Physics Bowl Competition Rules
Competition Format: Individual competition, written exam, no lab exam.
Exam Format: Online exam, answered in English (online exam requires a computer with a webcam and a mobile device).
Exam Structure: The exam consists of 50 multiple-choice questions. The questions are structured differently for lower and higher grade levels, divided into two divisions. Lower graders complete Division 1 (questions 1-40), and higher graders complete Division 2 (questions 11-50). Questions 11-30 overlap between the two divisions and are required for all participants. The exam time for both sets of questions is 45 minutes.
Scope of Examination:
Knowledge Scope: Includes all major modules of high school physics, such as mechanics, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, optics, and atomic physics. The knowledge points are 90% aligned with AL, IB, and AP physics content, and will also include a small number of general physics questions.
Mechanics: Fundamentals of Measurement, Kinematic Calculations, Newton's Three Laws, Momentum, Impulse, Kinetic Energy, Energy Conversion, Circular Motion, Fluid Mechanics, etc.
Electromagnetism: Waves, Coulomb's Law, Electric Field, Electric Potential, Potential Energy, Capacitance, Parallel-Plate Capacitor, Gauss's Law, etc.
Thermodynamics: Molecular Motion, Internal Energy and Heat Engines, Ideal Gas Law, etc.
Optics: Reflection, Refraction, Diffraction, Scattering, etc.
Modern Physics: Atomic Structure, Quantum Mechanics, Wave-Particle Duality, etc.
Target Audience:
Grade 10 Students (IB Year 10, some outstanding students in A-Level Year 1 and Year 2): Division 1 is recommended. Division 1 is designed for high school students just beginning their physics studies. The first part covers everything from basic physics concepts to the first-year physics content of various international curriculum systems.
Grade 11 and 12 Students (IB Years 11-12, A-Level Years): Division 2 is recommended. Division 2 is designed for students with at least a basic understanding of high school physics, primarily targeting students in their second year of high school or higher. Any student looking for a challenge can choose this section; the questions in Division 2 are significantly more difficult than those in Division 1.
The above is a general recommendation; in reality, any high school student can participate in this competition, including students in K-12.
Team Competition: Team competitions are organized by school or test center. The scores of the top 5 students from each school are combined to give the team score. All schools are compared. Schools with fewer than 5 students can still participate in team competitions (although this reduces their chances of winning). Schools can compete as teams separately in Division 1 and Division 2.
Awards:
Individual Awards:
Global Top 100
National Top 10
International Gold Medal: National Top 25%
International Banking Medal: National Top 25%
National Bronze Medal: National Top 35%
Honorary Awards: Regional Top 20%
Team Awards:
Team score is calculated by adding the scores of the top 5 schools in a specific region/department.
Global Top 50
National Top 10
Regional Top 10
Note: Division 1 and Division 2 are ranked separately.
Competition Guidelines
Dictionary and Calculator Allowance: You may bring a paper English-Chinese dictionary and a calculator without programming functions. Calculators cannot be shared.
Formulas and Constants: Only the formulas and constants provided by the competition may be used.
Score: Your score is equal to the number of correct answers (no points are deducted for incorrect answers). In case of a tie, the score will be compared backwards from the end of the test until a tie is resolved. Therefore, the answers to the last few questions may be crucial in determining the winner and require careful consideration.
Registration Method: Chinese high school participants need to register through ASDAN China. US high school students can register through their school's advisor on the competition's official website.
Exam Practices
Is there an equation table?
Yes! An equation table is provided to students. However, it does not include all the formulas that might be useful in the competition. It contains many basic equations, but it is not, and is not intended to be, an exhaustive list for the problems.
The equation table underwent many changes over time, in 2008 and 2009. Here is a link to the latest version of the equation table.
Another link is a “annotated” equation table explaining what each equation represents, but this is not the equation table provided in the competition.
What about constants?
As with the equation table, some constants are provided. All the constants on this table are used to construct the exam. For all problems related to gravity, use g = 10 m/s².
Again, this is not an exhaustive list of all constants, but rather the most commonly used ones. Values like the resistivity of copper are not something students would think of. However, perhaps one would have some qualitative understanding of such values (e.g., which has a higher resistivity, copper or glass)?
The constants table has changed over the past few years.
What assumption conventions are used in the exam?
The assumptions used in constructing the competition are those commonly used in exam papers. For clarity, we attempt to explicitly state the implicit assumptions in the core parts of the problem.
Here are some working assumptions:
g = 10 m/s²;
All currents are conventional currents unless otherwise stated;
"A person throws an object from the top of a 10-meter-high building..." It is assumed that the object is thrown 10 meters above the ground... If the problem requires the person's height, that will be explicitly stated from the context;
Important figures are not considered in the problem unless otherwise stated (although we try to be reasonable);
All masses are rest masses (unless otherwise stated).