Question

It’s not string-related, but an optimization of this task is given by the “method of four Russians.” Cache-aware algorithms that perform this task may use “tiled” layouts of size equal to the square root of the cache size. In 2024, Virginia Vassilevska Williams’s team developed an algorithm for this task that marginally improved a bound previously established by her and Alman. The search targets of Deepmind’s AlphaTensor system are efficient algorithms for this task, which seek to improve (-5[1])upon a divide-and-conquer algorithm for this task that creates seven subproblems instead of an expected eight and was (10[1])developed by Strassen. This task is equivalent to composing two linear transformations. For 10 points, name this non-commutative operation (10[1])that determines grid entries by taking inner products of rows and columns. ■END■

ANSWER: matrix multiplication [accept descriptions of multiplying matrices; reject “multiplication” or “scalar multiplication”]
<Maryland A, Other Science>
= Average correct buzz position

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Buzzes

PlayerTeamOpponentBuzz PositionValue
Viraj NegandhiTexas BASU77-5
Karan GurazadaTexas ATAMU9510
Stefan Stealey-EuchnerASUTexas B11410

Summary

California2025-02-01Y3100%0%0%70.00
Great Lakes2025-02-01Y580%0%20%110.00
Lower Mid-Atlantic2025-02-01Y667%0%67%114.50
Midwest2025-02-01Y683%0%33%98.00
North2025-02-01Y3100%0%0%100.33
Overflow2025-02-01Y5100%0%0%99.00
Pacific Northwest2025-02-01Y2100%0%50%86.50
South Central2025-02-01Y2100%0%50%104.50
Southeast2025-02-01Y475%0%0%101.67
UK2025-02-01Y1090%0%20%106.33
Upper Mid-Atlantic2025-02-01Y8100%0%0%74.63
Upstate NY2025-02-01Y3100%0%0%117.00