Science Heat Checks (2024–25)

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Cody
2008-09 Male Athlete of the Year
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Joined: Sun Nov 15, 2009 12:57 am

Science Heat Checks (2024–25)

Post by Cody »

I am writing a science speedcheck tournament, a spiritual successor to Andrew Hart’s and Maryland’s Impossible Speedcheck tournaments. The overarching principles of this tournament are to: (1) ask lots of questions that can’t be done, or done well, at longer length; (2) ask lots of questions about underasked, important, or advanced “core” topics; (3) ask few questions about named things. The intent is to offer an idiosyncratic but rewarding experience. (In practice, I’m washed and you should temper your expectations.) The set is a hair over 19% written. Target completion is something like June 2024, January 2025, etc. All details below are subject to revision as the set progresses.

I would be exceedingly happy to bring in collaborators consistent with my vision. Email me at [email protected] with your qualifications and a brief statement about what you’d like to write, your vision, etc. I am also seeking subject matter experts for peer review. If you will not be playing, email me at [email protected]. Writers and reviewers will be compensated on a per-question basis.

Questions are capped at 4 full lines in Times New Roman 10pt with 1” margins. There are no powers. I plan to produce 11 packets of 30 questions each without tiebreakers (ties stand).

The intent is for a minimum of 70% of questions per packet to come in at Nats level, with the remainder reaching upwards. There is a Gaddis-style difficulty assignment for answerlines, based on a 5-point scale. This is a difficulty floor based on where the answerline would be consistent with the median tossup answerline or medium bonus part. There is no specific difficulty quota, but there is a per-packet cap of (4) 5s and (8) 4s or 5s.
• 1 – ACF Fall
• 2 – ACF Regionals
• 3 – ACF Nationals
• 4 – Chicago Open
• 5 – ++

The per-packet distribution is as follows:
• 7 Engineering (3.6 Chemical Engineering)
• 4 Biology
• 4 Physics
• 4 Math
• 4 Earth Sciences
• 4 Computer Science
• 3 Astronomy

N.B. Chemistry is folded into the chemical engineering distribution. You can expect up to 3 “normal” chemistry answerlines per packet. Engineering generally excludes topics that fit naturally in other categories.

The subdistributions are designed to yield a good balance of topics and emphasize areas I believe are important or underasked. They are not intended to be reflective of standard course progressions, quizbowl knowledge, or real knowledge. The rough subdistribution plan is as follows.
• Engineering: 50% Chemical, 20% Miscellaneous, 15% Electrical, 15% Mechanical
• Biology: 15% Ecology/Evolution, remainder roughly even between Cell, Anatomy / Physiology, Genetics, Plants, Diseases, Other Molecular, Developmental, Microbiology, Immunology, Obgyn/Women’s Health, and Miscellaneous
• Physics: 15% Electromagnetism/Optics, 15% Quantum, remainder roughly even between Thermal/Statistical Mechanics, Classical, Condensed Matter, Plasma, Particle, Fluid Mechanics, Relativity, and Miscellaneous
• Math: roughly even between Real/Complex Analysis, Differential Equations, Probability/Statistics, Discrete, Linear Algebra, Calculus, and Miscellaneous Advanced
• Earth Sciences: roughly even between Geology/Geophysics, Ocean/Coastal, Atmospheric, Environmental, and Miscellaneous
• Computer Science: roughly even between Computability/Complexity, Algorithms, Data Structures, Programming, Systems/Architecture, Automata, and Miscellaneous
• Astronomy: roughly even between Astrophysics, Chemistry, Cosmology, Mechanics, and Miscellaneous

There is no dedicated space for the topic du jour (e.g. data science) and cross-category questions; they will appear in whatever space fits best.
Cody Voight, VCU ’14.
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