State of Mind

In the Mathematics Department building, a conference room was set up as a defense meeting venue.

Three people sat down at a long table, forming the defense panel.

A DV camera with a Strong Force recording device will be set up at the defense venue to record and archive the entire defense.

Thesis defense is a very important and rigorous process. Yenching Big Mathematics Department of Mathematical Sciences does not allow any irregularities or falsifications. Diplomas from Yenching Big Mathematics Department must be genuine.

Shen Qi strode confidently into the defense session.

Momentum, momentum is very important.

Upon entering the room and closing the door, Shen Qi turned around and saw three experts staring directly at him.

The elderly man in the center has a kind face, and a nameplate on the table reads: Long Weihua.

Long Weihua is the Mathematics Department, the leader of the defense panel, and the chief defense professor.

With Director Long as the main examiner, Shen Qi was at least not flustered. He knew Director Long and had dealt with him several times.

The other two teachers, surnamed Ma and Xiong respectively, were both professors in the School of Mathematical Sciences. Shen Qi had heard of their names but had never met them in person.

The three professors on the defense panel, Longma and Xiong, were a very Strong Force combination.

Several of Shen Qi's most familiar teachers— Professor Sun, Professor Lu, and Professor Qu, who taught him Advanced Algebra, Mathematical Analysis, and Analytic Geometry —did not make it into the defense panel.

Shen Qi's dissertation was submitted to the defense panel last month. Long, Ma, and Xiong have twenty days to review the dissertation and prepare a question outline.

All three defense committee members hold senior professional titles, which meets the requirements for thesis defense.

"Shen Qi, please introduce yourself first." Director Long presided over the defense meeting, a very standard opening remark.

"Okay." Shen Qi wore a suit today, as he attached great importance to this defense and entered in the most formal attire a man could wear.

The first part of the defense was the self-introduction of the candidate. Shen Qi straightened his suit, his demeanor was generous and his attitude was calm. With a smile, he said in a clear voice, "Good morning, esteemed professors! I am Shen Qi, a first-year student in the Mathematics Department. In high school, I won the IMO and CPhO championships, achieved a perfect score in the college entrance examination, and published a mathematics paper in the <Mathematical Innovation Herald>."

"Since enrolling at Yenching University, I have achieved certain academic results. Of the eight courses I have completed, I received full marks in seven and 97 in one. I have also published a total of six mathematics papers in national core journals such as the * Mathematical Herald * and the * Journal of Mathematical Research *, including four Chinese core journal papers and one SCI paper."

"At the same time, I volunteered to serve as the class monitor of the Mathematics Department. In my daily studies and life, I was able to unite my classmates, respect my teachers, and actively participate in various activities within the college and the university."

"Learning has no end. Today, I boldly submit my application to defend my undergraduate thesis, simply to strive for further progress and forge ahead on the path of mathematics. That concludes my introduction. Thank you."

Shen Qi's self-introduction was concise, powerful, confident, and fluent. Within two minutes, he expressed his main characteristics and achievements in a realistic and unpretentious manner.

The three examiners nodded, indicating that this step had been successfully completed. Shen Qi's language expression skills were strong, and there were no problems.

Chinese language experience points +1

The system displayed a message.

Delivering a competent speech in important situations can increase your Chinese language experience points.

"Alright, now we will proceed to the respondent's presentation. Shen Qi, please finish your presentation within 15 minutes." Director Long gestured for him to proceed.

Now we're getting to the point.

A good self-introduction might earn you some extra points in the first impression.

From the moment the respondent begins their presentation, their performance on the spot is directly linked to their academic score.

This step is crucial. Within a limited time, Shen Qi must clearly articulate the key elements of his thesis, including its background, core content, viewpoints, and value proposition, using a measured pace and clear pronunciation.

Simply reading the paper aloud is definitely not enough. Shen Qi's final draft of the paper was 24 pages long, which couldn't be read in 15 minutes. Moreover, reading the mathematical formulas was more difficult than reciting tongue twisters.

The problem is that simply reading from a paper is so low-class and has absolutely no class.

True masters give speeches without notes, speaking spontaneously.

Shen Qi brought a paper, placed it on the table, looked at the three examiners, and began his presentation. "The title of my paper is 'Analysis of Generalized Nonlinear Complementarity Problems with Linear Inequality Constraints,' and my advisor is Professor Sun Erxiong from the School of Mathematics."

"The research background is based on the generalized Jacobian matrix of a semi-smooth equation system composed of generalized complementarity problems, and analyzes the generalized nonlinear complementarity problem constrained by linear inequality."

"Director Long, Teacher Ma, Teacher Xiong, you are all authoritative experts in the industry, so I won't waste time and will get straight to the point."

"As we all know, the generalized nonlinear complementarity problem is a classic problem, and it has been studied since Newton's time."

"So, in the 21st century, is it still meaningful for us to continue studying this topic? What is its significance?"

My answer is, it makes sense.

"After more than a semester of diligent study and continuous exploration, I constructed the problem into a semi-smooth system of equations, introduced the l2 norm of the equation system, and thus designed and described a new algorithm to solve the generalized nonlinear complementarity problem with inequality constraints."

"Therefore, my research is very meaningful, and I have provided a new algorithm."

"Seeking novelty is becoming increasingly difficult in contemporary Mathematics Community."

"But we must innovate, otherwise mathematics will die one day."

"Putting new wine in old bottles is also a form of innovation."

"Next, I will spend 10 to 11 minutes discussing my new wine. Yes, it's a good wine, not expensive, but powerful."

"The first issue to be discussed is the algorithm problem. Teachers can review page 5 of the paper, which covers the relevant properties of δf, the properties of the directional derivative, and the redefinition of semismoothness."

Shen Qi spoke fluently and eloquently, without pausing once in 15 minutes, demonstrating that he knew his own paper by heart.

Director Long, Teacher Ma, and Teacher Xiong each had a copy of Shen Qi's paper. They kept flipping through it, reading and listening, and unconsciously entered into the rhythm of Shen Qi's discourse.

This shows that Shen Qi spoke well; his lectures are quite engaging and can quickly get the audience into an academic state rather than a sleepy one. The defense committee members are also an audience, a special kind of audience.

In Shen Qi's defense statement, the most frequently used technical terms were semi-smooth equations, generalized nonlinear complementarity, local linearization approximation, and quadratic models.

In a discussion or speech, the central idea or core viewpoint is particularly important.

Skilled speakers will repeatedly emphasize a few core keywords, allowing the audience to naturally grasp the key points.

Shen Qi closely adhered to the topic and core keywords, delivering a fluent and logically coherent presentation during the respondent's statement.

The three examiners nodded repeatedly, agreeing that it made sense and was correct.

"In conclusion, that concludes my statement."

Shen Qi timed it perfectly, exactly 15 minutes, no more, no less; he had practiced this many times before.

"A very impressive presentation," Director Long praised.

"Thank you." Shen Qi maintained a smile throughout; a good start indeed.

"Would you like to rest for a few minutes and have some water, Shen Qi?" Director Long asked kindly. "Once we move on to the question and answer session, you will be required to answer immediately."