Fermi Estimation
Welcome to the Quantable Fermi Estimation Game!
What is Fermi Estimation?
Fermi estimation involves quickly coming up with answers to tricky mathematical or real-world questions, that require some assumptions or creative reasoning to answer. For example, "Estimate the number of ping pong balls that can fit in a Boeing 737." These questions were first popularized in tech interviews in the mid 2000's.
Do firms ask Fermi questions?
Yes, primarily for trading interviews. Some firms, like 5 Rings, are well-known for asking a lot of Fermi-style math questions that require you to quickly estimate or calculate a value that you usually would have to do with a calculator. Other firms have been known to ask Fermi questions as well, and practicing them can help you build your intuition for quick thinking and estimation.
How to Start Playing
- Select Your Mode: Choose a to include either only Math estimation questions, only Real-World estimation questions, or both!
- Adjust Special Settings: Modify different aspects of the game for a custom experience.
- Hit Start Game: Good Luck!
Detailed Settings and Directions
1. Game Mode
These are preset modes created and curated by the Quantable team.
- Math and Real World: A combination of both dynamically generated math and real-world fermi estimation problems.
- Math Only: Dynamically generated math fermi estimation problems.
- Real World Only: An extensive collection of real-world fermi estimation problems.
2. Amount of Time / Amount of Questions
Depending on the Exam Format, choose one of the following:
- Amount of Time: Select how many minutes or seconds the game should last.
- Amount of Questions: Select how many questions you want to answer in one round.
3. Scoring
The Quantable team has carefully created a custom scoring function to grade the results of your estimation:
- Perfect Estimation: If your answer is perfectly correct, you'll get 1 point.
- Imperfect Estimation: If your answer isn't perfectly correct, our custom scoring rule will come in to effect!
- Incorrect vs. Correct: When you view the score screen, questions where your score was at least 0.9 are counted as correct.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Please do not hesitate to reach out to the Quantable team at team@quantable.io