THEMES AND PROBLEMS

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Biotechnology
Career Prep
Challenging Technology Issues
Children's Stories
Coding
Cybersecurity
Data Science and Analytics
Digital Photography

Biotechnology

Biotechnology that supports sustainable cosmetics packaging to reduce waste to landfills

Career Prep

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

Bioenergy Technicians
Data Architect
Machine Learning Engineer
Nurse Practitioner

Challenging Technology Issues

Topics:

Genetic Testing and Counseling
Animal Testing for Scientific Research
The Use of Drones for Surveillance
Privatization of Space Travel
Nanotechnology in Consumer Goods

Children's Stories

An interactive or pop-up book that focuses on making friends in-person

Coding

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/download). 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: https://scratch.mit.edu/starter-projects

Cybersecurity

Problem Statement: Byte Inc.'s Internet of things and Bluetooth are acting strangely on devices in the company’s network. Address the potential cause and propose a solution.

Data Science and Analytics

Determine the potential "movie success" of a fictitious feature film based on different public metrics, such as, but not limited to box office revenue, date of release, movie genre (selected by the team), movie production budget, and more.

Digital Photography

Students will take four photographs that fit the theme “Through the Eye of an Animal.”

HIGH SCHOOL

Video Game Design
Virtual Reality Simulation (VR)
Webmaster

Video Game Design

Kid’s game, 2 to 4 players, playable on one (1) screen and one (1) keyboard at a time

Virtual Reality Simulation (VR)

Create a virtual reality (VR) simulation of a family vacation destination that includes experiences and activities that appeal to both young children and teenagers.

Webmaster

Topic: A restaurant (dine-in and carry-out) that specializes in vegetarian food

Challenge: Design a website for a vegan/vegetarian restaurant. Showcase the restaurant’s approach (such as farm-to-table, preparation processes, and sustainability) to the food served in the restaurant.