2017 A-μ-Sing Competition Rules

  1. Any teacher, student or practitioner of statistics is eligible to enter (except CAUSE Directors and anyone serving as a contest judge for that category). Each entry must have content that is relevant to statistics or statistics education. By entering, entrants warrant that the items have not already been published (possible exception: a local newsletter or entrant's homepage) or submitted for publication, including to the collection at www.causeweb.org/cause/resources/fun.

  2. Entries must be received by March 10, 2017. Entries should be submitted electronically if possible through the entry form. If you feel that all or part of the entry must be put in regular mail then please e-mail dkp13@psu.edu to work out arrangements. Entry materials will not be returned so be sure to keep all of your originals if you might want them later.

  3. We are seeking entries in four categories:

    1. Jokes/Cartoons. Original ideas for jokes should be less than 150 words in length. Original ideas for cartoons should include the idea for what is pictured in the cartoon panel(s) as well as the caption. A rough sketch of the idea may be submitted for clarity but is not necessary.

    2. Poetry. This is the hardest category to define. However we feel that we will know a poem when we see one and that poetic justice does not count.

    3. Songs. Lyrics should be sent in an MS Word or pdf file. Songs may be original or parodies. Original songs of any genre should be accompanied by an audio file to illustrate the melody. This can be vocals alone or with musical accompaniment in a standard digital format such as MIDI, WAV, AIFF, or MP3. To maximize potential for classroom use, it is recommended that length should not exceed 4 minutes.

    4. Videos. Video may be "real" or animations and may consist of a skit, "music video", statistics story, magic trick, or one-act play, etc. To maximize potential for classroom use, it is recommended that length should not exceed 4 minutes. Format must be digital such as AVI, MP4, MOV.

  4. Each person may submit up to 3 entries (whether 1 in 3 separate categories, 2 in 1 category, or some other combination - however we note that submitting π entries in one category and 3-π entries in another would be viewed negatively by the judges and would also be irrational). Each entry should be sent separately and accompanied by a separate copy of the entry form. In order to make judging as fair as possible, please avoid author identification in uploaded files of cartoons, jokes, poems, lyrics, etc. We understand that some forms of fun (e.g., a video) may end up allowing only an unblinded review. In some cases, there may be category overlap, such as someone who writes a statistics song and then makes a video out of it. In such a case, indicate the primary category in which you would like the entry judged in. CAUSE reserves the right to reclassify or merge categories, particularly in the case of an insufficient number of quality entries in one category.  If you need to upload more than one file for an entry, please make a single zip file first and then upload that.

  5. Entries will be judged on content, student-friendliness, originality and craftsmanship, and usefulness in teaching. Song recordings or cartoon drawings will not be judged for the quality of performance or art. Artistic quality does matter in the video category since they would be used directly in teaching.

  6. There is no entry fee. Prizes totalling $1000 will be awarded with the anticipation of allotting $200 per category and $200 for overall awards. Amounts may be redistributed somewhat if categories are merged or the judges get persnickety about the number and quality of entries for each category - though no category will have a prize beyond second place and no first place prize will be less than $100. Prize-winning entrants will be notified on April 1, 2017 and will be displayed at the US Conference On Teaching Statistics in 2017 (entrants need not be present to win). All entries will be judged as anonymously as possible by a distinguished panel of statistics educators with much experience having fun in the classroom even when their students have not. Prizes are given to the contact person on the entry form and any taxes or division of prizes among co-authors are the responsibility of the entrant.

  7. Entrant grants CAUSE permission to post the entry at CAUSEweb.org or, in some cases, a professionally rendered version commissioned by CAUSE, where it will be available free of charge to individual statistics instructors for use on course websites and in the classroom (but not for commercial uses). However, entrant otherwise retains copyright of the original components of the work and will recieve full acknowlegement on CAUSEweb. Entrant warrants having the legal authority to grant permission for publication of the entry.