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
DIMAG hosted the “5th East Asia Workshop on Extremal and Structural Graph Theory” in Seoul
From November 27 to November 31, 2025, the IBS Discrete Mathematics Group hosted the 5th East Asia Workshop on Extremal and Structural Graph Theory in Seoul. It is a workshop to bring active researchers in the field of extremal and structural graph theory, especially in the East Asia such as China, Japan, and Korea. Participants have great chance to discuss recent progress in graph theory, interesting open problems, finding new potential collaborators, and exploring the city.
Invited Speakers
- Shinya Fujita (Yokohama City University)
- Jie Han (Beijing Institute of Technology)
- Tony Huynh (IBS Discrete Mathematics Group)
- Jaehoon Kim (KAIST)
- O-joung Kwon (Hanyang University / IBS Discrete Mathematics Group)
- Hong Liu (IBS Extremal Combinatorics and Probability Group)
- Jie Ma (University of Science and Technology of China / Tsinghua University)
- Shun-ichi Maezawa (Nihon University)
- Boram Park (Seoul National University)
- Shohei Satake (Kumamoto University)
- Tuan Tran (University of Science and Technology of China)
- Shoichi Tsuchiya (Senshu University)
- Xuding Zhu (Zhejiang Normal University)
Organizers
Seog-Jin Kim, Sang-il Oum, Kenta Ozeki, Hehui Wu
Venue
Fraser Place Namdaemun, Seoul
Program Book
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!
Péter Pál Pach gave a talk on the maximum set of positive integers that avoids having any product of k elements equal to a d-th power at the Discrete Math Seminar
On November 25, 2025, Péter Pál Pach from the Budapest University of Technology and Economics gave a talk at the Discrete Math Seminar on the maximum set of positive integers that avoids having any product of k elements equal to a d-th power. The title of his talk was “Product representation of perfect cubes“.
Fedor Noskov gave a talk on hypergraph Turán-type problems and their connection to extremal set theory problems at the Discrete Math Seminar
On November 18, 2025, Fedor Noskov from MIPT, Russia gave a talk at the Discrete Math Seminar on hypergraph Turán-type problems and their connection to extremal set theory problems. The title of his talk was “Polynomial dependencies in hypergraph Turan-type problems“.
Simón Piga gave a talk on variants of the Turán problem for k-uniform hypergraphs at the Discrete Math Seminar
On November 11, 2025, Simón Piga from the University of Hamburg gave a talk at the Discrete Math Seminar on variants of the Turán problem for k-uniform hypergraphs. The title of his talk was “Turán problem in hypergraphs with quasirandom links“.
Tim Hartmann and Ahmed Ghazy gave a talk on continuous graphs—a model obtained by replacing each edge of a graph with a unit interval to form a metric space, enabling continuous analogues of classical graph problems at the Discrete Math Seminar
On November 4, 2025, Tim Hartmann and Ahemed Ghazy from CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security in Germany gave a talk at the Discrete Math Seminar on continuous graphs—a model obtained by replacing each edge of a graph with a unit interval to form a metric space, enabling continuous analogues of classical graph problems. The title of their talk was “Continuous Graphs – An Overview and a Coloring Problem“.
Jakob Greilhuber gave a talk on the problem of deleting a small set of vertices to make every component small at the Discrete Math Seminar
On October 28, 2025, Jakob Greilhuber from the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security gave a talk at the Discrete Math Seminar on the parameterized complexity of the problem of deleting k vertices to make every component small. The title of his talk was “A Dividing Line for Structural Kernelization of Component Order Connectivity via Distance to Bounded Pathwidth“.
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.