Needless to say, the execution on this concept chessboard leaves something to be desired, but the idea has potential. I can see a whole series of Mac vs PC board games springing from this. So, who killed Mac with the wrench in the library? (Psst...it's probably PC.) [Coroflot via Waylou via Craziest Gadgets via SlipperyBrick]

Unfortunately, you can't just run out and pick one of these up in a store. But if you have some patience and the build info supplied by the craftsman behind the board, you might be able to put on of these together in about a year's time. Eh, I was never much into chess anyway. [CMB via CrimsonLinks via Make]

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.
The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.
The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.
The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.

Now you can savor victory not once, but two times: when your opponent tosses the set off the board and when you pick it back up with the pieces intact and smugly say "checkmate" and "suck it loser." Each piece of the board is represented as a skeleton key that fits snugly into a a lock on the board. Theoretically, this should "lock in" your move in more ways than one. The only problem is that is currently only a concept from designer Dave Pickett. [Dave Pickett Flickr via The Awesomer via Craziest Gadgets]

The pieces would be capable of "listening and talking" to one another in an effort to decide the best possible move. The human player would also be part of this discussion and would be responsible for the final decision. So, it would seem that one of two outcomes is possible: it could result in a lot of bickering among pieces and players until the whole system grinds to a halt or the decision will effectively be made for the human player, making the game a pointless endeavor.

At any rate, Marcovici claims that the "technology is working already" and that a working prototype should be ready within a "couple of weeks." [Democratic Chess via The Design Blog]

The team will select four possible moves to answer Greg's play. Using a web page, people around the world will be able to vote on the final move, which will be send to the space station. Greg will then move the piece on his special Velcro chess set, which he brought with him on the Discovery.

One piece of advice to the world: Let him win. Who knows what kind of anti-matter rays they have up there. [Play here via Daily Mail]

The effect works thanks to a board made out of a glass material with embedded LEDs (LightPoints) and chess pieces made from clear glass with the negative shape of a traditional, delicate Staunton chess piece enclosed within it. Placing the chess piece on the board completes a circuit that illuminates the negative shapes, making them visible. There is even a clever nod to a passage in the book where the White Knight talks about being able to think better when he is upside down. In the Alice chess set, all of the white knights on the board will not illuminate unless placed in the upside down position. All-in-all, the 'Alice' concept is interesting new twist on the traditional game. With any luck, a real world product will come down the line sometime in the future. [Project Page via Pan-Dan via DVICE]

For example, two players can gang up on the third to speed up elimination and two players must compete for the right to check mate the third. It seems complicated, but then again I suck at regular chess. For anyone with a head for the game, the basic rules are explained in the link. [Meignorant and offiizsamuraj via Neatorama]

We're not finding an online store that sells this, but it seems like Argos in the UK is committed to selling it. – Jason Chen

Product Site [DreamCheeky via Tech Digest via Oh Gizmo]

The artist, known as Biggles, hand-makes these brass cookie cutters, and would be more than happy to make a set for you at an undisclosed price. – Charlie White

Artist's Site [Odd Objects, via Neatorama]

Check-mate for Indian chess player after phone ploy [Reuters]

Perhaps this beats learning on a computer, which can certainly get a bit annoying with those grating error noises cropping up every time you try to make an illegal move. Or, what about this: you could just memorize the way the chess pieces move. We're thinking that if you're not able commit their movement patterns to memory, you may not be a very good candidate for chess, anyway. – Charlie White

Chess Teacher [Miles Kimball, via Oh Gizmo]

Just combine this with the IDF Chess Set that we mentioned some weeks back, and you've got the makings of a world class chess set collection. It's available now and really does cost $36,511. Sell the house; you don't need it. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Paage [Renault F1 Team Collection via Jalopnik]

Each class of chess piece is represented by a different actor from the IDF: the pawns are IDF soldiers, rooks are missile boats, knights are mobile guns and bishops are patrol jeeps. The king is an IDF pilot standing proudly underneath his F-15 jet while the queen is a Minerva Merkava tank.

$1,650 gets you this piece of Israeli military memorabilia. – Nicholas Deleon

Sterling Silver IDF Chess Set [ZAHAL]

Home Page [OwlTech]