I Got an Omnipotent Brain

Lawrence had held the same thought for a long time.

’Classical music has stopped moving.’

Some might disagree.

Acoustics had grown more refined, and performance technique had advanced beyond anything comparable to the past. If a professional performer from two hundred years ago were transported to the present, he doubted they would even make it to the finals of an international competition.

The tens of thousands of hours of training built up since childhood were a privilege that past performers had never enjoyed.

Beyond that, in every respect, from instrument making to recording technology, one could say with certainty that the present was the greatest period in the history of classical music.

Yet what about the music actually played on stage?

Still Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Mahler.

Nearly every major orchestra played the works of these composers. The core programs of competitions were also pieces by composers from centuries ago.

Of course, one could not say that was wrong. They were great, and they remained figures worthy of respect. But when faced with the question, ’Is it really desirable that they are becoming the final destination of classical music?’, he could only shake his head.

After the twentieth century, music theory had evolved dazzlingly.

Tonality was dismantled, rhythm was subdivided, and even timbre, that identity of the performer, was now scientifically analyzed.

Probability (Stochastic), algorithms, electronic acoustics, spectral theory, microtonality.

Music had now stepped beyond the era when it was a product of the senses alone and had come to possess a far wider range of choices.

’So use it properly!’

That was what he wanted to shout at modern classical composers.

They had abandoned the public far too easily. Whenever he saw people who wore the word ”difficult” like a badge of honor, he could only sigh.

No wonder orchestras kept returning to the masterpieces of the past. At least they could offer audiences safe emotional moments in place of boredom.

He looked at Seo-ha, who was in conversation with Gyeo-ul.

A mathematician and a composer.

The bond between these two disciplines ran deep throughout history. Without going all the way back to Bach, there were plenty of examples of mathematicians who had turned toward music, like Iannis Xenakis and Olivier Messiaen.

”The New York Phil would be best after all, wouldn’t it?”

Lawrence made up his mind that Seo-ha’s composition had to be premiered on a truly grand stage.

Symmetry, transformation, sequence, inversion, reflection.

All techniques that music had accumulated since the twentieth century.

Would it feel like this if Bach had come back to life? Seo-ha had realized these elements in the most refined way one could imagine.

’Finally.’

His music did not reject the past, yet it looked thoroughly toward the future. With the addition of a second movement, it now possessed musical narrative, emotional resonance, and even mass appeal.

Lawrence felt as though, for the first time, he had heard the correct answer to a question he had been waiting decades to have answered.

* * *

Christmas, and the year-end season, had arrived once again.

”Oh my! Where did this one come from?”

Mi-young was laying out cards one by one on the table.

They were old-fashioned invitations embroidered with gold leaf.

[New England Korean Association]

[Boston Association of Scientists and Engineers]

[Writers’ Night]

[MIT President’s Year-End Reception]

[Ivy League Joint Year-End Salon]

[Math Night]

Seo-ha was being summoned from every direction.

The interest from the Korean Association in particular was especially strong.

Year-end and new year events, scholarship ceremonies, youth mentoring discussions, the stream of people wanting to meet Seo-ha in person at least once never ceased.

Of course, Mi-young and Chul-ho politely declined on the grounds that Seo-ha was still a minor.

”Seo-ha, do you have any plans for the year-end?”

”Hmm....”

Seo-ha was decorating the Christmas tree with his little sister.

”Oppa, this one is so pretty!”

”Yeah! Give it here.”

Seo-ha took the ornament Seo-eun handed him and carefully hung it on the tree.

Seo-eun placed a small star on the very top last. When Chul-ho flipped the electrical switch, the tree lit up sparkling.

”Now Santa will be able to find us!”

Just looking at it seemed to delight her; Seo-eun giggled and ran around the house.

”Where are you going, Mom?”

Mi-young’s eyes had been fixed on one card for a while now.

’Writers’ Night.’

