Rise of human intelligence: Comments on Howard (1999)

Based upon the evidence that the best chess players in the world are becoming increasingly represented by relatively young individuals, Howard [Intelligence 27 (1999) 235–250.] claimed that human intelligence is rising over generations. We suggest that this explanation has several difficulties and show that alternative explanations relating to changes in the chess environment, including increased access to chess knowledge, offer better explanations for the increased presence of young players at top-level chess.