Re: Training problem-solving for coding and math olympiads

I was a "Mathlete" in high school - not sure if this is the same thing
as a math olympiad or not - but the other thing we were taught to do
in practice was to understand the full logic to a problem. As in, (9
x 9) is easier than (3 x 27) or (3 to the 4th power). So you look for
the simplest means to a correct solution. We needed to know the
basics about matrices and logistical fallacies as well. But you
probably have a coach who can help with that.

Millicent

On Fri, May 27, 2011 at 1:05 AM, Magnus <trueballa@gmail.com> wrote:
> As someone who have some experience with training olympiad teams for
> mathematics and programming I have some tips. Do problems, do
> problems, do problems. Become active at www.artofproblemsolving.com,
> and try to help out with problems there, and post when you're stuck.
>
> Go through books on problem solving. Do old IMO problems. I don't
> believe that all this n-back or something will really help you that
> much, just focus on learning math and coding. Find books just slightly
> above your level, or material. Kiran Kedlaya has great stuff about
> Geometry (Geometry unbound is a classic, but at quite a high level),
> and inequalities.
>
> So to summarize, do as much math and coding as you can, and hope for
> the best. I don't think you should spend time on n-back.
>
> On May 24, 9:00 pm, Darius Malik <malikdari...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Lately I've resolved to try harder at teaching myself math and
>> algorithm-coding so I have a better shot at the international
>> olympiads for math and programming (IMO and IOI). These basically
>> involve getting, say, three really hard math or programming problems
>> and trying your best to solve them within 5 hours.
>>
>> What recommendations do you guys have for improving problem-solving
>> ability, in general and specifically for olympiad-type environments?
>> How should I practise math and CS, and what other stuff should I do?
>> Right now my day consists of:
>> - school (6 hours)
>> - Anki reps (10-100 minutes)
>> - n-back (20 sessions; I do position-color 8-back)
>> - Learning math and coding
>> - cycling (~ 1 hour 3 times a week)
>> - weight-training (~20 minutes daily)
>> I've also been experimenting with cycling caffeine, weekends on,
>> weekdays off; this seems to work really well - I can do more work at
>> home and less work at school. IOW, I am most productive exactly when
>> it matters most :)
>> Since I'm vegetarian, I've also taken Jonathan's advice and am cycling
>> creatine.
>>
>> Also, what is the best sort of training I can do at school? In South
>> Africa there are no honors classes, so I can basically pay literally
>> no attention and still get acceptable marks. I've been trying mental
>> arithmetic, writing shorthand (look up 'Gregg shorthand' on
>> wikipedia), writing with my non-dominant hand, and trying to solve
>> hard math problems (or just exploring math, for instance, for which n
>> is 1!+2!+...+n! a square, or a cube, etc.). Bonus points if I can do
>> the exercise while looking like I am blankly staring off into space.
>>
>> Thanks in advance :)
>
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