ITALIAN MENTAL CALCULATION CHAMPIONSHIP 2024
Genoa, Saturday 2 November 2024
Festival of Science
I.T.T.L. Nautico San Giorgio Auditorium
Old Port of Genoa
4 novembre 2024
HIC MANEBIMUS OPTIME
This year, the Italian Mental Calculation Championship moved to Genoa, within the wonderful Festival della Scienza. A happy choice, because – in addition to the Championship itself – it was also possible to hold various side events of a more divulgative nature.
Fifteen workshops, in which about a thousand young students from middle and high schools took part and which we organised in collaboration with Giorgio Dendi and Agnese Del Zozzo.
A talk on Playing and having fun with numbers with Dario De Toffoli, Furio Honsell and Michelangelo Sabatini, presented by Pino Rosolini and with a packed hall. Wow.
And then the actual Championship with a hundred or so finalists.
This year the test was more difficult, because last year in two they managed to make a perfect score. In the end, Domenico Mancuso from Turin prevailed again, albeit by a narrow margin, with 367/400, followed by young Samuele Stripoli from Bari with 361, who is now a reality more than a promise, and Michelangelo Sabatini from Narni with 358.
Each category prize went to:
Secondary Schools: Vittorio Sassano from Frosinone with 164
High Schools: Samuele Stripoli from Bari with 361 (2nd overall)
Senior: Alessandro Culatti Zilli from San Donà di Piave with 349 (4th overall)
Here you will find the complete ranking of the top 60 and of course the full test with all the solutions.
There was great interest in the afternoon’s scientific entertainment, with Agnese Del Zozzo passionately leading us into the world of mathematics education, making us understand why some people have a difficult approach to this subject. Then Fabio Chiarello introduced us to the mysterious world of quantum computing: some truly amazing surprises await us in the coming years. Furio Honsell and Silvia De Toffoli ranged between philosophy and mathematics, pointing out the importance of mathematical notations. Giorgio Dendi, as usual, brilliantly entertained us with his mathematical riddle games. And finally, a live interview managed by Domenico Mancuso with the world champion, 14-year-old Aaryan Shukla from India, who solved some calculations that really seem to go beyond human possibilities.
Here are the links to both the interview with Aaryan and the chat between Furio and Silvia.
All in all, a truly great experience, an amazing Festival that welcomed us in the best possible way, making us feel part of a fantastic team. Thank you very much to everyone.
If they still want us and if the conditions exist for a new edition, we feel like saying ‘Hic manebimus optime’.
WORKSHOPS
CONFERENCE
COMPETITION
GUESTS
AWARDS
25 September 2024
RULES
The rules of the Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2024 are available in PDF format in the menu on the left.
SCHEDULED EVENTS
INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS
29 – 30 – 31 October 2024
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Auditorium Galata Museo del Mare
Calata de Mari, 1 – Genoa
Play Mental Calculation with us
When doing maths is a fun pastime
Workshops organised by studiogiochi in collaboration with Giorgio Dendi
This is a workshop where calculators, computers and even abacuses are forbidden. The only tools allowed are the brain and our imagination, otherwise what kind of mental calculation would it be? But mind you: it is not merely a matter of learning an algorithm to be executed at speed. Rather, it is a matter of being able to identify the tactic that most quickly, and most reliably, leads us to the result, possibly by decomposing the question and choosing from the shortlist of algorithms one knows the one that, for that given situation, is the most efficient. There will be alternating sessions of explanation, in which facilitators will show the public tricks and shortcuts for doing the maths without even using pen and paper, and mini-tests lasting about ten minutes, in which they can put into practice what they have just learnt and, who knows, perhaps train for the next edition of the Italian Mental Calculus Championship, which this year is being held during the Science Festival!
Age: from 8 years old
CONFERENCE
1 November 2024
4:00 p.m.
