1. Themes & Problems

Theme: Select a career from one (1) of the following career clusters:

1. Architecture & Construction
2. Health Sciences
3. Human Services
4. Law, Public Safety, Corrections, & Security

Topics:

• Autonomous Vehicles
• Biometric Recognition (e.g., facial, temporal, fingerprint, etc.)
• Cloud Computing
• Robotic Technology Surgery
• Wearable Technology (e.g., watches, rings, glasses, etc.)

Theme: Students will write and illustrate a book that promotes leadership and perseverance. The book should be geared towards students in kindergarten to 2nd Grade.

 To prepare for MS Coding competition, teams should have knowledge of concepts (software development, computer science, and coding topics) that will be on the Coding written test. They also should be familiar and comfortable with using the Scratch programming language.
Scratch is a free visual programming language available from the MIT Media Lab (https://scratch.mit.edu/starter_projects/). An offline version of the Scratch tool should be downloaded and available on each team’s laptop. 

Teams that advance to the semifinalist level, based on written test performance, will perform a challenge using the Scratch programming language. Semifinalist teams will receive the challenge on site and will have two hours to complete it. (PLEASE NOTE: Semifinalist teams MUST have a version of this program available for offline use, as there will be no Internet access available during the semifinalist level of the competition.)

Examples of the types of challenges students may be asked to complete can be found at this link: http://scratched.gse.harvard.edu/resources/short-scratch-programming-challenges.

Problem Statement: The recent event is a possible data breach of customer information including the billing address, shipping address, and credit card information of all current customers.

Topic: Use “College/University Data ” to review and analyze how various institutions stack up in comparison to each other. Analyze the quantitative, qualitative, and geospatial data to provide additional insights on institutions based on one or more metric.

Theme: Patterns or Textures in Architecture
Four (4) digital photographs are required for the portfolio.

There are no special design requirements.

Topic: Is the use of technology changing people for the better … or worse?
Subtopics:

• Cell phone technology
• Medical technology
• Careers in technology

Be familiar with, and be able to demonstrate, the following forensic concepts:

1. Fingerprint and Impression Analysis
2. DNA Analysis
3. Document Analysis: Handwriting, Forgery and Counterfeiting+

 Theme: A device that will make your daily life easier

Theme: Remote control organizer for 4 remotes

Problem: Mousetrap Vehicle – 2023 – Vehicle full stop required target distance is 19 feet

Problem: Design an interactive educational toy for toddlers. 

Design Brief: Design a home in a country containing a forest biome for a family of four (4) with three (3) generations living in the home.  The country can be any country containing the forest biome of your choice. The house must be designed for an area that does not have access to a power grid.  In addition, the house must include a renewable energy source, vegetation gardening system for food production, and solve one (1) problem that is specific to the area.

 Theme: A Legacy of Innovation

Theme: College students are attending a college fair.  Your challenge is to create promotional materials used to encourage them to pursue a career in STEM/Technology Education.

Your promotional toolkit needs to include the following three items.

1. Printable: Design a tri-fold brochure
2. Wearable: A tote bag that can be used to carry promotional materials
3. Digital Signage: Short video (1 ½ - 2 minutes) to be shown at the career fair booth

Theme:  The Sun, Moon, Planets, and Stars: Patterns of Apparent Motion.

Design Brief 
Verification Form 
Analysis and Assessment Form 

Design Brief: Website for a New Children’s Show - rated TV Y

Challenge: Develop a website for a fictitious children’s show rated TV Y that is interactive, engaging, graphically interesting, and easy to understand and navigate with the intent of enticing viewers to watch. The website must introduce the characters of the show, inform viewers where and when they can watch the show, and have an interactive area that is geared towards its viewers. 

Design Problem: Create an animatronic exhibit that would be seen at a state line travel welcome center.

Design Problem

Theme:  Product review of a product used daily by high school aged students.

Topic: NASA is planning exploration to the Moon and beyond to Mars – How are food and beverages prepared, stored, and sustained for the entire trip? Document research findings that support proposed planning.

Theme: Students will create an interactive book, for children in 1st-3rd grade, that promotes a career as a STEM teacher.

The following programming languages may be used to complete the assigned problems: 

• C (version C11)
• C++ (version C++14)
• C# (version 6.0)
• Java (version 10)
• Javascript (NodeJS version 8.10)
• Python (version 3.6)
• Ruby (version 2.5)
• Swift (version 4.2)

Additional languages may become available as we near the conference.
Participants will be presented with a series of coding problems that must be completed on site at the conference. Evaluation will be based on the successful completion of the problems and the time in which it takes students or teams to complete all the challenges.
In addition to the specific HS Coding competition rules and regulations, students also must adhere to TSA’s general rules (found in the HS competitive events guide).
The USA Computing Olympiad website and the ACM-ICPC International website are helpful resources for the Coding event. Additional resources that can be used to prepare for the event are listed below:

• https://icpc.baylor.edu/compete/preparation
• https://www.codechef.com/
• http://www.usaco.org/index.php?page=contests
• http://blog.hackerearth.com/2013/09/competitive-programming-getting-started_11.html
• https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-best-strategy-to-improve-my-skills-in-competitive-programming-in-2-3-months 

Scientific Poster Template

Theme: Social Media and Society

• Sub-Topic 1: Social media promotes collective ideas and strengthens groups
• Sub-Topic 2: Social media companies profit off controversial and dangerous topics/discussions
• Sub-Topic 3: Schools should have the ability to ban social media use on their campuses for student safety

Theme:  Promote a good cause in your community

2023 – No special design requirements

Challenge

Theme: Prevent Nuclear Terror

Theme:  The Oscars
Prototype garment can be from one to three separate pieces

Theme:  Research a local, regional, state, or national weather issue

Theme: Create a decoration that would be used for a Fourth of July celebration.

Theme:  Elements: Students will use one or all of the four elements of nature as an inspiration in their photography portfolio.

Theme: A legacy of Innovation

Theme: Develop promotional materials for a three-day elementary school STEM Day Camp. The daily schedule is 9am – 3pm.  A lunch for all participants is included. Cost is $25 per student. You will need to design and produce recruitment documents (flyer/poster) for elementary school students, documents to inform parents, documents for potential sponsors, and an application.

Problem Statement 
Verification Form 

Design Problem: Research and display a Water Vessel that includes living quarters for 4 – 6 people - Yacht / Houseboat (no actual water in display)

Theme:  Puzzlers and party games

Theme: Create a virtual reality visualization that will assist a shelter in the adoption of pets. The VR must include a virtual meet with at least one adoptable animal as well as showcase the facility and the process for adoption.

Topic:  Space Tourism: a company that will make you an astronaut

Create a fictitious company and design an appropriate website. The website should provide information starting with promotion, basic information, cost, planning, training, vehicles, safety, launch, and recovery.