User Profile: Fusilli

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Fusilli
Member since Aug-09-04 · Last seen Dec-28-25

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.)

>> Click here to see Fusilli's game collections.

   Fusilli has kibitzed 6323 times to chessgames [more...]

   Dec-28-25 D Anton Guijarro vs Carlsen, 2025

Fusilli: <The Boomerang: Crushing from Carlsen.> Totally. Gangsta game.

   Dec-28-25 V Artemiev vs Carlsen, 2025

Fusilli: Hard to believe Magnus' blunder here.

   Dec-28-25 Penguincw chessforum

Fusilli: Hey, happy holidays to you too, my friend!

   Dec-26-25 OhioChessFan chessforum

Fusilli: Merry Christmas, <OCF> And best wishes for the new year.

   Dec-25-25 moronovich chessforum

Fusilli: Merry Christmas to you, <moro>! And happy new year too, what the heck!

   Dec-22-25 Fusilli chessforum

Fusilli: <OCF> Right? In other news, I'm in bed with the flu. First my wife caught it, now me. I took care of her until lunch today. Then she began to feel better and I went down quickly. So, now she is the caretaker.

   Dec-13-25 Lenderman vs C Yip, 2017

Fusilli: Great game by Lenderman, showing the true value of the minor pieces in this setup when black has no prospects on the king side.

   Dec-12-25 A DeCord vs M Sana, 2023

Fusilli: 36...? [DIAGRAM] I thought this would make a nice puzzle, but I just checked and the computer says that, in addition to the move in the game, black also draws with 36...Kh7. 37.Bxe6 concedes perpetual, and if 37.d7 Rd6! = [DIAGRAM]

   Dec-09-25 N Theodorou vs G Jones, 2025

Fusilli: <number 23> I just read your profile blurb. I totally identify with this! <My specialty is getting into trouble out of the opening because I don't prepare well, then hoodwinking points out of players through a variety of creative and fortunate swindles.>

   Dec-09-25 G Garcia Gonzalez vs Velimirovic, 1982

Fusilli: Position after 55...Qc4 [DIAGRAM] The black queen is annoying, but white can't push her away easily. If 56.Rb4 Qd3 repeats the position. And obviously, 56. R or Qc3 runs into Ne2+. 56.Kh2! And it turns out that 56...Nd3 doesn't win material. White gets to trade queens and loses a ...

indicates a reply to the comment.

My Facerook Wall

< Earlier Kibitzing · PAGE 91 OF 114 · Later Kibitzing>
Dec-14-23		Messiah: My first thought is 1.Nd5, but I am too lazy to calculate the exact variations. Maybe tomorrow.

Dec-14-23		stone free or die: I looked at this, plugging it into SF. It's not entirely sharp (i.e. having a clear, single, winning move). It's a great tactical position though, worth a ponder. Wonder if a little fiddling with the position could keep the essential tactics and sharpen it up a bit? .

Dec-15-23		Fusilli: <stone> Oh, I see, I just checked with the engine. I played 1.Nf5, which wins, but <messiah>'s 1.Nd5 is winning too. After 1.Nf5 my opponent played exf5, then 2.Qxh6 and black has to give up the queen for the knight after 3.Nf6+. If 1...Qh8 2.Nxh6+ Kh7, black's position is in shambles, but it may have been preferable to losing the queen.

Dec-16-23		Fusilli: This one is really cool! I am black, blitz on chess.com Black to play: click for larger view I played 14...Ng4, which leads to devilish complications after 15.O-O-O Nf2 16.Nd5, but I had 14...Bg4! See how 14...Bg4 works?

Dec-16-23		Messiah: <See how 14...Bg4 works?> Yes.

Dec-16-23		Fusilli: <Messiah> Good! But you know, we have to give the solution, for the public.

Dec-16-23		stone free or die: I think if I had an opponent play 14...Bg4 on me in a blitz game I'd be pretty suspicious. On the other hand 14...Re8 (2nd best candidate) is easier to explain why you're leaving the knight hanging. I'd still raise an eyebrow though.

Dec-17-23		Fusilli: Well, it's 14...Bg4! 15.exf6 Bf2+! 16.Kxf2 Qxf6+ followed by BxQ. Cool, isn't it?

Dec-17-23		Fusilli: I set up a trap and my opponent fell in it! 3 min blitz on chess.com. I am white. Position after 20.Ne5: click for larger view 20...Rxc3 21.Qxc3 Rc8? click for larger view What's the kill?

Dec-17-23		moronovich: Ahh, a classic : Qxc8+,Rxc8+,Rh8+,Nx7f7+ and 1-0 Merry Christmas to you from Denmark.

