Fifty-seven Taiwanese teams are taking part in the NASA International Space Apps Challenge this weekend, the first time Taiwan is participating in one of the world’s largest hackathons, the organizers said.
The two-day marathon programming contest began in Taipei yesterday, with 214 participants in 57 teams competing at National Taiwan University, they said.
The challenge invites participants from around the world to use NASA’s data to create innovative hardware and software solutions for global challenges such as water resource management and natural disaster response, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said.
About 22,000 people in 200 locations in more than 70 nations are participating in this year’s challenge, which is the fifth since the initiative was launched in 2012, the event’s official Web site said.
Taiwan’s participation in the international hackathon this year was hosted by the AIT in collaboration with the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Industrial Development Bureau, National Taiwan University and Taipei’s Department of Information Technology.
The international challenge is held over the course of 48 hours and invites students, scientists, designers, engineers and anyone enthusiastic about addressing the Earth’s challenges, said the AIT.
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