The first time I participated in the national competition was in the summer vacation of my freshman year. At that time, I just teamed up with two classmates, and we didn't have any foundation. The result can be imagined: no prize. After this international competition, the two teammates of the freshman were no longer interested in participating, so they found two teammates. Since then, our team members have confirmed this. These two are a girl in charge of typesetting and a boy in charge of modeling; I am responsible for writing programs. Let's prepare for the national competition next year. During this period, our school decided to organize a model contest to pave the way for the national competition. We joined in order to test our study results. With luck, we won the second prize. Soon, we arrived at nationals. During the international competition, we stayed up late every day. After having a little idea, we began to discuss. Then we found it was no good, started discussing, then improved ... and so on. Until the end of the article # when looking for teammates, be sure to find reliable and familiar ones, and never form a team temporarily. During the preparation for the competition, we should communicate frequently, run in with each other and cultivate tacit understanding. When participating in the competition, it is inevitable that the discussion will be too intense, so don't disturb each other, because only by exchanging ideas can we collide with a solution suitable for our team. In the division of labor, it is suggested that one person is mainly responsible for modeling, one person is mainly responsible for programming, and one person is mainly responsible for writing papers and typesetting. Three people should know modeling, programming and typesetting, because they don't know who won the competition with more workload, and another person can help. Knowing these three things can also help us communicate better and finish our work better.
In the preparation of modeling competition, we should first understand the common models, such as analytic hierarchy process, differential equation model, linear programming, nonlinear programming, integer programming and so on. If you feel that you can't fully understand it, you can understand it first. In the actual competition, you will consult a lot of information, learn an unknown field in a short time, learn from the classic model and improve it to make a model suitable for this problem. I recommend the following books: The first one is a mathematical model:
The book Mathematical Models is very classic, and there are many classic models in it.
The second book is "Application of matlab in Mathematical Modeling";
The third book is mathematical modeling algorithm and application.
The person in charge of programming must have at least one programming language that he is good at, such as MATLAB and Python. Most people use MATLAB in the modeling process, but many people also use Python. There are many MATLAB toolboxes and many users. Python has more libraries. Personally, I prefer python, but Matlab is also better. In normal study, we should find a topic suitable for our team, whether it is data analysis or optimization. If you choose data analysis, you need to have a better understanding of data analysis, how to visualize the data, and what kind of graph to choose to better describe the characteristics of the data. If you don't know what kind of map to choose, you can refer to the following figure:
You should also be familiar with some data processing software, such as Excel, SPSS, python and other libraries.
Of course, the algorithm is indispensable. If the time is tight, you can get a general understanding and understand the framework of the algorithm. Commonly used algorithms include: clustering algorithm, genetic algorithm, ant colony algorithm, particle swarm optimization algorithm, cellular automata and so on.
Typesetting is very important and can give people a first impression. Good typesetting can bring people beautiful enjoyment. If someone typesets in Word, learn how to use Mathtype formula editor. If you use Latex for typesetting, you should study grammar well and find a template. The flow chart in this paper is suggested to be drawn with Visio. In the process of learning typesetting, you can first look at the typesetting of outstanding papers in previous years and learn. For example, western languages and numbers will look better in Times New Roman font, and it will feel more beautiful to find out the spacing of words by yourself, and it will feel more beautiful to find out the number of pounds in the three-line table.
I don't know what kind of competition you are talking about. I am familiar with the mathematical modeling contest for college students. During my undergraduate course, I participated in two national competitions and American competitions, both of which achieved good results. Especially after I have rich experience, I won the highest prize (O prize) in the last American competition.
Comparatively speaking, the United States is more difficult for the following reasons:
In fact, the biggest difference between the two competitions is the language, and the difference is the different background.
The national competition is based on the actual problems in China. The relevant information is easy to query and read, but the topics are novel and there is no ready-made answer, so it is still difficult. The background of America and Spain is American culture, so you need to know the background first. However, foreign materials are hard to find, and all documents are in English, which is inconvenient and slow to consult.
On the other hand, languages are different. As long as you take it out, you can write it soon. But Messer, if you understand this problem, you must translate it into authentic English, which is technical and requires ability and time.
In addition, there are many countries participating in the USA, but the number of participants in the USA is relatively small. Many powerful universities basically do not participate in the USA, so the USA has a large number of participants and high quality. Four days and three nights in the USA and three days and two nights in the USA. To sum up, the United States is more difficult!