Falcon Focus: Sophomore in Math Club discusses interest in math

Sophomore Sean Shi participated in his first math competition when he was in fourth grade.

Sophomore Sean Shi participated in his first math competition when he was in fourth grade. In sixth grade, his love for math blossomed, and in seventh grade, he got a perfect score on the American Mathematics Competition (AMC) 10. During Shi’s freshman year, he tied for third in the 2013 Bay Area Mathematical Olympiad (BAMO). However, his list of accomplishments does not stop here. Currently, Shi is a member of the school’s Math Club and is taking Calculus BC AP.

According to Shi, his interest in math stemmed from both his inherent talent for the subject and his dedication toward competitions.

“There is definitely some component of natural ability,” Shi said, “but I did have to practice to get myself to the level I am [at] right now.”

Shi added that he does not consider there to be a “single greatest achievement” for him in the mathematical world.

“I don’t really think you can exactly compare [my achievements], because they’re fairly different from each other,” Shi said.

Shi said that Math Club is currently focusing on training students to bring them up to the next level of competition. Students who have not qualified for the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME) are working on improving their skills and problem-solving abilities.

Shi said that the students do practice problems for the various tests during the club’s Friday sessions.

According to math teacher and club adviser P.J. Yim, although Shi does not take an active role in mentoring other students, he always helps others when asked.

“He helps a lot of other kids who ask him [for help] and if you were to walk in during practice, he is always helping somebody,” Yim said. “I’ve never seen him say no, or come up with an excuse to not help somebody. He is always there.”

Yim said Shi’s inherently soft-spoken and guarded personality can often mask his enthusiasm for math.

“Like most math people, he keeps to himself,” Yim said. “He is not the most outgoing person in the world, but if you talk to him about math, you could see underneath his monotone a personality percolating.”

Yim further described Shi’s personality with an interesting analogy, which he later dubbed “a really bad example.”

“[Shi] is kind of like a really fine cheese,” Yim said. “You have to get to know that cheese a little better before you really, truly appreciate that cheese. With sugar and chocolate, boom — everyone instantly loves chocolate. But not everyone likes cheese or even appreciates good cheese.”

Yim, who has known Shi since he was in middle school, said that Shi’s mathematical ability has progressively improved over the years.

“By the time he was in seventh grade, he was among the best kids in the area,” Yim said. “I think he transitioned to being one of the best kids even in the country.”

Math Club’s most recent competition was at Santa Clara University (SCU) on Nov. 16. The university had been holding the competition for high school students for more than 55 years.

According to Shi, SCU can sometimes be challenging because of its deceptively simple nature.

“It’s just eight problems,” Shi said, “but you have to show how you got the answer.”

According to Shi, the amount of pressure he feels during a particular test depends on the nature of the competition.

“If it’s a test that I feel is pretty important, I get maybe a little bit stressed,” Shi said. “But I usually don’t really care about it, because there is nothing I can do.”

However, when Shi is participating in a competition, he said that he just tries to “concentrate and work on the problems.”

“Sometimes [the problems] are really annoying or they’re too hard, and I get frustrated,” Shi said. “But usually it’s more like I’m in that mode [where] I don’t really think of anything else but the math problem itself.”

According to Yim, Shi’s greatest mathematical strength is his true passion for the subject.

“He comes across to me as somebody who genuinely loves to do math,” Yim said. “For me, I think that’s the highest praise I could give. Somebody is doing what [he loves] to do without an ulterior motive.”