The Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley is sending two teams of high school girls -- one each from the eastern and western United States -- to the 2007 China Girls Mathematical Olympiad this month. This will be the first time teams from the United States have competed in the annual international event.

The students were chosen from the ranks of the top female finalists in the 2006 USA Mathematical Olympiad. They trained at the "AwesomeMath" summer program in Dallas until this week, honing their mathematical problem-solving skills up to the Olympiad level. They will compete in Beijing and Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province in central China, from Saturday through Thursday.

"While women make up nearly half of the working population today, only 28 percent of computer scientists and only 9 percent of engineers today are women," said Laura Haas, director of computer science at IBM's Almaden Research Center, in a news release. "We believe it is imperative to actively encourage and support young women's interest in math and science at all levels, and this is one more way we can do so."