## Idea
> A Wimbledon-style instant knock-out tournament to find the world's most interesting mathematician.
## _In fact_
> A ruse to get 16 of my friends to tell me about cool maths stuff.
## First go, 2018
I emailed a load of mathematician friends and acquaintances.
* Lots said yes.
* Lots said “that makes me feel uneasy”.
* Several said “I'm not a mathematician”.
* Asked way more women than men, ended up with 4/16 women competitors.
## Format
* Four round instant knock-out tournament
* Each match, two mathematicians ‘pitch’ a bit of interesting maths
* Public votes on the most interesting pitch
* Winner goes through to the next round


## Loads of admin!
* Email people to ask if they'll take part
* Email again to check they'll still take part
* Email again to ask for pitches
* Email **again** to ask for pitches
* Email Matt Parker to _beg_ for pitches
* Absolutely ages wrangling pitches into WordPress and YouTube
## Success!
* Everyone behaved
* Loads of readers and votes
* 30 bits of fun maths
* Lots of different styles of pitch

## 2019
* Asked each 2018 competitor to nominate someone for 2019.
* Ended up with much more diverse field, and new friends.
* Group stage, so everyone gets three goes.


## Even more admin
* 54 bits of fun maths!
* One competitor pulled out
* One competitor burned the competition to the ground
* Katie Steckles and Matthew Scroggs helped

[aperiodical.com/category/the-big-internet-math-off](https://aperiodical.com/category/the-big-internet-math-off/)