We are writing to you as a group of finalists for the 2024 Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition.
First and foremost, we would like to express our sincere appreciation for the tremendous effort and dedication put forth by the committee members and staffs at the Damo Academy in organizing this esteemed competition.
Recently, there has been a heated discussion regarding one of the finalists, Jiang Ping, who ranked 12th in the Qualifying Round, and concerns have been raised by professionals in the relevant fields on her scores and math competence.
In a documentary video released by the Damo Academy, Jiang Ping made several apparent writing mistakes (e.g., writing "2"" as "2" writing "sin z" as "sin n?") while solving a math problem on the blackboard. It appears that she seemed unfamiliar with these mathematical expressions and symbols.
Math professor Yao Yijun from Fudan University claimed in an interview that, a colleague of him who had seen Jiang Ping's submitted answers commented that Jiang Ping was "skilled in using LaTeX". However, LaTeX is a typesetting system commonly used for writing technical documents, not a skill that mathematics learners necessarily need to master. Furthermore, LaTeX is highly sensitive to errors in math expression inputs, which seems to contradict the frequent writing errors she made in the video. P3
Allegations have been made that Jiang Ping's math teacher, Wang Runqiu, who ranked 125th in the Qualifying Round, may have assisted her in preparing the answers, with potential help from others.
We believe that the so-called "evidence" currently circulating on the Internet, including the concerns mentioned above, is too circumstantial to prove that Jiang Ping was involved in any misconduet during the Qualifying Round. However, given the impact on public opinion caused by such discussions, the organizing committee has an obligation, and also the capability, to address these concerns seriously and take appropriate actions to clarify the truth.
有鑒於此,作為同樣入圍決賽的選手,我們懇請組委會采取以下措施:
Therefore, as fellow finalists, we respectfully urge the committee to take the following actions:
1。在獲得薑萍同學和王閏秋老師的許可後,向入圍決賽的選手公開其預賽答卷,以供審閱。
Make public the submitted answers for the Qualifying Round by Jiang Ping and Wang Runqiu for examination, at least among the finalists, upon receiving their permissions.
2。由組委會成員和無利益衝突的第三方專家進行獨立調查,並及時、公開公布調查結果。
Perform an independent investigation by committee members AND third-party experts with no conflicts of interest, and announce the investigation results to the public in a timely manner.
As the Final Round of the competition is scheduled for this Saturday, June 22nd, to avoid imposing any unnecessary pressures on Jiang Ping in her preparation for the Final Round, we will refrain from revealing this petition letter (and any response from you) to the public until the end of the Final Round.
再次感謝各位為組織這項比賽所做的努力,並期待組委會的及時答複。
Once again, we would like to express our gratitude for your efforts in organizing this competition, and we look forward to your prompt response to address these concerns.
(附件為參與請願的決賽選手名單,按時間順序排列)
(Please find attached the list of finalists joining the petition in chronological order)