The 9th Transdisciplinary (TD) Brown Bag Series

Date： June 19th (Wed), 12:15~13:00
Venue： Tonan-tei (Room 201), 2nd floor, Inamori Foundation Building　
Language： English

Anyone who are interested in the topic are welcome. Please bring your own food and join us.

Speaker：
Alain Bonnafe (Toulouse Mathematics Institute／CSEAS Visiting Scholar)

MC: Kwan, Soo Chen (CSEAS)

Title & Abstract:
“Facts and Questions about the Rise of South-East Asian Countries in the International Mathematical Olympiads”

Most South-East Asian Countries started competing in the International Mathematical Olympiads (IMOs) in the late 1980’s. Since 2000, and even more since 2010, SEA countries have tremendously improved their rankings in the IMOs, with no less than 3 of them being ranked in the world top 10 in 2018. Such a surge should draw attention for several reasons: 1. Other developing regions, such as India or South-American countries, are ranked at best in the world top 30 or 40. 2. The ranks obtained in the IMOs by several SEA countries are significantly above their PISA ratings. 3. The competition in the IMO is so sharp that such outstanding rankings can only result from the implementation of sustained and coordinated efforts. So what are the key-factors lying behind the rise of South-East Asian countries in the IMO?

Bio:
Dr. Alain Bonnafe obtained his M.Sc. from Ecole Polytechnique (Paris-FR) and his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the National Institute for Applied Science (University of Toulouse-FR). His research works specialize in topological derivatives for nonlinear partial differential equations, with applications to shape optimization and to image processing. He has been involved in Mathematical Olympiads since 2004, first in France and then in Singapore where he was the trainer of the elite Nanyang Girls’ High School from 2015 to 2017.