BUA Computer Science Club Hosts Inaugural Hackathon
On April 2, 2023, Boston University Academy hosted its first-ever hackathon, Hack@BUA, attracting 42 students from 14 schools in the Greater Boston area. Hack@BUA was the brainchild of the BUA Computer Science Club, and was capably organized and led by Rohan Biju ‘23, Joie Liu ‘23, and Alvin Lu ‘23, with the assistance of many BUA student volunteers. The daylong hackathon was held at Boston University’s Photonics Center.
Hack@BUA attracted a diverse group of students from public and independent middle and highs schools in and beyond Boston, including Boston Latin School, Dedham Country Day School, Fuller Middle School, Nobles and Greenough, Middlesex School, Saint Columbkille, Xaverian Brothers High School, Needham High School, Franklin High School, Diamond Middle School, Lincoln-Sudbury High School, St. John’s High School, and Westborough High School. Participants ranged in age from 11 to 18, making for a dynamic and spirited event.
The hackathon featured three compelling tracks focusing on the themes of Sustainability, Healthcare, and Student Life. Over the course of eight hours, teams of 3-5 students worked together to conceive, develop, and code an application or project addressing a critical need in one of the above tracks.
Three BUA alumni judges were on hand to provide guidance and expertise, and to evaluate each project and determine the winners: Emilio Lattore ‘19, Duarte Albuquerque ‘21, and Phevos Paschalidis ‘21.
The top prize was awarded to Ride Clean, an innovative application that optimizes carpooling routes for maximum fuel efficiency. Using Dijkstra’s algorithm, the app calculates the shortest path between multiple destinations, resulting in a sustainable and cost-effective solution for daily commuting. Even more impressive, the team built the software entirely from scratch, rather than relying on pre-existing templates. Their prototype featured seamless integration between the back end and front end, resulting in a polished and functional product. In addition, the team exhibited excellent collaboration and a deep understanding of the project, which made for a truly outstanding submission.
Taking home the second-place prize was Noter, a unique application that leverages OpenAI’s API to create an AI-powered notebook. With the click of a button, users can summarize text and generate AI-generated quizzes on the topics covered in their notes. The product’s implementation was truly fascinating and demonstrated an innovative use of cutting-edge technology. Noter capitalizes on the current AI craze and provides a new and exciting way to approach note-taking and studying. Overall, the judges were impressed by the team’s creativity and execution.
In third place was Patient Monitor, an impressive project that aims to improve patient care and hospital efficiency. The device features a clever combination of cameras and speech-to-text technology to monitor patients and detect keywords and phrases like “ouch” or “that hurts.” With this information, the device alerts doctors and nurses to attend to patients who require assistance, eliminating the need for constant monitoring by a nurse.
By all accounts the inaugural Hack@BUA was a smash success, and Boston University Academy looks forward to instituting the hackathon as an annual signature event.