The Military-industrial Scientific Research System of the Academic Master Chapter 1038

Chapter 1038 International Congress of Mathematicians

It was only then that Chang Haonan realized that he had accidentally made a mistake.

Fortunately, it is only 2002, and a certain four-character company has just emerged from the quagmire of the Internet bubble and has barely gained a foothold, and this sentence has not yet become a famous Internet meme along with the emoticon of a certain CCTV host.

Speaking of it in his current capacity, it wouldn't be too offensive.

However, perhaps because the tone of his answer was too natural and there was no trace of deliberateness at all, the academician Wu opposite him took it seriously and for a moment he couldn't think of what to say next -

He originally thought that Chang Haonan had obtained such status and honor at such a young age, and was worried that the latter might not be able to grasp it.

And I came here just now with the idea of giving a little reminder before awarding the award.

As a result, I found that it was completely different from what I expected...

So much so that his worries immediately jumped 180° to another level:

"Uh... Professor Chang, times have changed... There is no need to overemphasize being indifferent to fame and fortune... Personal value and social value are not in conflict with each other..."

Chang Haonan was just casually talking about the world famous paintings before his rebirth, but now he is quite frightened to be praised by the old academician Wu as "indifferent to fame and wealth".

However, before he could reply, several other people came over from a short distance away and cut off the topic in a timely manner.

"Wen Jun."

Although Chang Haonan's line of sight was blocked, when he heard that the other party could address Academician Wu in this way, it was obvious that he must be a high-ranking figure in the world of mathematics.

It has to be at the level of an old-timer.

At the same time, Wu Wenjun also turned sideways and looked at the people walking behind him.

He also gave up the position in front of Chang Haonan.

And just as the latter had just speculated, the person who came was thin, slightly rickety, and even much older than Wu Wenjun.

He looked to be at least ninety years old.

"When you take the stage later..."

The leader seemed to want to give some instructions, but only halfway through his words, he noticed Chang Haonan standing next to him.

Then the sound stopped suddenly.

But the slightly cloudy eyes revealed more curiosity, indicating that he did not recognize the person in front of him.

Of course, this is normal.

The reason why Chang Haonan collaborated with Perelman to publish the paper was mainly because he accidentally discovered a new key to solving the Poincaré conjecture in the process of studying manifold learning algorithms.

It wasn't intentional.

Therefore, after that wave of earth-shattering events, he quickly returned to the direction of applied research.

Except for a few limited-scale lectures, I have not appeared in the mathematics community for a long time and with high intensity.

For the same reason, Chang Haonan was somewhat confused at this time.

He did recognize the photos of many famous mathematicians before he came here.

But as we all know, the appearance of elderly people is not very recognizable in many cases.

And the degree of aging may reach a new level every year.

If you are not very familiar with it, it is normal to not recognize it...

Fortunately, Wu Wenjun quickly stepped forward, bent down and held the other person's hand, and then gestured in the direction of Chang Haonan:

"Teacher, this is Professor Chang Haonan."

This sentence is obviously introducing Chang Haonan.

But in fact, it is also hinting at the old man's identity.

Therefore, Chang Haonan quickly greeted the other party slightly:

"Senior Chen, it's an honor to see you here."

Just considering that the other party's arms were being supported, I didn't go forward to shake hands.

Chen Shengshen, mentor of Wu Wenjun and Qiu Chengtong, has a pioneering historical position in the field of differential geometry.

He is also one of the absolute giants in the Chinese mathematics community.

In fact, the reason why China is determined to actively strive for the right to host the International Congress of Mathematicians is largely due to the suggestions of teachers and students Chen and Qiu.

The event was finally successfully held in 2002 without the strong support of this senior.

However, Chen Shengshen was already 91 years old at this time and his physical condition was not good.

Therefore, Chang Haonan thought that the other party would not come in person.

Chen Shengshen did not answer immediately, but stared at Chang Haonan's face for a long time.

Then he slowly said:

"This conference was able to be held in Beijing, thanks to Professor Chang's achievements at that time..."

Chang Haonan quickly shook his head:

"This is really ridiculous..."

"You and Mr. Qiu have been working on this matter for many years, and the entire Chinese mathematics community is watching. Just because I was lucky enough to produce some results before the final results were announced, it cannot all be attributed to me."