Regardless of whether the author was domestic or international, invitations only went out to writers whose sales had passed a certain threshold.

”Do you want to go?”

”Oh... no, who am I to...”

It was the only invitation among all the cards that had come addressed in her own name.

Mi-young quickly turned her head away.

”You should go. I’ll play with Seo-eun.”

”Is that really okay?”

”It’s the end of the year. You and Dad should have at least one engagement.”

When had he grown up like this?

Mi-young gently stroked Seo-ha’s head.

”Can’t I go?”

Seo-eun, who had been running around wildly, asked with sparkling eyes.

Seo-ha wanted to give his parents a year-end break.

”Seo-eun, let’s go somewhere else with oppa.”

”Where?”

”Where would you like to go? Seo-eun, you pick.”

Shhhk-

More than ten cards were spread out across the table.

Most were math-related events, but he had heard that quite a few people brought their children along. His little sister might even be able to make friends there.

”I want this one!”

Seo-eun picked up a card.

”Huh?”

Seo-ha opened the envelope with a look of surprise.

* * *

’Math Night’ was a year-end event hosted by the MIT Department of Mathematics.

A gathering where students, faculty, and outside invitees all came together to close out the year.

It was meant to be a time for enjoying light refreshments, sharing ongoing research, and exchanging new ideas, but this year the atmosphere was quite different.

”Is Seo-ha really coming?”

”He hardly networks, you know.”

”That’s why it’s a huge deal. If you get close to him, it might help you out down the line, right?”

Talk about Seo-ha could be heard everywhere in the hallways.

To incoming freshmen in particular, Seo-ha had come to be regarded as a near-legendary figure. It was no coincidence that the competition for MIT’s math department had been unusually fierce this year.

When Seo-ha arrived at the venue, he was holding Seo-eun’s hand tightly.

Seo-eun wore a pure white dress with a small daisy flower pinned in her hair. It was an outfit Mi-young had carefully prepared for her.

”Oppa, there are so many people here!”

Seo-eun looked around.

The math department had prepared an event more than twice the usual size this year.

The reason was simple.

There were simply too many achievements they wanted to show off to the outside world. Under Dean Whitman’s leadership, invitations had been scattered in all directions. The result was today’s massive event.

”Ah! That’s oppa!”

When Seo-ha saw it, he clutched his head.

Dean Whitman’s enthusiasm seemed to have gone a bit overboard. The year’s achievements by the math department had been organized and hung along the walls.

At the most prominent spot in the center, beside Seo-ha’s photograph, were large bold words.

’Proof of Smale’s Problems’, ’Proof of Minimum Energy Theory’.

”Right.”

Seo-ha smiled awkwardly and turned his gaze away.

”Hungry?”

”Yes!”

Befitting an event with a large budget, the venue had proper food prepared. Seo-ha sat his sister on a chair and went to fetch food.

”Huh?”

Seo-eun leaned over and peered under the chair. The chair was so tall her feet did not reach the floor.

She began swinging her legs and singing a song.

”My feet don’t touch, floating like a cloud. Eating cake with oppa, nom nom-”

To Seo-eun, this place was a splendid other world.

A glamorous hall, sparkling lights, people dressed in pretty clothes, and a place filled with delicious food. Above all, she liked that everyone’s attention was fixed on her older brother.

”Look over there! Yu Seo-ha is here.”

”He really is. Should we get his autograph or something?”

Seo-eun pretended to look elsewhere while perking up her ears to listen in on people’s conversations. Her shoulders puffed up a little without her meaning to.

”Eat this.”

Clink.

Seo-ha set down a plate.

A drink in a small cup and a strawberry cake. He hadn’t forgotten the chocolate chip cookies Seo-eun loved, either.

Seo-eun took a bite of a cookie and put a piece of cake in her mouth.

”It’s yummy!”

Seo-eun made a happy face.

Seo-ha was too busy greeting people who kept approaching him. Su-jeong, noticing that he was occupied, had already come over and was playing with Seo-eun.