Auditorium Galata Museo del Mare
Calata de Mari, 1 – Genoa
Playing and having fun with numbers
The whole truth about mental calculation
Meeting with Dario De Toffoli, Furio Honsell, Michelangelo Sabatini
That’s right: with numbers you can play and even have fun! We will try to demonstrate this by debunking the widespread prejudices about mental calculation: it is not arid, nor mechanical, nor serious; on the contrary, it is a true triumph of creativity based on mental flexibility. It will be astonishing to be able to solve various calculations without resorting to the usual boring, algorithms: and mind you, we will do this at all levels, from the most elementary up to operations that at first sight seem impossible. To top it off, we will also play with numbers together with many authors from the history of world literature, from Dante to Shakespeare, from Ionesco to Perec, from Buzzati to Dahl, from Joyce to Kafka. Could you tell?
Age: from 14 years
24 September 2024
PROGRAM
Saturday 2 November 2024
Auditorium Luigi Durand De La Penne
I.T.T.L. Nautico San Giorgio
Old Port, Calata Darsena building – Genoa
Prizes will be awarded with games and books for the first classified in each category.
10:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m.
Accreditation of participants
11:00 a.m.
Institutional greetings and introduction of the competition
11:40 a.m.
Start of the competition (80 minutes)
1:00 p.m.
Lunch break
2:30 p.m. -5:30 p.m.
Cultural entertainment programme for competitors and their companions, while a team will correct the tests:
2:30 p.m.
The thousand nuances of learning mathematics
Agnese Del Zozzo (University of Trento)
3:00 p.m.
Playing with quantum computing
Fabio Chiarello (Ist. of Photonics and Nanotechnology – IFN-CNR)
3:30 p.m.
Mathematical notations and their importance in reasoning
Silvia De Toffoli (IUSS Pavia) and Furio Honsell (University of Udine)
4:00 p.m.
Let’s calculate together with Aaryan Shukla
Aaryan is the World Champion of mental calculation and holds countless amazing records. He will be with us via video link, hosted by Domenico Mancuso, Italian Champion.
4:30 p.m.
Informatics: the playground of mathematics?
Fablab Unitrento
5:00 p.m.
Let’s play with mathematics
Giorgio Dendi (Mensa Italia)
Playful-mathematical-puzzle entertainment while waiting for the award ceremony.
5:30 p.m.
Award ceremony/party
with trophies, games and books for the winners:
10 September 2024
REGISTRATIONS
As of today, registration is officially open for the Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2024, which will take place on Saturday 2 November at 11 a.m. in Genoa as part of the Science Festival.
The competition venue is the new auditorium of the I.T.L. Nautico San Giorgio, at the Porto Antico.
The competition will last 80 minutes; during the correction of the papers, there will be scientific entertainment open to the public with speakers of national level (detailed programme by September); at the end, party/awards ceremony with trophies, games and books for the best classified in each category (absolute, middle school, high school, over 60) as well as the awarding of the titles of absolute and category Italian Champion.
We would like to remind you that registration is free and open to Italian citizens and residents in Italy, without distinction.
To register, each individual participant must fill in the registration form.
Registrations will be accepted in chronological order, subject to availability of places, and are considered effective upon receipt of a confirmation email.
Some places have been reserved for those who have qualified by right, based on performance in previous editions of the championship.
If for any reason, a participant is unable to attend the race, please notify the organisers as soon as possible.
INTERNAL SELECTIONS FOR SCHOOLS
Schools and institutes can participate by organising their own internal selections, using special tests provided by the championship organisation.
To join, please write to: calcolomentale@studiogiochi.com
The winners of the internal selections will be entitled to participate in the championship.
RELATED EVENTS
29, 30 and 31 October
Workshops on mental calculation in collaboration with Giorgio Dendi in which groups of students of all levels can participate, as well as individuals.
1 November
Public conference Playing and having fun with numbers, with Furio Honsell, Dario De Toffoli, Michelangelo Sabatini and Silvia De Toffoli.
HOTEL AGREEMENTS
Hotel agreements are announced directly by the Science Festival, follow the updates at: https://www.festivalscienza.it/info-utili
29 July 2024
It’s official!
The Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2024 will be held on Saturday 2 November in Genoa as part of the Festival of Science, by far the largest Italian science event, with over 200,000 visitors.
And there is important news!
Entries will be open in September, subject to a new announcement. The top finishers of the last editions will be contacted privately and will be entitled to participate.
We will also provide specially-made tests for schools that want to organise their own pre-selections.
All logistical details will be announced soon.
