Ponder This
I have to apologize for being a bit out of it this last month. I have been in a daze contemplating a mental challenge posted by IBM Research. I used to look around for some kind of open problem challenge to test my wits, and finally discovered IBM's monthly Ponder This challenge.
I've been checking this out for years now, but it always seemed the challenges were oriented to math experts who had years of formal training I certainly do not. So I contacted their webmaster and made an argument to post a challenge based on chess or some other problem where the formal techniques to solve the problem were unknown, and a highly intelligent person not familiar with math would have a chance.
I was totally impressed with how responsive IBM Research was, and they contacted me personally to let me know they posted such a challenge earlier this month. I have to admit, I probably lost some hair over it, lol! I had to learn Backgammon from scratch, and then set up a probability problem that I suppose should have been within my reach having taken a Finite Math class in college.
I really think the challenge was in the set up. They offered some hints, and modified the problem to keep it simple enough. It took me until this afternoon to think it through, and though I probably got it wrong, I was able to submit an eloquent solution I can at least be proud of.
They post the names of people who got the answer right. The long list of problem solvers probably represents some of the best math minds out there. Sometime next week, I will be blown away to find my name on the list. If not, you have to give it to IBM Research for being so responsive. I think that says a lot about their organization, culture, and intelligence. Might be a company I'd like to work for someday. What I can say is I honestly enjoyed the challenge, and they deserve the credit for that!
From my perspective as Nascent Dynamics ( ), the best part of this was influencing the rules of engagement in my favor. For that, I'll take a little credit ;).
Best,
Anthony Reardon
Nascent Dynamics ( ) Modern Business for the Modern Environment
I've been checking this out for years now, but it always seemed the challenges were oriented to math experts who had years of formal training I certainly do not. So I contacted their webmaster and made an argument to post a challenge based on chess or some other problem where the formal techniques to solve the problem were unknown, and a highly intelligent person not familiar with math would have a chance.
I was totally impressed with how responsive IBM Research was, and they contacted me personally to let me know they posted such a challenge earlier this month. I have to admit, I probably lost some hair over it, lol! I had to learn Backgammon from scratch, and then set up a probability problem that I suppose should have been within my reach having taken a Finite Math class in college.
I really think the challenge was in the set up. They offered some hints, and modified the problem to keep it simple enough. It took me until this afternoon to think it through, and though I probably got it wrong, I was able to submit an eloquent solution I can at least be proud of.
They post the names of people who got the answer right. The long list of problem solvers probably represents some of the best math minds out there. Sometime next week, I will be blown away to find my name on the list. If not, you have to give it to IBM Research for being so responsive. I think that says a lot about their organization, culture, and intelligence. Might be a company I'd like to work for someday. What I can say is I honestly enjoyed the challenge, and they deserve the credit for that!
From my perspective as Nascent Dynamics ( ), the best part of this was influencing the rules of engagement in my favor. For that, I'll take a little credit ;).
Best,
Anthony Reardon
Nascent Dynamics ( ) Modern Business for the Modern Environment
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