Portuguese 
Spanish 
Marcel Augusto Calassa Alcântara, member of Mensa Brazil, turned a classroom curiosity into an article on mathematical cycles, approved for presentation at the XII Biennial of the Brazilian Mathematical Society
A mathematical research created by Marcel Augusto Calassa Alcântara, a 10-year-old boy, was approved for presentation at the XII Mathematics Biennial of the Brazilian Mathematical Society. The study was born after the student observed a cycle between the numbers 13 and 16 during a class and investigated patterns linked to the sum of the digits of numerical powers.
The boy’s mathematical research was born from a pattern between 13 and 16
The investigation began with a simple operation. By squaring 13, the boy Marcel found 169. Adding the digits of the result, 1 + 6 + 9, he arrived at the number 16.
Then, he repeated the process with 16. The calculation 16² results in 256. The sum of the digits, 2 + 5 + 6, leads again to the number 13. Thus, the two numbers formed a cycle: 13 → 16 → 13.
-
NASA captures heart-shaped pink lagoon in Argentina’s salt flats
-
Mistaken Click on Online Lottery Ticket Leads to $251,000 Win in Michigan
-
Factory workers shelter during Calgary snowstorm and find $240,000 checks each after CoolIT’s multi-billion dollar sale by KKR
-
Brazilian Politician Goes Undercover as Garbage Collector to Investigate Delays in Waste Collection Services
From this observation, the student decided to check if the same behavior could appear in other numbers.
What started as curiosity in a math class turned into research with calculations, tests, hypotheses, pattern analysis, and theoretical deepening.
Marcel is a member of the Mensa Brazil Association, an entity that brings together people with high intellectual abilities in the country and officially represents Mensa International, considered the largest high IQ organization in the world.
Study shows cycles in sequences formed by powers
The mathematical research analyzes a sequence created by raising a number to a power and then adding the digits of the result. Repeating this process allows observing if the number moves to new values or enters cycles.
According to the presented material, Marcel demonstrated that this type of sequence always ends up entering cycles and that all of them can be identified within a finite set of numbers.
The study also allowed classifying different cycles and behaviors of the analyzed function. With this, the research contributes to understanding patterns related to the sum of the digits of numerical powers.
The work was structured in article format and approved to be part of the XII Mathematics Biennial, an event of the Brazilian Mathematical Society that brings together researchers, teachers, students, and science communicators from various regions of Brazil.
For Marcel, the approval represents an opportunity to share the discovery and interact with other people interested in learning.
“I was very happy and excited. I like mathematics and researching new things, so knowing that other people found my work interesting was very cool. I was also curious to meet other students and learn from them,” he stated.
Curiosity and autonomy marked the development of the boy’s work
The family associates the research with a characteristic observed since childhood: the desire to understand how things work.
Marcel’s mother, Glacy Calassa, states that the combination of curiosity, autonomy, and persistence is noteworthy.
“What impresses me most about Marcel is the combination of curiosity, autonomy, and persistence. When he finds a topic that sparks his interest, he is not satisfied with ready-made answers. He asks questions, researches, reads books, talks to people, creates hypotheses, and seeks to verify if they make sense,” she said.
For Glacy, the approval at the Biennial shows that the production of knowledge can also arise from questions asked by children when there is room for investigation.
“The approval at the Biennial shows that children are not only capable of learning knowledge. They can also produce knowledge when they find space to explore their own questions,” she added.
Marcel’s school also followed the process. Waldemar Nehgme, director of the Doman School, stated that the approval was received with joy by the school.
“His journey demonstrates how curiosity, effort, and appropriate support from the school and family can transform a child’s potential into concrete achievements. For the school, it is an honor to accompany this development and encourage scientific thinking from the early years,” he declared.
Trajectory includes chess, science, robotics, and projects for children
Mathematics is one of Marcel’s areas of interest, but not the only one. In recent years, he has participated in national and international academic olympiads, science and robotics events, earned the title of National Chess Master, and became a lifetime member of the International Junior Honor Society.
According to the provided material, this lifetime membership was achieved through consecutive participations and consistent academic performance over the years, recognition obtained by few students of his age group.
The trajectory also includes the publication of a book inspired by an experience during a NASA-related hackathon and the presentation of a scientific poster at an event promoted by Mensa Brazil.
Marcel still participates in initiatives aimed at the development of children with high abilities. Among them are meetings of Mensa Brazil, which bring together families, students, and professionals in activities of integration, learning, and exchange of experiences.
The mother states that these spaces helped Marcel to interact with other children interested in mathematics, science, reading, and chess.
According to her, the meetings also showed that enjoying learning can be something positive and shared.
The boy also created his own initiatives. At the age of 4, he conceived the project Chess in the Square, with the aim of bringing children together to play, learn, and make friends. The proposal grew and gave rise to Marcel’s STEAM Club.
Currently, the project brings together children and families in reading clubs, mathematical challenges, scientific activities, chess, educational outings, and meetings at the City Park for knowledge exchange.
“What I like most is meeting my friends and other children who like the same things I do. We talk about mathematics, games, books, and chess. It’s fun because each person knows something different and I always learn something new,” said Marcel.
In addition to participating in the Biennial, Marcel was invited to join a social project focused on teaching mathematics to children, scheduled to start in the second semester.
This article was prepared based on information from the Mensa Brazil Association, the Brazilian Society of Mathematics, and the testimonies of Marcel Augusto Calassa Alcântara, Glacy Calassa, and Waldemar Nehgme, with data, numbers, and statements preserved as per the consulted material.
