The contest is a contest between teams which consist of students in 12th grade or lower (High School or Middle School). The maximum team size in any given round is five players, but teams can have up to ten players total. Middle School Teams are limited to students through grade 8, with a limit of two teams from any one school. High School Teams are limited to students through grade 12, and also with a limit of two teams per school.

Every contestant will receive a certificate and several other gifts. The top finishing teams will also be treated to dinner by one of three Nobel Laureates. For many years, an Open Division for adults was included, but no longer. The organizers wanted to make more spaces available to the growing interest from local Middle and High Schools. The first annual Science Trivia Challenge was held back in 2007, and was hosted by Ira Flatow of "Science Friday" fame. This year's event will be moderated by MIT Professor Amos Winter, Director of the Global Engineering and Research (GEAR) Lab at MIT. Teams are entered on a first-come, first-served basis until the event capacity is reached, so it is best to register early.

Quiz Format

• The competition is broken into rounds of 10-15 questions each. Questions can be multiple-choice, matching, short-answer, or multiple-answer format. Each question is given a point value, with partial credit awarded in some cases.
• All teams competing in a given round will be positioned at a table on the stage, with a scorekeeper for each team. When the moderator asks a question, the scorekeepers will give each team an answer sheet with the question printed on it and space for the team's answer.
• After a question is read, all teams will have a short amount of time to discuss the question, write down a final answer on the answer sheet, and hand the sheet back to the scorekeeper. After time has expired, the moderator will read the correct answer(s) and the scorekeepers will assign points accordingly.
• For the High School Division, there will be two preliminary rounds with up to 8 teams in each. The higher-scoring teams from each preliminary round will meet in the Gold runoff round. The other teams will meet in the Silver runoff round. The winners of these two runoff rounds will win a Grand Prize. The Middle School Division consists of a single round, with the winner receiving a Grand Prize.

Team Registration

The following rules will apply to teams:

• There is a limit of five players per team in any one round. Each team is allowed to register with several alternates, but substitutions can only be made between rounds of play.
• A player can only be a member (or alternate) on one team. Team composition can be changed prior to the start of competition, but can not be changed once competition has begun.

Register your team HERE for the Science Trivia Challenge on the MIT Alumni Association registration system. Space will be filled on a first-come first-served basis.

The registration fee is $10 per team, payable on-line via credit card. This fee reduction from previous years is made possible by our Mathworks sponsors.

Event Schedule

• 5:30 - Team Check In and Reception
• 6:00 PM - 6:25 PM High School Preliminary Round A
• 6:25 PM - 6:50 PM High School Preliminary Round B
• 6:50 PM - 7:00 PM Intermission
• 7:00 PM - 7:05 PM A Word from our Sponsor, Mathworks
• 7:05 PM - 7:50 PM Middle School Division
• 7:50 PM - 8:00 PM Intermission
• 8:00 PM - 8:20 PM High School Division Silver Final
• 8:20 PM - 8:40 PM High School Division Gold Final
• 8:45 PM - 9:00 PM Awards Ceremony

Food and refeshments are provided courtesy of our sponsor, Mathworks. Please contact sciencetrivia(at)mit.edu with any questions.

Try these questions from past Science Trivia Challenges...

   (Note: There are additional questions at the MIT Club of Boston, click here).

1. A fluid is considered "Newtonian" when its viscosity is independent of its shear rate. All but one of the substances below is a Non-Newtonian fluid. Which one is a Newtonian fluid?

a) house paint
b) ketchup
c) motor oil
d) shampoo
e) toothpaste

Answer: c) motor oil.

2. Scientists have long been able to calculate the masses of most planets, including Earth. It has taken longer to measure the masses of Mercury and Venus, primarily because these two planets lack what?

Answer: Moons.

3. Match each of the following animals with the way they consume their food:

1. Cow
2. Snake
3. Venomous spider
4. Whale shark
5. Parakeet
6. Raccoon

a) Grind in a gizzard
b) Chew, regurgitate, chew
c) Filtration
d) Dissolve and slurp it up
e) Chew
f) Swallow whole

Answer: 1-b; 2-f; 3-d; 4-c; 5-a; 6-e.

4. A gallon of gasoline contains about 132 million joules of energy. My iPhone has a 3.7 volt battery with a fully-charged capacity of 1400 mAh (milliamp-hours). Approximately how many times could I charge my phone with the energy contained in one gallon of gasoline?

a) 7
b) 70
c) 700
d) 7,000
e) 70,000

Answer: d) 7,000.

5. Match each of the following bathroom products with their common ingredients:

1. Anti-perspirant
2. Toothpaste
3. Shampoo
4. Shaving cream
5. Drain cleaner
6. Mouthwash

a) Isobutane (a propellant)
b) Ethanol
c) Sodium Monofluorophosphate (fluoride)
d) Aluminum chloride
e) Ammonium lauryl sulfate (a foaming agent)
f) Lye

Answer: 1-d; 2-c; 3-e; 4-a; 5-f; 6-b.

6. Match each of the following algorithms with what you might use to find:

1. Dijkstra's algorithm
2. Euclid's algorithm
3. Ford-Fulkerson method
4. Shor's algorithm
5. Sieve of Eratosthenes

a) Factors (on a quantum computer)
b) Greatest common divisor
c) Maximum network flow
d) Prime numbers
e) Shortest path in a graph

Answer: 1-e; 2-b; 3-c; 4-a; 5-d.

7. Good news everybody - my grow-ray worked! Now each cell in my body is the size of a pea (about 1 cm). Now I'm as tall as:

a) A 3-story building
b) The Burj Khalifa
c) Mt. Everest
d) The orbit of the ISS

Answer: b) The Burj Khalifa.

 

If you would like to submit questions for the Science Trivia Challenge, please submit them here: submit.