350: Chapter 350: News Leak Causes Global Outcry

The news first spread from the Princeton School of Mathematics mailing list.

When arranging the itinerary, Prof. Fefferman's assistant sent the time and location of the lecture to several professors in the department, and then, unknown to anyone, it was forwarded to a wider mathematics mailing list.

Then, someone posted a screenshot of the email on Twitter.

Within less than a day, this news, which had yet to have any official announcement, had already spread rapidly through the global mathematics community.

"Is this real? Prof. Fefferman and Prof. Witten are going to Peking University together? Are they going to act as peer reviewers for Zhao Yang?"

"It's not just Prof. Fefferman and Prof. Witten. Faltings is going too. There are also several professors from Cambridge working in Algebraic Geometry asking in the group chat if there are any extra seats in Peking University."

"Is this the Beijing branch of the International Congress of Mathematicians or what?"

"If you could prove P vs NP, mathematicians from all over the world would fly over to listen to you. Who cares how many hours the flight takes?"

"Does anyone know how many people can fit in the lecture hall at Peking University? I'm afraid I won't be able to squeeze in."

"It's said to be the largest lecture hall in the School of Mathematics at Peking University, which can seat nearly two thousand people. But at this rate, two thousand seats probably won't even be enough for the professors coming. After all, there are hundreds of professors in Number Theory and Algebraic Geometry worldwide, not to mention those in Computer Science working on computational complexity theory, plus Doctoral Student. I suggest Peking University sets up live streaming equipment in the hallways in advance."

"I estimate Peking University will issue an announcement soon. I hope the arrangements will allow us to go and watch too."

"Prof. Fefferman, Prof. Witten, Faltings, Pierre Deligne... tsk tsk tsk, this lineup. The last time they were all gathered like this was at the International Congress of Mathematicians four years ago. Zhao Yang can pull all these people to Peking University with just one lecture; his influence in the mathematical world can no longer be described as simply 'big'."

"This isn't just about Zhao Yang's own influence; the charm of one of the seven Millennium Prize Problems is something no mathematician can ignore."

"Someone on Twitter said Perelman is also considering whether to come. Although this news hasn't been verified, if it's true—"

"Perelman? He didn't even go to accept the fields medal, and he didn't even want the million-dollar prize for the Poincaré Conjecture. If he really comes to Peking University to listen to Zhao Yang's lecture, then it can only be said that the weight of Zhao Yang's paper is so significant that even he cannot remain indifferent."

"By the way, the last time the mathematical community collectively migrated like this because of a paper must have been when Pierre Deligne proved the Weil conjectures. Before that, it was when Wiles gave his lecture on Fermat's Last Theorem at Cambridge. Now it's a Chinese person's turn to make mathematicians from all over the world fly to Peking University."

Pierre Deligne's office phone had been ringing constantly since the news spread. First, an old professor of Algebraic Geometry from the University of Chicago called to ask for the specific time of the lecture, saying he wanted to book a hotel in advance.

Then, several professors from the University of Bonn sent a joint email asking if they could reserve front-row seats. Eventually, Pierre Deligne had to have his assistant set up a dedicated public email address to uniformly reply to all questions regarding the lecture date, location, and accommodation suggestions.

Zhao Yang also received many emails inquiring about this lecture.

There were many people interested.

Shin-chan helped him compile a list, which included the names of mathematicians who had already confirmed they were coming; it had already exceeded two hundred people and was still increasing.

Zhao Yang arrived at President Wang's office at Peking University.

On President Wang's desk were several documents; the one on top was a summary of entry applications for foreign scholars just sent by the Foreign Affairs Office, a thick stack, with the list alone spanning several pages.

Professor Wang Wenyuan was sitting on the sofa. Several administrative staff members were sitting nearby.

Terence Tao had also come, sitting on a chair by the window, holding a cup of coffee.

"I believe everyone is clear on the situation."

President Wang took off his reading glasses and placed them on the table, his expression carrying a slight joy, his gaze sweeping over everyone present, lingering for a moment longer on Zhao Yang.

President Wang said with a smile.

"This lecture is no longer just a matter for our Peking University. The Ministry of Education called last night to ask, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also paying attention. Have you seen the list of scholars coming? There are several fields medal winners alone, plus members of national academies of sciences from various countries; the scale has already exceeded that of an ordinary academic lecture."

Such a high-level meeting was rarely held, even at Peking University!

President Wang was very happy!

"Regarding the venue, the largest lecture hall in the School of Mathematics can seat eighteen hundred people, which is more than enough for a typical international conference, but this time it will definitely not be enough."

Professor Wang Wenyuan turned to President Wang and said.

"In my opinion, we should use the school's Centennial Memorial Hall. That place can seat nearly two thousand people, has a large stage, and the blackboard is wide enough."

President Wang thought for a moment and shook his head: "The Centennial Memorial Hall is nice, but it's not just mathematicians coming this time. I heard from the Ministry of Education that there might be leaders attending. The security pressure will be immense. That place is ultimately still too small."

He turned to look at Zhao Yang and asked.

"Professor Zhao, what is your opinion? You are the main character, so the venue and scale must be decided by you."

Zhao Yang leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment: "Let's set the location at the Centennial Memorial Hall. The view from the front and back rows is good there, and two thousand seats are enough. In fact, there is not much point in having more; there might not even be two thousand people in the whole world who can understand it. Open a live stream simultaneously to give those who can't squeeze into the venue a way to watch. Regarding the security plan, don't ask me; do what needs to be done."

Terence Tao put down his coffee cup: "Besides the main lecture, you must at least set up a high-level discussion group. Prof. Fefferman, Prof. Witten, and the others flew halfway around the world to come here; they are definitely not the type of people who would be willing to leave just after hearing the main lecture."

"The discussion group can be held in that large conference room in the School of Mathematics. Only invite the peer reviewers and a few peers in relevant fields; do not set up an audience section."

Professor Wang Wenyuan interjected, then looked down at the draft schedule.

"As for the invitation list for the proceedings, the Foreign Affairs Office has already compiled a draft, which is still waiting for Professor Zhao to review."

An administrative teacher nearby turned the laptop in their hand around; the list on the screen was divided into two columns: international scholars and domestic scholars. Zhao Yang scrolled down the list; he already knew some of the names in advance. He scrolled to the end and saw a question mark after the four characters for "Perelman".

"Is there still no definite reply from Professor Perelman?"

"Currently, we have only received one extremely brief email from his personal inbox, the gist of which is 'time TBD'. We are not sure if he will come."

That administrative teacher explained.

President Wang took over the conversation: "Time is tight. The official announcement must be sent out today, otherwise, many procedures will be too late to process. The invitation letters for international scholars, visa support letters, and airport pickup arrangements all need to be scheduled in advance. Let's finalize those who have already confirmed on the list now, and follow up on Professor Perelman separately."