Whiz Kid: Shonak Patel

Shonak Patel is on fire, or should I say, on the Lehigh Valley Fire, a regional team of high school math wizards, who won its third consecutive national title at the held on Saturday, June 4. The Fire Team finished in first place at Princeton University Mathematics Competition.

 “I see math all around me,” said Shonak, “the world is designed in patterns, that is how I see the entire universe, constructed in math.”

Shonak was not always on the A-team though and has had to overcome some significant obstacles to become a team player. Diagnosed at age 6 with Asperger’s Syndrome, Shonak has difficulty processing sensory stimulation, struggles with communication and often appears lost in his own world. Monica and Pulkesh Patel moved their son from India to Bethlehem, with the promise of better opportunities for Shonak.

 “One thing I had identified since his early childhood was his wizardry with numbers.” said Monica, “so here we were, in the United States, determined to create a miracle with this boy, with all deficits on one side and this great skill of math to tip the scales in his favor.”

Much of Shonak’s success has been unlocked by the diligence of his mother, who obtained an advanced degree in Special Education from . Several other individuals including his mentor, Dr. Donald Davis, and his guidance counselor at , Patricia Dinsmore, as well as Scranton Prof. Ken Monks who co-coaches the LV Fire, have created a holistic approach of drawing out the best of his intellectual and emotional capacities.

That isn’t to say that Shonak should defer credit to his supporters because he has worked extremely hard to overcome the obstacles of Asperger’s and paves the path for other children on the spectrum to utilize the talents that might otherwise be overlooked because of the social awkwardness, peculiarities and stigma associated with ASD. 

“Shonak has shown us who are the real people out there, because those who work with him and love him bring a slice of humanity into this world,” said Mnica Patel.

Shonak first showed off his math skills in 6th grade at by winning 2nd place in the online First in Math Competition based on the 24® Game invented by Robert Sun of Easton. By 7th grade, he was ranked the Top Player in the USA for the competition, amassing 22,573 stickers, an accomplishment only achieved by six other students in the nation.

Shonak first joined the Lehigh University mathematics team when he was a freshman. For both Monica and Shonak, the arrival of Dr. Davis in Shonak’s life was what they calls “divine intervention,” helping him to move beyond his awkward expression and out of control behavior to think as part of a team. 

“If you removed that moment in my life,” said Shonak, “my whole destiny would be changed.

At first Davis placed Shonak on the B-team, known as Ice, because he thought Shonak might have difficulties interacting with the 15 other people in the room, pacing or exhibiting peculiar behaviors due to anxiety from the stimulation. It was not until his junior year that Davis decided to take a chance on him, a move that proved to be successful. 

Dr Davis indicated that Shonak has made several really significant contributions to the 2010 team, one in particular where he solved a difficult problem in the team round of the American Regions Math League answering the question: Find the smallest positive integer that has exactly 11 pairs of digits that form a prime number (in their original order).

“It seems like he is not paying attention but he is. When others are writing feverishly, he is off staring into space,” said Dr. Davis, “and he comes up with the right answer!”

With a minute to go and while his teammates came up with a larger number, Shonak said, ‘I think this is a better smaller number’ and here it is!” This answer, 100337, played a significant role is winning the championship.

In November 2010, he qualified as one of 10 national finalists in the American Math Society’s “Who Wants to be a Mathematician?” contest, and competed at New Orleans this past January. Although he did not win the competition, he received a $500 prize from the AMS, which was matched by an equal amount donated to Liberty High School. Shonak donated a portion of his prize money to Umang, a village community in India for that orphans after they turn 18, a place he completed over 120 hours of community service in the summer of 2009. 

“That is one significant accomplishment, only one person from each of the 10 regions in the nation competes,” said Dr. Davis, “When you ask him math questions, he is one of the best problem solvers.”

Shonak has overcome many of the barriers and stigmas of social interactions thanks not only to his experience on the team and mentorship under Dr. Davis, but also through his interactions on social media. For a child with Asperger’s, social interactions can be challenging, frightening and over-stimulating. Social media is one of the “best tools for socialization and communication for people who struggle with sensory impairments” said Monica because it allows him to focus on the conversation rather than surrounding stimuli, body language or social etiquette.

This past May, Shonak was crowned Liberty Prom King. “It was an honor for my child, who hardly expresses himself but can love and give unconditionally to all people,” said Monica.

Shonak is currently working with Robert Sun, assisting with the development of new games for the online First in Math Program. Next year he will attend Carnegie Melon University, where his love for both mathematics and computer science will be nurtured by Dr. John Mackey, Associate Chair, Department of Mathematics, and Po Shen Loh, who is the Director of the USA Math Olympiad Team. These students will be trained for the college level Putnam competition.

Shonak’s key to awesomeness is “his capacity to work hard at staying focused,” which reduces his Asperger Syndrome to “just” a challenge,” said Monica. Shonak is not only the King of his world he is an active and important participant in the world of math and an inspiration for those on the Autism Spectrum.