Feature
Bangladesh Informatics Olympiad team off to Cairo
Dr. Md. Humayun Kabir
BANGLADESH Informatics Olympiad team has taken part in the 20th International Olympiad in Informatics 2008 (IOI 2008), which was held on August 16 to 23 at Cairo, Egypt. The team had two contestants Mohammad Abirul Islam and Bushra Mahbub. Bangladesh Informatics Olympiad Committee (BIOC) and Bangladesh Academy of Sciences (BAS) together had organized Bangladesh Informatics Olympiad 2008 (BIO 2008) to select the contestants for IOI 2008. BIOC and BAS had first organized divisional BIO 2008 at Dhaka, Khulna, Sylhet, Rajshahi, and Chittagong divisions simultaneously on March 28, 2008. Around 800 contestants from different schools and colleges participated in the divisional contests at five divisions.
Divisional contest for Dhaka division was held at Notre Dame College, for Khulna and Barisal divisions it was held at Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET), for Sylhet division it was held at Metropolitan University, Sylhet, for Rajshahi division it was held at Rajshahi University, and for Chittagong division it was held at Premier University, Chittagong. Top 10 contestants from each division were qualified to participate in the national BIO 2008 held on April 11, 2008 at Notre Dame College. Top 10 contestants from the national contest were qualified participate in IOI qualifying contests organized by BIOC. Based on the performance in the national and qualifying contests Abir and Bushra were selected for IOI 2008. Abir has appeared in HSC examination this year from Dhaka City College and Bushra is a second year intermediate student in Viqarunnesa Noon School and College.
Nescafe was the financial sponsor for BIO 2008 divisional and national contests. Dr. Md. Humayun Kabir, Member Secretary BIOC and Associate Professor, Computer Science and Engineering Department, BUET is accompanying the team as the leader and Mohammad Mahmudur Rahman is accompanying the team as the deputy leader.
Distinguished citizens of the country wished the team good luck at The Daily Star office before their departure. Dr. M. Shamser Ali, Dr. Nayyum Chowdhury, and Professor Mazed from BAS Dr. Muhammad Zafar Iqbal, Dr. M. Lutfor Rahman, and Dr. M. Kaykobad from BIOC, Shushanto Kumar Sarker from Notre Dame College, Mahfuz Anam, Editor Daily Star, Mr. Shahed Mustafa Mujahid, Marketing Manager Nestle, and Shahnoor Wahid from Star Campus spoke at the meeting. The first IOI was held in Bulgaria in 1989. It was proposed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The IOI is the premier world-wide high school informatics (computer science) competition. Students write programs to solve challenging problems. The competition tasks are of an algorithm nature; however, the contestants have to show basic skills in problem analysis, design of the algorithm needed, data structures, as well as programming and testing of their solutions.
The winners of the IOI belong, no doubt, to the best young computer scientists of the world. The IOI is open to High School students, younger than 20 years of age. Each country participates at the IOI with an Official Delegation, consisting of four contestants (students), one Leader and one Deputy Leader. Eligible contestants are students whose age is less than 20 years and who do not attend College or University (Bangladeshi HSC students are high school students in international standards).
The goals of the IOI is to bring together, challenge, and give recognition to young students from around the world who are the most talented in informatics (computer science), and to foster friendship among these students from diverse cultures.
(Writer is Member Secretary, BIOC
Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology)
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