On Saturday 2 November, the actual Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2024 will take place, with 100 finalists taking part:
- online training test
- 80 minutes of competition
- during the correction of the papers, scientific entertainment open to the public with national level speakers
- party/awards ceremony with trophies, games and books for the best finishers in each category (overall, middle school, high school, over 60)
- awarding of the overall and category Italian Champion titles
On Friday 1 November there will be a public conference called Giocare e divertirsi con i numeri (Playing and having fun with numbers), with Furio Honsell, Dario De Toffoli, Michelangelo Sabatini, Silvia De Toffoli and others. With numbers you can play and have fun! We will try to demonstrate this by debunking the widespread prejudices about mental calculation; it is not dry, nor mechanical, nor serious; on the contrary, it is a true triumph of creativity based on mental flexibility. It will be surprising to be able to solve various calculations without resorting to the usual boring algorithms; at all levels, from the most elementary to the truly ‘impossible’. And we will also play with numbers together with many authors, from Dante to Shakespeare, Ionesco to Perec, Buzzati to Dahl, Joyce to Kafka.
From 24 to 31 October, some fifty workshops on mental calculation will be organised for students of all levels, as well as for individuals.
In terms of mathematical significance, Mental Calculus is not merely about learning an algorithm to be executed at speed. Rather, it is a matter of being able to identify the tactic that most quickly and reliably leads us to the result, possibly by decomposing the question and choosing from the shortlist of algorithms one knows the one that is most efficient for those values. Heuristics in identifying tactics is the most creative and least mental skill-related part, but it is absolutely necessary given the time constraints of the competition. Obviously, the mathematics of mental calculation is elementary, but it is very rich in artifices that often derive from polynomial manipulations. We therefore believe that Mental Calculus has both a pedagogical value and one of bringing young people closer to and orienting them towards mathematical-computational topics – cognitively different from that of strictly mathematical or computer-based competitions and olympiads. Mental Calculation is also a redemption of numerical literacy in the face of the computational torpor caused among our students by the indiscriminate use of calculators. More generally, Mental Calculation is a tool to sharpen rigorous thinking and educate a number-conscious citizenry in a society in which the citizen is increasingly crushed by a hypertrophy of data and their uncritically propagated analyses.
All the logistical details will be forthcoming.
2 July 2024
First press release
Finally the first news, albeit unofficial for now!
Keep free for Saturday 2 November.
We will be able to give you more precise news shortly, but we can anticipate that it will be a memorable edition, held in an exceptional setting!
Curious, eh?
But you must be patient a little longer.
In the meantime, start preparing with the 2024 training test.
ITALIAN MENTAL CALCULATION CHAMPIONSHIP 2023
Udine, Saturday 6 May 2023
Università degli Studi di Udine, Polo Economico-Giuridico
via Tomadini 30 – Aula 3M “Marzio Strassoldo”
8 May 2023
ONE CHAMPIONSHIP… TWO CHAMPIONS!
This year Mental Calculation enthusiasts met at the University of Udine on 6 May. A hundred finalists fought each other with calculations, shortcuts and lateral thinking on fifteen types of questions, each divided into three levels of difficulty.
A magnificent day made possible by the collaboration between us at studiogiochi and the synergies with our partners: University of Udine, AcegasApsAmga, Scuola Normale Superiore, Olimpiadi della Matematica and Mensa Italia.
After eighty minutes of testing, with an additional session in Cesenatico at the Olimpiadi della Matematica, the biggest surprise was crowning – not one, but well – TWO Italian Champions: the now infallible Domenico Mancuso (who reconfirms himself as Italian Champion also in edition 2023) and the ace Michelangelo Sabatini, who from the additional session in Cesenatico manages to reach the top of the standings and in turn become Italian Champion. Their performance is truly extraterrestrial: 400 points out of 400, no errors, a unique event since its origin in 2016! Third, with an equally stunning performance and 391 points out of 400, is Andrea Attili.
Among the high school students, awarded by Università degli Studi di Udine, the very young Samuel Stripoli from Bari prevailed with 353 points (who had won in the middle school category in the last edition).