”Unnie, your dress is so pretty!”

”Thank you.”

Su-jeong, who had put on a specially tailored pink dress just for today, covered her mouth and laughed.

”Ahem, ahem.”

When Whitman’s voice came through, the hall fell silent.

People turned their attention one by one toward the stage.

”Thank you all for attending.”

He smiled and looked around the hall.

”This year, the MIT Mathematics Department has had a truly remarkable year. Honestly speaking, I can confidently say that the achievements of our faculty and students this year have been the greatest during my tenure.”

Clap, clap, clap!

Applause broke out.

”Of course, there have been years in the past when we produced Fields Prize laureates, and years when important papers were published. But never before has the world paid attention to our department the way it has this year.”

He paused for a moment and gestured toward the wall.

”Smale’s Problems. Minimum Energy Theory.

Two enormous open problems have been solved in our department. The engineering schools are now lined up, competing with one another to collaborate with us.”

Ha ha ha!

Laughter rose, and applause burst out once again.

Pride filled the faces of both new students and returning ones. Since Seo-ha’s admission, the mathematics department was truly in the midst of its golden age.

Researchers, stimulated by Seo-ha, had been pouring out high-quality papers.

External research and joint project proposals had increased noticeably.

At information sessions for prospective students, more students had flocked to the math department than to any other.

Whitman made no attempt to hide any of this.

”We are living through a very rare period. Currents like this do not come about by chance. They are only possible when people, environment, and courage all align.”

His gaze turned to Seo-ha.

”You might ask what courage has to do with being a mathematician, but taking on an open problem requires tremendous courage.

In that sense, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce the most courageous mathematicians of this past year.”

Everyone turned to look at one person.

”Yu Seo-ha, and Team Apex.”

Clap, clap, clap!

Theo, Sri, and Su-jeong followed Seo-ha onto the platform with awkward steps.

Whitman shook each of their hands in turn, then handed the microphone to Seo-ha.

”It’s an honor. Thank you very much.”

He bowed deeply.

Looking out, he saw countless mathematicians gathered together.

Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, and even scholars from as far as Oxford and Cambridge were among the faces.

It was almost like the 1900 International Congress of Mathematicians in Paris he had only seen in photographs.

On impulse, Seo-ha spoke these words into the microphone.

”We must know. And we will know.”

Ha ha ha!

David Hilbert’s famous line.

Everyone must have had the same thought, because laughter erupted from here and there.

To mathematicians, Seo-ha was a mysterious being.

Ever since he had proved the Minimum Energy Theory, people had been saying that even Gauss or Pascal at the same age paled in comparison.

Above all, there was no open problem he had taken on and failed to solve so far.

So everyone had naturally come to harbor expectations.

’Could it be that he’s going to take on the Millennium Prize Problems? If it’s Seo-ha, couldn’t he solve even those notorious problems?’

That kind of atmosphere could be felt throughout the entire hall.

Seo-ha gave a few formulaic remarks and was about to step down. At that moment, one mathematician in the back called out loudly.

”Have you decided on the next open problem you’ll tackle?”

Seo-ha, who had been stepping off the stage, flinched and came to a halt.

He exchanged glances in turn with Theo, Sri, and Su-jeong. Theo, his face set firm, nodded.

Step, step.

Seo-ha walked back to the platform and stood before the microphone.

”The Riemann Hypothesis.”

For a moment, the hall went silent.

”So, like I said at the start.”

Seo-ha smiled broadly.

”We must know. And we will know.”

An old professor sitting in the front row slowly rose from his seat. He looked at Whitman and nodded.

”He is certainly the most courageous mathematician.”

Clap, clap-

His applause became the signal.

Clap clap clap clap!

”Incredible!”

”If it’s you, you can do it!”

Applause and cheers burst out explosively.

And so, Seo-ha and Team Apex officially threw down a challenge to the most famous open problem in history.