn't want to be, doing something I didn't want to do - in the old South Africa. Living abroad shifts the patriotic dimension. Once you've resided outside of your homeland for a while your links with home become more tenuous. Many emigrants we know talk of how they are never quite sure anymore where they'd rather be. This is not as disturbing as it sounds. Actually it makes life richer to know that you're also rooted in another place far away. But going back to New Zealand, they just play a more inspired brand of rugby. It's all about speed, support and handling. Power is essential too but more to out-manoeuvre than to out-muscle. The Springboks are now trying to adapt to this technique but so far the Blacks have totally outplayed them. Bravo for trying but there's a long way to go. You always feel the temptation is there to fall back on the old up and under, which mostly just serves to give the ball away. The QSL is from Print Disabled Radio, heard in Sheigra in the far north-west of Scotland in November 1996 on the 75mb. This low-powered, 1 kW station, broadcasting from Levin, New Zealand,  was over 11000 miles away.