Fusilli Member since Aug-09-04 · Last seen Jan-17-26 Mariano Sana, Argentinian by birth, in the US since 1995. Naturalized US citizen. I hold a PhD in Demography from the University of Pennsylvania, and I am an associate professor of Sociology at Vanderbilt University: https://as.vanderbilt.edu/sociology.... Previously, I was at Louisiana State University (2003-2009). My published academic work can be seen here: https://vanderbilt.academia.edu/Mar.... My review of Gary Alan Fine's "Players and Pawns" is here: https://www.academia.edu/69647923/P.... My avatar comes from a cartoon of mine drawn by a friend. My username, besides the pasta, is my late cat's name (he died in March 2021, age 19), inspired by this cartoon: https://condenaststore.com/featured.... My first tournament was at age 12 in 1979. I finished 8th in the Argentine junior championship in 1985. So, I was good enough, but not great. (That same evaluation might still be apt today, on a good day.) Unfortunately, no game scores survived from those years. I started to play again after grad school. I play between 0 and 4 tournaments per year. I won the Louisiana State Championship in 2007. I lost the first game and then won six in a row. This was my last round win, where I got lucky after playing the opening pretty terribly: J Rousselle vs M Sana, 2007. I also won the under 2200 section of the US Open in 2014. Again, Swiss gambit. Lost the first one, then won five in a row, lost game 7 (M Sana vs J Sheng, 2014, a rather atypical game), and won games 8 and 9. My last round win was featured as a Tuesday puzzle: K Gulamali vs M Sana, 2014. (Try it! Black to play at move 29. But you can also do black to play at move 22 as a principled-move puzzle.) I'd say that I am essentially a good but inconsistent player. My playing style is a mix of strategic and tactical. I'm usually very willing to sac a pawn or allow positional weaknesses in exchange for active piece play. For years I hovered around 2200, down to mid 2100s a few years ago after a disaster and a 50-point loss at the 2019 World Open. (Aging and MS fatigue had much to do with that.) On good days, I have had nice wins: T Bartell vs M Sana, 2009, R Burnett vs M Sana, 2012, M Sana vs C Blocker, 2014, M Sana vs R Burnett, 2015. But on a bad day, I can play horribly and lose against whoever is sitting in front of me. I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2011, but it didn't cause me trouble until 2018/9. I have a weak right leg (I often use a cane now) and I fatigue easily. Medication, well-timed naps, and exercise help. I play blitz games on chess.com under the username RealFusilli. My participation on this website goes through ebbs and flows, and the majority of my posts are about chess. I often post on my own forum just to keep records for myself. Everyone is welcome to visit and share! (But please don't post about politics here.)

Fusilli has kibitzed 6341 times to chessgames   [more...]

Jan-12-26 Fusilli chessforum   Fusilli: <arek> Good to see you around here, my friend, though those are distressing news I'm sorry to hear. I have now recovered, I am back in the classroom, life has returned to normal. I still have a minor lingering cough, which I hope gets tired of me and leaves me soon. Cheers.      Jan-10-26 Sax vs Karpov, 1989    Fusilli: <perfidious> Well, that merits some discussion. For a while, white has been preferring d3 in move 5 or 6, but if white chooses the traditional closed set up, and doesn't go for 8.a4, the Breyer continues to be black's top preference on move 9. (I play it frequently in blitz ...      Jan-09-26 Kasparov vs Nunn, 1989    Fusilli: <Check It Out: I also assumed Nunn would be saved by something but if the kibitzing here is to be believed, it's Kasparov who was fortunate to make a draw.> My reaction too, though without reading any kibitzing first. I played through the game and got the feeling that Kasparov      Jan-04-26 NN vs G Chandler, 1995   Fusilli: Or Ke7 instead of Nxc1, right? I'm happy to see Ke7 and not O-O, btw. Reminds me of the famous Ed Lasker vs G Thomas, 1912 , where many folks claim that O-O-O# would have been "cool" by comparison to the "boring" Kd2#, which Lasker played. Nonsense. The king doesn't need to rush to      Jan-03-26 chessgames.com chessforum    Fusilli: Suggestion: Can the Russian Championship Superfinal (2005) , which he won, be added to the list of Sergei Rublevsky notable tournaments?      Jan-02-26 Petrosian vs Unzicker, 1960   Fusilli: That king relocation is epic. No reason to rush g4!      Jan-02-26 Biographer Bistro    Fusilli: Can Russian Championship Superfinal (2005) , which he won, be added to the list of Sergei Rublevsky notable tournaments?      Jan-01-26 Portisch vs I Radulov, 1974    Fusilli: This is absolutely mind-boggling.      Jan-01-26 A Isanzhulov vs Ivanchuk, 2025   Fusilli: Poor Ivanchuk.      Dec-30-25 M Miazhynski vs J Durana, 2025    Fusilli: Wait, what? 6.O-O? Bc5? Surely someone messed up the score sheet!

