The stereotypic image of the average computer science major at Carnegie Mellon, one of video-gaming and computer-hugging obsessions, is far from accurate in representing all of the interests of SCS students. The 5th annual SCS Day sought to prove this in a broad demonstration of the various interests and hobbies of the School of Computer Science's students, faculty, and staff on Saturday, February 24. SCS Day featured three hours of workshops on activities from origami to bike repair. The workshops were followed by a talent show that included singing and kung fu acts, among others, in a classy ballroom stage setting.

"It's a way for us to get together and do things that are not CS," says SCS senior Stephanie Rosenthal, the SCS Day Coordinator.

SCS Day included workshops on sports like squash and karate, and various forms of dancing, such as swing, ballroom, and gumboot. All were organized and run through the volunteered efforts of SCS staff and students. Each of the dance workshops showed a sizable popular interest. In addition, there was a bike repair workshop, chess training, numerous Xbox 360's open for playing, and an art show displaying interesting paintings and photographs.

The afternoon's most popular workshop by far was the origami workshop, which had two crowded tables of people of all skill levels crafting origami pieces. Although the workshop was relatively unstructured and casual, all of the participants seemed enthralled with the folding. The workshop was organized by three graduate students in robotics: Lillian Chang, Lily Fu, and Cheng-Yu Wu.

Also in the afternoon, the Game Creation Society showcased their new game projects. The club, as its name implies, brings video games from an idea to fully implemented game. This semester, the Game Creation Society has several exciting games in production: a turn-based multiplayer strategy game, an adventure horror game, a two-dimensional combat game, and a top-down shooter, among others. The club usually produces around six games per semester, yielding around 35 fully playable diversions since the organization's conception in Spring 2004.

"It's all about making games," said SCS junior Matthew Sarnoff, project leader for "Shotgun Debugger," "and it's a good resource for employment on your résumé."

The SCS Day Talent Show presented some of the musical and artistic talents of the school. The affair had everything from a lengthy violin solo to a casual sounding a cappella performance, all over food and candlelit tables. The Masters of Ceremony, SCS faculty members Randy Bryant and Klaus Sutner, were jovial and classy, cracking geeky computer science jokes whenever the situation arose. Highlights of the talent show included "Barrett's Privateers," the a cappella group, who sang an adaptation of "Code Monkey" by Jonathan Coulton, and the classical violin solo by SCS senior Matus Telgarsky. The finale was an upbeat and loose juggling show that was at times a flurry of balls, clubs, and even knives, performed by SCS sophomore Ben Lofton and SCS freshmen Max Friedman and David Klionsky.

The 6th annual SCS Day is being planned for February 23, 2008. Learn more about the School of Computer Science at the school's website, and find out about the Game Creation Society at the organization's website.

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