UNL Math Day celebrated its 20th anniversary on Thursday, November 12, 2009. As part of our celebration, opening ceremonies were held in the Lied Center for Performing Arts located at 12th & R Streets. The Lied Center is Nebraska's home for the arts and was truly the beginning of an exciting, competitive day with plenty of room for all 1,400 (or so) of us. The PROBE I exam was given in our beautiful Student Union. Our facilities are able to accommodate up to 100 Math Bowl Teams.
Opening ceremonies began at 8:00 a.m. and the final awards ceremony finished around 4:30 p.m. This year we hosted 1,357 students from 100 Nebraska high schools. Our record-breaking year occurred during our 10th Anniversary celebration in November 1999, when we hosted 1,434 students from 103 Nebraska high schools. All students participated in a multiple choice, preliminary exam called PROBE I (Problems Requiring Original and Brilliant Effort). The top 3 males and top 3 females on this exam received plaques. The top 50 students then moved on to take the now famous essay exam called PROBE II. The top 10 Nebraska high school students on PROBE II were awarded a total of $34,000 in 4-year scholarships to UNL. All the questions assumed only two years high school algebra, one year geometry and trigonometry. However, the answers to PROBE II questions required the creativity and originality that we expect from only the very best students.
Albert Zhou of Lincoln Southwest High School was the $3,000 winner of WWTBAM: This year the American Mathematical Society sponsored a special contest titled, "Who Wants to be a Mathematician". This contest consisted of two series of 8 oral questions, each with four contestants. The winners of each series won $500 and then went head- to-head for one more round to win an additional $500. The winner of the final round won the chance at one question worth $2,000.
What is Math Day?
The purpose of Math Day is to stimulate interest in mathematics among Nebraska high school students, to encourage them to pursue mathematics or mathematics-based science as a career and to recognize mathematical ability by awarding scholarships, certificates and trophies. Math Day consists of two individual and two team mathematics competitions. Information about UNL majors and departments, mathematical careers and recreational mathematical activities is provided throughout the day.
The first team competition is based on the scores from PROBE I. It is determined by summing the top 3–5 scores from each school on PROBE I, depending on the school's class. The second team competition is the Math Bowl. It is a double elimination tournament pitting three-member teams against each other. The team competitions are divided into classes (smallest, small, medium, and large schools) with trophies given to the top two teams in each.
As the day progresses, the students will have opportunities to participate in mathematical games, puzzles, etc. The UNL Office of Admissions will also offer campus tours to groups of students and parents. We provide the students free lunch in the residence hall cafeterias. This will give them an opportunity to sample a bit of campus life. While the students are taking the PROBE I exam, there will be a presentation or group discussion of interest for the teachers.
Additional Math Day Information
- PROBE: Individual competition
- Math Bowl: Team Competition
- Past Results
- Photo Album
- Register Online
- Math Day 2009 20th Anniversary Poster
Contact Information
Email:
Phone: 402–472–3731 (Ask for Lori or Gordon)
