Page 37 - EngineerIt July 2021

ELECTRONICS

working. Running costs are relatively high to 8 hours. Computers are not switched off unexpectedly. When the power fails, no
when taking fuel and servicing costs in user intervention is needed, operation is silent, and it emits no fumes. The batteries will
consideration. probably need quite a bit of space, but the unit can be set up inside.
Like the inverter, the disadvantage is that once the batteries are flat the unit requires 8
On-Line UPS with extended to 12 hours to recharge, and the batteries need to be replaced every three to seven years,
battery packs which can be expensive.
To many this seems to be the ideal
solution, combining the best features of Generator and UPS combination
an on-line UPS with the backup time of For areas that suffer from regular prolonged power outages, this is the best solution. The
an inverter. The unit offers a number of UPS will ensure that there is no break between failure of the mains supply and start-up of
key advantages. It provides full protection the generator. The power to the computers is clean, as the UPS corrects power problems
against spikes, surges, dips, and power from both the mains supply and from the generator. Run time is indefinite, as the generator
failures and when the power does fail, can be refuelled.
output from the UPS is constant and The disadvantages of this solution are the need for a suitable storage space for the
uninterrupted and can be designed to generator; noise; and exhaust fumes. The generator needs to be run regularly to make
give the user anything from 15 minutes sure it is working. Running costs are relatively high, considering fuel and servicing. n

SA Computing Olympiad stars hold

their own in international competition

outh Africa’s team for the International Olympiad in 280. In addition to the serious IOI contest days, host country
Informatics (IOI2021) have emerged with a bronze medal Singapore arranged several fun events where Faran Steenkamp
Sand one award after the global event. was placed third in the sponsored Code Cup, and won a cash prize
IOI2021 is a prestigious international Informatics of 200 USD. He said: “It was a fun experience, definitely very
challenge held annually. While this year’s event was hosted by different to the IOI.”
Singapore, participants competed virtually from their home The Computer Science Department at UCT made special
countries due to restrictions on travel. arrangements to accommodate the team for this prestigious
South Africa’s team of four was selected from among the event, providing a special venue and installing Virtual Machines
top participants in the South African Computing Olympiads, both on PCs and on laptops, in case of load shedding. UCT also
a key project of the Institute of Information Technology hosted pre-IOI training sessions earlier this year, and hosted the
Professionals South Africa (IITPSA). Using facilities IOI event 25 years ago. n
supplied by the University of Cape Town’s Computer Science
Department, the team competed among 351 contestants from
around the world in a two-day series of challenges.
The results (https://ranking.ioi2021.sg/) showed the South
Africa team managing to hold their own internationally. Andi
Qu, participating for his third time, again obtained a bronze
medal as he did last year.
This was despite a tough first day: “I felt a bit of panic
when I was only getting 9 or 10 points per question (out of
100),” he said. “I do a lot better when I’m having fun.”
Qu’s Day 2 score of 183/300 was in the silver medal range.
“Day 2 went very well for me. Getting 100 points on Mutating
DNA in the first hour was a huge confidence boost, and left me
with enough time to tackle the other two problems. I thought
that the other two problems were interesting and fun to solve,
although implementing Registers was quite tricky.”
For the other three South African team members, this was
their first IOI. Brent Butkow finished ranked 342, Jean Weight
finished in 287 position and Faran Steenkamp was ranked
th

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