Microsoft"s annual Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals will be held this year in St. Petersburg, Russia in mid-July. Today the company announced the host for the event"s final ceremony, and it"s one that will make a lot of the students involved in the technology and software competition go all wibbly-wobbly.
Microsoft has revealed that actor Matt Smith, currently starring as the 11th version of The Doctor in the hit BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who, will be the host for the Imagine Cup finals. Smith is already involved in the event, participating in a new video (shown above) that goes over the basic idea of the Imagine Cup competition.
The character of The Doctor, a time-traveling alien scientist who has battled evil all over the universe for 50 years, is someone that has been an inspiration for budding scientists in the real world. John Scott Tynes, the Imagine Cup Competition Manager, wrote today about how The Doctor personally influenced him at a young age:
As a kid in Memphis, Tennessee, in the early 1980s I loved two things: programming on my computer and watching the Doctor. I even built my own K-9 out of a cardboard box, duct tape, and a calculator! And from all of this I grew up to make my own career as a creative technologist who gets to spend his days helping the next generation find their path.
The actual Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals ceremony that Smith will be hosting will be held July 11th and Microsoft plans to live-stream the event for those of us who won"t be able to attend. (However, if you happen to be a time lord with a TARDIS, perhaps you have already seen it!)
Source: Microsoft