Students use math to help US high-speed rail get back on track
Students use math to help US high-speed rail get back on track
Top high school teams in Moody’s Mega Math Challenge will share $115,000 in college scholarships
Philadelphia, PA - Judges for Moody's Mega Math Challenge evaluated nearly 1,000 solution papers, and have selected the top 55 as the contest moves one step closer to deciding this year's best.
In this year's contest, more than 5,000 students used mathematical modeling to identify and rank the best regions in the country for establishing high speed rail lines as part of a nationwide network, an issue currently being debated in Congress. Using their math knowledge along with critical thinking, research, and analytical skills, participants provided mathematically-founded recommendations based on potential ridership numbers, cost of implementation, and effects of such a program on foreign-energy dependence. Working independently via the Internet, teams of 3-5 students had just 14 hours to study the issue, collect data, and devise models before uploading their solutions in the form of a research paper.
After the students completed their analysis, more than 100 mathematician judges went to work reading and ranking the submissions. Of the nearly 1,000 papers submitted, only 134 made it through round one, or "triage" judging, and were advanced to the "contention" or second round, which took place this past weekend at the Philadelphia headquarters of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), organizers of the contest. It was here that these papers, which represent the top 14 percent of submissions, were whittled down to 55 teams worthy of prize recognition.
Now in its seventh year, the M3 challenge is a unique contest designed to highlight the value of mathematics in daily life and in solving real-world issues. It is sponsored by The Moody's Foundation, which awards a total of $115,000 in prizes.
The Finalist teams, or top six overall-- listed below in alphabetical order-- will receive scholarships ranging from $2,500 to $20,000. These outstanding teams have been invited to present their winning solutions to a panel of professional applied mathematicians at the Manhattan headquarters of Moody's Corporation on Thursday, April 26, when their final rank order will be determined and prizes awarded.
High Technology High School, Team #286, Lincroft, New Jersey; Coach: Ellen LeBlanc
Hunterdon Central Regional High School, Team #202, Flemington, New Jersey; Coach: Eric Wasserman
Nashoba Regional High School, Team #548, Bolton, Massachusetts; Coach: Mary Redford
NC School of Science and Mathematics, Team #808, Durham, North Carolina; Coach: Teague Dan
Pine View School, Team #218, Osprey, Florida; Coach: Christine DeVeau
Staples High School, Team #659, Westport, Connecticut; Coach: Gertrude Denton
Papers from the following six teams underwent in-depth discussion and were deemed of exceptional quality by judges. They are recognized as Semi-Finalists and will receive prizes of $1,500 each:
Ben Davis High School, Team #1204, Indianapolis, Indiana; Coach: Chris Evans
Cape Elizabeth High School, Team #147, Cape Elizabeth, Maine; Coach: Chris Hayward
Eastside High School, Team #365, Gainesville, Florida, Coach: Carl Henriksen
Fillmore Central School, Team #656, Fillmore, New York; Coach: Colleen Myers
Maggie L. Walker Governor's School, Team #574, Richmond, Virginia; Coach: Benesh Dickson
Pine View School, Team #220, Osprey, Florida; Coach: Ann Hankinson
Teams representing the following 43 schools are recognized with Honorable Mention distinction. Team Prizes of $1,000 each will be awarded to them for noteworthy submissions:
Academic Magnet High School, Team #1233, North Charleston, South Carolina
B. Reed Henderson High School, Team #778, West Chester, Pennsylvania
Carteret High School, Team #984, Carteret, New Jersey
Cheshire High School, Team #348, Cheshire, Connecticut
Delbarton School, Team #827, Morristown, New Jersey
Delbarton School, Team #829, Morristown, New Jersey
East Lyme High School, Team #479, Mystic, Connecticut
Eastside High School, Team #364, Gainesville, Florida
Enloe High School, Team #1190, Raleigh, North Carolina
Fayetteville-Manlius High School, Team #104, Manlius, New York
Gabriel Richard Catholic High School, Team #1016, Riverview, Michigan
Greenwood High School, Team #640, Greenwood, Wisconsin
Guilderland High School, Team #308, Guilderland Center, New York
Haddam Killingworth High School, Team #326, Higganum, Connecticut
Hampton High School, Team #1078, Allison Park, Pennsylvania
Hendersonville High School, Team #1089, Hendersonville, Tennessee
High Point Regional High School, Team #1103, Sussex, New Jersey
Horace Greeley High School, Team #193, Chappaqua, New York
Howell High School, Team #547, Howell, Michigan
Ida S. Baker High School, Team #924, Cape Coral, Florida
International Academy East, Team #556, Troy, Michigan
J.R. Masterman Demonstration High School, Team #164, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
John L Miller Great Neck North High School, Team #567, Great Neck, New York
Lake Zurich High School, Team #432, Lake Zurich, Illinois
Livingston High School, Team #692, Livingston, New Jersey
Maple Grove Senior High, Team #473, Maple Grove, Minnesota
Mattawan High School, Team #964, Mattawan, Michigan
Middlesex County Academy, Team #484, Edison, New Jersey
Montverde Academy, Team #465, Montverde, Florida
Mount Sinai High School, Team #112, Mount Sinai, New York
NC School of Science and Mathematics, Team #798, Durham, North Carolina
New Glarus Middle/High School, Team #68, New Glarus, Wisconsin
North Hills Senior High School, Team #648, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
North Penn High School, Team #302, Lansdale, Pennsylvania
Saline High School, Team #500, Saline, Michigan
Sidwell Friends School, Team #437, Washington, District of Columbia
Strath Haven High School, Team #63, Wallingford, Pennsylvania
The Academy Science, LCPS, Team #813, Sterling, Virginia
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Team #724, Alexandria, Virginia
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Team #726, Alexandria, Virginia
West Windsor-Plainsboro HS North, Team #529, Plainsboro, New Jersey
West Windsor-Plainsboro HS South, Team #784, Princeton Junction, New Jersey
Winchester High School, Team #947, Winchester, Massachusetts
About the Sponsor
The Moody's Foundation is a charitable foundation established by Moody's Corporation. Moody's is committed to supporting education, in particular the study of mathematics, finance and economics. The Foundation also funds specific initiatives in the areas of health and human services, arts and culture, civic and economic development programs. These programs are primarily located in New York City. Grants are also made in San Francisco, California, and London, England.
Moody's is an essential component of the global capital markets, providing credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody's Corporation (NYSE: MCO) is the parent company of Moody's Investors Service, which provides credit ratings and research covering debt instruments and securities, and Moody's Analytics, which offers leading-edge software, advisory services and research for credit and economic analysis and financial risk management. The Corporation, which reported revenue of $2.3 billion in 2011, employs approximately 6,000 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 28 countries. Further information is available at www.moodys.com.
About the Organizer
The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is an international society of over 14,000 individual members, including applied and computational mathematicians and computer scientists, as well as other scientists and engineers. Members from 85 countries are researchers, educators, students, and practitioners in industry, government, laboratories, and academia. The Society, which also includes nearly 500 academic and corporate institutional members, serves and advances the disciplines of applied mathematics and computational science by publishing a variety of books and prestigious peer-reviewed research journals, by conducting conferences, and by hosting activity groups in various areas of mathematics. SIAM provides many opportunities for students including regional sections and student chapters. Further information is available at www.siam.org.
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