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< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 40 OF 114 ·  Later Kibitzing> Dec-25-12    hms123: <Fusilli> Thanks, and I hope your New Year is a very good one. See you soon. Dec-30-12    scormus: Yesterday evening saw my first ever live Wagner opera "Der Fliegende Hollaender". Very powerful performances. And very Germanic the way it kept firing the emotional cannon, in case you didn't quite get the full impact first time (or three). All the best for 2013! Dec-30-12    Fusilli: <scormus> Awesome! The Nashville Opera is putting up Cinderella in late January. I plan to go! The rest of the season is Magic Flute (which I no longer care much for... got tired of it) and... this: http://www.nashvilleopera.org/FIELD... which sounds pretty interesting! I am definitely going! Unfortunately, I missed Madame Butterfly last October because I was in Colorado. Dec-31-12    Fusilli: New Year's resolution for 2013: get back up to 2200 USCF rating! Dec-31-12    hms123: <Fusilli> You can start with the puzzle at my place. It has your name on it. Happy New Year! Dec-31-12    brankat: Happy New Year Mariano! Dec-31-12    crawfb5: <M> Happy New Year and good luck with your resolution! I've been having trouble with resolutions ever since I had to get reading glasses a few years ago. Dec-31-12    chancho: Feliz Año Nuevo, <Fusilli>! Dec-31-12    morfishine: <Fusilli> You are very kind to drop by! Please, provide some links to your games listed in the <CG> database. I am always interested in all kinds of intriguing chess positions; and don't feel the least bit 'self-centered' in doing so. I've always felt that chess is the one vocation where its 'ok' to present what one is proud of, without the connotation of conceit or vanity; If you have a great game, show it. If you have an interesting position, show it. What you have accomplished may be special to you, but would be a loss to us if we didn't know. Chess is after-all, an individual endeavor, and thus may only be known to the originator; Please think that what you can share, benefits all A Happy New Year to you and your Family! Best, Morf Jan-01-13    WinKing: Happy New Year Mariano! All the best to you in 2013! Jan-01-13    wordfunph: Prof. Mariano, prosperous new year! Jan-01-13    scormus: All the best for 2013 ..... and if you like red-blooded drama, this could be the ultimate performance of Tosca performed by Angela Gheorghiu, Bryn Terfel as Scarpia Available on Amazon (Bryn Terfel could be to opera as Gawain Jones is to chess) Jan-07-13    Fusilli: <scormus> Tosca is such a powerful opera. In my choir years, a long time ago, we had a running joke when we thought that a (male) singer was not too good. We would say something like "Oh, he is really good, he played Count Palmeri in Tosca!" Perhaps you remember this: when Scarpia orders the "fake" execution of Cavaradossi, he tells his underling "come faciamo con il Conte Palmeri" ("as we did with Count Palmeri.") Since Count Palmeri was executed for real, then his underling understands it's not going to be a fake execution at all. Of course, that is the only reference to Count Palmeri in the whole opera. Never shows up, let alone sings! Feb-13-13    morfishine: Hi <Fusilli> Glad you liked that interview of Carlsen! His reactions and non-reactions are hilarious, like you said :) Feb-14-13    Fusilli: <morf> Actually, I sent the link to a bunch of non-chess friends who know who Carlsen is (and, of course, they know who Rainn Wilson is). Two of my favorite celebrities together, that's a treat. And Carlsen is such a good sport. I think Anand and Carlsen have raised the bar of gentlemanship in the elite chess world. I have little patience anymore for Kasparov-like personalities. Carlsen's mild self-deprecation is refreshing. Feb-16-13    Expendable Asset: <Fusilli> How do you plan on going back to 2200? Feb-19-13    Fusilli: <EA> Uh oh. I guess I need a plan... Feb-22-13    Expendable Asset: <Fusilli> Affirmative. Mar-02-13    Fusilli: <EA> Hmm... can't make plans before the summer. I will only be able to travel for chess then... But I also have a lot of research to do this summer. I don't know, maybe I am closing business as far as competitive chess goes. I've been slowly going downhill for a while anyway... Mar-02-13    Expendable Asset: <Fusilli> Then instead of slowly going downhill, grab a snowboard and have fun! Mar-03-13    Fusilli: <EA> I should! Mar-04-13    Expendable Asset: <Fusilli> Are you good at deception? Mar-04-13    dakgootje: I am! No I'm not.. :( Mar-04-13    Fusilli: <dak> You almost got me there for a second! You would be good at it if you had more confidence in yourself ;) As for me, I am a pretty bad liar. I am too transparent. It can be a blessing or a curse, depending on the circumstances... You? (<EA>?) Mar-05-13    Expendable Asset: <Fusilli> No. Jump to page #   (enter # from 1 to 114) search thread:    < Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 40 OF 114 ·  Later Kibitzing>

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