Community Corner
PHHS Math Team's Top Scorers
A love of math and a competitive spirit drives these mathematicians to success.
Whiz Kids Names: Jesse Chang, Rahul Manne, Howard Chien, Kush Chandra, Anji Zhao
Whiz Kids Ages: 9th - 12th Graders
Whiz Kids School: Parsippany Hills High School
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Accomplishment: Placed in the Top 20 in two recent mathmatical competitions.
A love of math, a desire to share a common interest among peers and the thrill of a challenge has led the Parsippany Hills High School's Math Team to rank among the top 20 in two recent mathematical competitions.
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In December, the team competed in the 2010 Ciphering Time Trials, a national mathematics contest in which the students individually had three minutes to solve three problems in ten rounds. The problems ranged in difficulty and topics. Sophomore Rahul Manne, was PHHS top scorer and helped the team place 19th among all competing high schools in the nation and international competitors from as far away as Singapore.
Most recently, the math team competed in the 2011 Four-by-Four Competition, which offered a similar contest format but problems were solved in teams of four. With the help of the top four scorers, Anji Zhao, Howard Chien, Kush Chandra and Rahul Manne, the team placed 12th overall and 2nd in New Jersey.
According to Math Team Advisor, Eric Berkowitz, "These tests are not easy, the problems are a cut above what they would normally see in class and tough to complete in just 3 minutes. There is no questioning the caliber of Parsippany Hills High School's math team.”
When asked what he likes most about being on the Math Team, Co-President and Senior Jesse Chang said "It is a nice social gathering and an opportunity to share a common interest in mathematics with others, not to mention that it's fun to compete against peers on a national and international level."
Anji Zhao, added "The team offers a fun spin on math, you get to work together and solve problems you just don't get to do in class."
The students are now getting ready for their next big challenge, the 2011 Collaborative Problem-Solving Contest, on which the entire school can collaborate for one week, doing research or applying technology to solve the problems.
