If you’ve participated in MIST previously, you will notice the following important changes:

Changes to MIST Quiz Bowl’s done rule
Scrapbook has been changed to a pilot competition (i.e. will not be offered at Nationals)
Tafseer Test competition will no longer be offered
Qur’an Recitation Level 3 will no longer be offered
“Research in Action” has been renamed to “Community Service”
Math Olympics will no longer allow graphing calculators
Minor changes to other rules and ballots

This year’s Knowledge Test books are:
1. “The Life and Work of Muhammad (Critical Lives)” by Yahiya Emerick
2. “When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam’s Greatest Dynasty” by Hugh Kennedy
3. “The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution” by Walter Isaacson (Chapters 1, 6-11 only)
4. “Commander of the Faithful: The Life and Times of Emir Abd el-Kader” by John W. Kiser

This year’s MIST Bowl topics are:
Topic I – Contemporary Movers and Shakers**
Topic II – 1001 Inventions: How Muslims Influenced the World Part 2
Topic III – The Abbasid Empire*
Topic IV – Mosques Around the World
Topic V – Revolutionizing Social Change Part 2
Topic VI – Current Events (Starting January 1st, 2015)

Other competitions that require topics:
Original Oratory/Prepared Essay
Debate (updated with National topics)

Pilot Competitions:
Mobile Apps Ballot
Culinary Arts Ballot
Scrapbook Ballot

*Please note there is a typographical error in the packet “The Abbasid Empire” on page 5, 5th paragraph down. The final caliph of the Abbasid Empire is named “Caliph al-Musta’sim (1242-1258)” not al-Mu’tasim.

**Updated Links:
– p9 Charity is nothing new for Christiano Ronaldo http://goo.gl/ot6fup
– p11 Elon Musk: The 21st Century Industrialist http://goo.gl/4syXFE
– p21 Thomas P. Peschak: Discovering the Ocean of Childhood Dreams http://goo.gl/HtLFXM

2015 Competition Rulebook