Frequently Asked Questions About MathCup

Basics

What can I do on mathcup.com as a student?

The list of activities available is growing and you can let us know what other activities you would like to have, by contacting us.

We currently have:

• Connect with your friends on the friends tab; you can challenge your friends by assigning problems to them.
• Work on thousands of challenging math problems. Gain rating points by solving problems correctly.
• Submit your own problems on Forum by either typing it or uploading an image file.
• Submit your explanation to the problems you attempted.
• Share ideas or solutions on the forum questions.
• Ask for explanation on the problems you have difficulty with.
• List and review the problems you attempted. Check the explanation for solution (if available).

What can I do on mathcup.com as a teacher/parent?

• Create your own group, add members to the group.
• Connect with your kids as friends.
• Assign problems to your friends and/or your groups.
• Organized assignments with statistics.
• Browse all problems in different categories, which you can assign.

What are the different options in Problems Tab?

Explore Problems are the problems you can explore yourself. Assigned Problems are the problems assigned by either your friends or the groups you are associated.

How can I contact you?

Contact us by sending us email imathcup@gmail.com.

Registration

Why do I need to register to use the site?

Registration is simple and should take less than one minute. It is important to track your progress with rating points, track the problems you attempted, credit you for the explanations provided and problems submitted. These are only possible for a registered user. More importantly, a registered user can be an assigner, who can assign problems, or an assignee, whom someone can assign problems to.

What is the registration process?

Fill in the form and submit. You will get an email confirmation. Click the link in email confirmation and start working on math problems. Contact us if you have problem with registration.

Working On Problems

How can I get help for solving a problem?

After attempting the problem and getting incorrect answer, you can request for explanation. The requested problem will be shown on the forum page.

What is the standard way to input an answer?

Please note that most answers are integers and fractions. For example if the answer is 3/2, you should answer 3/2 instead of 1.5 or 6/4 or \(1\frac12\). Sometimes the problem specifies the format of the answer, please follow the format.

I am sure something is wrong with the problem and/or the answer.

Please click "ask for explanation", AND let us know there is an error. Thanks!

Submit Problems and Explanations

How do I input math formula?

We use MathJax, which supports Latex-like syntax, which is used by most mathematicians. Any math formula is contained within a pair \(\backslash(\) and \(\backslash)\). For example, \(\sqrt{2}\) can be typed as \(\backslash(\)\sqrt{2}\(\backslash)\); for another example, \(\frac{x^2}{\sqrt{x-5}}\) can be typed as \(\backslash(\) \frac{x^2}{\sqrt{x-5}}\(\backslash)\).

How do I include a graph?

In submitting problems, you can include an image. But we currently do not support image uploading in problem explanation.

What happens after I submit a question?

The question will be shown up in MyActivities/Problems Your Submitted and it will be ready for assignment to your friends. It will also be reviewed by the MathCup team. Once approved, the question will be available for all users to attempt.

What happens after I submit an explanation?

Other users can read your unique explanation. Thanks for your sharing.