North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad
Encyclopedia
The North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad (NACLO) is a linguistics
competition for high school students in the United States
and Canada
that has been held since 2007. Around 1000 students participate annually. Since 2008 the contest has consisted of two rounds, the second being administered to the top scorers in the first round. The top-scoring students on the second round qualify for the International Linguistics Olympiad
(ILO), one of the international science olympiad
s.
In 1998 the first US Linguistics Olympiad was held at the University of Oregon
in Eugene, Oregon
, in 1998. 18 students participated the first year, 88 participated the second year, and 67 participated the third year of this local pilot program. From 2001 to 2006, the program existed as an informal, web-based educational activity known as the Linguistics Challenge.
The two US teams in each year won several awards at the ILO in 2007 and 2008. Each year, one of the two US teams won a gold medal (or first diploma) in the team contest. In addition, several team members won individual medals.
. The booklets with problems and solutions are available on the main NACLO website.
In 2011 the USA sent three teams, and Canada also sent a team.
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
competition for high school students in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
that has been held since 2007. Around 1000 students participate annually. Since 2008 the contest has consisted of two rounds, the second being administered to the top scorers in the first round. The top-scoring students on the second round qualify for the International Linguistics Olympiad
International Linguistics Olympiad
The International Linguistics Olympiad is one of the newest in a group of twelve International Science Olympiads. The setup differs from other science olympiads, in that the program contains both individual and team contests...
(ILO), one of the international science olympiad
International Science Olympiad
The International Science Olympiads are a group of worldwide annual competitions in various areas of science. The competitions are designed for the 4-6 best high school students from each participating country selected through internal National Science Olympiads, with the exception of the IOL,...
s.
History
Since the mid-1960s, problem-solving competitions in linguistics for secondary school students have been taking place at various locations around the world. In Russia, the Moscow and St Petersburg Linguistic Olympiads are credited with inspiring hundreds of young talented scholars to choose linguistics as an academic major and profession. Presently (2009) there are national contests in Bulgaria, the Netherlands and several other European countries, and the USA. There is also an International Linguistic Olympiad in which students from many countries compete, as well as dozens of local competitions held in individual towns and schools across Europe and the USA.In 1998 the first US Linguistics Olympiad was held at the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
in Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
, in 1998. 18 students participated the first year, 88 participated the second year, and 67 participated the third year of this local pilot program. From 2001 to 2006, the program existed as an informal, web-based educational activity known as the Linguistics Challenge.
The two US teams in each year won several awards at the ILO in 2007 and 2008. Each year, one of the two US teams won a gold medal (or first diploma) in the team contest. In addition, several team members won individual medals.
Format
The format of the contest changed significantly between 2007 and 2008. The 2007 contest consisted of eight problems given in a single round open to all partipants. The 2008 competition consisted of two rounds. The first round was open to all contestants and consisted of a three-hour, five-problem written examination. The top scorers on the open round advanced to the invitational round, which was a five-hour, seven-problem written examination divided into two parts; the first part lasted 3 and a half hours and contained five problems, while the second part lasted one and a half hour and contained two problems. The top eight scorers from the invitational round were selected to participate in the ILOInternational Linguistics Olympiad
The International Linguistics Olympiad is one of the newest in a group of twelve International Science Olympiads. The setup differs from other science olympiads, in that the program contains both individual and team contests...
. The booklets with problems and solutions are available on the main NACLO website.
ILO qualifiers
From 2007 to 2010 the USA sent two teams annually to the ILO.
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In 2011 the USA sent three teams, and Canada also sent a team.
| Country | Team | Name | Team leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| USA | "Red" | Aaron Klein | Dragomir Radev |
| Wesley Jones | |||
| Duligur Ibeling | |||
| Morris Alper | |||
| "White" | Erik Andersen | ||
| Allen Yuan | |||
| Chelsea Voss | |||
| Arjun Srinivasan | |||
| "Blue" | Alexander Wade | ||
| Ophir Lifshitz | |||
| Caroline Ellison | |||
| Rachel McEnroe | |||
| Canada | Keunjae Go | Patrick Littell | |
| Jordan Ho | |||
| Daniel Mitropolsky | |||
| William Zhang | |||
See also
- International Linguistics OlympiadInternational Linguistics OlympiadThe International Linguistics Olympiad is one of the newest in a group of twelve International Science Olympiads. The setup differs from other science olympiads, in that the program contains both individual and team contests...
- United States of America Computing OlympiadUnited States of America Computing OlympiadThe United States of America Computing Olympiad is a computer programming competition aimed primarily at secondary school students in the United States. Participants of the USACO submit programs in one of five languages, C, C++, Java, Pascal, and Python, to various competitions held throughout the...
- USA Biology OlympiadUSA Biology OlympiadThe USA Biology Olympiad is a national competition sponsored by the Center for Excellence in Education. Each year, twenty National Finalists gather at a nationally recognized institution for a two-week training camp. From the program's inception through 2009, the camp was held at George Mason...
- United States National Chemistry OlympiadUnited States National Chemistry OlympiadThe United States National Chemistry Olympiad is a contest held by the American Chemical Society used to select the four-student team that represents the United States at the International Chemistry Olympiad ....
- United States of America Mathematical OlympiadUnited States of America Mathematical OlympiadThe United States of America Mathematical Olympiad is a high school mathematics competition held annually in the United States. Since its debut in 1972, it has served as the final round of the AMC series of contests...
- Physics OlympiadPhysics olympiadThe United States National Physics Olympiad is a competition in physics, usually among high school students, where the participants solve problems and/or perform and analyze experiments...