Alea jacta est

Official newspaper of the 49th International Mathematical Olympiad
Issue 2
17th July 2008
Alea jacta est*
IMO NEWS are
Miguel De Benito
Javier Fresán
David Garcés
Roberto Rubio
Contact us at:
[email protected]
(please, send us your
photos, stories and
comments, thank you!)
Weather forecast
Mostly sunny
Low - High
16ºC – 28ºC
60º F – 80º F
Prec. Chance: 30%
IMO CIRCUS
These last two days have been the
climax, it was time to fight
(friendly!) for a gold.
Going to bed (and getting up)
early, cups and cups of coffee,
talking about anything to keep
one's cool… students did anything
they could to be in shape for the
competition. Some used up to the
last minute to review their math
books.
Yesterday, as the contestants
came out of the exam, they were
cheered by the guides and
interviewed by the media. But,
eager to check their answers,
they hurried to meet their
teammates and deputy leaders.
"Yeah, sure I solved all three
The exams are over. Tomorrow
the jury will leave its hiding place
to meet with the coordinators and
start the corrections. Finally it's
time to relax and party. The
excursions begin with a trip to
Segovia and El Escorial. Stay
tuned for the hottest news. See
you at tonight's fiesta at the
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
problems today, and the fourth
and the fifth and...", joked an
uruguayan contestant after the
first session.
* the die is cast
Voices from the IMO
Is this your first IMO?
Any medals?
Is this your first IMO? How is it going?
No, this is actually my
3rd, and... yeah, I had
a silver medal 2
years ago and a gold
medal last year.
Well, this is my first year, a beautiful
experience... the test was a bit tough but I
solved one problem, one and a half…
How is the team chosen in Paraguay?
Well, there's a first round at the schools,
then the regionals and the final. The 100
best work together for intensive
preparation and the teams comes out
- Guillermo (16)from that.
Paraguay
Do you like it here?
This is my first time in Spain. I like the city
a lot, the people are very kind.
The problems were a
bit weird, different
style, but I think I got
all three.
- Alex (17) -
USA
What about Madrid and the lodging?
It's a beautiful city, I was pretty
impressed by the Royal Palace. It's a
pretty good place, I like the
accommodation. The only bad thing
is that the food here doesn’t have
enough vegetables!
What do you think about the IMO?
Well, I find it to be a very good way of
fostering mathematics among young
people. I think that competitions are
always good for this. And well, Spain
needs mathematicians. You know, it had
been 44 years since the last UEFA Euro,
but we haven’t won a Nobel Prize in
Sciences for 49 years! Well, there's none
in mathematics, I know, but...
How was the first
day?
- David TV Journalist
Do you speak English?
¿Habla inglés?
(ah-blah een-gles?)
Can you help me?
¿Me puede ayudar?
(meh poo-eh-deh ah-yoo-dar?)
Sorry, I don't understand.
Lo siento, no entiendo.
(Loh see-ehn-toh, noh en-tee-ehn-doh)
Happy Birthday, Maria! (two days over...)
Gotcha!!
Football scores
Costa Rica 15 – Japan 2
Spain 5 – South Africa 2
Israel 7 – Ecuador 3
Tunisia 6 – France 0
India 4 – Singapour 3
Russia 6 – Spain 3
http://xkcd.com/74/