12/11/2018

OBMEP hosts the Hilbert Hotel Meeting

In 1925, the German mathematician David Hilbert presented a paradox of infinity. It describes a hotel with an infinite number of rooms, always full, with one guest in each room. However, whenever a new guest arrives, the manager asks the existing guests to move to the adjacent room.

In mathematical terms, it's roughly like this: the guest in room n moves to room n+1, and so on. Better known as Hilbert's Hotel, the paradox illustrates the idea that, despite always being full, there are always vacancies at Hilbert's Hotel.

Inspired by this idea, OBMEP (Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools) created the Hilbert Hotel Meeting (EHH) in 2011 for students with the best academic performance in the PIC (Junior Scientific Initiation Program).

The Fridays edition of the Hilbert Hotel Meeting will take place in 2018 thanks to the partnership between IMPA and the Itaú Social Foundation. From November 20th to 2Thursdays, approximately 200 students — 132 boys and 65 girls — with the best results in the 13th PIC, from all Brazilian states and the Federal District, will participate in an immersion in the world of Mathematics in Florianópolis (SC).

The EHH program will feature content for all tastes, from lectures on cryptography, chess, astronomy, and oil extraction to recreational activities, games, and tours.

In total, 15 university professors will take turns presenting the content proposed in the program and encouraging the young people to dedicate themselves to mathematics with pleasure.

Tradition

The first edition was held in Nova Friburgo (RJ), in July 2011. Until 2015, the meeting took place annually, always bringing together students who excelled in the PIC. In the 2016-2017 biennium, the lack of funds made it impossible to hold the event.