I Just Want to Be a Quiet Top Student

Shen Qi paced around the Pudong University campus, he walked very slowly, observing every plant and tree, passing pedestrians, and flying birds.

Puda covers an area of ​​2.4 square kilometers, just a little larger than half of Yanda.

Although the scale of enrollment has been expanded in recent years, the total number of undergraduates + postgraduates + doctoral students in Universities has not exceeded 8,000.

Regardless of the area or the number of students compared to other institutions, Universities can be regarded as a "pocket university".

However, this pocket university attracts the best students from all over the world, so it must have its uniqueness.

Ranking NO.1 in the United States is the golden sign of Puda.

The ratio of professors (non-ordinary lecturers) to students is 1:5.9, which is rare in the United States and rare in the world.

With fewer students and more professors, students can receive a better education, and professors have the time and energy to tutor students one-on-one.

What's more, among these professors, there are many winners of Nobel Prize, Philippine Prize, and MacArthur Scholar Award.

Walking downhill along Nassau Street, the Flintstone Library stands on the side of the road. This library has a collection of 8 million volumes and is the soul of Princeton.

The core of a university is its library. Shen Qi stood at the entrance of the Flint Library for a minute, paying attention, which is a respect for knowledge.

Moving on, Shen Qi saw the retro buildings with Gothic domed towers and columns in the ancient Greek cloister. ivy.

Princeton is a beautiful university, and the entire campus complex shows an ancient, solemn cultural atmosphere and historical atmosphere.

It is not as bustling and bustling as Boston, where Harvard and MIT are located, but it is a dream place for many students.

Shen Qi arrived at the postgraduate residential college, and he booked an apartment before coming to Puda.

Clean, tidy and bright, Shen Qi likes this apartment, and his favorite furniture is an old bookcase with a sense of age, although the cabinet is empty.

Shen Qi will spend three, five or more years filling up the bookcase. Of course he hopes to finish his studies and return to China as soon as possible. His concern is in the motherland.

Shen Qi used half a month to overcome the jet lag and get familiar with the environment on the Pudong University campus.

In this research university with a strong academic background, everyone seems to be very knowledgeable and talkative.

For example, Jack, the administrator of the postgraduate residential college, is a white uncle.

"Hey, Shen, you are a rich man." Jack said to Shen Qi.

"No, I'm not a rich man." Shen Qi shook his head, he was already familiar with Jack, he would chat with Jack every day as a newcomer, and get more familiar with every detail of Puda.

"But you don't have a girlfriend or family, and you live in an apartment," Jack said.

There are five residential colleges for undergraduates and one residential college for graduate students. There are generally two types of rooms, double/multiple suites, or apartments.

The accommodation fee of the apartment is twice that of the suite, and Shen Qi’s tuition and accommodation fees in the first year are not cheap, amounting to US$50,000.

The scholarship given by Universities and the US government was exactly 50,000 US dollars, what Shen Qi wanted was a quiet private space.

"I like to live in an apartment." Shen Qi said, and asked again: "Jack, today is September 1st, the fall admission day for graduate students. How can I enroll?"

"Who was your mentor?" Jack asked.

Shen Qi: "Professor Alan Mueller, Department of Mathematics."

"Then you go to Professor Alan Muller." Jack said as a matter of course.

"There is no entrance ceremony?"

"not at all."

"Well, thank you Jack, I know what to do."

Shen Qi walked towards the office building of the Department of Mathematics. There was no such thing as a counselor in this university. Whenever Shen Qi encountered a question that he didn’t understand, he would ask Jack, the administrator of the residential college, and Jack could often give reliable answers.

Luther Hall, here is the office building of the Department of Mathematics, a neo-Gothic building.

Before coming to PSU, Shen Qi was in awe of the Luther Hall. Any little old man who walked out of this building could be a famous mathematician.

In recent years, although some of the big cows in the Department of Mathematics of Princeton have retired and returned to China, there are still double-digit Philippine award winners teaching and doing research here.

After coming to Princeton for half a month, Shen Qi passed by the Luther Hall more than once, and saw the three Philippine Award winners with his own eyes.

Although Shen Qi met the winner of the Philippine Award, Shen Qi did not meet his mentor, Professor Muller.

Today, in an office in Luther Hall, Shen Qi finally had his first official meeting with his mentor.

"Hello, Professor Muller. I'm Shen Qi. Nice to meet you." Shen Qi had seen a picture of Muller on the Internet. The real person was similar to the photo, a thin old German man with white hair.

"Good morning, Shen, sign." This was the first sentence Mu Le said after seeing Shen Qi, and he handed Shen Qi a piece of paper.

What kind of rule is it to sign when you meet?

Shen Qi took the white paper and reviewed it carefully. It was the "Princeton Honor Code Guarantee".

The Honor Code Pledge reads: "I promise to refrain from plagiarism or other ethical violations with respect to all written assignments, exams, research projects, and academic papers while on campus."

Then there's the signature column.

Princeton school motto in Latin.

Beginning in 1893, every newly admitted student at Pudong University must sign a Princeton Honor Code Pledge, giving a written guarantee of his integrity.

Because of the existence of the "Honor Code", there are no invigilators in the various exams of Puda, and it all depends on the self-discipline and self-consciousness of the students.

Although there are no proctors, there are almost no students who cheat.

Once caught, the school will impose extremely severe penalties on students who cheat, plagiarize or violate other ethics, up to and including expulsion.

Shen Qi signed the letter of guarantee and handed it over to Professor Muller. This was the completion of the admission process for freshmen.

"Edward is not recruiting graduate students this year, and the graduate department has arranged for you to be my student. Are you willing, Shen?" Mueller asked.

The Edward Muller refers to is Edward Witten, the most authoritative expert in mathematical physics in the world today, and a winner of the Fields Medal.

Edward Witten was a physics student, and accidentally won the Fields Medal. This is his profile.

Shen Qi's one-way choice in the application documents was Wei Teng, and he wanted to be Wei Teng's student.

Unfortunately, Mr. Witten did not recruit graduate students this year, so Shen Qi became Mr. Muller's student.

People from all over the world have come here, so what if you don’t want to?

"Dear Professor Muller, your name is resounding in the world of mathematics. I am very willing to be your student and spend happy years with you." Shen Qi said.

Assimilating into a new environment, the first thing to do is to keep a low profile.

Shen Qi doesn't have a single friend in the United States, he needs to observe secretly and play by ear.

Don't install B easily unless it is absolutely necessary, because Shen Qi doesn't understand how Puda's B installation system works, and how is it different from domestic ones?

It takes time to get familiar with, to experience, to feel with your heart.

"Then which direction does your Depth choose?" Muller went straight to the point.

There are 18 research directions in the graduate department of the Mathematics Department of Pudong University. These days, no mathematician is proficient in all 18 research directions. Proficiency in more than two is considered a talent.

Fresh graduate students will choose one of the 18 directions as their Depth after discussing with their tutors.

Depth can be understood as the main direction of attack. In this main research direction, you must be profound, otherwise you will not be able to graduate.

"I choose mathematics and physics as my main research direction." Shen Qi has already decided on his depth, of course, it also has to be combined with the professional research direction of his tutor.

If the tutor is not proficient in mathematics and physics, you can choose Depth in vain.

Professor Muller has profound research strength in the fields of mathematical physics, number theory, algebraic geometry, group theory, etc., and has made outstanding research results... This is written on the official website of the Mathematics Department of Pudong University. Shen Qi has done homework before coming here. So this German old man is still an all-rounder in mathematics, but the biggest award he has won is the "German Science Progress Award", an award recognized in Germany.