Is Science Olympiad worth it?

For anything Science Olympiad-related that might not fall under a specific event or competition.
Post Reply
winneratlife
Member
Member
Posts: 335
Joined: December 16th, 2009, 3:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: MI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by winneratlife »

I mean, think about it...
You spend hours and hours studying, slaving away, building, and THEN:

a. You panic during your building event, mess up, and get screwed
b. You go to your study event, realize that the test is exactly what you didn't study, and get screwed
c. Your team misses states by 1-5 points
d. Your team misses NATS by 1-5 points
e. Your team just overall sucks, and no matter how hard you work, you're not getting as far as you would like
f. You make a deal with your partner, and they don't follow up, and you get screwed
g. The event supervisor messes up their knowledge of the test subjects, and write the answer key wrong, and you get screwed
h. The floor on which your build event occurs is messed up (i.e. really slippery) and you get screwed

Anyways, if any of these happens, or you just plain lose, how do you feel knowing that you spent hours and hours of your precious time and essentially WASTED it...
Do you find Science Olympiad to still be worth it?

(I'm asking this cuz I just got f***ed at regionals, and I'm now really depressed)
User avatar
Pleiades
Exalted Member
Exalted Member
Posts: 563
Joined: April 14th, 2008, 4:16 pm
Division: Grad
State: AL
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by Pleiades »

It's not always about winning. Even if you get dead last in an event because you filled your scantron out in #3 pencil, you still walk out of science olympiad knowing more than you did before. Knowledge is not a waste.
winneratlife
Member
Member
Posts: 335
Joined: December 16th, 2009, 3:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: MI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by winneratlife »

Pleiades wrote:It's not always about winning. Even if you get dead last in an event because you filled your scantron out in #3 pencil, you still walk out of science olympiad knowing more than you did before. Knowledge is not a waste.
Meh, wouldn't it be great if I could think like that...
But, I mean, look at my username?
Do I just have mental issues?

Anyways, imo, knowledge IS a waste...
Or, a large amount of it is...
Why will I need to know, say, how to build a reversing mousetrap vehicle? + What does knowledge do for me when I'm dead?
User avatar
tclme elmo
Member
Member
Posts: 177
Joined: August 14th, 2009, 12:55 pm
Division: B
State: HI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by tclme elmo »

I agree with Pleiades, but I know how you're feeling.....what happened?
2011
Rustin Invitational - 1st
Solon Invitational - 8th
Regionals - 1st
States - 1st
Nationals - 11th
User avatar
Mimsie
Member
Member
Posts: 74
Joined: December 9th, 2007, 12:30 pm
Division: Grad
State: TX
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by Mimsie »

Pleiades is right. You always learn something when you get out of Olympiad. You also get to know your team members and make some valuable friends. And those two will get you pretty far in life. The medals you get in Olympiad? Who cares. In ten, twenty years, you won't even remember where they were from.

If you weren't interested in an event, you shouldn't have done it. =/ That's just what I think.
This IS SPARTA!! - Proud Grad of Seven Lakes Science Olympiad
winneratlife
Member
Member
Posts: 335
Joined: December 16th, 2009, 3:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: MI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by winneratlife »

tclme elmo wrote:I agree with Pleiades, but I know how you're feeling.....what happened?
Meh...
Basically, my region is about 1/10 the competitiveness of the Clio Invitational...
I should've known we weren't gonna do great...day before, 2 members quit on us...

Anyways, first test of the day is RS. Got 1st at Clio, regionals ought to be a breeze...
We do okay, but there's a TON of Bio, my partner's job. So, I'm not feeling great, but this is a partner I trust. So it's not bad, but worst than I hoped for. We get fourth...

Next, Mission Possible. Apparently, the guy who we had finish it, didn't realize that we could do the tasks in any order we want, but thought that they would give us an order on site. So, he leaves out all the track...We poorly connect the track in 30 minutes, and I have to sprint to DyPlan before even running it.

DyPlan...ughhhhh. Basically, I have a fairly useless partner on this one... So I sprint in exactly at starting time, look at the test, discover that whoever wrote the S-P wave travel chart did S+P for the S-P line... And I have to use it... So yeah...

Finally Mousetrap...
I expect great things from my two-times-as-fast-as-the-last-one vehicle...
Except that it wants to go before I start it...
Huh? Very slippery floor...

And so, basically, my day failed...
Not to mention that at orchestra festival 1 hour later, I ruined my solo...

So yeah...
Thanx for letting me vent...
winneratlife
Member
Member
Posts: 335
Joined: December 16th, 2009, 3:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: MI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by winneratlife »

Mimsie wrote:Pleiades is right. You always learn something when you get out of Olympiad. You also get to know your team members and make some valuable friends. And those two will get you pretty far in life. The medals you get in Olympiad? Who cares. In ten, twenty years, you won't even remember where they were from.

If you weren't interested in an event, you shouldn't have done it. =/ That's just what I think.
Sorry for double post, but I can't quote in an edit... (From down below, I mean)

I'm a freshman, I don't get a choice...
User avatar
Mimsie
Member
Member
Posts: 74
Joined: December 9th, 2007, 12:30 pm
Division: Grad
State: TX
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by Mimsie »

You don't get a choice about your events? That's kind of dumb. Sorry to hear that.
This IS SPARTA!! - Proud Grad of Seven Lakes Science Olympiad
winneratlife
Member
Member
Posts: 335
Joined: December 16th, 2009, 3:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: MI
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by winneratlife »

Mimsie wrote:You don't get a choice about your events? That's kind of dumb. Sorry to hear that.
Actually, I'm lucky for a freshman...At least the prez (cuz he's a friend) asks me before throwing me headfirst into Mission Possible...

But no... hierarchy of my school, despite the fact that I'm one of like the four people who care...
ktrujillo52
Member
Member
Posts: 172
Joined: November 21st, 2008, 7:52 pm
Division: Grad
State: IN
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Is Science Olympiad worth it?

Post by ktrujillo52 »

I remember my Sophomore year I did Wright Stuff and my plane was actually really good (first year doing it). It was clocking in a time that would have been good enough for 3rd at Regionals. Since I had no partner, they had someone else on the team help me. After 2 hours of repeated flights, we decide to go to the judges to have our official flight. My "partner" drops the rubber band, goes down to pick it up, and when he comes back up his head collides with the back portion of the plane. The stabilizer was demolished. Needless to say, we didn't get 3rd-we got 9th. And that year, my team missed State by 2 points.

I was probably as mad as you are now. But I eventually realized that I would have my revenge next year. That revenge never happened because Wright Stuff got replaced with Egg O Naut. Funny how things work, I didn't want to do Egg O Naut last year but I did it anyways because no one else wanted to. Now, this year, my Egg O Naut has received first place at every competition we have been to (4 total). Just because this year didn't go well doesn't mean it isn't worth it. Focus on improving next year.

As for not getting to choose your own events, that's bull. I like to do a range of events. For example, I will be doing Tech Prob Solving, Disease Detectives, Anatomy, Egg O Naut, and Cell Bio at State. But, I had a hand in building the Mousetrap this year and also did Exp. Design at some competitions. But I would NEVER want to do a Chemistry event. You really should say something to your coaches about that, it seems like they are not giving the Freshman a very good incentive to join...

Regardless, you will have a choice next year right? You will be a Sophomore. Don't let one bad Regional get to you, just come back strong next year.
Post Reply

Return to “General Competition”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests