AwesomeMath Resource Spotlight

The AwesomeMath newsletter, The Gold Standard has published a series of important dates and useful resources:

Starting with the first round of USAMTS (USA Mathematial Talent Search) due on October 15 and culminating with the IMO (International Mathematics Olympiad) in July, 2014, the season of math competitions is right around the corner.  Are you prepared?  Do you have the resources to help you excel?   With over 30 years of experience teaching, coaching, and mentoring the brightest mathematical minds of our age, Dr. Andreescu’s books are essential for every math enthusiast’s library.  Here are just a few highlights from his distinguished career:

• Authored, co-authored, and edited more than 40 math books and publications
• Head coach and leader of the USA International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) for 8 years
• Director of the Mathematical Association of American (MAA) American Mathematics Competitions for 5 years
• Has contributed hundreds of problems to various math competitions including up to and including the IMO
• Co-founder of the Purple Comet! Math Meet, the first international team based math competition
• Founder and Director of AwesomeMath, an organization that provides enriching experiences in mathematics to intellectually curious learners

Following is a chart of important dates and resources which will enrich the mathlete’s competition experience:

Date	Competition	Resource
October 15, 2013 Round 1	USAMTS	Mathematical Olympiad Challenges, Mathematical Olympiad Treasures, Mathematical Reflections – all volumes
November 18, 2013 Round 2	USAMTS	Mathematical Olympiad Challenges, Mathematical Olympiad Treasures, Mathematical Reflections – all volumes
November 19, 2013	AMC 8	Purple Comet! Math Meet:  All Ten Years, 105 Algebra Problems
December 7, 2013	Putnam	Problems from the Book, Straight from the Book, Putnam and Beyond
January 6, 2014 Round 3	USAMTS	Mathematical Olympiad Challenges, Mathematical Olympiad Treasures, Mathematical Reflections – all volumes
10A:  February 4, 2014 10B:  February 19, 2014	AMC 10	105 Algebra Problems, 106 Geometry Problems, 107 Geometry Problems,108 Algebra Problems (coming soon)
12A:  February 4, 2014 12B:  February 19, 2014	AMC 12	Mathematical Reflections – all volumes, 105 Algebra Problems, 106 Geometry Problems, 107 Geometry Problems,108 Algebra Problems (coming soon)
AIME I:  March 13, 2014 AIME II: March 26, 2014	AIME	Purple Comet! Math Meet: All Ten Years, Mathematical Reflections – all volumes
April 1-10, 2014	Purple Comet! Math Meet	Purple Comet! Math Meet:  All Ten Years
April 29-30, 2014	USAMO	Problems from the Book, Straight from the Book, Topics in Functional Equations, Math Olympiad Challenges, Math Olympiad Treasures
July 2014	IMO (South Africa)	Math Olympiad Challenges, Mathematical Olympiad Treasures, Mathematical Reflections – all volumes

 

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USAMTS Round 1 Results

The USA Mathematical Talent Search results for round 1 have been posted and several Texans have distinguished themselves on this 30 point test:

• Joseph Lubars 30/30
• Alvin Gao 27/30
• Adithya Ganesh 25/30

Congratulations to all of the participants and best of luck in the second round which begins as well.  Here are the solutions to round 1 and the new problems for round 2.

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October 16 – Mathematical Proofs

Computing a correct answer is sufficient for most grade school work, but proving that something must be true is one of the most important skills our students can learn.  This ability has immediate benefits for such important tests as USAMTS or the USAMO as well as teaching the skills of reasoning and communication that can help in any profession.

We are very fortunate to once again have a lecture by Dr. Branislav Kisačanin.  Here is his description of the upcoming session:

Introduction to Mathematical Proofs

In this lecture we will see examples of common proof techniques: direct proofs, proofs by induction, and proofs by contradiction. The students should have their pencils ready, as they will get a hands-on experience solving and proving mathematical problems.

• As the first illustration of direct proofs we will show that angle bisectors of any triangle have a common intersection point
• As the first illustration of mathematical induction, we will prove Cassini’s identity for Fibonacci numbers
• Finally, as the first illustration of proofs by contradiction, we will look at Euclid’s proof of infinitude of primes

In addition to a few more problems of historical significance, we will work on relatively simple problems that illustrate various proof techniques. In order to make things more interesting, we will let the students figure out which technique to use for each problem.

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USAMTS, Another Path to AIME

While many students take the AMC 10 or 12 to qualify to take the AIME test (in the hopes of progressing to the USAMO or IMO), there is another opportunity by participating in the USAMTS contest. The USA Mathematical Talent Search differs from these other tests because it is taken over several weeks and stresses the importance of clearly explaining a solution.

As opposed to most mathematics competitions, the USAMTS allows students a full month to work out their solutions. Carefully written justifications are required for each problem. The problems range in difficulty from being within the reach of most high school students to challenging the best students in the nation. Students may use any materials – books, calculators, computers – but all the work must be their own.

Richard Rusczyk’s Art of Problem Solving Foundations is the primary sponsor of USAMTS and he will certainly be able to answer any questions at his talk on September 20th.

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