KarelJ Robot. Competition (adapted from Eric Roberts)
Due: April 2, 2002
In addition to teaching basic programming skills, programming
Karel can be a lot of fun. This contest gives you the opportunity to
explore Karel's world on your own. It is entirely optional, but
gives you a chance to improve your grade in the course.
Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to program Karel to
solve an interesting and exciting problem of your own choosing. You can
program Karel to produce the definitive work of computer art, to
illustrate a story, or to tackle a conceptually difficult task. The
entries will be judged by a group of sophomore, junior, and senior computer
science students, including past contest winners. A grand prize will be
awarded in each of two categories:
- Aesthetic merit. This prize is awarded to the program that,
in the opinion of the judges, has the greatest literary,
artistic, or entertainment value.
- Algorithmic sophistication. This prize is awarded to the
Karel program that solves the most challenging task in the
most interesting way.
Prizes
The first prize in each of the categories will be an A+ on the final exam.
Those contest entries that do not receive one of the grand prizes will receive a
consolation prize of a 10% increase on the lowest homework grade
of the semester, assuming that the entry is of sufficent quality (talk to your instructor
if you are unsure about your idea). Best of luck!
Official rules:
- Only students registered in CSCI 170 are eligible to submit
entries in the Karel J. Robot contest.
- Only one entry per student will be accepted.
- All entries must be submitted to Michael Goldweber by 4:00P.M. on Tuesday, April 2, 2002.
Late entries will not be accepted.
-
Each submission must consist of a Macintosh or IBM disk containing a
Karel J. Robot program and one or more worlds for execution. In
addition, you may submit a short narrative, not to exceed 250
words, describing what Karel is doing.
- Contest entries should be sensitive to Xavier's individual
and cultural diversity. Programs or narratives that have the
effect of perpetuating negative stereotypes will not be
considered.
- Contest entries will be evaluated by
a group of computer science students.
We will choose the winners and runners-up in each category.
We reserve the right to award no prize in a particular category if the
entries are not sufficiently clever or artistic.
Past contest winning ideas
- A retelling of the story of Goldilocks and the three bears
- A dynamic word speller
- A Von Neumann based-computer simulator
- Pac-Man