Hard Problems: The Road to the World’s Toughest Math Contest
Monday, November 16, 2009 at 9 pm (NJN1)
Hard Problems follows the six exceptionally gifted high school students who represented the United States at the 2006 International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) — the world's most challenging math competition. Although American students on the whole rank well behind many countries in mathematics, U.S. math Olympians regularly finish among the top.
The documentary captures their mathematical quest. It is a grueling and exhilarating experience, during which the beauty of mathematics unites contestants from 90 different countries around the world.
The U.S. team is comprised of Chinese immigrants Yi Sun and Alex Zhai, Ryan Ko from Korea, and U.S.-born Arnav Tripathy, Zachary Abel and Zeb Brady. Despite their differences, this diverse group of students shares not only a love of mathematics but also parents who nurtured and supported their mathematical genius.
Hard Problems shows the dedication, perseverance and passion of these talented high school students, the rigorous preparation they undertake and their joy in solving challenging problems. In the process, Hard Problems shatters many stereotypes and clichés about the mathematically gifted.
While aiming to inspire and entertain, Hard Problems provides an insightful and thoughtful look at the process that produces successful teams, and ultimately, the great mathematicians of the future. |
