CLC student earns perfect score in national math competition

Posted January 08, 2020 10:00 pm

College of Lake County Public Relations and Marketing

For how many different integers b is the polynomial x2 + bx + 16 factorable over the integers?

While many people are puzzled by this question, College of Lake County student Seth Thomason aces them. The Lindenhurst resident recently earned an impressive perfect score of 40 out of 40 in the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges Student Math League Competition. Thousands of community college students at 165 colleges across the country compete in this challenging math test. Thomason is currently tied with two others for the national champion title.

Excited to learn about his perfect score, Thomason studied for the big test with Jeff Mudrock, Ph.D., a CLC math instructor who coached him on difficult math problems. "Seth's score is the most outstanding mathematical accomplishment by a CLC student I have witnessed and one of the top achievements of its kind in the college's 50-year history," said Mudrock.

Thomason moves on to round two in March, where he will attempt to become the league's national champion. A 2019 graduate of Lakes Community High School and a computer science major, Thomason will graduate in May and transfer to either Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University or the University of Illinois. His career aspirations include programming and cybersecurity.

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