Priyanshi Somani has an incredible ability to create mathematical puzzles and competitive games in her mind to stay occupied and creative. Playing with numbers is pure fun for her, and this approach towards mathematics has given her a completely distinctive ability to accomplish any mathematical calculations within a few minutes.
Meet the 11 years old Indian Human Calculator who slashed several world records and was only 11 years old when she was crowned the winner of Mental Calculation World Cup in the year 2010, which made her India’s youngest human calculator.
This is a story of a mathematics legend, who at an age when kids are engrossed in playing, managed to win a world championship in mathematical calculation and is faster than an electronic calculator.
Priyanshi Somani was born in 1998 in Surat, Gujarat. Her mother recognized her ability at an early stage and urged her to go ahead in mathematics.
At the age of six, her parents enrolled her in mental mathematics classes. By the time she was seven, just a year after learning mental maths, she became the National champion in the abacus and mental arithmetic competition in India in 2006.
She is the only participant who has scored 100% accuracy in addition, multiplication, and square root calculations till present in all five Mental Calculation World Cups. Taking her skills to the international stage, she became the champion in Abacus at the 2007 World Competition in Malaysia.
In 2010, Priyanshi Somani achieved remarkable feats at the World Cup, winning first place for extracting square roots from 6-digit numbers up to 8 significant digits in just 6:51 minutes.
She also secured second place for addition (10 numbers of 10 digits) and multiplication (2 numbers of 8 digits). In 2012, at the Memorial Cup, she became the world record holder in Mental Square Roots, completing 10 tasks of 6-digit numbers in 2:43:05 minutes.
However, Priyanshi Somani decided to leave her career in mental mathematics in 2012. Now, at the age of 21, she has shifted her focus to theatre, pursuing her interest in her graduation. In a recent interview, she mentioned that she doesn’t have specific career plans, relying on her free mind to stay creative.
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