In November 2025, Maximilian Gorsky from the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group won the “IBS Researcher of the Year” award. Congratulations!
Maximilian Gorsky received the “IBS Researcher of the Year” award
Donggyu Kim (김동규) received the 15th S-OIL Excellent Dissertation Award (제15회 에쓰-오일 우수학위논문상) in Mathematics
On November 26, 2025, Donggyu Kim (김동규) received the 15th S-OIL Excellent Dissertation Award (제15회 우수학위논문상) in Mathematics from the S-OIL Science Prodigy and Culture Foundation (에쓰-오일 과학문화재단), the Korean University Presidents Association (한국대학총장협회), and the Korean Academy of Science and Technology (한국과학기술한림원). This annual award recognizes young scientists in the fields of mathematics, physics, chemistry, life science, chemical engineering/material engineering, and IT.
Donggyu Kim was a research student of the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group from July 2019 to February 2025, and received his Ph.D. from KAIST. He is currently at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Congratulations!
2025 Call for IBS Young Scientist Fellowship (Due December 5, 2025)
The IBS Discrete Mathematics Group has an opening for the 1 IBS Young Scientist Fellowship.
1. Introduction
With the vision of “Making discoveries for humanity and society,” the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) was founded in 2011 by the Korean government topromote basic science in Korea. To date, IBS operates 30 Research Centers which have been yielding outstanding results in various research fields.
The IBS started to select Young Scientist Fellow (YSF) in 2016 to play an active role in fostering the next generation of basic science leaders. This program offers young scientists opportunities to conduct independent research with state-of-the-art research infrastructure of the IBS and to grow on the basis of research collaborations with leading researchers.
We hope that the YSF program serves as a stepping stone for our researchers to mature into leading researchers in basic science.
2. Eligibility
- Within seven years of obtaining a Ph.D. (obtained no earlier than 1 January 2018) or under the age of 40 with a Ph.D. (born no earlier than 1 January 1985)
- Ph.D. candidates must be conferred with a Ph.D. degree no later than 30 June 2026.
3. Hiring Research Centers
Discrete Mathematics Group has an opening. Budget: Up to KRW 180 million per year.
For other centers and groups, please visit the IBS website https://www.ibs.re.kr/ysf/.
4. Benefits and Conditions
- Full-time work and 100% research participation in principle
– If successful candidates for the YSF are selected for other projects (e.g., Sejong Science Fellowship and Young Researcher Program of the National Research Foundation), their selection may be cancelled. During the research term, participating in other projects funded by sources outside the IBS are not allowed. - Annual fund of KRW 180–300 mil. (up to KRW 180 mil. for theoretical fields and up to KRW 300 mil. for experimental fields), including salary of KRW 60–70 mil.
- Appointment for three years with a possible two-year extension depending on the performance review results
* When current IBS researchers are selected as a YSF of their Center, support will be offered for up to three years. - YSFs will work at one of the IBS Centers and conduct independent research with research facilities and equipment of their Centers. They may organize small research groups.
– YSFs should prioritize using the advanced research infrastructure of their Centers in conducting research. Although they may construct research equipment and facilities within their budget, the construction scale and timing may be adjusted through review. - Successful candidates must be appointed and commence their research within 1 July – 16 December 2026
– If their appointment and research commencement are not completed within 1 July – 16 December 2026, their selection may be cancelled. - When the Center (PRC Group) to which a YSF group belongs is closed, the YSF group will also be closed in principle.
– Please refer to the FAQ for details.
5. Selection Process (The schedule may change depending on the circumstances of IBS.)
- First phase: Letter of intent (approx. three pages) acceptance and evaluation
- Submission deadline: 5 December 2025
- Review of each letter of intent by the director and the selection and evaluation panel concerned
- Invitation to submit full research proposals: January 2026
– Applicants who pass the first phase will be requested to submit an approx. 10-page full research proposal, up to three reference letters and presentation materials.
