Four East Tennessee State University students “imagined” a better way to lose weight and now they could win $25,000.
Jeff Arrington, Danielle Oprean, Josh Rose and Dallas Tester entered the Microsoft Imagine Cup contest in January and have officially made it to the national portion of the Cup finals.
If they win, they will be flown, all-expenses paid, to Delhi, India, to compete in the worldwide competition where the top prize is $25,000.
Arrington, a graduate student, and Tester, a senior majoring in computer science, are Microsoft Ambassadors, meaning they receive and promote Microsoft products while introducing them to college students. Being an ambassador is how Arrington originally heard about the contest. It will be his second year competing. but the first for his teammates.
After deciding to enter the Imagine Cup, Arrington and Tester advertised on the Digital Media message board for two other team members. Oprean, also a graduate student, saw the posting and recruited Josh Rose, a senior majoring in digital media. The Cup team was then complete and has been working together since January.
This year’s theme for the Microsoft Imagine Cup is “Imagine the World Where Technology Enables Us to Live Healthier Lives.”
“Imagine Cup is your chance to innovate, show the world what you’ve got and win some prizes. This is your chance to use the power of technology to better the world,” said Microsoft’s web site promoting the contest.
The Microsoft Imagine Cup began over three years ago and more than 20,000 students have attempted the competition during that time.
Arrington, Oprean, Rose and Tester are competing in the Software Design portion of the competition. Contestants must use Microsoft technology to come up with an idea that will somehow improve people’s daily lives.
The foursome decided to create a system that would allow people to monitor their vitals, including blood pressure and managing their diet. It is especially aimed at targeting obesity and helping those with diabetes. Arrington is hoping to incorporate the concept and data into his graduate thesis.
“With all of the diet crazes that are going on, the South Beach diet, Atkins, watching carbs; the idea just seemed like a natural thing to pick,” said Tester.
The team of four has made it to the top 15 percent out of 350 teams in the United States. If they win the national competition, the team will earn $8,000 and will secure their place in the international contest.
“I didn’t enter the Imagine Cup for the money,” said Arrington. “The exposure [from the press] is much better.”
In the past, Microsoft has hired members of the top teams to work for the corporation. Other software and hardware companies recruit top contestants from the competition as well. Arrington and Tester are hoping to get a job offer from Microsoft. That is not the goal of Oprean and Rose, as they would like to stay in the local area.
The project has been a time-consuming one. All four students have had a calendar mapped out from day one with weekly tasks that must be completed.
The students must be self-motivated, as each has a piece of the puzzle that must fit together for the project to be completed. Hours are spent alone in front of the computer tweaking and perfecting the design for their development.
Meetings are held every Friday and e-mails are sent often to check the progress of the others. All four must finish their parts by the set deadlines in May, when the presentation will be given.
Judging for the Imagine Cup is divided into four sections. Fifteen percent is problem definition (which addresses the level of difficulty of the problem being addressed and how well the problem is defined).
Sixty percent of the scoring is design, which includes innovation, meaning the team is approaching a new problem or looking at an old problem in a new way; impact, which is how many people the project will affect and the effectiveness that the application has on the chosen problem.
Another 15 percent is dedicated to development, which is how elegant the system architecture is and how well it breaks down the problem.
The last 10 percent is presentation, including an oral presentation providing the information about the chosen problem, why it is interesting, the highlights of the system, a demonstration and the ability to answer the judges’ questions.
“I am very excited to have an opportunity to go to India and compete in the international part of the competition,” Tester said. “I think we have a good chance at making it.”
The U.S. portion of the Imagine Cup will take place in Redmond, Wash., the national headquarters of Microsoft May 4-6, with results coming out on the last day. The finals will be in Delhi, India, Aug. 6- 12.
For more information go to www.thespoke.net.

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