In July, nearly 400 high-school students from 85 countries turned up to compete in the 37th International Physics Olympiad, which was held in Singapore. Around the same time in Bratislava, Slovakia, 135 students from 25 countries engaged in team “physics fights” at the 19th International Young Physicists’ Tournament (IYPT).
In total, olympiad contestants earned 37 gold, 49 silver, and 82 bronze medals. Indonesia’s Mailoa Jonathan Pradana earned the highest score, while China’s team was the only one to garner all gold medals.
The US team placed second, with Otis Chodosh of Edmond, Oklahoma; Menyoung Lee of McLean, Virginia; William Throwe of Wading River, New York; and Henry Tung of San Diego, California, earning golds, and Sherry Gong of San Juan, Puerto Rico, winning a silver. The US team was sponsored jointly by the American Institute of Physics and the American Association of Physics Teachers.
The teams from Brunei, Cambodia,...
