[Mission accomplished]
[Condition: Spend the entire day at the library until your first thesis draft is completed.]
[Reward: 50 points]
It had been a busy week. At the same time, my phone rang.
- Good morning, Mr. Steve.
- Good morning, who is this?
- Alexandre, the cybersecurity manager at X. Since you didn't respond to our emails last week, we took the liberty of finding your phone number.
- Yes, sorry about that. I was focused on my studies.
- What! You're still a student!?
- Yes, is there a problem?
- No, no problem at all. I wanted to propose a meeting to discuss the email you sent us. I suggest either coming to our headquarters, an all-expenses-paid trip, of course, or a video conference.
- I'll need some time to get back to you.
- Of course, you can call me on this number or send me an email. Have a good day.
- Thank you, you too.
I felt relieved at the end of the call, fearing they might not have taken my call seriously. Now, all I had to do was find a lawyer to handle this. It was easy to find a law firm since we were in the capital. After talking to them on the phone and explaining the situation, they were more than eager to handle the negotiations. I didn't even have to attend in person. After settling all that, I headed back to the dormitory for some well-deserved rest. It had been a very productive but exhausting week.
Three days later, in the same dean's office, Amed looked at me with a slightly stern expression. We were not alone; there were two other people I didn't know.
The dean, with a hint of impatience on his face, spoke up: "Steve, allow me to introduce Professor Maria Lopez and Professor David Turner. They are two of our most qualified mathematicians here at the university."
I nodded politely in the direction of the professors.
Professor Maria Lopez, a middle-aged woman with a sharp gaze, spoke: "We have read your thesis on the general solution to the Syracuse conjecture. It's outstanding work, Steve. The thesis's argumentation is quite good, one could even say it's very good."
Professor David Turner, a graying-haired man, added: "Indeed, we were skeptical at first, but after reviewing your proofs, we are convinced of the validity of your solution. It's an exceptional achievement. However, one criticism I can offer is that the thesis format still has some issues."
The dean chimed in: "That's true, details such as vocabulary and citations are slightly inappropriate. I've already edited and corrected that for you; I've sent it to you by email. Being able to write this type of thesis in your first year is exceptional."
"Thank you for your encouragement," I replied.
"I advise you to submit it to a journal as soon as possible, and also post it on ArXiv. The journal will take some time to come out."