Minnesota State High School Mathematics League Answers
Top high school math students from across the state on Monday made complicated equations look easy as pi.
The 342 students from 52 high schools competed for a top spot in the 35th Annual Minnesota State High School Mathematics League Tournament.
"You embrace the 'M' in STEM," said Mary Cathryn Ricker, Minnesota Commissioner of Education, to the packed auditorium at South St. Paul High School. She told them Gov. Tim Walz had proclaimed this week "Math Week in Minnesota."
The competition started out with a Math Bowl in which the top 10 students were given limited time to answer eight questions.
Even Charlie Brown's friend Lucy was worked into a math problem that asked students to figure her going rate for psychiatry today, factoring in inflation. Sixty years ago it was five cents. The answer was 33 cents — and had to be figured in 60 seconds without a calculator.
Frank Han, a senior from Eden Prairie, won the honor with a perfect score.
He said he likes finding obvious answers in math that no one else can see.
"Once you tell it to them, you see that look on their face," he explained, smiling with satisfaction. He's already been accepted to MIT and wants to study artificial intelligence. Also, he's totally cool with robots taking over the world.
As for this competition, he was just happy to beat his nemesis, "the other Frank" from Minnetonka, Frank Lu, who was also one of the top 10 students.
Following the Math Bowl, students congregated in the cafeteria to compete in written exams.
Lu and Han tied for first place overall. Wayzata took first in the AAA division, Highland Park in the AA division and Minnesota Valley Lutheran took first in the A division.
THE 'MATHMAN' RETIRES
In the back at a table, Dan Butler (aka Mathman), a math coach and teacher from Mounds View, savored the moment. This would be his last math competition in Minnesota.
After 30 years at Mounds View middle school and high school, and teaching at the University of Minnesota's Talented Youth Mathematics Program, Butler is retiring to Georgia at the end of the year to be near his granddaughter.
During his tenure, Mounds View has been top three in the state 17 times since 1995. He said he's coached Frank Han in geometry, which to him is the best of the math genres.
"I love geometry," he said. "All the other maths are just there to make geometry look good."
He sees geometrical patterns in everything. Just ask him for his phone number and he'll show you it's made up of a triangle and a Pythagorean triple.
Butler has been part of a three-member coaching team for nearly 15 years. His teammates, Leah Higginbotham and Michael Huberty, said they already miss him.
"He's the big picture guy," Huberty said. "He's the motivator."
'MATH KEEPS GROWING'
Butler started out in Eveleth on Minnesota's Iron Range. He loved math and wanted to be an astronaut, but his eyesight wasn't good enough.
"I found out I was pretty good at explaining the math," he said.
Eventually he accepted the "Mathman" alter ego, having it printed on his license plate, his shirts and his car's seat covers. Even his granddaughter calls him "Mathman."
"She's three and she's never called me grandpa," he said.
Over the years he's seen talented students go on to do amazing things, such as Michael Korn, who won a gold medal in the International Mathematical Olympiad in 1996. Recently he's started seeing kids of his former students in his classes.
In all that time, he said he has no regrets.
"Just not enough years," he said. "There's always more to teach. Math keeps growing. Every 10 years the amount of math knowledge doubles."
And for all those who ask why learn math? He has an answer.
"Because we can," he said.
Minnesota State High School Mathematics League Answers
Source: https://www.twincities.com/2019/03/11/students-compete-in-state-math-competition-during-minnesota-math-week/
Posted by: talbottume1968.blogspot.com
0 Response to "Minnesota State High School Mathematics League Answers"
Post a Comment