On the morning of Saturday, December 15, 2018, six members of the UNIS Math Club, together with Mr. Ledenev, participated in a full-day math competition -Downtown Mathematics Invitational – hosted by Stuyvesant High School. Although the club was competing with several prestigious schools (such as Dalton and Trinity), the team nonetheless managed to win 17th place among 35 schools.

The event was highly engaging to all participants. Manon Harris, a member of the UNIS math team, appreciated that the competition challenged students to think logically and creatively in solving math problems instead of simply repeating memorized formulas to calculate the answer. Additionally, she recalls that the competition inspired the spirit of teamwork, as most sections required the six members to work together in solving problems. She especially enjoyed the part of the competition in which the team was challenged to work together to write a series of proofs, as this not only required logical analysis but also several mathematical assumptions the students previously held. She says that seeing the team “run around” in confusion and try to solve the proofs were amusing and brought the group closer together.

This event was the highlight of Math Club for fall 2018 as it was the second time for the club to participate in events outside of UNIS. Although the club attended the Downtown Mathematics Invitational event in December 2017, this was the first time the club entered with a team of six students, the optimal number for a team.

The Math Club also engages in the NYC Math League competition. Every month, one club meeting is set aside to participate in the Math League’s monthly tests. Club members who choose to participate must answer six math problems within thirty minutes. Similar to the Downtown Mathematics Invitational, the problems are different than what students encounter in math class and encourage students to think outside the box instead of falling back on common problem-solving methods.

However, the Math Club is not restricted to high-level competitions with difficult problems. Many meetings are dedicated to student presentations in which one student volunteers to present a mathematical proof or problem to the rest of the club. For example, Manon Harris has recently presented a hypothetical scenario in which a time traveler alters his past self in such a way that he is unable to use the time machine (and thus preventing him from altering his past self). Although the problem is not inherently mathematical, she nonetheless used her knowledge in math to create a suitable explanation for the paradox. Even though the problem was not directly related to math, the club nonetheless kept an open mind to the presentation. Previous presentations have covered a wide range of mathematical topics, including advanced subjects such as calculus and number theory as well as more readily understandable ones such as algebra.

Last but not least, the Math Club runs a tutoring program in which one student volunteers to tutor another in math. The program was created last year by Aryan Kejriwal (the former club president); Sora Kanosue (the current club president) is not only continuing the program but also expanding it into the sciences. Those who sign up as tutors will receive CS hours or can use it as their CAS project. Click here if you wish to sign up as a tutee or tutor.

In February 2019, the Math Club will participate in an examination given by the American Mathematics Competitions. The AMC 10/12 is split into two different types of exams; those in T1 or T2 will take the AMC 10, while those in T3 or T4 will take the AMC 12. Even if one does not plan to study math or science in college, this examination can greatly benefit their college application, as colleges can ask for their score if they do well. Also, one’s college application is not penalized if they do poorly. Although the deadline to request participation in the AMC has already passed, the club still plans to organize future events. Until then, feel free to drop by our next meeting; they are held every Thursday at 1:25 in room 505. You just might catch us trying to solve another paradox.