Computational math

Computational math refers to any question in which players, for lack of a better description, solve a mathematics problem. Computational math is also used to describe science questions which require using a scientific law or formula to get a numerical answer, because the term "computational science" just isn't as catchy.

Computational Math in the College Game

In general, computational math does not appear in the college game. Occasionally NAQT will throw in a science bonus along the lines of computational math (e.g. if an object exerts a force of 80 Newtons, and its mass doubles, how much force will it now exert?), but there are no computation tossups and very few computation bonuses in the college game.

Computational Math in the High School Game

The amount of computational math in the high school game varies significantly from format to format and from state to state. In some formats and states, such as Illinois, computational math can take up to 20-25% of the entire distribution. In other formats, such as PACE, there is little to no computational math.

The role computational math should play in high school quizbowl is one of the most hotly debated subjects on the hsquizbowl.org forums. However, much like the occasional "debates" over civility or the National Academic Championship, there is an alarming concentration of people who know what they are talking about on one side, and people who are arguing from a position of "what my crappy home state format does should be rewarded" on the other side. Many of the players arguing in favor of the inclusion of computational math are computational math specialists who see a 20 to 40 PPG bump in formats that include computational math tossups, and approximately 100% of the adults arguing for it are in states that use it. In other words, computational math is controversial in formats that have it, while formats that do not have it are happy not to have it.

Because there is no legitimate argument for the existence of computational math tossups, their proponents must by necessity use various forms of avoision to argue for them. A common argument for these tossups accuses those who oppose computational math of being unable to do math. The presence of many math majors, math teachers, and former Mathcounts competitors among the good quizbowl proponents explaining why calculation tossups are illegitimate does nothing to dissuade this argument.

Arguments in Favor of Computational Math

• Computational math is an important part of a high school education. High school quizbowl should be seen as a reflection of what is learned in a high school education, so computational math should be included. It is difficult to write a large number of good math questions that are appropriate for high school and not computational, so the only way to make the math distribution significant is to use computation.
• Computational math has a single, uniquely identifying answer, unlike other eschewed parts of a high school education such as "writing an essay" or "debating the effectiveness of a policy". Any relevant topic with a single answer that can be quickly judged as "right" or "wrong" can be used in quizbowl within the flow of the game.
• It is not universally agreed upon that computational speed is the deciding factor which determines which player will answer a computational problem first; rather it can be the recall of algorithms and equations (ostensibly "facts", though this is far from universally accepted), and the confidence with which one recalls those "facts". To avoid cumbersome answers which are the algorithms or equations themselves, it is preferable for expediency to have the players give the "answer" to the computation, rather than the algorithm itself. This argument assumes that questions will be well-written, since it does not apply to problems in which the most challenging aspect is computation.
• While it is possible to define quizbowl as something that does not include any computation, it also is possible to define it as an activity that, on a certain minority of questions, includes computation.
• An argument can be made that the canon of askable computation questions is large enough to be legitimate, especially when you have teams that are used to such questions and recruit strong math students.
• People who don't like computational math "hate math", are "bad at" math, or are "nerds" who only care about history, science, and art, and don't know anything with applicability to the real world, like the probability of drawing a red ball out of a hat. This is by far the most common "argument" used by computational math proponents.

Arguments Against Computational Math

• Computational math requires an additional skill beyond the simple recall of facts and association of facts with an answer; therefore computational math is not quizbowl and does not belong in quizbowl.
• Computational math questions rely on a set of memorized "tricks" for answering certain kinds of problems instead of a unique association between a set of clues and its answer; therefore computational math is not quizbowl and does not belong in quizbowl.
• Pyramidal computation tossups are far more difficult to write, and in the opinion of some are impossible to write; therefore at best computational math is bad quizbowl.
• Clues in computation questions cannot stand alone; therefore at best computational math is bad quizbowl.
• The canon of askable computation questions is too small in most formats to adequately differentiate between teams of roughly similar skill levels, and has already expanded to near its maximum; therefore at best computational math is bad quizbowl.
• Even if it were more universally accepted that answering a computational question is based upon the ability to recall an algorithm, and that it is expedient to give the solution to the problem, rather than the algorithm itself, it is undeniable that computation speed can be considered a factor in the speed at which the question is answered. This creates a situation where questions involving computational math become "different" from other questions, and thus may not be appropriate.
• Because teams that are very strong in Computational Math can completely dominate the category, it can play a major role in deciding matches even when it is a small part of the distribution.
• Most people who understand both good quizbowl and math, including math majors and math teachers, oppose computational math and would like to see more questions on math theory instead.

Pyramidal Math

An attempt to counter some of the arguments against Computational Math can be found in the "Pyramidal Math Tossups" thread. It includes examples of pyramidal questions and stand-alone clues within a longer question.

External Links

The following is a non-exhaustive list of discussions about the place of computational math in quizbowl.

• A 2004 thread entitled "The Role of Math in High School Quizbowl" was sadly lost during the Great Fuckup of 2004
• Any thread on high school quizbowl in Illinois
• "Computational Math Crisis!"
• "Computational math...Illinois and elsewhere"
• "NAQT High School Math Questions"
• "Format of science questions" (somewhat interestingly, discusses the place of computational science in college quizbowl)
• "Computational math in high school quizbowl"
• "Pyramidal Math Tossups"
• "Yes, it's another thread about math"
• "An Open Letter to NAQT"
• Math Computation, Round 23748234 (contrary to popular belief, the number of times math computation has been discussed remains at most only in the low thousands)