Adam Ries Competition: Winners Hail from Dresden and Erfurt

Two male students and one female student from Dresden and Erfurt won first prizes in the international Adam Ries Competition. In the final round over the weekend, they had to solve tricky math problems that revolved around topics such as barter systems from centuries ago as well as the World Cup. The organizers noted that the problems were designed to require mathematical understanding beyond the scope of standard school curriculum. 

The competition honors the mathematician Adam Ries (c. 1492–1559). Through his books written in German, he made mathematics accessible to a wider audience and is considered the father of modern arithmetic. In Annaberg-Buchholz in the Ore Mountains—where he lived for many years—a museum commemorates him. 

More than 1,000 participants

For decades, the three-stage math competition has been aimed at fifth-graders in Saxony, Thuringia, Upper Franconia in Bavaria, and the Czech Republic. According to reports, there were more than 1,000 participants in the first stage; the 40 best—ten from each region—made it to the finals.