- Second phase: Full research proposal acceptance and in-depth evaluation by field
- Submission deadline: February 2026
- Review of each full proposal and reference letter by the director concerned
- Interview (on-site presentation) by the selection and evaluation panel concerned: March 2026
– If candidates reside abroad or have difficulty attending on site, the evaluation will be held via video conference.
- Third phase: Comprehensive evaluation and notification of the results
- Comprehensive evaluation by panel chairs
- Final selection and notification of the results: ~ June 2026
6. How to Apply: IBS website by 5 December 2025, 17:59(KST)
7. Inquiries
- Research Evaluation Team at ysf@ibs.re.kr
- IBS website at https://www.ibs.re.kr/ysf/juniorci
William Cook gave a public lecture in Seoul on the Traveling Salesman Problem
On October 22, 2025, William Cook from the University of Waterloo gave a public lecture on the traveling salesman problem at the ST Center, Seoul during the 2025 KMS Annual Meeting. The title of his talk was “The Traveling Salesman Problem: Package Deliveries, Pub Walks, and Astro Tours.” This public lecture was co-organized by the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group.
Welcome Jigang Choi (최지강), a new graduate student of the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group
The IBS Discrete Mathematics Group welcomes Jigang Choi (최지강), a new graduate student of the Discrete Mathematics Group from October 1, 2025. He received his B.S. degree from Hanyang University and entered the Department of Mathematical Sciences at KAIST as a graduate student on March 2025. His advisor is Jaehoon Kim (김재훈).
Upcoming Public Lecture: The Traveling Salesman Problem — Package Deliveries, Pub Walks, and Astro Tours on October 22, 2025 in Seoul near Gangnam Station
We are pleased to share an exciting public lecture as part of the 2025 Annual Meeting of the Korean Mathematical Society (KMS), featuring one of the world’s leading researchers in combinatorial optimization. This event is sponsored by the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group.
🧭 The Traveling Salesman Problem: Package Deliveries, Pub Walks, and Astro Tours
👤 Speaker: William Cook
🏛 Affiliation: Department of Combinatorics and Optimization, University of Waterloo
📅 Date: October 22, 2025 (Wednesday), 7:00 PM
📍 Venue: ST Center, Seoul (near Gangnam Station)
한국과학기술회관 B1, 과학기술컨벤션센터, 대회의실 2 (강남역 인근)
🗣 Language: English
🎟 Admission: Free of charge
🌍 About the Talk
The Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) asks a deceptively simple question:
What is the shortest possible route that visits a set of locations exactly once and returns to the starting point?
Despite its simplicity, the TSP is a cornerstone of combinatorial optimization and theoretical computer science, long considered difficult due to its computational complexity.
In this public lecture, William Cook, a leading authority on the TSP, will discuss:
- Modern algorithmic techniques capable of solving TSP instances with tens of thousands of stops
- Applications from package delivery to pub crawls and even space tours
- Real-world case studies, including optimization over 80,000 pubs in Korea and routes through over 100 million stars
The TSP remains a central example in complexity theory, showing how sustained mathematical effort can solve problems once deemed impossible.
👨🏫 About the Speaker
William Cook is a professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo and an internationally recognized expert on combinatorial optimization.
He is the author of the acclaimed book In Pursuit of the Traveling Salesman and has contributed extensively to both the theory and computation of hard optimization problems.
🔗 Join Us!
Whether you’re a student interested in algorithms, a researcher in discrete mathematics, or simply curious about how math solves real-world problems — this is a lecture not to be missed.
📍 Location: ST Center, Seoul
🕖 Time: 7:00 PM, Wednesday, October 22, 2025
🎟 Admission: Free | 🗣 Language: English
🔗 More info about KMS 2025 Annual Meeting
📧 For inquiries: contact@kms.or.kr
We are hiring! The IBS Discrete Mathematics Group (DIMAG) Research Fellowship (Due: December 3, 2025)
The IBS Discrete Mathematics Group (DIMAG) in Daejeon, Korea invites applications for four research fellowship positions (senior researcher positions).