However, the most surprising performance of the day was that of a middle school boy, in the AcegasApsAmga awarded category, Matteo Cappiello, who also took 6th place overall with his stratospheric score of 378.
Among the Over 60s, Antonella Fort from Arco established herself with an excellent score of 319.
In the photo gallery, the images of the event and the winners, and here the ranking of the top 50.
And while all those present awaited the results of the corrections, coordinated by Piero Modolo, the guests took turns on the stage, entertaining and intriguing those present.
The first two interventions by the University of Udine, Pietro De Poi with The eternal return of the same number and Alberto Policriti with What is an algorithm?; followed by Francesca Gagliardi and Sara Prapotnich of AcegasApsAmga, with How much does water count? and unsuspected curiosities about its management; finally Mensa Italia with a series of quizzes curated by Alberta Sestito and conducted by the engaging Giorgio Dendi.
A beautiful edition, and an always friendly and playful atmosphere. We are sure it was an unforgettable experience for those present, and we look forward to seeing you again next year!
Articolo pubblicato dal mensile Prisma – n. 53 giugno 2023
Articolo su Enigmistica24, supplemento del Sole 24 Ore del 2 giugno 2023
COMPETITION
GUESTS
AWARDS
7 April 2023
LIVE FINAL PROGRAM
Saturday 6 May 2023
Università degli Studi di Udine
Polo Economico-Giuridico, via Tomadini 30
Aula 3M “Marzio Strassoldo”
The winners of each category will be awarded.
10:00-11:00 am
Participants accreditation
11:00 am
Institutional greetings and presentation of the competition
11:40 am
Start of the competition (80 minutes)
1:00 pm
Lunch break
2:30-5:30 pm
Cultural and entertainment program for participants and companions, while a team will correct the tests:
2:30 pm
The eternal return of the same number
Pietro De Poi (University of Udine)
3:00 pm
What is an algorithm?
Alberto Policriti (University of Udine)
3:30 pm
How much does water COUNT?
Francesca Gagliardi and Sara Prapotnich
(AcegasApsAmga Networks Direction)
4:00 pm
Mind the quiz with Mensa Italia
curated by Alberta Sestito, presents Giorgo Dendi
Little competition based on verbal, logical and numerical quizzes to better train the mind and make it capable of facing the most difficult challenges; imagination and speed of resolution are required.
5:30
Award ceremony with trophies, games and books for the winners:
5 April 2023
COLLABORATION WITH “OLIMPIADI DELLA MATEMATICA”
We are pleased to announce the new collaboration with Olimpiadi della Matematica.
Thanks to their sensitivity, an extraordinary external session was set up to allow competitors and companions involved in the team competitions of the Olimpiadi della Matematica (Cesenatico, 5-6 May 2023) to also participate in the Italian Mental Calculation Championship.
The session will take place in Cesenatico at the same times as that of Udine; 15 slots are available, which can be filled in order of registration.
Anyone wishing to register, send an email to
calcolomentale@studiogiochi.com
and will then be contacted by Piero Modolo to possibly complete the registration and receive the details for participation.
27 March 2023
RULES
The Rules of the Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2023 is available in PDF format, in the menu on the left.
24 March 2023
REGISTRATIONS
From today it is possible to register for the Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2023, which will be held live in Udine on 6 May at the Polo Economico-Giuridico, via Tomadini 30 – Aula 3M “Marzio Strassoldo”.
We remind you that registration is free and open to all Italian citizens and to all residents of Italy, without any distinction.
To register, each individual participant must complete the registration form.
You can sign up until April 30, 2023.
Competition rules and schedule of the day soon.
INTERNAL SELECTIONS FOR SCHOOLS OR GROUPS
Schools or groups can independently organize internal selections, with the aim of spreading the practice of mental calculation and selecting the best students.
Starting in April, we will make dedicated tests available to all schools that request them. It is therefore sufficient for a representative of the school to contact us at calcolomentale@studiogiochi.com, informing us of the scheduled date for the internal selections. We will send you the tests in advance to print and use.
HOTEL AGREEMENTS
For any hotel needs, we report below the proposals of affiliated hotels in the vicinity of the competition venue.
