A first-year student of the Faculty of Informatics and Computer Science of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute Illia Nalyvaiko has won one of the first prizes at the 32nd European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS).
“The six projects from Bulgaria, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Turkey, and Ukraine got the awards. Each winner receives € 7,000 for the projects in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and social sciences,” says the European Commission.
This year, 158 young scientists aged 14-20 from 34 countries took part in the competition. Participants presented 114 different projects evaluated by the International Scientific Jury. After a two-day online competition, the winners’ names were announced at a special ceremony at the University of Salamanca (Spain). Illia has won with his project on mathematics “Properties of possible counterexamples to Seymour's hypothesis of a second neighborhood”. Besides the award, he also had the opportunity to visit Europe's leading research laboratories.
Illia Nalyvaiko has entered Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute only this year. When he went to a Kamianets-Podilskyi school, he participated in competitions as a member of the Junior Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. He won prizes, so, as a result, he was chosen for the EUCYS.
The KP journalist talked to Illia.
- We congratulate you on the victory. Do you have the practical implementation of your development? How about your plans in science?
- My project concerns the theory of graphs, or more precisely, the unsolved problem in this mathematics section. It is about Seymour's hypothesis. It is the theory that I have advanced and thus narrowed the scope of further research. I will continue to work on this hypothesis and want to prove it. In general, I feel pleased with the competition. Moreover, I am happy that my work has been evaluated at such a high level. It motivates me to move forward. This innovation can be used primarily in the computer field and is likely to be used in business and logistics.
- And why mathematics? Who or what has influenced your choice in science?
- My parents did, and I adore them. They are math teachers - so I have been keen on this subject since childhood. They always and everywhere supported me, so I am deeply grateful to them. (From the editors. When we prepared the issue for publication, we found out, unfortunately, that Illia Nalyvaiko's father had passed away. The KP expresses its sincere condolences to Illia.)
- You are a first-year student. Why did you choose Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute?
- I chose among the leading universities and knew that every university would give the same high-level training. Therefore, I considered other factors while choosing: location, recommendations from friends or acquaintances who studied there. That's how my choice fell on Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute.
- What do you think about studying at the University? Is it tough? Are you disappointed?
- It's not complicated, but different, not like at school. It is necessary to make more efforts to study subjects. On the other hand, if you have a specific direction in which you are moving, you give it more time. I live in a dormitory and have three roommates. Still, I am satisfied with that. In a word - there are no reasons to get disappointed.