Dec-17-23		Fusilli: <moro> Exactly what happened, my friend.

Dec-17-23		stone free or die: RE: 14...Bg4! Yes <Fusilli> another nice dynamic position with a couple of killer bishop moves. White might have considered castling earlier to get the king out of the cross hairs in the center. .

Dec-31-23		Messiah: This comment is predominantly for <ketchuplover>. Dear <ketchuplover>, A several days earlier you kibitzed on my forum <1.Nxg3+ hxg3 2.Qf5#> without any kind of explanation. I was not able to decipher what the penguin did you try to communicate or achieve with that, but, as my premium membership expires in a several hours, getting my personal forum wiped simultaneously with that (and like the Sword of Damocles, ban is always looming over my head for minor misdemeanors), I am preserving the puzzle I created here in the forum of <Fusilli>. White m8s in 2, using the exact moves you have suggested: click for larger view Not the best puzzle I have ever seen, that's certain. Dear <Fusilli>, please do not censor this kibitz, unless there is airtight evidence that <ketchuplover> had already seen it.

Dec-31-23		Fusilli: Hi <Messiah>, I don't see a reason not to keep your post, no worries. Happy New Year!

Dec-31-23		Fusilli: New Year's Eve puzzle. Not too hard, not too easy. Black to play: click for larger view The position is from T Wippermann vs Khenkin, 2009 at move 48. HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!

Dec-31-23		Messiah: White moves and wins: click for larger view

Dec-31-23		Fusilli: 1.Be2! Hard to believe!

Jan-01-24		Messiah: A study from chssbs*.com: click for larger view Task #1: place a White King and a White Bishop onto the board to get a valid chess position that is a mate in 2 for White. Task #2: serve evidence that this position can occur as an outcome of a series of legal moves, i.e. reconstruct two last legal moves for each of the colours. For me, #1 was daunting at the first sight, but eventually I solved in a few seconds more than 11 minutes, and now it is perfectly logical in my eyes. Task #2 makes not so much sense in my opinion, as it has multiple solutions, the vast majority of them being trivially easy.

Jan-02-24		Fusilli: <Messiah> To make sure: #1 means white plays, black plays, white plays and mate, right? And it also means that black's move is nonsensical just for the purpose of helping white mate, right?

Jan-02-24		Fusilli: chess.com blitz. I am black. click for larger view Black to play. I played 12...Rac8 and did fine. But there is a better move.

Jan-02-24		Messiah: <Fusilli: <Messiah> To make sure: #1 means white plays, black plays, white plays and mate, right? And it also means that black's move is nonsensical just for the purpose of helping white mate, right?> Nope. 1.1. Place a White King and a White Bishop onto the board to construct a legal position, without altering any of the Black pieces or putting there additional black pieces. 1.2. The resulting position should be a regular mate-in-2 (White mates Black) without any tricks or creative interpretation of the rules of chess. ============ CUT ============ 2.1. After you are done, a 'new' puzzle is set up: show that the position that you constructed in 1.1 can be reached from the initial position of chess (this is very broad, but unambiguous). This is the original post BTW: https://en.chessbase.com/post/unusu...

Jan-04-24		Fusilli: <messiah> <The resulting position should be a regular mate-in-2 (White mates Black) without any tricks or creative interpretation of the rules of chess> Is black okay with being checkmated a <trick> or <creative interpretation of the rules of chess>? I am asking because I can put the white king on a3 and the bishop on the d1-h5 diagonal (excluding e2), and play: 1.Kxa2 Qc1 or Qg1 or Qh1 or Qh4 2.Be2 mate. But in this solution black is okay being mated. And there are multiple solutions. But I don't see how a mate is possible without black being ok with it. I don't see any cell where the white king would not be checked on the first move, thwarting any possible mate.

Jan-04-24		Fusilli: Also, black can respond to 1.Kxa2 with 1...Qe2+ and then 2.Bxe2 mate. It fails as a forced helpmate because white could play 2.Kb1 though.

Jan-04-24		Fusilli: More generally, I can solve it if black is okay with being mated. And in that case, there are multiple solutions, all of them involving the white king capturing either the rook on a2 or the queen on move 1, and mating with Be2, or Bxe2, of Bf1, or Bxf1 on move 2. But I feel the puzzle prompt should say that black is ok being mated, which makes it <not> a regular puzzle. And yet, I may be missing something. It wouldn't be the first time!

Jan-04-24		Messiah: I put the King on e2, and the Bishop on f1, so it is 1.Kxe1+ Re2+ 2.Bxe2#.

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