COSAM News Articles 2015 March Students create app, win prize for “Is Toomer’s Corner Being Rolled Right Now” app

Students create app, win prize for “Is Toomer’s Corner Being Rolled Right Now” app

Published: 03/16/2015

Alex Byaly, Steven Clontz, Zachary Sarver and Ph.D. graduate, Daniel Brice, all from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, won first prize at the Smart City Hackathon, a competition hosted in Auburn where teams build smart tools for the benefit of the city. Their team, “Math Department Team Alpha,” competed against seven teams of programmers and won $750. The app, “Is Toomer’s Corner Being Rolled Right Now,” uses linear algebra to analyze edge-detected screenshots of the City of Auburn’s live feed of Toomer’s Corner in order to determine if it is being rolled with toilet paper. If it is being rolled, the program posts to Twitter and updates their website. The team will move ahead to compete in the Smart City Hackathon's global competition.