[B]Before the contest begins at 8pm EST on Thursday February 5, 2004 :
Choose your team members: [/B]
You must choose your team members before the contest begins at 8pm EST on Thursday February 5, 2004 . Once the contest begins you may not add or change any team members (you may, however, remove a team member, if he or she decides not to participate).
Each team may consist of a maximum of three students.
No student may be on more than one team.
Team members must be enrolled in school at the time of the contest, but do not have to be full-time. They must be enrolled at the same school as the advisor and other team members.
[B]When the contest begins at 8pm EST on Thursday February 5, 2004 :
Teams view the contest problems via the contest web site: [/B]
The contest problems will become available precisely at 8pm EST on Thursday February 5, 2004 ; team members can view them by visiting http://www.comap.com/undergraduate/contests/mcm. No password will be needed to view the problems; simply go to the contest web site at or after 8pm EST on Thursday February 5, 2004 and you will see a link to view the problems.
If for some reason you cannot access our main web site at that time, go to our mirror site at http://www.mirror.comap.com/mcm or click here . The contest site and the mirror site are on two completely different networks in different parts of the USA. If you cannot access either one of them then it probably means that there is a problem with your local internet connection and you should contact your ISP to resolve the issue.
The contest consists of a choice of three problems: A, B, and C.
Important:
MCM teams should choose either problem A or problem B; an MCM team may submit a solution to only one of the problems. MCM teams should not choose problem C.
ICM teams should choose problem C. There is no choice for ICM teams. ICM teams should not choose problem A or B.
[B]Teams prepare solutions: [/B]
Teams may use any inanimate source of data or materials --- computers, software, references, web sites, books, etc., however all sources used must be credited. Failure to credit a source will result in a team being disqualified from the competition.
Team members may not seek help from or discuss the problem with their advisor or anyone else, except other members of the same team. Input of any form from anyone other than student team members is strictly forbidden. This includes email, telephone contact, personal conversation, communication via web chat or other question-answer systems, or any other form of communication.
Partial solutions are acceptable. There is no passing or failing cut-off score, nor will numerical scores be assigned. The MCM/ICM judges are primarily interested in the team's approach and methods.
Teams should keep in mind the following guidelines and rules while preparing their solution papers:
Conciseness and organization are extremely important. Key statements should present major ideas and results.
Present a clarification or restatement of the problem, as appropriate.
Present a clear exposition of all variables, assumptions, and hypotheses.
Present an analysis of the problem, motivating or justifying the modeling to be used.
Include a design of the model.
Discuss how the model could be tested, including error analysis and stability (conditioning, sensitivity, etc.).
Discuss any apparent strengths or weaknesses to your model or approach.
Papers must be typed and in English.
The solution must consist entirely of written text, and possibly figures, charts, or other written material, on paper only. No non-paper support materials such as computer files or disks will be accepted.
Each page of the solution should contain the team control number and the page number at the top of the page; we suggest using a page header on each page, for example:
Team # 321 Page 6 of 13
The names of the students, advisor, or institution should not appear on any page of the solution. The solution should not contain any identifying information other than the team control number.
Any preparation rule not followed is grounds for team disqualification.
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