‘Escapism’ problem solving pays off
A Hillcrest High School student is off to the Olympics, of sorts.
Hao Jeng – a young mathematics whiz – has qualified for the International Mathematical Olympiad in Argentina. The 17-year-old is one of only six selected for the New Zealand team, and the only representative from outside of Auckland.
The competition, regarded as the Olympic Games of secondary school maths, is a battle of brain power among the top young maths minds in the world.
However, Hao is humble about outshining 150 other New Zealand students to make the final six. ‘‘I just thought I’d give it a go,’’ he said. ‘‘Everyone’s really good and it was really competitive, but I thought I’m just going to believe I’ll make it and give it my best shot.’’
He had to work through a few rounds of problem solving online to be selected for a camp for the top 24 students in the country. That number was cut down to 12, and then six.
Teacher, Ingrid Rinsma, said the questions Hao wrestled with were ‘‘majorly hard’’ and university lecturers would struggle to solve them. She said he could ‘‘easily’’ jump into second year maths at university.
At the Olympiad in July, Hao has nine hours over two days to solve three problems using only pencil and paper. Calculators are not allowed.
Both of his parents are former maths teachers and he was taught from a very young age. He also credits Hillcrest High staff for their guidance along the way. He said solving problems was a form of escapism, and something he enjoyed.
‘‘When I’m solving problems you just kind of forget about everything else and you forget about unhappy stuff,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s kind of like when you play music or computer games.’’
The year 13 student also finds time for sports. He plays badminton, table tennis and baseball. And while he’s not aiming to make the Olympics in either of those disciplines, a gold medal in maths is a very real possibility. Hao, no doubt, has already calculated the odds.