I’m Rivka Lipkovitz, a senior at Proof School, a school for kids who love math. I’ve taken math classes like multivariable calculus, polytopes, partition theory, linear algebra, and more. I’m interested in causal inference, data science, econometrics, mathematics, and computer science—basically anything involving numbers and relating it to the world. I’ve been fencing for ten years. I spent five years fencing saber before deciding to switch to foil in 2019. Even though I mostly practice foil now, I still occasionally dabble in epee and saber. I’m also a certified referee in all three weapons, with experience at the local, regional, and national levels. In my free time, I enjoy working on this blog, solving Rubik’s cubes, reading articles about causal inference, and modeling with my 3D printer.
Most of the analyses on this blog have been based on data from the USA Fencing tournament results website. However, there are many questions that cannot be answered from this type of data, especially those trying to gauge the opinions of the fencing community. In March, I partnered with the… Read More »90% of Youth Fencers Want to Practice More Footwork
This was the day that nobody was looking forward to: the day when we would have to leave. Still, we had one more activity planned for us in the morning: breakfast with the Society for Science Board of Trustees. I sat at a table with HP Solutions President Dave Shull.… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 7
Today was probably the most exciting day of Regeneron STS because we did so many things! First, we woke up at the crack of dawn to go to the Capitol Building and take the historic photo that finalists from every year have taken. The building is gorgeous — not only… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 6
There was no judging today, which was a relief for everyone. Instead, we would be splitting up and going on field trips to various research/science-related destinations. I went to the Janelia Research Center, which is particularly focused on neuroscience research. Janelia is located about an hour’s drive away from the… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 5
Today was the final day of judging, which was a relief. It was different today, however, because it was project judging instead of panel judging, which meant that we were now talking about the subject we were experts in. When we got to the second floor, all of our posters… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 4
This post is going to be a bit shorter because it’s daylight savings tomorrow and I need to get to bed soon, but like posts before, I’m never going to fully be able to convey the excitement of Finals Week. Not just because so much happens here that I can’t… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 3
After getting to know each other a bit, we finally had our first day of judging! I woke up a bit before my alarm yet again and went down to breakfast to eat with the other finalists. The food was amazing again; the Conrad Hotel had the best breakfast sausage… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 2
Today was the first actual day of the event, which was exciting! I woke up at 8:11 am, shortly before my alarm went off. It’s always nice when that happens because I feel less groggy when I wake up naturally. I took my time to get ready in the morning… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 1
I was honored to be selected as a finalist in the Regeneron Science Talent Search, which includes a weeklong trip in March where they do the final judging and select the top 10 scientists in the country. I’ve heard from others that Finals Week is a life-changing and extremely fun… Read More »Regeneron STS Finals Week: Day 0
A similar version of this was presented at the UConn Sports Analytics Symposium and is published in the Wharton Sports Analytics Journal. I wrote this article in June for a more general audience than my usual readership, so it has a slightly different tone. “The ref is biased!” hollers an… Read More »A Statistical Stab at Referee Bias
Fencers frequently switch clubs, either because their current club isn’t meeting their needs, or to train with certain fencers or coaches at another club. But does switching clubs actually lead to better competitive outcomes? To answer this, I analyzed data from over 600 fencers who switched clubs, using matrix completion—a… Read More »Joining a Top Club Won’t Necessarily Make You Better
Post-conference update: This poster won 2nd place! 🥈 This post is a continuation from my previous post Can Fencers Bounce Back From Being Cut After Pools?. As I prepared that work to be presented at the CMU Sports Analytics Conference and the Midwest Sports Analytics Meeting, I made some small… Read More »Can Fencers Bounce Back From Being Cut After Pools? (Pt. 2)
This research will be presented at the Carnegie Mellon Sports Analytics Conference and Midwest Sports Analytics Meeting. Getting cut after pools is probably one of the worst feelings at a national tournament. It hurts to travel hundreds of miles to an event and only get to fence a handful of… Read More »Can Fencers Bounce Back From Being Cut After Pools?
In the olden days (sometime around the 5th century BCE), it was commonly believed that all numbers were rational and could be expressed as fractions with integer numerators and denominators. When Hippasus of Metapontum demonstrated that the square root of 2 is irrational, it challenged the Pythagorean worldview. According to… Read More »Statistical Significance Might Be Less Significant in the Future
Many parents, fencers, and coaches have expressed frustration on social media that East Coast North American Cups (NACs) are problematic for West Coast fencers. Morning events on the East Coast translate to 5:00 AM on West Coast time, and fencers often have to wake up 1-2 hours earlier than their… Read More »Surprise! East Coast NACs Do Not Harm Performance