Month: February 2014

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Bard College Math Circle To Host the Purple Comet Math Meet for Middle School Students

Purple Comet at Bard!

This semester, the Bard Math Circle will be hosting the Purple Comet Math Meet for middle school students. Unlike other mathematics competitions at the middle school level, the Purple Comet Math Meet gives students the opportunity to work in teams of up to six. This teamwork gives them valuable experience working on mathematics in a collaborative environment, which is rarely experienced in school but is at the core of what professional mathematicians do regularly. The contest covers topics seldom included in the normal curriculum, including set theory and elementary number theory, and poses exceptionally challenging problems. On February 9, Bard undergraduate Math Circle organizers held the first preparation session, which allowed students to acclimate to a group-work environment. On March 2, there will be a session on strategies for working in groups efficiently and general problem-solving approaches. On March 16, the Math Circle will hold a mock contest. The final contest will take place during the first week of April. For more information please visit the Circle online at bardmathcircle.org.

About the Bard Math Circle

The Bard Math Circle, founded in 2007 by Bard math professors Japheth Wood and Lauren Rose, bridges the gap between academic and recreational mathematics. Current leadership includes Bard undergraduates Eliana Miller and Jake Weissman, and Bard MAT student Joy Sebesta, who work with faculty advisers to run monthly library programs in Tivoli and Kingston, as well as several contest programs. The Math Circle is a joint project of Bard’s Mathematics Program, Master of Arts in Teaching Program, and Trustee Leader Scholars program, a student leadership development initiative enabling undergraduates to lead hands-on community service projects. The Bard Math Circle has been instrumental in helping Bard become a center for mathematical exploration in the Hudson Valley.

This post was a press release from Bard College: http://www.bard.edu/news/releases/pr/fstory.php?id=2530

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MID-HUDSON VALLEY STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN NATIONAL MATHEMATICS COMPETITION

 

Bard Math Circle FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 Despite a surprise snowstorm that made travel difficult, 23 local high school and middle school students at participated in the 15th annual American Mathematics Contest 10 at Bard College. The contest was held on Wednesday, February 19, 2014. The students competed for local, regional and national student and school awards. The contest, which covers high school mathematics, is given in participating schools. Its purpose is to spur interest in mathematics and develop talent through the excitement of friendly competition at problem solving in a timed format. In 2013, over 220,000 students from 4,200 schools participated in the AMC 10 & AMC 12 contest. This is the first year that the AMC 10 contest has been offered at Bard College, as a Bard Math Circle program, and there are plans to also offer the AMC 12 contest next year.

The Bard Math Circle, founded in 2007 by Bard math professors Japheth Wood and Lauren Rose, as well as undergraduates in Bard’s Trustee Leader Scholars program, offers library-based math enrichment programs for middle school and upper elementary school students, as well as the AMC and Purple Comet math competitions. Prof. Japheth Wood says the Bard Math Circle is about generating excitement for mathematics, inspiring students to excel, and intends to grow the pre-college math community in the Mid-Hudson Valley. Bard College, an undergraduate liberal arts college with a strong math department, has undergraduate math majors who are eager to share their passion for mathematics with younger students. This makes Bard the perfect epicenter for a growing math community for the Mid-Hudson Valley.

 According to Prof. Steven Dunbar, who serves as Director of the American Mathematics Competitions, the AMC 12 (first offered in 1950), and the AMC 10 (first offered in 2000), are part of a series of contests sponsored each year by The Mathematical Association of America, through their program, the American Mathematics Competitions. The AMC offers the only math competition series in the country leading to the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO), the United States of American Junior Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO) and the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program (MOSP). From this group of students, the AMC sends the highly competitive USA Team to the prestigious annual International Mathematical Olympiad.

The AMC program includes:

  • American Mathematics Contest 8 (AMC8) for Grades 6- 8 in November
  • American Mathematics Contest 10 (AMC 10) for Grades 10 & below, 2 test dates in February
  • American Mathematics Contest 12 (AMC 12) for Grades 12 & below, 2 test dates in February
  • American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME) for all who qualify, 2 dates in March-April
  • USA Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO) for all who qualify, late-April
  • USA Junior Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO) for all who qualify, late-April
  • Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program (MOSP), Qualify thru USAMO, in June
  • International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), top six from USAMO, MOSP, in July
The AMC is located at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and receives support from the Akamai Foundation, Academy of Applied Sciences, American Institute of Mathematics, American Mathematical Association of Two Year Colleges, American Mathematical Society, American Statistical Association, Art of Problem Solving, Association for Symbolic Logic, Awesome Math, Casualty Actuarial Society, the D.E. Shaw Group, Idea Math, Jane Street Capital, Math for America, Math Training Center, Mu Alpha Theta, Andy and Laurie Okun, Pi Mu Epsilon, the Society for Industrial and Applied Math, and W.H. Freeman. The Contests are given across the U.S.A., Canada, and in many schools abroad.

Details concerning the 2014 AMC 10/12 contests for High School, as well as the rest of AMC’s programs are available on the AMC web site: maa.org/math-competitions

For further information contact the AMC — email: amcinfo@maa.org, telephone: 800-527-3690. 
For further information about the AMC and other programs run by the Bard Math Circle at Bard College — bardmathcircle@gmail.com and bardmathcircle.org.


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How the AMC 10 B exam works

Here are some notes about how the AMC 10B Exam works.

Exam Details

The exam lasts for 75 minutes and has 25 questions. Responses are multiple choice, with each correct response worth 6 points. Therefore, a perfect score is 150 points. For those of you who have guessing strategies, a blank answer is worth 1.5 points and a wrong answer is 0 points.

The AIME and Beyond

If you do a splendid job on the AMC 10 B, you’ll be invited to the AIME, the American Invitational Mathematics Exam. Here, “splendid” means scoring at least 120 points or ranking in the top 2.5%, neither of which is easy to do. The AIME will take place in March.

Excellent performance on the AIME could lead to the USAJMO (USA Junior Mathematical Olympiad), which is a challenging proofs-based contest. The top scorers on the USAJMO will be invited to the MOSP (Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program) in June, from which the USA team is selected for the International Mathematical Olympiad (boys and girls) and the Girls Mathematical Olympiad (girls only). Not many people get there. Not many at all.

Contest Rules and Regulations

  • You’ll need to use a #2 pencil, and we’ll have a supply at hand, but feel free to bring your own.
  • Be ready to bubble in your correct name, as no editing will be done by the AMC people. You’ll also bubble in your address.
  • As you might guess, CALCULATORS ARE NOT PERMITTED. In fact, no electronics of any kind will be allowed, maybe not even digital watches.
  • Students, you will be seated as far apart as space allows. You’re also not allowed to speak or ask questions during the contest; you must do your own work. No wandering eyes, please. The exam proctor may issue warnings or even confiscate your exam if cheating is suspected. Let’s not see that happen at the Bard Math Circle, please!
  • If you finish early, you can leave the room. If you need to use the rest room, please raise your hand and you’ll be escorted there.
  • After the contest, you make keep your contest booklet and take it home with you. You may discuss the answers with others who take it at Bard once the contest is over, and you may discuss it with anyone in the world starting the day after the exam.
Preparation
Your preparation for this year’s contest should be finishing about now. If you enjoy the challenge of the AMC, why not start preparing for next year’s contest after this contest?!