Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

"I was so excited that I didn't sleep well all night." When he learned that he was about to meet his idol Zhang Yitang, Sun Jinyuan worked overtime that day to clear the backlog of express deliveries.

Sun Jinyuan, a delivery boy from Tianjin, took part in this year's Alibaba global math competition and made headlines because of the exposure of his hidden identity. He is also a master of folk mathematics. He never forgets to set aside an hour or two to study mathematics after work every day. Even if there are no conditions, he always insists on studying mathematics and is keen on solving netizens' math problems on the Internet. Sun Jinyuan regarded Zhang Yitang, a legendary mathematician with similar experiences, as a life idol.

On the evening of August 28, when Alibaba gave a special lecture on the Global Mathematics Competition, Zhang Yitang, a tenured professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, released an academic report entitled "Chen Jingrun's weighted sieving method and the finite distance between primes". And share the experience of mathematics with the contestants of this year's math competition.

Sun Jinyuan finally got what he wanted and asked a question to his idol.

"although I have gained a lot of approval from netizens in solving problems, I often feel lonely in my life. My friends and family always think that I am not down-to-earth enough, pursuing something illusory, which makes me a little frustrated. Mr. Zhang, I know you have also gone through the days of learning math while giving away food. I would like to ask you, in the face of all kinds of setbacks or not being understood in life, how to maintain your inner love?"

After listening to the question, Zhang Yitang first smiled and leisurely clarified: "I did work in a friend's restaurant after graduation, but I didn't deliver takeout."

"what did Chen Jingrun rely on to prove 1: 2 at that time? it is an abacus, a logarithm table and a calculator. It is said that the manuscript paper for its arithmetic is filled with several sacks, which now looks incredible." With regard to Sun Jinyuan's question, Zhang Yitang cited Chen Jingrun's academic experience as an example, pointing out that talent is important for learning mathematics, but it should not be exaggerated, and mathematics needs more attention.

Zhang Yitang then encouraged Sun Jinyuan to stick to his love and not pay too much attention to the opinions of outsiders, and the beauty of mathematics will naturally come across unexpectedly. "in math, first of all, don't pay too much attention to what other people think of you. Mathematicians spend 90% of their time doing something very ordinary and be able to bear loneliness."

"I would like to thank Mr. Zhang for sharing. The content is very simple and I am very encouraged." Sun Jinyuan said that participating in the math competition opened another door to life and saw that there were all kinds of possibilities in life, which also made him more determined to study mathematics. He also revealed that he is recently preparing for the junior college entrance examination at the end of the year, hoping to have more further studies in the field of mathematics.

In this lecture, Zhang Yitang mainly introduced the weighted sieving method created by Chen Jingrun in the process of conquering Goldbach conjecture (1-2), pointing out that this mathematical tool is of great significance so far, and it is also the source of many ideas and inspiration in proving the twin prime conjecture. Zhang Yitang stressed that the reason why Chen Jingrun is mentioned again today is not only because of his contribution to mathematics, but also because of his spirit of learning, and he regards learning as the most important thing in life, so he can do work beyond imagination in a difficult environment.

Initiated by Jack Ma in 2018, the Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition, jointly organized by Alibaba Dharma Institute and Alibaba Public Welfare Foundation, aims to stimulate people's love for mathematics and pay attention to this basic subject through fun competitions. The event has attracted more than 250000 participants and covered contestants from more than 70 countries and regions. It is understood that this year's Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition has completed the final grading work, and the results will be announced at the award ceremony to be held in Beijing on September 16.

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