The Imagine Cup finals have just completed, as teams brought victory home for not only their respective countries, but for themselves and their teammates.
The five winners in categories of Software Design, Embedded Development, Game Design, Digital Media and IT Challenge have all been announced, bringing a cash prize and the respect that follows.
Consumed over the five days of the Imagine Cup were 8,600 snickers and mars bars - with 7KM of network cable connecting it all - and 3,200L of water keeping contestants hydrated (not to mention the sheer amount of energy drink consumed).
There's some serious first place cash prizes up for grabs - US$25,000 or US$8,000 - and each of the 400 competitors won their very own Windows Phone 7. In many cases this is more than a year's salary for those in developing countries, and the phones are likely to boost the development of Phone 7 apps markedly, something sorely needed.
The Imagine Cup Winners!
Team Skeek from Thailand were overall winners of the Software Design competition with their project, an on-the-fly speech to sign language and text translation engine that overlays over a live video stream, using face recognition software for placement. As they received their award they proudly exclaimed, "Like all of you, we don't wait for the future: we create the future, and change the world." This incredible performance has netted them US$25,000.
This was followed by team SmarterME from Taiwan, bringing the Embedded Development first prize of US$8,000 squarely in pocket thanks to their smart monitoring and control of electrical appliances - that can detect the type of device based purely on the current draw. Certainly one of the more useful projects on show at the Imagine Cup for 2010.
Game Design was won by team By Implication from the Philippines, and their title Wildfire brought them the accolades required to nab them victory and the grand prize of US$25,000. It's a cleanly-designed 3D simulation of a city faced with problems that must be fought with volunteers, and integrates many unique features like twitter feeds.
Digital Media was closely contested, though the winning team Mirror Vita from Taiwan were heads and shoulders above the rest, winning with their film that was created in the same time period given to all competitors in this category: 30 hours, from start to finish. Their film won them a cool US$8,000.
Finally, the IT Challenge's prize of US$8,000 was picked up by NBRanger from China, who designed and managed an incredibly reliable network within increasingly pressured conditions, bringing the Imagine Cup to a close.
Expect a full write-up of the Imagine Cup in an upcoming Issue of Atomic magazine, and check out the rankings of each of the teams below:
Software Design:
- First - Thailand, Skeek
- Second - Serbia, TFZR
- Third - New Zealand, OneBeep
Runner-ups: Finland, Signbook; Singapore, Mama-Bear; Malaysia, Team HDC
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| First Prize: Thailand, Skeek. |
Embedded Development:
- First - Taiwan, SmarterME
- Second - Russia, MCPU
- Third - France, GERAS
Runner-ups: Romania, EcoSynthesis; Korea, RU Gentle; United Kingdom, eyeSight
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| First Prize: Taiwan, SmarterME. |
Game Design:
- First - Philippines, By Implication: Wildfire
- Second - Belgium, NomNom Productions: Shift
- Third - France, Green Gears Studio: Island of Nazeth
Runner-ups: Brazil, Papapure; Mexico, Fomis Team; Thailand, Jubjub
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| First Prize: Philippines, By Implication. |
Digital Media:
- First - Taiwan, Mirror Vita
- Second - Saudi Arabia, Dreaming Spirits
- Third - Singapore, Woolgathering
Runner-ups: Brazil, LiveMind; Serbia, Teamwerkz; Taiwan, Ka-Chi
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| First Prize: Taiwan, Mirror Vita. |
IT Challenge:
- First - China, NBRanger
- Second - Bolivia, Miklos Cari Sivila
- Third - Singapore, zxc1984
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| First Prize: China, NBRanger. |
Expect a full write-up of the Imagine Cup finals in an upcoming Issue of Atomic.
Check out the official Imagine Cup photography on Flickr, and have a look through the Twitter page for up-to-date news!
