The Operations Research Challenge is a one-day contest where teams of 4 high school students will have to solve 5 to 10 problems related to different application areas of operations research. Operations research is a field of study that uses techniques from engineering, computer science and mathematics to understand and solve complex decision-making problems.

No previous knowledge of operations research is required, but we recommend checking out the resources page for examples of problems you could be asked to solve during the contest.

You have a chance to get a head-start on the contest. One of the contest questions is:

The Prime and Unique Question

Select a prime number between 2 and 30 (inclusive). The selected prime number will be the number of marks awarded to your group if no other group selects the same prime number. If two or more groups select the same prime number, all of these groups will receive zero. What will your prime and unique choice be?

 

More information about the contest:

Date	Saturday, March 19, 2011; 8:00am - 4:30pm
Location	Bahen Centre Lobby, University of Toronto, 40 St. George Street (North of College Street)
Eligibility	High school student
Materials allowed	Any writing utensils, calculator
Team size	4 high school students

 

Time	Agenda
8:00 - 8:30	Registration
8:30 - 9:00	Welcome
9:00 - 14:00	Competition (lunch provided)
14:00 - 15:00	Break (refreshments)
15:00 - 16:30	Mini-lecture and awards ceremony