China Dominates In NSA-Backed Coding Contest 316
Posted
by
kdawson
from the now-to-get-the-security-clearance dept.
from the now-to-get-the-security-clearance dept.
The Narrative Fallacy writes "With about 4,200 people participating in a US National Security Agency-supported international competition on everything from writing algorithms to designing components, 20 of the 70 finalists were from China, 10 from Russia, and 2 from the US. China's showing in the finals was helped by its large number of entrants, 894. India followed at 705, but none of its programmers was a finalist. Russia had 380 participants; the United States, 234; Poland, 214; Egypt, 145; and Ukraine, 128. Participants in the TopCoder Open was open to anyone, from student to professional; the contest proceeded through rounds of elimination that finished this month in Las Vegas. Rob Hughes, president and COO of TopCoder, says the strong finish by programmers from China, Russia, Eastern Europe and elsewhere is indicative of the importance those countries put on mathematics and science education. 'We do the same thing with athletics here that they do with mathematics and science there.'"
Damn (Score:5, Funny)
Apparently I was born on the wrong continent.
Or is it due to time and money? (Score:5, Funny)
Maybe programmers in China, Russia, and Eastern Europe have more time on their hands, less money, and would derive more benefit from participating in the contest (prestige and recognition for instance). I'm sure there are a great many US coders who would do very well in this contest, but are too busy.
We do the same thing with athletics here that they (Score:5, Funny)
Other factors (Score:1, Funny)
Our good programmers are gainfully employed.
US Educational System (Score:5, Funny)
Gentlemen, it's time (Score:5, Funny)
From the idolization of Einstein, Feynman, and other physicists, arose the economic superpower that dominated much of the world in the 1950s and 60s.
In the 80s, we were captivated by the message of Revenge of the Nerds, and on the shoulders of this movie we came to dominate the new era of Information.
Ladies, gentlemen: Now is the time. Now is the time to rise up from our comfy chairs, to rise up from our futons, to rise up from the depths of our basements! We must rise up as one united voice of nerd-dom, and speak to the mouthbreathers who have ground us beneath their bootheels since time immemorial. We must tell them:
ENOUGH! Take your stupid sports and shove them. Take your stupid pop music TV shows and shove them. Take your idolization of stupidity and sacrifice it on the altar of curiosity, the altar of edification, and the altar of neckbeards and cheetos!
WE MUST DEFEAT THE...
What's that mom? Yeah... OK... I'll be up for dinner as soon as I finish this level. Did you get some Mountain Dew?
Sorry, gotta go AFK.
Question 1 (Score:5, Funny)
Outline one method to gain access to NSA networks and provide code implementing the method. Bonus points for commented code.
Begin.
Re:Hah (Score:2, Funny)
Apparently, HP's buzzword for outsourcing is 'innovation'.
Re:You can say it all you want (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Damn (Score:5, Funny)
Yes, the Chinese Professional Math League (YDVF) is quite a sight to watch. Arenas filled with cheering fans watching a bunch of guys doing math and science. I still don't like the free agency rule implemented last year, but it has provided more parity between teams. The 'player' salaries are quite a bit higher actually than some of the top athletes in sports like football in other places around the globe. They truly treat mathematics like we treat athletics.
Re:Damn (Score:1, Funny)
I am a Chinese and I have no idea what you are talking about. I have never heard of "the Chinese Professional Math League".
Re:US Educational System (Score:4, Funny)
Classroom related anxieties are a genuine problem and this sort of blame the victim ideology has no place in schools. Trivializing this sort of thing just makes it more difficult on the students and teachers and unnecessarily drains talent which could otherwise be out looking for the cure to cancer or fixing other pressing concerns.
Re:Athletics in America = ... (Score:3, Funny)
... steroids and "performance enhancing" supplements. So by that line of logic, mathematics education outside of America = Lots of meth and piracetium?
Caffeine and artificial cheese flavoring.
Re:We do the same thing with athletics here that t (Score:5, Funny)
I think it is like the Superbowl, but instead of playing a sport they kick around a little ball and occasionally fall to the ground and roll around pretending they were shot.
Re:Damn (Score:1, Funny)
Basically anyone who has anything to say about quality of University level education will say the US leads far and away in number and quality.
A recent Newsweek ranking showed that 80% of the world's Top Ten universities were American and over half the top 50 were American. The Times Higher Education Supplement, arguably one of the world's most respected education comparisons of universities from all around the globe, listed 13 American universities in the Top 20, including 6 in the Top 10. The quality of American university education is second to none.
Also check: http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/worlds-best-colleges/2008/11/20/worlds-best-colleges-and-universities-top-200.html [usnews.com]
Where would the increase in public funding for higher education come from? You would be cutting athletics and merchandising income and replacing that with public funds as well...
The current system might not be the best, but a ton of money gets put into the system as it is.
Re:Damn (Score:3, Funny)
Maybe we should stop running schools like businesses and start running them like schools.
But that would be un-American!