Math, Strategy, and Invincibility: Kickoff of “Marburg Does Math” at the Steinmühle
Eighteen math-enthusiastic and gifted students in grades 6 through 13 at Steinmühle High School recently discovered that mathematics is much more than just dry formula work. During the three-hour workshop, they delved deeply into the fascinating world of game theory and combinatorics—led by Prof. István Heckenberger (Department 12: Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Marburg) and math teacher Maximilian Moll.
Of Astonishing Strategies and Helpless Sheep
The afternoon focused on so-called deterministic games —games in which victory is not determined by luck of the roll but can be achieved through a mathematically perfect strategy. Among other things, the young people explored:
- NIM Games: How can you plan your victory from the very beginning by skillfully dividing matches into pairs and using binary numbers?
- Wolves vs. Sheep: Why can four wolves on a chessboard guarantee that they will surround the sheep by using a seamless “wall strategy”?
- Connect Four & Space Control: What mathematical principle lies behind the middle column, and how do the odds of winning change when you vary the number of columns?
In addition to strategy games, the focus was on phenomena such as non-transitive dice (dice that beat each other—similar to “Rock, Paper, Scissors”), the systematic counting of possibilities, and the mathematical search for unchanging properties (invariants).
What makes this group special is that the wide age range—from 6th grade to high school—proved to be a real asset: As they worked on complicated game strategies, the ideas of the younger and older students complemented each other.
Kickoff for Additional Workshops at Other High Schools in Marburg
The afternoon marked the successful kickoff of the “Marburg Does Math” workshop series—a joint initiative of the Central Hesse Student Research Center (SFM) in cooperation with Department 12 at Philipps University of Marburg.
The goal of the series is to bring together math enthusiasts from the region and give them insights into topics that go far beyond the standard school curriculum. Additional events at other high schools in Marburg and at the university are already being planned.
If you have any questions or are interested in the upcoming workshops, please feel free to contact Prof. István Heckenberger and Maximilian Moll.
(Maximilian Moll / Photo: Wikimedia)
