Vishy Anand to play against 40 players simultaneously

Hyderabad is all set to witness a spectacular chess match with Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand playing against 40 players simultaneously on August 24.

According to the organisers of ICM -- International Congress of Mathematicians 2010, 40 participants have been chosen to simultaneous play against Anand.

"As many as 17 players including some eminent Mathematics professors are from India," said an official from the organising committee.

The official said some expert Mathematicians from all over the world will also take part in the match which will be held on August 24.

Anand is said to be a keen follower of developments in mathematics and science. One of his favourite books which he often refers to is Andrew Hodges's 'Inner Life of Numbers'.

The nine-day ICM-2010, which kicked off on Thursday, is structured in the traditional manner with the main activity being the Plenary and Sectional invited lecturers. The sectional talks were being held in seven or eight parallel sessions.

Indian President Pratibha Patil, who inaugurated the Mathematics Congress, said contributions made by Aryabhatta and Brahmagupta to the development of Algebra and Astronomy in the sixth and seventh centuries are well recognised.

"Ever since our Independence, India has recognised the importance of science as a vehicle for human progress. Science, Mathematics, the language of science and its advancement, is an integral part of India's science policy," Patil said.

The President gave away field medals considered to be Nobel Prizes of Mathematics to the achievers in the field of mathematics.