Behind the long conference table in the presentation room sat the five judges for the global finals of the Physics Division of the Qiu Chengtong Middle School Science Award.
"Honorable judges, I am Li Dong from Jiangcheng Sixth Middle School, and this is my mentor, Chen Ke." Li Dong gave a composed bow.
He took a moment to glance over the five judges.
Although the judging panel for the finals was prestigious, there were three in particular who caught Li Dong’s attention.
The first, of course, was the greatest living figure in the world of Chinese mathematics: Mr. Qiu Chengtong.
He was the first ethnic Chinese mathematician to win the Fields Medal.
He had a warm smile and seemed quite amiable.
Next to him was another judge wearing glasses.
The nameplate read: Su Qiwang.
Seeing the name, Li Dong felt a stir of recognition.
’The chaired professor of the Department of Applied Mathematics at Brown University, and the editor-in-chief of *Mathematics of Computation*!’
This was the very heavyweight who had personally written the sentence that thrust Li Dong into the center of a storm in the global computational mathematics community: "This is far more than a quantitative leap in the calculation of zeros; it is a complete and thorough subversion of the fundamental algorithm."
Li Dong was incredibly curious about this benefactor whom he had never met.
And the third person who drew Li Dong’s particular attention was an old man who was glaring at him.
Li Dong could only smile wryly to himself about the reason for the glare.
’Dean Gao, my hands were tied! I didn’t come here to pick on high schoolers on purpose.’
’Gao Yuanlin was one of the good-tempered ones, and even he was upset. A university student from his school was participating in a high school competition—it was a complete loss of face. Didn’t he see Professor Gao from Shuimu University next to him struggling to hold back a laugh?’
Just then, Elder Qiu’s voice rang out.
"You may begin whenever you are ready."
Li Dong collected his thoughts and began his presentation.
"Honorable judges, my topic for today is ’Phase Transition in Mechanical Systems: Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking and Hysteresis Loops Induced by Rotation.’"
"Phase transitions, the abrupt changes in the state of matter, have always been a core area of research in condensed matter physics."
"However, microscopic phase transitions are often too abstract."
"This study constructs a dynamical system consisting of a rotating loop and a small ball..."
As he spoke, Li Dong activated the servo motor on the demonstration table.
As the motor’s rotational speed gradually increased, the small ball inside the acrylic ring—caught in a competition between centrifugal potential energy and gravitational potential energy—suddenly broke its equilibrium at a critical speed and shifted away from the bottom.
"We artificially introduced a slight eccentricity to the axis of rotation, breaking the system’s explicit symmetry."
"This is equivalent to the effect of an external field in a thermodynamic phase transition."
"The experimental data shows that the critical rotational speeds at which the ball’s state changes abruptly do not coincide during acceleration and deceleration, thus forming a perfect mechanical Hysteresis Loop."
Li Dong’s explanation was both profound and easy to understand. He didn’t dwell on the Lagrangian dissipative equations, as there was no need to show off his skills; for the experts sitting before him, that was old hat.
Instead, he used the most intuitive physical model to demonstrate the mathematical isomorphism between the macroscopic mechanical system and a microscopic thermodynamic phase transition.
The entire presentation was kept to around ten minutes—concise and to the point, without a single wasted word.
The judges nodded repeatedly as they listened. Writing a research paper is important, but it’s even more important to make others understand what you actually accomplished.
Thus, the upcoming Q&A session was the main event.
Sure enough, Professor Gao Yunfeng from Shuimu University was the first to ask a question.
"Li Dong, your mechanical isomorphism model is quite ingenious." Professor Gao Yunfeng nodded repeatedly as he flipped through the paper in his hands.
In truth, the paper’s depth was nothing extraordinary, but it had genuinely identified a critical industrial pain point.
"You mentioned in your paper that this system’s abrupt state transitions, combined with its Hysteresis Loop properties, could be adapted into high-sensitivity tachometers and vibration sensors."
"Could you elaborate on that?"
Li Dong smiled to himself when he heard the question.
’This isn’t me just talking big. This is an industrial pain point that the master, Newton, personally complained about!’