Hotel Friuli
Special rates:
double room for single use – 70.40 euros with breakfast
double and/or twin room – 89.00 euros with breakfast
For reservations, quote studiogiochi / Calcolo Mentale
9 March 2023
First press release
We are pleased to announce that the next Italian Mental Calculation Championship will take place on 6th May 2023 in Udine, in collaboration with the University of Udine, Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa, AcegasApsAmga and Mensa Italia.
In the flyer below the very first information.
Anyone who wants to receive all the information as the details get finalized can send a short message to calcolomentale@studiogiochi.com and they will be added to the mailing list.
TRAINING TEST
The training test to prepare for the Mental Calculation Championship 2023 is available in PDF format, in the top left menu.
It is a facsimile of what will be proposed at the final on May 6, which will be similar, but not the same as the tests proposed in the past editions. In fact, in each edition, some new features are included.
The tests of the 2022 edition can be found here.
Tests of pre-2022 editions can be found here.
The test is one for all categories.
In each paragraph the questions are proposed in order of difficulty and it is not necessary to answer them all: everyone goes as far as they can answer. Broadly speaking, the questions with a WHITE background are accessible to everyone, those with a LIGHT PINK background already require a certain level of preparation and those with a DARK PINK background can only be solved by truly expert people.
So go as far as you can, the aim is to participate and have fun… not necessarily become champions.
Many of the problems proposed in the test may appear more difficult than they actually are, but in reality there are shortcuts that greatly simplify the solution.
All the possible shortcuts are dealt with in the volume Il grande libro del calcolo veloce e mentale (The great book of fast and mental calculation) by Dario De Toffoli, available in Italian bookstores in the Mondadori edition.
PREVIOUS EDITIONS
| 2022 | Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2022 |
Rome, April 2022 |
| 2020 | Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2020 Final |
Udine, October 2020 |
| 2020 | Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2020 Qualified selection |
online, September 2020 |
| 2019 | Italian Mental Calculation Championship 2019 | Udine, March 2019 |
| 2018 | 2nd Italian Mental Calculation Championship Kangourou | Cervia, May 2018 |
| 2017 | Kangourou Mental Calculation competition | Udine, December 2017 |
| 2017 | 1st Kangourou Mental Calculation Italian tournament | Cervia, May 2017 |
| 2016 | Kangourou Mental Calculation competition | Cervia, May 2016 |
HISTORY
The history of Mental Calculation in Italy was born a little by chance. In 2016 Angelo Lissoni invited Dario De Toffoli to give a small conference in Cervia, on the occasion of the finals of the mathematics competitions of Kangourou Italia, the association that every year makes almost 100,000 children play mathematics. De Toffoli tells something of the mental calculation, which he experienced in London during the Mind Sports Olympiad, the thing is interesting and immediately that same evening an impromptu contest is organized, among the general entertainment.
In 2017, again in Cervia, the first national tournament. A real party that celebrated the meeting of Mathematics with Playing: we played with numbers and we had fun. Furio Honsell underlined how much this practice can contribute to mental well-being, a real elixir for the mind that in the meantime trains itself to be more and more flexible.
From there to a real Italian Championship the step is short, it took place in Udine on the occasion of the Pi Greco 2018 festival, organized by the Italian Games Archive, always in collaboration with Kangourou Italia.
Another Udinese edition in 2019 (just before the pandemic) in which the Turin Domenico Mancuso prevails and again in 2020, this time with online selections and a small final in attendance, in which Mancuso manages to do an encore, confirming himself as the man to beat.
In 2022 new steps forward, the Championship arrives in Rome at the prestigious headquarters of the Luiss Guido Carli University. Over 400 competitors of all ages participated in the online selections and the best 100 competed at Luiss to win the title of Italian Champion. Mancuso has won again!
Category titles were also awarded for best middle school competitor, best high school competitor and best over 60s.
It was a beautiful and joyful party, where the playful spirit was accompanied by a healthy and stimulating competition. The day was enriched by a series of top-level speakers, who entertained competitors and companions in anticipation of the results.
PRESS REVIEW 2023
Articolo pubblicato dal mensile Prisma – n. 53 giugno 2023
La notizia è uscita anche su Enigmistica24, supplemento del Sole 24 Ore del 2 giugno 2023
PRESS REVIEW 2022
