No, there was nothing scientific about it. I met with them afterwards and asked them why the amount had been set at half a million dollars, and they told me that they thought it was the right amount.
There could have been 8 or 12 departments at $50,000 each, but they calculated that 10 departments would invest $50,000 each. But it could just as well have been 8, 10 or 16 departments. So, I suggested that the distribution be less random and that the amount be calculated based on the spending.