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Have you ever experienced a hackathon before? I sure haven’t.

The Tech Valley Center of Gravity (TVCOG) and AT&T are sponsoring a two-day “Internet of Things Hackathon” challenge in New York on January 30 and 31. This event is open to all hackers out there.

What’s a hackathon? It is an event, usually lasting more than a day, where groups of computer programmers and other tech-oriented people collaborate intensely on projects using software. Hackers typically stay in the space the entire time working constantly. “The act of hacking is really about making something do something that it wasn't designed for in order to solve a problem,” said Erica Iannotti, chair, TVCOG.

This year’s theme is “The Internet of Things (IoT).” There will be a top prize of at least $1,000, as well as other giveaways including a free TVCOG membership awarded to the “best” team of hackers.

Jeff Branson, educational outreach coordinator, SparkFun Electronics, will be attending the hackathon to mentor the participants and judge their creations.  

“Sparkfun is always thrilled to support hackathons. The value for us is in working side by side with the people in our community to develop and deploy new solutions for a digital citizenry. We participate in hackathons across the country that focus on embedded systems, Internet of Things, Node. js and community-based problem solving,” Branson said. "It's particularly fun for me to come back to the Capital District, where I grew up, and work with TVCOG!”

"As an industry leader in the Internet of Things, a technology transforming how we live, communicate and work, AT&T (News - Alert) is proud to collaborate with the Tech Valley Center of Gravity to power this hackathon and we're excited to see the innovation that is developed during the event," said Marissa Shorenstein, New York president, AT&T.

The event will transform the way you view hacking.