DIMAG is a research group that was established on December 1, 2018 at the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), led by its Chief Investigator (CI) Sang-il Oum. DIMAG is located at the headquarters of IBS in Daejeon, South Korea, a city of 1.5 million people. Currently, DIMAG consists of researchers from various countries and the work is done in English. DIMAG is co-located with the IBS Extremal Combinatorics and Probability Group (ECOPRO).
Website : https://dimag.ibs.re.kr/
Successful candidates for the research fellowship positions will be new or recent PhDs with outstanding research potential in all fields of Discrete Mathematics with emphasis on Structural Graph Theory, Extremal Graph Theory, Combinatorial Optimization, Matroid Theory, and Algorithms.
This appointment is for about two years, and the starting salary is no less than KRW 63,000,000. The appointment is one-time renewable up to 5 years in total, contingent upon the outstanding performance of the researcher. The expected appointment date is September 1, 2026, and it can be adjusted to earlier or later, but no later than December 1, 2026. This is purely a research position and will have no teaching duties. However, if desired, successful candidates may have the opportunity to teach at KAIST.
A complete application packet should include:
1. AMS standard cover sheet (preferred) or cover letter (PDF format)
2. Curriculum vitae including a list of publications and preprints (PDF format)
3. Research statement (PDF format)
4. Consent to Collection and Use of Personal Information (form available on the application page)
5. 3 recommendation letters
For full consideration, applicants should upload items 1, 2, 3, and 4 on the application website (https://dimag.ibs.re.kr/apply) and arrange their recommendation letters to be submitted directly by the letter writers through the link sent via email during the online application process by December 3, 2025, Wednesday (Anywhere on Earth (AoE)). Recommendation letters submitted by an applicant will not be considered. DIMAG encourages applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds.
For Korean citizens who have not yet completed their military duty: 전문연구요원 종사를 희망하는 경우에는 지원 의사와 병역 관계를 cover letter 및 이메일 등에 표시하여 제출 필요. 다만 현역입영대상자의 전문연구요원 신규 편입은 불가하며, 보충역 대상자 및 타 기관에서 전직해서 오는 경우에 한하여 지원 가능(전직 요건이 충족 되어야만 함)
Inquiry: dimag _@_ ibs.re.kr (remove _)
Welcome Zhifei Yan, a new member of IBS Extremal Combinatorics and Probability Group
The IBS discrete mathematics group welcomes Dr. Zhifei Yan, a new research fellow at the IBS Extremal Combinatorics and Probability Group, starting September 1, 2025. He received his Ph.D. in 2025 from the Instituto Nacional de Matemática Pura e Aplicada (IMPA), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, under the supervision of Prof. Rob Morris. He is interested in extremal and probabilistic combinatorics.
2025 Summer School by IBS ECOPRO was held from July 28 to August 8 with lectures by Lior Gishboliner and Yuval Filmus
The 2025 Summer School “Frontiers of Combinatorics” was held at IBS from July 28, 2025 to August 8, 2025. Lior Gishboliner from the University of Toronto gave a one-week-long lecture on removal lemmas and related topics. Yuval Filmus from Technion gave a 1-week-long lecture on Boolean Algebra. This school was organized by the IBS Extremal Combinatorics and Probability Group.
Welcome Tony Huynh, a new senior member of the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group
The IBS Discrete Mathematics Group is pleased to welcome Dr. Tony Huynh as a new senior research fellow, starting August 1, 2025. Before joining IBS, he was an assistant professor at the Sapienza Università di Roma, in Rome, Italy. He earned his Ph.D. from the Department of Combinatorics and Optimization at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Canada in 2009, under the supervision of Prof. Jim Geelen. He is mainly interested in graphs, matroids, and combinatorial optimization. Welcome!