Cool Synt.Hacks 2017 Projects - STEEM POWERED HACKATHON

Hello steemians,

This post is going to be all about the really cool projects that were made at synt.hacks 2017, which was held 2 weeks ago. All these projects are based around the central theme 'A Sustainable Future'.

Disclaimer: The following descriptions are written by the participants/developers themselves, so please overlook any difference in writing style and diction.

Recyclic

Description & Idea -

Our game is a fun and interactive way to learn about waste management.

We teach people some of the important sectors of waste management, including organic, recyclable and electronic waste, by dropping an item and asking them to sort it correctly, and if it is wrong, then they learn the correct type of waste for that item.

The idea of making a game was because we wanted to do something different, something defining. We knew that everyone will be making apps, so we

decided to make something everyone can use to learn, and in a fun way.

Software/Hardware and Programming Languages :

We used the Unity Game Engine to create our game, using C# for coding gameplay scripts, on a MacBook pro.

Using Unity’s collaborate tool, we were able to work together on the same project and hence complete it in time.

We used an iPhone 7 and MacBook Pro to demonstrate the game to judges (Unity supports multi platform builds)

Satellite Image Analyzer

The project can be divided into three components -

Image Analysis - A program that can take in satellite images of forests, skies and heat maps to analyze and extract numerical data such as the tree cover, smog-cover, and heat concentration (respectively). The program can also take in a series of images in the same location (over a certain period of time) and calculate various valuable data points and predictive insights - for example, the rate of deforestation in a certain location. This component was developed using Golang.
Data Presentation - A tool that can take in data generated by the Image Analysis component and then graph it out for clearer presentation and to provide critical visual insights (slope, etc). In addition, it could overlap graphs to create comparisons for a certain variable. This component was built in Python.
User Interface - In practice, both the components listed above would be combined in a single user-interface that would create a seamless experience for the user to upload, analyze and present data-based satellite images. We built a sample interface using jQuery.

Conclusion:

In the end, our project forms a valuable toolkit for environmental scientists and government authorities to find the most appropriate and most ecologically 'endangered' locations - for the most efficient concentration of efforts. This increased efficiency will lead to a significantly more effective environment-protection system directly pointing at a more sustainable future for all of us. After all, we've only got one planet!