Imagine Cup US Finals: Meet the Teams

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From left to right: Joe Zhou, Adam Risi and Zachery Shivers, a quartet of sophomores and juniors from Rochester Institute of Technology, are the 2008 U.S. Imagine Cup Finals winners of the Software Design category. Displayed here is their winning project that programs and configures a network of sensors to take readings of environmental variables such as AC current, temperature, humidity, light, sound, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and motion. Users can capture individual sensor readings by connecting to the appropriate network node; meanwhile, data is stored by Microsoft SQL Server for eventual study and analysis. The sensors are also programmable and accessible via cell phone. As winners, they will receive $12,000 and an opportunity for each member of the team to travel to Paris, France, as a guest of Microsoft Corp., to compete in the Imagine Cup 2008 Worldwide Software Design Invitational Final.

Team Carbon Cart, Ryan Tilton, Reed Probus, Kevin McFarland and Laura Hanes, three freshmen and a junior at Seattle Pacific University, won second place in the Software Design category and $8,000 at the 2008 U.S. Imagine Cup Finals. CarbonCart is an eco-conscious e-commerce site carrying the entire product inventory of online retail giant Amazon.com that allows consumers to carbon-neutralize their Internet shopping. By placing their orders for Amazon.com products through CarbonCart.com, consumers can purchase carbon credits to pay for renewable energy initiatives, reforestation or energy efficiency projects that offset the carbon dioxide generated in the shipping of their purchases.

 

Third place winners in the Software Design category, IcedTeamLemon won $4,000 for their project LemonSketch. Members (from left to right) Geoffrey Schutta, Raphael Mun, Jason Meistrich and Sophie Xie are a collective effort of computer science, cognitive science and business students from Carnegie Mellon University, the College of William & Mary, and UCLA. LemonSketch enables people to teach and learn in a way that is enhanced by technology, while promoting sustainable practices to the environment. The LemonSketch software incorporates a tablet drawing tool that encourages creative growth in academia.