Mathematical modelling, a course taught by Ms. Burns, is unlike the typical math course, in that it uses mathematics to model and predict solutions to a problem. We also compete in many different competitions, such as HiMCM and NEML. One of the biggest competitions that we compete in is the Modeling the Future Challenge (MTFC), and we compete in it throughout the year.
MTFC is a competition in which students pick their own topics to explore in groups of up to five people. Our team chose to focus on soil erosion and modelling how best to mitigate the risks associated with soil erosion. It's a really big issue in countries that rely heavily on agriculture to feed people. I got to work with Ravena, Luciana, Rishit, and Evan. Along with working on a project of our own choice, we also got to work on a scenario quest, which is basically a modelling problem that is pre-decided for all groups. This year, the scenario quest was about diabetes and how best to reduce the risk of cost for insurance companies and clients / patients alike. Look at the project proposal to the left for more information, or click here!
An assignment that was also centered on mathematical modelling but wasn't quite as large was the Epsilon school project. In this assignment, we were tasked with deciding which department new teachers should be hired to, based on information about class sizes for previous years. I worked with Varsha and Anika, and we found four different potential solutions. It was really fun working on this project, and it was the first real "modelling" project we did in the year, so it provided a lot of experience for future projects. It was also really interesting to see how our previous math work could be used to make choices in the real-world, a major part of maths that is often forgotten. Take a look at our slideshow here!