jrtom - K6

[jrtom]

(This is my distinctly obscure way of saying, using a tortured chess metaphor, that I have advanced to candidacy in my PhD program, as of yesterday.)


One standard method ("descriptive notation") of notating a chess move is to specify the piece and the destination, using a coordinate system based on the starting positions of the back rank: K (King), Q (Queen), KR (King's Rook), QN (Queen's Knight), etc. (Sometimes it's necessary to indicate the position of the piece before the move, when > 1 such piece can move to that location.)

Thus, for example, a very common opening move is "P-K4", that is, "(King's) Pawn advances to the 4th row (counting the King's row as 1)".

My mental model for the stages of the academic career looks like this:

K3: associate's degree (or, alternatively, high school graduation)
K4: bachelor's degree
K5: Master's degree
K6: advancement to candidacy for PhD degree
K7: approval of PhD dissertation topic
K8: PhD (successful final defense of dissertation topic)

There may be more milestones, depending on where you are, but we've only got 8 rows to work with. Plus, of course, this metaphor falls down in the sense that someone with a BA or MSc should have more capabilities, or something, than someone without...let's face it, this metaphor doesn't bear particularly close examination.

That said, if I'm still using this notation if-and-when K8 rolls around, it will probably be

jrtom - K8(N) [promotes to Knight]

Normally only an idiot or someone for whom another queen would be superfluous would promote their pawn to a Knight. However, there are, I believe, (rare) situations in which a Knight is exactly what you need in order to checkmate...and I rather like (a) some of the associations with chivalry, and (b) the idea of being a specialist with weird moves. :)

Comments

[vito-excalibur.livejournal.com]

w00t! You enormous geek. :)

[jrtom.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Although I would claim that I'm merely somewhat tall, rather than enormous. (This is why my .sig reads "Philosopher-At-Tall" rather than "Philosopher-At-Large", after all. :> )

[gwyd.livejournal.com]

Congradulations!

[jrtom.livejournal.com]

Thanks! (Although the gradulation is gonna be a while yet...)