What is a Fermi Question?

A rough estimate of a quantity which is either

difficult or impossible to measure directly
(How many drops of water are in Lake Erie?)

Answers are given in terms of “orders of

magnitude” powers of ten (exponent)

Named after Enrico Fermi

 PARAMETERS
▪ Bring pencils
▪ Calculators, computers, slide rules, reference
sheets, etc. are not allowed
▪ Teams which finish before the allotted time
should turn in their answer sheet and have
the time recorded by the event supervisor
 Writing Answers
Correct power of 10 (exponent) If the estimated
answer (based on a rough calculation) is 3 x
107, then the answer is written as 7.
Answers written as 3 x 107 will be marked as
incorrect.
Positive exponents are the default, for negative
exponents the minus sign (-) must be
included.
1.5 x 10-3 is written as -3
 Rounding Off

five or greater (up to 9.99...) - round up

5.00 x 103 is written as 4

4.99 and less … and down to one - round down

4.99 x 103 is written as 3
 SCORING

• 5 Pts – answer is equal to the accepted value

• 3 pts – answer is +1 of the accepted value
• 1 pt – answer is +2 of the accepted value
 Math Tricks

• Use approximations (𝜋=3)

• Record where you under/overestimate
– Try to equalize under/overestimations
• Remember exponent rules
– Multiply exponents => Add the powers
– Divide exponents => Subtract the powers
– Raise exponent to power => Multiply the powers
 Magnitude Notations
ex: 1*10^3 (1E3)=E3, 4E3=+E3, 7E3=-E4
0,1,2: leave the exponent, no +/-
3,4: leave the exp, put a +
5: if rounded up, add one to exp and put -; if
rounded down, leave the exp and put a +
6,7: add one to exp, put a -
8,9: add one to exp, no +/-
 More Magnitude Notation
• Multiplication
– When two numbers with plus signs are multiplied, the pluses are removed
and one is added to the resulting exponent. for example, +E5 times +E7
equals E13.
– When two numbers, one with a +, and one with a -, are multiplied, the signs
are canceled without changing the exponent.
– When two numbers, both with minus signs, are multiplied, one is subtracted
from the exponent and the signs removed.
• Division
– Same signs cancel.
– Opposing signs are removed, adding one to the exponent of the value with
the + sign.
 Adding and Subtracting
● If the exponents are equal:
○ If the signs are both pluses, add one to the exponent and
remove the signs.
○ If there are no signs, put a plus (exponents still equal).
○ If both signs are minus, remove the signs (exponents still
equal).
● If one exponent is one number larger than the other:
○ Remove a minus sign if there is one on the larger one
○ Add a plus sign if there is no sign on the larger one
○ Increase the exponent on the larger one while removing the
sign if there is a plus sign on the larger one.
● If the exponents are 2 or more apart, simply ignore the smaller
number.
 What is the circumference of Earth?

One possible solution requires the answer to

these two questions.

• How many time zones are there on Earth?

• How many miles/time zone?
 How many time zones are there on
Earth?

• There are 24 hours in a day therefore there

are 24 time zones
 How many miles/time zone?

• The distance from New York to Los Angeles is

about 3,000 miles
• Since the New York and Los Angeles are 3 time
zones apart there is 1000 miles/time zone
(3000 mi/3 time zones = 1000 mi/time zone)
 SOLUTION
• 24 time zones x 1000 miles = 24,000 miles
• 24,000 = 2.4 x 104
• Answer is written as 4
 Grading Homework

What is a reasonable number of hours per week

that a teacher should allocate to grade all of
his students’ homework if students average 35
min./night five nights/week?
 SOLUTION
Assumptions:
1. 5 classes of 25 students/class
2. 5 classes/day
3. 5 days/week
4. Grading papers takes 3 minutes each
Calculations:
3 min/student x 25 students/class x 5
classes/day x 5 days/week = 1875 min/wk /
60 min/hr = 31 hr/wk = 3.1 x 101
Written as: 1
 New York Times

How much paper (by volume) does the New

York Times use in one week?
 SOLUTION
Assumptions:
• Population of New York = 107 people
• Circulation = 106 papers/day (most families
buy only 1 copy and not every family
subscribes)
• Weekday paper measures 1 ft x 1 ft x .5 in
when folded
• Sunday paper measures 1 ft x 1 ft x 2 in when
folded
 Solution (cont.)
Calculations for one week:
• 6 newspapers/day x ½”/newspaper + 2” (for the
Sunday edition) = 5”/week
• Total volume/week for one subscription =
1 ft x 1 ft x 5/12ft = .5 ft2
• Total volume for all subscriptions =
106 subscriptions x .5ft2/subscription/week =
500,000 cu. ft/per week = 5 x 105
Answer is written as 6
 Calculation Problems
• Evaluate 2^188, 7^65, 125!
• Logarithms are your friends!!
– Remember you don’t give the answer (A) in
Fermi, you give log10(A)
– log10(a^b)=b*log10(a)
• ex: 2^188 => log(2^188)
– 188*log(2)=188*0.3=56
Logproximations
log(2)≈0.3
log(3)≈0.48
log(4)≈0.6
log(5)≈0.7
log(6)≈0.78
log(7)≈0.85
log(8)≈0.9
log(9)≈0.95
 Factorials (4!=4*3*2*1)
If the number before the factorial is small (<11),
directly calculate the answer.
 KEYS TO SUCCESS
➢ Have good assumptions – The best
assumptions are the ones you do not have to
assume (size of a sheet of paper). Most often
you will have to assume
➢ Equations – There isn’t much need for
accurate complex equations
➢ Be as accurate as possible with the most
questions
 Partner Pairing
Estimator:
• a visual/kinetic person with good memory
• able to estimate the dimensions, weights, etc.
of various objects (artificial and naturally
occurring
• should know random facts (frequency of a
cordless phone, number of Crayola colors,
demographic populations, etc.
 Partner Pairing (cont.)
Number Cruncher
• Performs quick calculations
• Knows physical values and conversions factors
such as pounds in a kilogram, speed of light,
etc.
 Find and Know Many Facts
• Physics facts (speed of sound, wavelength of a
color of light, etc.)
• Human body facts (size of a cell, body temp.)
• Facts about your community, State, the United
States, or the World
– (Populations, Land Area, Distances b/w cities,
economic output)
Visualizing Orders of Magnitude
Students should be able to determine the
reasonableness of their response

Visualization websites:
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienc
eopticsu/powersof10/index.html

http://htwins.net/scale2/
 FINALLY, REMEMBER
• Being off by 50% will still give you full pts.
• You can be off by as much as 250 % and still
get points.
• There is no penalty for being wrong, do not
guess blindly
• Sometimes it is best to round something down
if you have rounded something else up
• Since it is impossible to know everything, just
guess. You can be off by a lot and still get the
answer right (its powers of 10).
 Remember (cont.)
• Do not dwell on a single problem unless it is
your last
• Keep your calculations neat and simple
• Use common sense
 The Best Key to Success...

PRACTICE
● Old Tests
● Make up your own!