I would like to see evidence of this. On the contrary there is enough evidence that top mathematical competitions (IMO, Schweitzer, Putnam competition etc.) ha

I would like to see evidence of this. On the contrary there is enough evidence that top mathematical competitions (IMO, Schweitzer, Putnam competition etc.) have been dominated by Russians & Slavics for a very long time. Same holds for Fields & Abel prizes. The link between phonetics & notations have little to do with proficiency. Basic arithmetic upto counting 5 maybe - when numbers are like 一 ニ 三. But beyond that the association seems tenuous. Math isn't just arithmetic. Asian kids have a lot of study drills. The amount of after-class homework that I see kids doing makes me sad. Arithmetic gets better with practice. No magic formula