While talking, Chen Shengshen also sat down in a seat next to him with the help of everyone:

"Xiaoqiu and I have indeed made some contributions...but the value of this conference to Chinese mathematics research is mostly demonstrated by you."

"To put it more directly, after Mr. Chen and Su, it was you who brought the Chinese mathematics community back closer for the first time... and even reached the top position."

This sentence made everyone around him stunned for a moment. Then he focused his attention on Chang Haonan.

The Chen Su mentioned by Chen Shengshen naturally does not include himself, but refers to Chen Jiangong and Su Buqing, two mathematicians who were active in the 1930s and 1940s.

After that, although there were many Chinese names shining in the world of mathematics, including himself, they were all Chinese after all, and their achievements did not belong to China.

"Actually, after you just proved the Poincaré conjecture, Cheng Tong mentioned to me that he wanted to invite you to teach at Princeton University."

After a slight pause, Chen Shengshen continued:

"But I had already returned to China and knew a little bit about your situation, so I stopped him..."

"I really have no plans to teach abroad..."

Chang Haonan made no secret of this.

In fact, although he has many projects on hand in recent years, he is not really busy.

The reason why he disappeared at the speed of light after proving the Poincaré conjecture was largely because he wanted to reduce his presence in the mathematical world—

Theoretical research is different from engineering research. Sometimes you need to be alone.

The discussion within the small circle did not last long.

As the time drew closer to the opening, Wu Wenjun, as the chairman of the conference, needed to prepare to give a speech on stage and left the audience first.

Soon after, a group of foreign mathematics experts who came from their residences also entered the venue one after another.

Although not many people can immediately recognize Chang Haonan, Chen Shengshen and Qiu Chengtong are quite well-known after all.

And as long as you get close, it's not difficult to deduce the identity of the former.

So in the next short period of time, Chang Haonan got to know many people casually...

To be precise, many great gods—

Gerd Faltings, Pierre Deligne, Charles Feiffman…

They are all pioneering senior figures in their respective fields.

Maxim Kontsevich, Andrew Wiles, Richard Hamilton, Edward Witten…

These were first discovered on arXiv, or were later called over to review the paper.

And Laurent Laforge, Vladimir Vvotsky, Wendelin Werner and, of course, Perelman…

Together with Chang Haonan, he is a popular candidate for this year's Philippine Awards—

Although the specific candidates for the Philippine Prize and the nominees are strictly confidential before the awards are presented, it is not difficult for the already small top mathematics circle to guess a general range.

It's just a matter of who the final winner is and how many.

Basically, everyone agrees that Chang Haonan and Perelman will definitely win the award.

But not in this session, there is actually some controversy.

After all, when the Philippine Award is awarded, in addition to achievements, the age of the recipient will also be considered from a human level.

In principle, the winner cannot be older than 40 years old.

Therefore, the selection committee sometimes prefers to award mathematicians aged 36-39.

Therefore, many people still have expectations for themselves, thinking that this year will follow the usual practice and give priority to those nominees who "if they miss it, it will be too late."

Of course, Perelman also happens to be 36 years old this year.

But since it is said to be in principle, it means that the principle can be broken.

For example, Andrew Wiles in 1998.

Not only did he win the award at the age of 45, he even squeezed out an extra spot that year.

The Poincaré Conjecture was clearly worthy of the committee breaking its principles again.

Then it would be normal for Perelman to win the next award in 2006.

As for Chang Haonan...

In terms of years of age, he is only 26 years old.

Fortunately, regardless of how they are in private, top mathematicians are at least respectable in appearance.

Even if it is a Philippine Award, there will not be a public fight for it.

So the atmosphere is quite harmonious.

And among this revolving crowd of people, there is one person who is more special.

Steven Strogatz.

Compared with the previous big guys, he is indeed a little bit behind in popularity.

In fact, Chang Haonan didn't even have any impression of this name at all.

But the other party's explanation quickly eliminated his confusion:

"I am a professor from Cornell University. I am very grateful to you and Professor Perelman for their contributions to the arXiv open source community..."

"To this end, our school is going to award a special achievement award to you two. I wonder if you are interested in receiving it?"

(End of chapter)

Chapter end

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