Local Scholars
The Mathematical Sciences Research Institute has announced that one of the two U.S. teams that competed this this summer at the 9th annual China Girls Mathematical Olympiad placed second, behind a team from China, in the overall standings among teams of girls from 20 nations throughout the world. Of the eight high school girls on the two U.S. teams, seven students won top honors five gold medals, [one] silver medal and [one] bronze medal at the international competition held in Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Provence, China.

One of the gold medals was awarded Jae Eui Shin, a senior at Phillips Andover Academy in Andover. The team that won second place included Jae Eui Shin and also Americans Elizabeth Synge, Lynnelle Ye, and Shijie Joy Zheng.

"We are thrilled by the outstanding performance of the U.S. teams at the China Girls Math Olympiad," said Robert Bryant, Director of MSRI, which is based in Berkeley. "This girls-only international contest provides an invaluable opportunity to encourage young women to study mathematics and develop their talent, which is important to fostering the future competiveness of our country, and to enable them to meet and work with others who share their enthusiasm for math. The CGMO experience has a profound effect on the young women who participate, and it provides an inspiration to other students, helping them appreciate the fun and accomplishment of solving hard problems."

The highly competitive, math tournament for teams of girls was held Aug. 9-13 and the rigorous two-day exam was given on Aug. 10-11. This year the CGMO drew 190 girls from 10 countries including China, the United States, Russia, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Macau, and Singapore.