Computer Geniuses Gather for World Finals Contest ‘Battle of the Brains’

Teams of students race to solve technology challenges at the 32nd annual ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest, April 6-9, 2008 The world’s most talented and creative information technology (IT) students will gather in Alberta, Canada (April 6-9) for the 32nd annual World Finals of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), sponsored by IBM (NYSE: IBM). The competition will be hosted by the University of Alberta, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Affectionately known as the “Battle of the Brains,” the competition will see 100 three-person teams of the finest problem solvers from 33 countries tackle eight to ten highly-complex computer programming problems, modeled after real-world business challenges. The problems are designed to test students knowledge, endurance and business acumen – key skills that are needed by global employers in the new IT workforce. Problems range from securing business transactions over the Internet to designing a Global Positioning System (GPS) program. Limited to only five hours, the teams need to demonstrate skills equal to a semester’s worth of curriculum. The team that solves the most problems correctly in the least time will emerge as champions, earning “the world’s smartest trophy,” scholarships, bragging rights and IBM prizes . Many of the skilled contestants will catch the eye of leading firms who are always looking for creative talent. IBM’s sponsorship of the Battle of the Brains is just one of the company’s many university-facing programs. The IBM Academic Initiative is another, offering colleges and universities a wide range of technology benefits including free access to IBM software, discounted hardware, course materials, training and curriculum development to better educate millions of students. The United States has 20 teams participating, the largest representation from any country. Other competing schools are from China with 15 teams competing, the Russian Federation with 11, and Canada with six teams. Warsaw University, the 2007 World Finals champions, will return in 2008. Also noteworthy, hosting school University of Alberta has been to the World Finals eight of the last 10 years. To view the full list of teams, visit the contest website at http://icpc.baylor.edu/icpc/finals . More than 6,700 teams representing 1,821 universities from 83 countries competed in the fall Regional’s competition this year, compared to 1,100 teams in 1997 when IBM first sponsored. For more information about the contest visit www.ibm.com/university/acmcontest/ . Doug Heintzman, IBM Sponsorship Executive of the ICPC