Background Reading

The background that we assume when we're writing the Quiz includes high school Algebra, Geometry, and Precalculus (trigonometry, exponents and logarithms) – along with a healthy dose of ingenuity and persistence. If there's anything on the Quiz that requires content outside the standard high school curriculum, we'll explicitly tell you about it and give you the relevant background material here.

  • 2021 Quiz
    Here is a primer on Circle Inversion: Background [PDF].
  • 2019 Quiz
    Here is a primer on Combinatorial Game Theory: Background [PDF].
  • 2017 Quiz
    Here is a primer on Pascal's Triangle and Binomial Coefficients: Background [PDF].
  • 2015 Quiz
    Here is an app that allows you to play ProSet. (The app was built by MC alum Tim Black.)
  • 2014 Quiz
    Here is a primer on Combinatorics and Number Theory: Background [PDF].