Chapter 151 - 149: Reject My Paper
Inside the lecture hall, Enrico Bombieri’s words left everyone stunned.
But it didn’t take long for people to realize the implications.
Enrico Bombieri often served as a special reviewer for the *Mathematical Annals*.
And now he was asking this question...
Could Li Dong have submitted a paper to the *Mathematical Annals* related to Montgomery’s Conjecture?
In truth, directly questioning an author in public about the details of a paper before its official publication was a serious breach of academic protocol.
But Bombieri was shameless. He didn’t even mention the *Mathematical Annals*, nor did he reveal he was a reviewer.
Even if anyone guessed, who in this hall would dare to call him out on it?
The three heavyweights sitting in the front row—Arthur Penrose, Terence Tao, and Zhang Yitang—had also figured it out.
All three were absolute authorities in the modern field of analytic number theory.
Penrose and Terence Tao, in particular, exchanged a glance, each seeing the shock in the other’s eyes.
"So, Li Dong submitted a paper on Montgomery’s Conjecture on Association to the *Mathematical Annals*?"
"And not only was it not rejected outright, it was sent to Bombieri for review?"
Terence Tao took off his glasses and closed his eyes in deep thought.
He was a Fields Medalist. In terms of mathematical expertise and future potential, he was by no means inferior to Bombieri; he might even surpass him one day. Bombieri was simply older and of a higher generation.
’This paper must be something else...’
Terence Tao was inwardly stunned.
’Could it be... he actually managed to push past the |α|
Terence Tao had also conducted his own in-depth research into Montgomery’s Conjecture. He knew exactly how hopeless that great chasm felt.
Within the framework of existing mathematical tools, pushing that boundary was a nearly impossible task!
However, Terence Tao suddenly recalled the non-trivial zeros on the order of 10^23 that Li Dong had announced.
’If he’s working from such a massive data sample...’
’It’s certainly possible that he used statistical regularities within that data to uncover some hidden mathematical logic, thereby finding an entry point to breach the boundary!’
He now had a good idea of what Professor Bombelli was about to ask.
Sure enough, from the floor below the stage, Professor Bombelli’s voice rang out again.
"Mr. Li Dong."
"I have read a paper of yours..."
Professor Bombelli hesitated at this point. After all, professional ethics prevented him from disclosing any information about a paper under review.
Li Dong, however, was completely unfazed. Others might not dare to mention submitting to the *Mathematical Annals* for fear of the embarrassment of rejection, but he had no such fear.
His derivation process had been sound enough to get the Cyan Dragon Study Group back to normal, so there was definitely no problem with it.
So, he spoke up.
"Professor Bombelli, I did indeed submit a paper on Montgomery’s Conjecture to the *Mathematical Annals*."
Seeing that the author himself had spoken up, Bombieri no longer had any reservations.
"This paper cites data on non-trivial zeros on the order of 10^23."
"But with current computing power, without your unpublished iterative algorithm, other researchers cannot possibly reproduce data on this scale."
"Therefore, if you cannot disclose the algorithm used to calculate this data..."
"...the *Mathematical Annals* will almost certainly not accept the paper for publication."
The old professor was deeply conflicted.
On the one hand, he felt Li Dong’s decision to protect his core algorithm was perfectly justifiable. On the other, he couldn’t bear to see a paper worthy of a place in mathematical history get buried due to the journal’s rules on data reproducibility.
As Bombieri finished speaking, a low murmur of discussion once again rippled through the audience.
This was especially true for the group of professors in the fourth row, led by Zhou Shenzhi.
They didn’t actually know what Li Dong’s paper on Montgomery’s Conjecture contained, and they remained skeptical of its authenticity.
But Professor Bombelli’s words played right into their hands!
’If you want to be published in a top journal like the *Mathematical Annals*—the holy grail of mathematics—you have to make your algorithm public!’
They refused to believe that any mathematician in the world could resist the allure of the *Mathematical Annals*.
And so, Zhou Shenzhi and his cohort began to relax.
They looked at Li Dong on the stage, a mocking glint in their eyes.
’You want to keep it a secret? Go on, then. Let’s see you keep it secret now!’
On the stage, Li Dong was also momentarily taken aback by Professor Bombelli’s words.
He had only ever submitted to one journal before, so he hadn’t really paid much attention to this so-called "data reproducibility" rule of top international publications.
Li Dong subconsciously looked towards Liu Ruochuan in the front row.
Liu Ruochuan’s expression was grim. Meeting Li Dong’s gaze, he gritted his teeth and nodded.
Seeing Liu Ruochuan nod, Zhou Shenzhi also stood up to speak.
"Li Dong, these top international journals do indeed have such rules."
"If other researchers can’t reproduce the data required to validate your paper, the editorial board can’t accept it. This is a matter of academic rigor."
Hearing Zhou Shenzhi’s "kind" explanation, Li Dong simply laughed.
He really, truly wanted to thank this Professor Zhou.
Because Zhou Shenzhi’s words had just made everything click into place for Li Dong.
’Hold on. The non-trivial zeros on the order of 10^23 in my paper aren’t the data required for the proof...’
Back then, he had used an "experience card" from Newton to forcibly locate the hidden mathematical patterns within that sea of data on the zeros.
It was through these patterns that he found the entry point for extending the boundary of Montgomery’s Conjecture.
However!
Once he had successfully pushed back that boundary using rigorous mathematical logic, Functional Analysis, and a Fourier optimization framework...
...that pile of data on the non-trivial zeros was actually no longer important!
It was like a huge maze.
The patterns within the data on the non-trivial zeros were like a helicopter, lifting Li Dong into the sky and giving him a god’s-eye view of the maze’s correct path and exit.
But what he wrote in his paper wasn’t the scenery he saw from the helicopter. What he wrote was the path itself—the one he traced step-by-step after returning to the ground, using rigorous mathematical logic and Functional Analysis to map the correct route from entrance to exit.
Now the blueprint was complete, and the path was mathematically self-consistent.
To verify if the path was correct, others only needed to follow the logical derivation he had written. What need was there for the helicopter anymore?
One could use the helicopter to find the entry point, but someone else could just as easily have a flash of insight and discover it on their own to begin the derivation.
Therefore, in his paper, the 10^23 data on the zeros was merely one method for verifying the result—and not the only one at that!
As this realization dawned on him, Li Dong’s smile grew even wider.
He looked at Zhou Shenzhi in the fourth row and said very sincerely.
"Thank you, Professor Zhou."
Zhou Shenzhi was stunned.
’Thank me? What for?’
However, Li Dong paid no mind to Zhou Shenzhi’s bewilderment.
He turned his head and looked down at Professor Enrico Bombieri, whose face was a mask of conflict and regret.
The young man’s voice was calm and unhurried.
"Professor Bombelli."
Li Dong spoke softly into the microphone.
"In that case, please inform the editors of the *Mathematical Annals* that they should reject my paper."