The preparations for the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad 2017 (AILO) picked up the pace in January this year with 17 problem-solving workshops held in schools and universities across the country reaching almost 480 students from across the island of Ireland. AILO is a key element of the nationwide Problem-Solving Initiative, supported by Science Foundation Ireland and run by the ADAPT Centre.
These workshops gave students a valuable opportunity to work through linguistics problems with experts from ADAPT and previous AILO competitors by practising their problem solving strategies and linguistics skills.
This year we teamed up with Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Limerick to host workshops for students in the area. Workshops were also held in Cork City, Tralee, Athlone, Athenry, Castlebar, Letterkenny, Dublin, Wicklow and Maynooth among others.
Almost 4,000 students will compete in the first round of AILO 2017 in their schools on 1st February 2017. The top 100 language decoders will qualify for the national final of AILO 2017 on 24th March at Dublin Institute of Technology.
Ireland’s top four secondary school Linguistic problem-solvers win the chance to represent their country at the International Linguistics Olympiad in India in July
Four secondary school students from across the island of Ireland have been selected to test their language decoding skills against the world’s best at the International Linguistics Olympiad in Mysore, India in July. The students, from Dublin and Donegal, finished ahead of 100 opponents in the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad (AILO) Finals, which were recently held at Trinity College Dublin.
Prof. Vincent Wade (CEO, ADAPT) pictured with Pádraig Sheehy, Richard Neville, Claire O’Connor, Dónal Farren and Dr. Cara Greene (National Coordinator AILO, ADAPT)
Run by the Science Foundation Ireland funded ADAPT Centre, the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad (AILO) aims to inspire the next generation of multilingual technology graduates, who possess a combination of language competency and problem solving expertise.
Pádraig Sheehy of Gonzaga College, Ranelagh (Dublin) is the Senior Champion. He will be joined in India by fellow team members Claire O’Connor of St. Louis Rathmines (Dublin), Richard Neville of St. Andrews College, Booterstown (Dublin) and Dónal Farren of St. Eunan’s College (Donegal) who finished second, third and fourth respectively in the Senior competition.
The Junior competition was won by Alexander Harding of Maynooth Post Primary School (Kildare). Tristan l’Ansen Sparks of Methodist College (Belfast), Aleksandr Gusev of Royal School (Cavan) and Ross Beatty of St. Andrew’s College, Booterstown (Dublin) clinched the 2nd, 3rd anad 4th place spots.
Olympiad National Coordinator Dr. Cara Greene of ADAPT said, “Pádraig, Claire, Richard and Dónal will do Ireland proud in India. They will be challenged with some of the toughest linguistic puzzles in the world during the individual and team competitions at the international Olympiad.”
Finalists have received tuition from experts at the ADAPT Centre for Digital Content Technology, a €110 million academia-industry research centre developing advanced technology to adapt and personalise digital content and services to the needs of global users. They will receive further tuition before they leave to represent Ireland in the Finals in India later this year.
Coming to a school near you in early 2016, the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad (AILO) problem-solving workshops will help you to hone your problem-solving skills and prepare you for Round 1 of the contest.
You will receive free tuition by experts in linguistics and problem-solving strategies.
82% of AILO 2015 participants report having improved their problem-solving skills by taking part in the contest. Don’t miss out! Register for AILO 2016.
Note that teachers must register to get an invitation email to apply for places at a workshop.
Workshops
All workshops will take place on dates between 11th – 22nd January 2016. Dates for each location will be updated here once they are confirmed.
Methodist College, Belfast City, Antrim [Wednesday 27th January]
Royal School Cavan, Cavan Town, Cavan [Monday 11th January]
St. Caimin’s Community School, Shannon, Clare [Thursday 21st January]
St. Francis College Rochestown, Cork [Wednesday 20th January]
Douglas Community School, Douglas, Cork [Friday 15th January]
Team Ireland members to put their code-breaking skills to the test on the international stage
17th July 2015, Dublin, Ireland: Four of Ireland’s leading problem solvers are preparing to test their language decoding skills against the world’s best at the International Linguistics Olympiad in in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, next week. The secondary school students, from Dublin and Donegal, are sharpening up their code-breaking skills at a team training camp hosted by the ADAPT Centre at Dublin City University (DCU) on 17th and 18th July, ahead of departing for Bulgaria on 19th July.
