SCS Day highlights student diversity

The second annual SCS Day took place this Saturday in the University Center, celebrating the diverse talents and pastimes of students and faculty in the School of Computer Science. The day was packed with events from 2 pm to 10 pm, including a talent show, a chess tournament, and workshops in swing dance, karate, yoga, and origami.

There was also a magic workshop in which Steven Rudich, a computer science professor, taught some of the tricks that he performs during class lectures. A workshop on Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) also proved to be popular. The art and photography exhibit in the Connan Room showcased the wide variety of art that SCS members have produced.

The highlight of the evening was the SCS talent show. There were many musical groups, including one that combined the use of Eastern and Western drums. Ryan Necas, a sophomore who leads a martial arts order called the Guardians, returned this year to perform a martial arts demonstration.

The talent show is often a favorite among students and faculty attending SCS Day. The show, held in Rangos Ballroom, also coincided with the presentation of employee recognition awards for SCS staff. Jim Morris, the dean of SCS, served as the master of ceremonies.

“I really like the talent show because it's sort of how everyone comes together,” said Agata Bugaj, a computer science senior who helped organize SCS Day.

Brian “PiMaster” Thompson, a sophomore computer science major who amazed the audience last year by reciting 1024 digits of the number pi, made an appearance again this year. Thompson once again recited from memory 1024 digits of pi, while juggling.

“When I came across a number that was just as irrational as I was, we just hit it right off,” said Thompson about his love of pi.

SCS Day 2004 received a large number of donations from local businesses and individuals. There were a total of 21 sponsors, including Kiva Han and Starbucks, which each donated approximately equal amounts in gift certificates. Kiva Han gift certificates were presented to all of the SCS Day organizers, and Starbucks certificates were given to the talent show participants. This competition between the Craig Street coffee shops elicited chuckles from the audience.

Students were encouraged to take photos throughout the day, and submit them to the photo competition. The best photos will be selected from among those submitted by March 1 and the winner will receive a gift certificate for dinner at the Holiday Inn Select.

The champion of the chess competition was Ryan Milisits, a 17-year-old senior at Taylor Allderdice High School in Squirrel Hill. He won all four of his games, and later played and won three simultaneous games as a demonstration. Milisits recently won the National High School Chess Championship and will soon be ranked as a chess master. He has applied for admission to the School of Computer Science, but will not know if he's accepted until later this spring.

All chess tournament participants received six-month subscriptions to the Internet Chess Club. The Internet Chess Club was founded by Don Slater, a CMU computer science professor who also made an appearance at Saturday's tournament.

Donna Gates, a masters student in the Language and Technology Institute, won the art and photography competition with her pottery exhibit, “Together.”

SCS Day also featured a raffle drawing, with tickets costing $1 each, for an Xbox and three games.

A new contest this year was the iThink Different Award, which awarded an Apple iPod music player to the person who submitted the best idea for additions to the SCS Day program. The winner of the iThink competition, SCS faculty member Lorrie Cranor, suggested an SCS king and queen competition. Students could compete for the status of king or queen through competitions such as the standard talent show, a geek attire competition, geek talent demonstrations, and technical competitions.