General Format
Tossups
The round starts with the moderator reading the first tossup. A tossup is the basis of Science Bowl, either a short answer question or mutiple choice. At any point during the tossup, a player may “buzz” in and answer. However, a player is not allowed to converse with their teammates. 4 points is awarded for a correct answer and allows the team to answer bonus question. If the player buzzes in after the question is read and is incorrect, no points are lost. Either team has 5 seconds to answer after the question has been read to answer.
If the player buzzes in before the question is finished
- And gets it incorrect, 4 points will go to the other team and the question will be re-read for the other team and given 5 seconds at the end to answer.
- And gets it correct, your team is awarded 4 points and the chance to correctly answer the bonus for 10 questions.
Bonuses
After a team has correctly answered a tossup, a bonus question is read to them and them only. A bonus question consists of either a short answer question or mutiple choice. 20 seconds is given after the question is read and is worth 10 points.
Bonus questions tend to be more difficult. Bonuses are important because, if your bonus conversion is good, you have the opportunity to come back as a bonus is worth more than double a tossup.
For bonuses, only the answer from the captain is accepted. Communication is is crucial.
Winning
The winner is determined by the score at the end of a round of 16 minutes. If, however, the score is even between the two teams, an additional 5 questions will be read to break the tie.
Each round is comprised of 2(two), 8 minute halves and 1 (one) 2 minute break