Chemathon

Frequently Asked Questions

General

How are events scheduled?

  •  At Chemathon, there are 4 "periods" with 2 events each, for a total of 8 events.

How long is each event?

  • Thirty (30) minutes.

How many students on a team?

  • Each team may have a maximum of 6 students.

Can a team 'rotate out' students to allow more than 6 to attend?

  • No. A maximum of 6 students total are permitted for each team. All team members attending must be at one of the 2 concurrent events at each period.
  • Each participating student must be listed on the team roster that is turned in at registration. If a student that is not on your team’s official roster participates in an event, your team will be disqualified from that event.

We have less than six students. Can we still bring a team?

  • Yes. The minimum team size is two to participate in all events.

Do we have to participate in all events?

  • If your team size is three or smaller, you may send the entire team to one event in a round. In such a scenario, you are strongly encouraged to consider sending a single student to an event, and the other(s) to the concurrent event.
  • If your team size if four to six, they must attend each event.

We have more than six students. Can we bring two teams?

  • No, not at the same level of competition. Only one team per level per school is permitted.

How many teams can I bring?

  • Each school may bring one Level I team and one Level II team. Each team must be accompanied by an adult coach. One coach must be a chemistry teacher or another science teacher from the school; if one school enters a team at both levels, the second coach may be a responsible adult familiar with lab safety procedures.

How many students may participate in each event?

  • Each event may have as many as 3 students participating. All team members attending must be at one of the 2 concurrent events at each period.

I'm a teacher. May I go to my team's events to see what/how they are doing?

  • No. At least not most of the time. All teachers/coaches must participate as judges for one of the events. If there are enough judges that you aren't busy the entire time, you may be able to take a few moments here and there to look at some of the other events. Some events, though, are off-limts to observers (to maintain "security" of the event).

Can parents and other students attend?

  • For safety and space reasons, observers are not permitted during the competition. Parents and interested parties may join students for lunch and the awards ceremony in the afternoon.

Can I park a bus in the garage?

  • The height clearance in the Regent's Drive garage (the garage directly across the street from the Chemistry building, labelled pg2 on campus maps) is 6 feet 8 inches. If that is too low for your vehicle, you can park in any non-restricted parking space that day. Most spaces are available after 4:00 on weekdays and all day on weekends.

Registration

Should I have received an acknowledgement when I registered?

  • Yes. If you correctly entered your email address, you should receive an email acknowledgement of your registration.

What paperwork do I need to bring to Chemathon?

  • At check-in, emergency contact information is required for each student participating and a roster for each team.

I registered for and attended the workshop. Is my school automatically registered for the competition?

  • No. Workshop and competition registrations are seperate.

Events

What kind of calculator should I bring?

  • No programmable calculators are allowed in any event. This includes graphing calculators, PDAs, and laptops.

What should I wear?

  • In all lab rooms: Shoes must be worn that do not have open spaces and cover the entire foot; sandals and open-toe shoes are not acceptable. Each team member must wear goggles for eye protection and an apron or lab coat. 

How are the overall awards decided?

  • Overall team honors are based on a maximum of 180 points: nine events at 20 points each, with no events dropped. For each event, first place is awarded 20 points, second 18 points, third 16 points. From fourth place on, the point value decreases by one for each place, to a minimum of one. Every team participating in an event scores at least one point. A team's score in each event is then added to give a total score. Avogadro's Tiebreaker is not added to the total scores, but is used to decide ties, both for individual events and overall place.

Chemistry Signs

What do you mean by "single sheet of cardboard or poster board whose dimensions are within two centimeters of 56 cm x 71 cm"

  • One continuous piece of poster board with nothing protruding beyond the poster board dimensions.

What do you mean by 2-D?  2-D (2-dimensional), for the purposes of the posters, means:

  • no attached parts such as cotton balls, ribbons, intended to give texture vs. intended for color design
  • No moving parts
  • No interaction should be required by viewers (i.e. someone should be able to stand back from the poster, and see the full meaning of the content of the poster without touching it)

Why do you require 2-D only?

  • Scientific poster sessions are all 2-D. 

How are posters judged?

  • 60% content, 40% presentation. Presentation includes following the rules. If you don't follow the rules, 0 points for presentation. Content – following the topic and having chemistry, and the chemistry is correct.

Chemysterie

Can we use organoleptic tests in Chemysterie?

  • No. Good lab technique must be used. No tasting or touching of chemicals.

Can students use phenolphthalein in Chemysterie?

  • No. Only the provided solutions may be used – no additional chemicals. An acid-base neutralization is not one of the visible reactions students should look for in this event. The OH will precipitate with certain cations, and the acids will bubble with the carbonate – those are the reactions students should use to ID these substances.

Reactions in Action / Balancing Act

Can students use a PT or ion chart for Reactions in Action or The Balancing Act?

  • No. Notes of any kind are not permitted in those events.

How many copies of the questions are given to each team?

  • One. For both Reactions in Actions, and Balancing Act, the teams will be given one copy of the questions, on which their answers are to be written, and blank paper for each team member. At the end of the event, the question sheet AND all the scratch paper is turned in. Only the answers written on the question sheet are scored.

Weighing by Redox

Are digital thermometers permitted in Weighing by Redox?

  • Yes, digital thermometers are allowed.

What units will the atmospheric pressure be given in for Weighing by Redox?

  • Usually torr (mm Hg). Students should be able to convert among torr, kPa and atm, as the R values given and water vapor pressures may not be in the same units as the atmospheric pressure they are given.

Mendeleev Madness

How many copies are given to each team?

  • One. Each team will be given one set of clues and one answer sheet containing a blank periodic table. At the end of the event, the clues, the answer sheet AND all scratch paper are turned in. Only the answers written on the periodic table answer sheet are scored.

Make My [Fara]day

Are electrode holders like those supplied by Science Kit permitted in Make My [Fara]day?

  • Yes.

Where can we purchase a variable resistor or rheostat for Make My [Fara]day?

  • One source is Flinn Scientific, Catalog No: AP5704

May we use a power supply in Make My [Fara]day?

  • No. Only batteries are permitted.  We understand getting 6V lantern batteries is becoming more difficult.  So we will allow any combination of dry cell batteries (AAA,AA,C, or D) not to exceed 6V.  A single dry cell battery has a voltage of 1.5V.  You can connect up to 4 AAA-D batteries in series and use that in place of the 6V Lantern battery.  Power supplies are still not allowed for this event.

Beat the Clock

Can the students adjust the speed of the magnetic stirrer?

  • Yes.

Lunch

Is lunch provided?

  • No, participants are responsible for their own lunch.

Where can we eat lunch?

  • Fast food services are available in the nearby student union building or on U.S. Route 1. (We do not recommend leaving campus since it will be hard to find parking when you return.) There are soft drink machines in the chemistry building. This year, Maryland Day will also be on the same day as Chemathon. Additional food vendors will be available on the mall.
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