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The team of Steve DiMauro ’02, Tim Fargus ’02, Tim Bragdon ’04, and Josh Grubman ’03 won this year’s Math Bowl, a competition in which four teams of four students each squared off in three matches using a “Jeopardy”-style format.
DiMauro is a mathematics major from Hatboro, Pa.; Fargus is a math major from Stafford Springs, Conn.; Bradgon is a physics major from Rahway, N.J.; and Grubman is an economics and business major from Boca Raton, Fla.
The event was held yesterday in Pardee Hall room 201. Like college bowl tournaments, a buzzer system determined which team answered each toss-up question. Toss-up questions were worth 10 points, with a correct answer leading to a bonus question worth more points.
“The Math Bowl was a big success,” says Gary Gordon, professor of mathematics. “The event is lots of fun, and the audience had a great timeTo show how impressive these students are, Tim Fargus answered the following question correctly in less than 10 seconds: ‘The numbers from 100 to 999 are written down. How many times does the number 6 appear on this list?’ — 280.”
Students had five to ten seconds in which to answer questions. Some sample questions at yesterday’s competition and their answers include:
1. Find two positive integers whose sum and product are prime
[1 and 2]
2. What member of the math department can have his or her name rearranged to spell A FRESH VINE? [Evan Fisher]
3. This word describes a series in calculus, an oscillator in physics, a function in analysis, and overtones in music. What is it? [Harmonic]
4. Name any year in which Isaac Newton lived. [1643-1727]