Have you ever thought about chess from the perspective of how to best describe the game?  What are "it's roots" so to speak - not so much where it came from, but it's design & function?  What would Bobby Fischer say concerning this topic?  Being the Author & Inventor of Chess960 also known as Fischer Random Chess, & one of the foremost World Chess GrandMasters of all time, Bobby Fischer would without doubt have some useful & interesting insights into the game if we could ask him today!  This blogger is firmly convinced that the game is actually the very finest expression of Pure Mathematics & Art combined!  How did I come to this realization?  Let's take a closer look at the "game of games" & see!  Firstly, the chessboard itself is a perfect square 8 squares on each side, & a total of 64 squares in all(8 Ranks[1-8] horizontal, 8 Files[a-h] vertical, with White & Black Diagonals criss-cross as well!) a perfect geometrical matrix!  In fact, game scoring by either the newer Algebraic or even the older Descriptive form of notation was very easily facilitated by the game board's simple geometrical matrix design & layout!  Secondly, each chessman whether a Pawn, a Minor Piece(Knight or Bishop), or a Major Piece(King, Queen, or Rook) has it's own unique way of moving on the chessboard which is purely a geometrical property!  These all suggest quite plainly that the game is actually a geometrical one & that from the many & varied types & positions possible(from the simplest to the hardest) in each game, that chess is actually a game of geometrical problems & puzzle solving!  Geometry plays the major role in each & every game because of the positional nature & geometrical move properties of every chessman & the chessboard itself.  The geometry of a game's position can well spell a win or a loss or even a draw!  Players with a better mental grasp of Geometry & geometrical problem solving quite often make stronger players!  Playing good chess is definately an Art & not a Science in this blogger's opinion.  It is in the province of the artist to play good chess, beautiful chess, & even ugly chess with each & every move made over-the-board!  Science can examine, analyze, postulate, & hypothesize, & collect highly accurate data concerning game positions & moves, & even players, etc.  But only a true artist can make sense of a game's position & solve the problem(puzzle) at hand based on the Geometry & the Piece capabilities available!  So remember, when you're playing your next game of chess, you're actually solving problems in Geometry! Q.E.D.!  Well, that's all for now chess fans!  Happy Hunting! - ChessPaladin2009