Pencils in hand and minds racing, several students raced to finish a 20-question multiple choice test as part of the second round of the Math Competition held Friday in H-7.
Contestants were given an hour to complete the exam sent from the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (AMATYC), which covered subjects ranging from beginning algebra and calculus to differential equations and grew progressively harder.
“I was only able to answer seven questions,” mathematics major Justin Lim said. “I’d need a whole day to figure the rest of the test out.”
Lim, who took first place in last fall’s competition, was the only student to answer more correct questions than the contest’s organizer and leader, mathematics department Chairwoman Sue Van Hattum, who has been teaching the subject for more than 20 years.
Winners and high scores are to be announced today.
The first round of the test was held last fall and weeded out many students who were not up to par, as the number of entries dropped from around 40 in the fall to just 12 this spring, Van Hattum said.
Incentives for those skilled with numbers included a $100 prize for first place and extra credit from math teachers.
The problems proved harder than most anticipated, with two students walking out early.
“The questions were practical, but you need time to think about them,” mathematics major Brian Sunga said. “You need to sleep on it, eat it, breathe it.”
Van Hattum has been organizing the contest for the last nine years.
It takes place in two parts, with scores added up and the best combined score taking first prize. Second and third place winners are awarded a $50 prize each.
“The main goal for me to get the students to have fun with math,” Van Hattum said.
She believes in this ideal wholly, as she is currently on sabbatical working on a book called “Playing with Math.”
The book will delve into ideas about having fun with math, such as Math Circles, the growing phenomenon for enthusiastic math students across the country that employs the Socratic Method to challenge students in more free-thinking ways than math usually allows, Van Hattum said.
Contact Alison Calais at acalais.advocate@gmail.com
Be the first to comment on this article!