[Isaac Newton]: ???
Li Dong’s expression remained unchanged as he spoke with fluent confidence.
"Professor Gao, traditional high-precision photoelectric tachometers are extremely prone to failure in harsh environments with strong electromagnetic interference and high levels of dust."
"But a purely mechanical system based on a Hysteresis Loop is different."
"Once the system is tuned near its critical speed, any minute, low-frequency fluctuation will trigger a massive jump in the ball’s deflection angle."
"This natural signal amplification property not only provides extreme resistance to interference, but it can also reduce manufacturing costs by over 90 percent, making it ideal for fault prediction in industrial motors."
Professor Gao Yunfeng nodded repeatedly, clearly satisfied with the answer.
Just then, Dean Gao Yuanlin of the Yan University School of Physics suddenly spoke up.
"Li Dong, since this model has such high practical value, have you considered applying for a patent for the design?"
Li Dong was taken aback.
’Apply for a patent?’
’He really hadn’t considered it.’
’While this system could certainly qualify for a utility model patent in the sensor industry, it would take a massive amount of time to generate test reports and work things out with a patent agency.’
’He wasn’t short on cash, and he had already accepted a consulting job with Huaxuan Technology. Who had time to fuss over a minor patent that wouldn’t make much money anyway?’
So, Li Dong straightened his back and declared with a solemn expression.
"Dean Gao, my purpose in pursuing this research was never to chase after fame and fortune!"
"I simply happened to observe this fascinating mechanical phenomenon in my daily life, and I wanted to completely uncover the physical principles hidden behind it!"
[Isaac Newton]: You observed it???
If anyone else had said that, the judges might not have believed it.
But coming from Li Dong, they actually believed it.
Because this young man didn’t need the prestige of the Qiu Prize to prove anything.
At that moment, even the gaze of Dean Gao Yuanlin, who had been glaring at Li Dong, softened considerably.
"Excellent! Truly not for fame or fortune," Professor Gao Yunfeng couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
Mr. Qiu Chengtong also revealed a gratified smile. He nodded and announced, "Alright, that concludes the presentation."
"Li Dong, your performance was outstanding."
Li Dong and Elder Chen were overjoyed. They quickly packed up their equipment, ready to bow and leave.
"Wait."
Just as Li Dong reached the door, Mr. Qiu Chengtong suddenly called out to him.
"Li Dong, please wait a moment."
"The official part of the competition is over. May I, in a personal capacity, ask you a question unrelated to the competition?"
Li Dong stopped, turned, and nodded.
"Of course, Mr. Qiu. Please, go ahead."
Elder Qiu looked at the young man before him, his eyes filled with curiosity.
"I have very carefully read your recent paper published in *Mathematics Computing* on the algorithm for the Riemann Zeta function."
"I would like to know."
"Why did you decide to research this particular topic?"
Every scholar who scales the peaks of science has an original motivation.
For example, Qiu Chengtong had spent half his life proving the Calabi Conjecture and constructing the Calabi-Yau Manifold in order to explore the geometric structure of the universe’s hidden dimensions.
Another example is Jiang Yubai, who is grinding away at automorphic representations to achieve a grand unification of mathematics under the vast blueprint of the Langlands Program.
And Elder Qiu was very eager to know: what was the original motivation of this young man who could subvert the fundamental Logic of Computational Mathematics?
Li Dong looked at Mr. Qiu Chengtong.
He knew this elder was a controversial figure, someone whose words could be blunt and merciless.
But from the bottom of his heart, Li Dong admired the old man.
An old man who, for the sake of the rise of mathematics in Huaxia, had returned to his homeland to establish mathematical centers. For decades, he had not taken a single cent in payment, even pouring his own prize money back into the cause. Such a man deserved anyone’s respect.
Li Dong fell silent for a moment.
’Besides upgrading the Group Leader’s authority, did he have any other goal?’
’Yes!’
Li Dong looked Elder Qiu straight in the eye and gave the simplest of answers.
"Because..."
"I just think it’s interesting."

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