Intermediate Math Open

The Intermediate Math Open (IMO)is held annually at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. This year, it was held on November 22, 2008. It is comprised of a individual round, graded by math class level, and several team rounds.

Teams are made after the Individual round. First, teams go to various upstairs rooms and are taught by TJ Math Club participants for 2 and 1/4 hours. Then, lunch is held. Next comes the Power Round, where teams work together on a series of related problems for 45 minutes. Following that is the Team Round, consisting of 10 group problems over 30 minutes.

The most exciting round is the Guts Round, where teams are given 4 problems to complete. When they are finished or have given up, they turn them in for 4 more. A scoreboard reports how many correct answers various teams have. There are a total of 36 problems, to be completed in 30 minutes. This year's first place team received 21 out of 36 points.

The last round, called the orienteering round, makes teams follow clues revealed by their answers to problems. It starts in the cafeteria, where teams must find the answer to a math problem. The answer leads them to an upstairs room number. When they reach the room, they are given another problem. After answering about 10 problems, the last one's answer sends them back to the cafeteria, where they recieve points based on how fast they completed the round. Many teams do not finish.

Finally, the Awards are given out at 4PM, 8 hours after arriving at TJ.