ACM Programming Team Class, Fall 2012 [1]

   The ACM international collegiate programming contest [2] brings
   together  over  25,000  students  world-wide  who  compete at regional
   competitions for a coveted spot in the world finals, which is held every
   year in spring. For more information & background, see this 2012 Fact
   Sheet [3].

   The ACM Programming Competition focuses on algorithmic problem solving -
   teams of three, using just one computer, solve as many of 8 problems during
   5 hours as they can. Teams are ranked by the number of problems solved, with
   cumulative  time needed used as a tiebreaker. The judge provide sample
   input/output data, but the input/output used for judging is kept secret.
   Most  problems  used  in these competition require the application (or
   adaptation)  of traditional algorithms and techniques. Very often, the
   problems  are  designed such that the application of an algorithm with
   inappropriate complexity (e.g., implementing an O(n^2) algorithm where a
   linear algorithm is possible) leads to failure due to time-out for the
   judge's input data.

   Besides the ACM programming contest, many other contests have sprung up in
   the past years, such as Google Code Jam [4], and various contests sponsored
   by companies. Though those contests vary in the specific format and choice
   of programming languages, their focus is usually also on how to quickly
   implement programmatic solutions to algorithmic problems. Companies like
   this format because it requires a combination of algorithmic thinking and
   concrete  implementation  skills  that  they value in their employees.
   Consequently,  many job interviews have come to include questions that
   require both developing algorithms and code for problems that are presented
   to interview candidates.

   In  this class, we'll work on problem solving with a specific focus on
   implementing algorithm solutions to problems in the style provided by the
   ACM programming contest. It is expected that the teams participating in the
   regional  competitions (scheduled for early Nov 2012) are comprised of
   students taking this class. We usually send about 5 teams of 3 students
   each.

   Precondition for taking this class is a) enthusiasm for solving problems in
   a competitive atmosphere, and b) the skills (or potential) for doing so.
   This is not a make-up class for students who feel they need to improve their
   programming skills. Enrollment in the class is by instructor permission
   only. To that end, I'd like to hold a small try-out at the beginning of the
   semester. The try-out will consist of 2 take-home problems, to be solved
   within 48 hours. I'll decide enrollment based on the solutions submitted.
   Details will be announced on this page.

   The class is open to students of any year (freshmen to seniors), and the
   enrollment criteria will be differentiated according to the number of years
   of post-K12 experience. (Many successful teams at the competition became
   successful  only  at  their  second,  third,  or  even  fourth year of
   participation.)

   Degree credits: for students who have not taking CS 2104 Introduction to
   Problem Solving [5], this class can substitute for it. Students who have taken
   CS 2104 already can take this class (once) as a free elective. Because
   credit is awarded for the class, I'll assign problems that are used for
   grading as well.

   Please send me email at gback@cs.vt.edu or godmar@gmail.com if you plan to
   participate in the try-out or would like to know more about the class!

   Instructor: Dr. Godmar Back
   Meeting Times: (Tentative) M-W 5:30-6:45
   Try-Out: (Tentative)
   Handout: Aug 16 8:00am
   Deadline: Aug 19 23:59pm

   References

   1. http://people.cs.vt.edu/~gback/icpc/
   2. http://icpc.baylor.edu/
   3. http://people.cs.vt.edu/~gback/icpc/Factsheet.pdf
   4. http://code.google.com/codejam/
   5. http://courses.cs.vt.edu/~cs2104/