Meet the principal

One week later, Tristan City Center Theatre.

This was originally a place for theater performances. In the past, many prestigious plays were performed here, but today, a group of people wearing robes gathered here.

These people are naturally mages, but they do not come from the same place, nor are they from the same faction, and most of them do not even know each other.

The mages sitting in the theater hall were a little noisy, but they all knew the purpose of coming here.

"I heard that this is a reward specifically for mages who study mathematics. Why do people in the High Council suddenly do this?"

"I didn't expect that I would receive the invitation. I thought I had been forgotten a long time ago."

"You all study mathematics? I always thought that I was the only one who would devote time to this."

...

The mages exchanged their research, and some even argued fiercely, but soon, as the lights dimmed, all the words gradually died down, and people looked towards the stage.

That was a high-level mage, William Saxon of the Law Department.

He invented calculus almost at the same time as Mr. Alberton, but they were far behind in the practical application of calculus. He is currently a Seventh Ring Mage and serves as the president of the Law Weaver, an academic organization of the Law Department.

"Good afternoon everyone, I am William Saxon, a member of the High Council. You must have learned about this meeting through the invitation letter. Naturally, you also know that this is a gathering of mages from various factions and ranks studying mathematics. The purpose of this conference is to reward those mages who have made outstanding contributions in the field of mathematics."

Saxon paused and then continued.

"In the past, because mathematics could not get feedback from the world and could not directly improve magic power, there were very few mages willing to delve into mathematics. Perhaps most of the people here turned to mathematics because they encountered problems in their regular research. As for seeking support from mathematics, in fact, when I studied calculus, it was because there was a flaw in a magic construction that I wanted to repair. Otherwise, I might not have studied mathematics specifically."

His words made everyone present slightly nod. Indeed, none of them became mage just to study mathematics. Everyone started to think about it when they encountered mathematical problems in their own research. Some people will They have applied it in their own spells and gained benefits, while some people are still immersed in books, solving mathematical problems one after another but still unable to see the end.

"recent,

Lord Alberton introduced me to a paper, a purely mathematical treatise, designed to solve the unification of the equations of motion. "

Saxon's words made everyone here take a breath. The unification of the equations of motion is a problem that even the legendary mage cannot overcome. Could it be that the author of that paper succeeded?

Next, Saxon briefly introduced the paper. Since this was not the focus of the meeting, he did not elaborate on the key parts.

"However, it is regrettable that this paper, written ten years ago, was buried because no one recognized it, and its author died in depression. It was not until ten years later that this paper was unearthed. This This is a tragedy for the wizarding world, and it is also the result of the fact that mathematics has not been taken seriously for many years."

All the mages present were silent. They had all suffered similar eye-rolls to one degree or another. The most common question they heard was, what is the use of your research? Saxon's speech made them feel the same.

"Taking this mage's paper as an opportunity, the High Council decided to set up an award to recognize those mages who have made outstanding contributions in the field of mathematics. They will receive magic props engraved with sixth-level magic, a large number of academic points, and money. Reward, we all know that choosing to study mathematics will in a sense delay one's promotion path, and this award is to compensate and encourage scholars who focus on their goals."

Saxon said, and at the same time, he also announced some measures, including the establishment of a special mathematical journal to strengthen academic exchanges among mages from various places. Finally, he said.

"As we all know, the Mercury Scale has the Hohenheim Gold Cup, and the Spellweavers also have awards such as Eberton's Scepter. These academic awards are named after famous or legendary mages, and this mathematical award, after a related At the suggestion of the author, the High Council decided to name it after Siris, the author of the paper on the unified equations of motion."

Sirius Award, the mages present whispered the name.

"Before awarding the award, I would like to invite Rainer Ian Gray to give us an award speech. It was he who discovered the paper and gave it the recognition it deserved."

"Linard Iain Gray!!?" "The Skull Crusher?" "Oh my god, am I going to have a cognitive breakdown?"

...

Reiner walked to the center of the stage and smiled helplessly.

"Everyone, please rest assured that what I say next is absolutely safe and will not have any impact on your cognition."

Hearing his words, the crowd burst into good-natured laughter.

"I believe that everyone here has studied mathematics more deeply than I do, and understands the importance of mathematics in magic better. However, at the same time, when studying mathematics, one often falls into a question, that is, what is the meaning of it?"

Reiner's voice was loud and combined with the unique structure of the theater, allowing everyone to hear him clearly.

"Many mathematical theories may not be able to be applied for hundreds of years, and even some weird and common-sense conclusions will not be understood in a lifetime. What is the point of studying mathematics and overcoming one problem after another? ?”

His question made the mages think deeply. This kind of self-doubt has lingered in everyone's mind.

"But what I want to say is that our exploration of mathematics and the pursuit of truth is its own significance. In fact, mathematics may be our only subject that can transcend the times. Perhaps we have found a formula with unknown meaning now. , is where the answer to the ultimate question lies.”

Reiner smiled and continued.

"In fact, the means we create when solving a certain mathematical problem may also become the cornerstone of a certain theory. We cannot arbitrarily evaluate this discipline leading to the future with our current narrow perspective."

The mages present felt a little bit, as if their pursuit for many years had been answered. At least, someone could understand what they were doing.

"At this award ceremony, I don't have anything big to say, but I brought some mathematical questions, which may allow everyone to discuss."

Reiner paused, made up his mind, and then threw out these mathematically difficult peaks.

"The first one is that when the integer N is greater than 2, the indefinite equation X^N+Y^N=Z^N about X, Y, Z has no positive integer solution. You can call it the Reiner conjecture."

Hearing Reiner's words, Saxon nodded subconsciously and calculated rapidly in his mind, but as he calculated, a terrifying fact appeared in front of him.

That's why he couldn't think of a quick way to prove this seemingly self-evident conclusion.

Before Saxon could recover, Reiner had already asked the second question.

"The second is that any flat map can use only four colors to color countries with common borders in different colors. I call this the four-color conjecture for short."

The second question is related to reality, but after thinking about it carefully, Saxon found it difficult to refute it immediately.

God, Saxon thought that although Alberton had mentioned some of Reiner's opinions to him before, Saxon had never expected that this young man was even more bottomless than he imagined.

While everyone was meditating on these two puzzles, Reiner came up with his third guess.

"The third conjecture is about prime numbers, that is, any even number not less than 4 can be written as the sum of two prime numbers. You can call it Ingle's conjecture."

If the first two conjectures still give people room to think, then the third conjecture stated by Reiner will make everyone here with a deep understanding of mathematics hold their breath.

Behind the simple and elegant proposition, there is a profound thinking like the vast ocean. Proposing this conjecture requires not only a solid mathematical foundation, but more importantly, a thirst for knowledge.

These three conjectures conform to the perfect form of mathematical problems: the expressions are simple, the conclusions seem self-evident, but the proof process is extremely complicated.

It can be expected that in the coming years, these three conjectures will become the three most shining gems in the crown of mathematics, waiting for people to pick them.