HISTORY             APPROACH

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HILBERT 8 was founded in 2013, in New York.  The name was inspired by a famous mathematical problem.

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"Who of us would not be glad to lift the veil behind which the future lies hidden; to cast a glance at the next advances of our science and at the secrets of its development during future centuries? What particular goals will there be toward which the leading mathematical spirits of coming generations will strive? What new methods and new facts in the wide and rich field of mathematical thought will the new centuries disclose?"

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It was with these inspiring words that German mathematician David Hilbert opened the second International Congress of Mathematicians which was held in Paris in August 1900.  In, what is considered one of the most influential speeches about mathematics (and science in general), Hilbert presented a list of 23 major mathematical problems whose solution would significantly advance the development of mathematics and humanity in the coming centuries.  

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The majority of Hilbert's problems have been solved to date, despite having been extremely challenging.  And, needless to say, their solution indeed played a big role in mankind's great scientific progress in the 20th century.  

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However, the 8th problem still remains unsolved.  It focuses on the topic of Number Theory (or Arithmetic, as it was called by the ancient Greeks).  Its central question asks for a solution to the Riemann hypothesis, which has puzzled mathematicians since 1859 (though Hilbert's 8th problem also includes other problems from Number Theory, such as the Goldbach conjecture and the twin prime conjecture).

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