Manuel de León (ICMAT-CSIC) discussed various problems studied by professional mathematicians. Image: ICMAT.

On Thursday, 29 January, 30 students from Year 4 of Primary School to Year 1 of Secondary School from various educational centres in Madrid visited the Institute of Mathematical Sciences (ICMAT). During the activity, which took place from 5:15 pm to 7:00 pm, the young people were able to see first-hand the work of a mathematics research centre. To this end, Manuel de León, a researcher at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) at the ICMAT, gave a talk on research activity in mathematics. Beforehand, Ágata Timón, coordinator of the ICMAT’s Mathematical Culture Unit, had presented the centre and its staff. The students also took a tour of the ICMAT facilities. Finally, María Ángeles García-Ferrero, a CSIC researcher at the ICMAT, led the workshop ‘A mathematical look at superheroes’. The activity is part of the ICMAT’s mathematical culture programme.