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Russians, Americans and Chi-Coms all squared off against each other. Organized deception, intrigue, insults, reclusive personalities ... another day in international politics? Not this time. It's mathematicians. You think physicists are strange? Try to figure out mathematicians some time.*
It starts with a bit of mathematical fluff called the Poincaré conjecture, encompasses certifiable silliness in the name of string theory and ends with a million dollars. You just don't get more intrigue than that.
Forget for a moment the big picture issue here, namely that string theory has become…