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What algorithm is used to generate rankings for the Team Play?
Each participating team submits up to six solutions (one solution per part) for a given round of the Team Play. These papers are evaluated by a panel of graders, who assign scores for each part. The sum of these six scores is the team's total for that round. This procedure is followed for all teams, regardless of the number of teams enrolled from a particular school.
Cumulative totals are computed in a manner similar to the way they are figured for the Mandelbrot Competition. A school that has registered a single team would simply add together their team's total for each round to obtain their cumulative total. However, for a school with two or three teams, the highest team total for each round is used to compute the highest cumulative score, followed by the next highest totals for each round, and so on.
Thus if a school has teams BROT1, BROT2 and BROT3 with totals of 18, 13, 11 on round one and 14, 16, 9 on round two, then that school would appear in the standings with a cumulative score of 18+16=34, then again with a cumulative score of 13+14=27, and finally a third time with a cumulative score of 11+9=20. This policy recognizes that team composition is likely to change over the course of a year and permits greater flexibility for coaches. It is also designed to accommodate a wide range of reporting practices, such as schools that only submit papers for BROT2 and BROT3, for instance.