The 2017 Clemson Calculus Challenge

The fourteenth annual Clemson Calculus Challenge (CCC ) was held on Friday, April 21, 2017. The Department of Mathematical Sciences hosted 235 students from 35 regional schools representing Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The students competed in individual, team, and school categories.

Funding for the 2017 CCC was provided by the Department of Mathematical Sciences. Additionally, Mu Alpha Theta (the national high school and two-year college mathematics honor society) contributed $150 in prize money and three one-year licenses to the computer algebra system Mathematica for distribution to top performers on the morning exam.

The thirty-five high schools were split into three divisions based on school enrollment. The division numbers increased with school enrollment; thus Division 1 schools had the smallest enrollments, while Division 3 contained the schools with the largest student populations. The high schools that competed in the 2017 CCC are listed in the following table.

Participating Schools
High School	City	State	Division	Participants
A. C. Flora High School	Columbia	SC	2	4
Altamont School	Birmingham	AL	1	4
Academic Magnet High School	North Charleston	SC	2	6
Anderson High School	Anderson	IN	3	8
Athens Academy	Athens	GA	1	8
Ben Lippen School	Columbia	SC	1	6
Blue Ridge High School	Greer	SC	2	6
Broome High School	Spartanburg	SC	2	8
Charlotte Latin High School	Charlotte	NC	1	8
Chestatee High School	Gainesville	GA	2	8
Chester High School	Chester	SC	2	6
Christ Church Episcopal School	Greenville	SC	1	6
Crescent High School	Iva	SC	2	8
D. W. Daniel High School	Central	SC	2	8
First Presbyterian Day School	Macon	GA	1	7
Fulton Science Academy	Alpharetta	GA	1	3
Greenbrier High School	Evans	GA	3	8
Hammond School	Columbia	SC	1	4
Johnson High School	Gainesville	GA	3	6
Lambert High School	Suwanee	GA	1	8
Marist School	Atlanta	GA	2	8
Mauldin High School	Mauldin	SC	3	8
Mountain View High School	Lawrenceville	GA	3	8
North Forsyth High School	Cumming	GA	3	4
North Oconee High School	Bogart	GA	2	8
Oconee County High School	Watkinsville	GA	2	8
Pendleton High School	Pendleton	SC	2	7
Riverside High School	Greer	SC	3	8
S.C. Governors School	Columbia	SC	1	2
South Forsyth High School	Cumming	GA	3	8
Southside Christian School	Simpsonville	SC	1	6
Southside High School	Greenville	SC	2	6
Spartanburg Day School	Spartanburg	SC	1	8
Spring Valley High School	Columbia	SC	3	8
West Forsyth High School	Cumming	GA	3	8

A presentation was delivered by Dr. Jim Coykendall, a Professor from Clemson University’s Department of Mathematical Sciences. His presentation, entitled “Some Surprising Perspectives on Very Large Numbers,” discussed how hard it is to conceptualize large numbers such as the approximately 4.3 x 10¹⁹ combinations on the Rubik’s Cube, or Avogadro's number of 6.022 x 10²³. He also explained how a perspective on the very large can yield a surprising application to probability.

Awards

Trophies were awarded in each division for first, second, and third place finishes in three categories: individual test, team competition, and overall school performance. The first and second place scorer on the morning exam in each division were each given $500 scholarships to Clemson University. Additionally, Mu Alpha Theta, the national honor society for high school and two-year mathematics, donated $150 and three one-year licenses for the computer algebra system Mathematica to be given as awards for the 2017 CCC . The overall top scorer in the individual exam (Albert Huang) was awarded a $100 cash prize, while the second place finisher in the individual exam (Holden Watson) received a $50 cash prize. The top scorers for the individual exam in each division were each presented with the one-year license for Mathematica. Lastly, an award for the most creative team name was given in each division. The following awards were made.

Individual Awards

Division I
Place	Winner	School
First	Holden Watson	Fulton Science Academy
Second	Vishaal Ram	Fulton Science Academy
Third	Brennan Ravan	S.C. Governors School

Division II
Place	Winner	School
First	Connor Lehmacher	D.W. Daniel High School
Second	John Staubes	Academic Magnet High School
Third	Ian Ruohoniemi	D.W. Daniel High School

Division III
Place	Winner	School
First	Albert Huang	Spring Valley High School
Second	Christine Yang	South Forsyth High School
Third	Matthew Kim	Mountain View High School

Team Awards

Division I
Place	Winner	School
First	The Exponents - Feel the Power	Southside Christian School
Second	Calcul-lose Our Minds	Altamont School
Third	Like e^x, we differentiate ourselves!	Hammond School

Division II
Place	Winner	School
First	The Magic School Bus	D. W. Daniel High School
Second	Oconee County Team A	Oconee County High School
Third	Hapax Legomenon	North Oconee High School

Division III
Place	Winner	School
First	Sum-Asians	South Forsyth High School
Second	North Forsyth High School	North Forsyth High School
Third	Just ∫du It!	Anderson High School

School Awards

Division I
Place	School
First	Southside Christian School
Second	Fulton Science Academy
Third	Altamont School

Division II
Place	School
First	D.W. Daniel High School
Second	North Oconee High School
Third	Oconee County High School

Division III
Place	School
First	South Forsyth High School
Second	Spring Valley High School
Third	Anderson High School

Most Creative Team Names

Most Creative Team Name Winners
Division	Team Name	School
I	Laplace to Stay	South Carolina Governor's School
II	Team Here for the T Shirts	Broome High School
III	Sum-Asians	South Forsyth High School

We are grateful to our sponsors:

Department of Mathematical Sciences | Mu Alpha Theta