The Irish team members won the chance to represent their country by finishing ahead of 4,000 participants in this year’s ADAPT All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad. Shmuel Barron of Sutton Park School (Dublin), who claimed the title of overall winner at the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad National Final in DCU in March 2015, will be joined by teammates Luke Gardiner of Gonzaga College (Dublin), Ethan Hamman of Newpark Comprehensive (Dublin) and Niamh Lynch of Loreto College Letterkenny (Donegal), who placed second, third and fourth respectively.
Running from 20th to 24th July, the International Linguistics Olympiad will see more than 170 second-level students from 28 countries strive to solve some of the world’s toughest problems in logic, language and linguistics.
Contestants will face challenging puzzles in unfamiliar languages, including many lesser-spoken and endangered languages from across the globe. Knowledge of a second language is not required, as students test their reasoning skills, logic, and of course, patience, throughout the rounds.
Team member, Niamh Lynch eagerly anticipates a puzzle-packed week of decoding:
‘I am very honoured to have the opportunity to represent Ireland at IOL and I’m so excited for the trip.’
Dubliner Luke Gardiner, who also represented Ireland in the 2015 Olympiad, is aware of the challenges that he and members of the Irish team will face:
“Having been fortunate enough to have participated in last year’s International Linguistics Olympiad, I know that the trip to Bulgaria will be great fun. The competition will be challenging but I am really looking forward to it, especially the team round where we will all be working together as a team.”
Team Leader and National Co-ordinator of AILO, Dr. Cara Greene of the ADAPT Centre is also looking forward to the competition:
“Luke, Ethan, Niamh and Shmuel are four of our brightest young problem-solvers and I am delighted that they will be representing Ireland at the International Olympiad. We are looking forward to competing against 44 teams from 28 countries from all over the world.”
The four finalists are all set and ready to solve, having already received tuition from experts at the Science Foundation Ireland funded ADAPT Centre for Digital Content Technology, a €110 million academia-industry research centre developing advanced technology to adapt and personalise digital content and services to the needs of global users.
Ends
NOTES FOR EDITORS
The All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad Launched in 2009 and run by the ADAPT Centre, the All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad (AILO) is a contest in which secondary school students develop their own strategies for solving problems in fascinating languages from around the globe. Students must use their ingenuity to solve puzzles as deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics, decoding numerical spy codes, and interpreting ancient Mayan poetry. No prior knowledge of linguistics or a second language is required, as even the hardest problems require only logical ability, patient work, and a willingness to think around corners. AILO introduces students to linguistics (i.e. the study of human language) and to the application of logic to problems of language understanding and translation. The goal is to develop students’ problem-solving skills and to inspire them to consider the fascinating range of careers at the intersection of computing, linguistics and language. More than 10,000 students have participated in the Olympiad to date, with many former participants now studying computing and linguistics and tutoring current participants. www.adaptcentre.ie/ailo
The International Linguistics Olympiad The International Linguistics Olympiad is one of 12 International Science Olympiads for secondary school students, and has been held annually since 2003. Each year, teams of young linguists from some 30 countries gather and test their minds against complex puzzles in language and linguistics. The weeklong Olympiad comprises individual and team contests, and students enjoy an active programme of social and cultural events. The 2015 edition of the contest will take place in Bulgaria from 20th to 24th July 2015. www.ioling.org
ADAPT Centre ADAPT is the global centre for digital content technology. Supported by Science Foundation Ireland, ADAPT combines the expertise of 120 researchers at four universities (Trinity College Dublin, Dublin City University, Dublin City University, University College Dublin and Dublin Institute of Technology) with that of its industry partners to produce ground-breaking digital content innovations. The Centre’s research and technologies help companies to deliver the right content, to the right customer at the right time, in the right language, in the right format and on the device of their choice. www.adaptcentre.ie
CONTACT Dr. Cara Greene National Coordinator, All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad
Research Outreach Coordinator
ADAPT Centre
Tel: +353 1 700 6704
Email: cara.greene@adaptcentre.ie
