How to extract maximum value out of competitive programming?

by Psyho

Who am I

I won a bunch of contests (4xTCOs, few 24h competitions, Imagine Cup, 30 MMs and some other stuff).

Currently, I make a living out of winning machine learning contests.

Throughout my life I was mostly focused on various mind sports: competitive programming, gaming, skill gaming, puzzles, poker.

Summary of the talk

Listen to the introListen to the talk???PROFIT

What is Competitive Programming

Mind Sport Clearly defined objective goal Involves programming Tests problem solving skill Usually gives good feedback

Examples: classic/recreational (TC, CF), optimization, machine learning, CTF, game AI

Reasons why we compete

For fun To get a Job (security) Because it's challenging To gain knowledge/skills For glory & fame Others

Guide to Improving Yourself

Common responses to How to get better?

Practice! Practice, practice, practice! Do more contests! Do more stuff! Do more! 20 pages long explanation. No one will read it past the second

page.

The Infinite Loop of Improvement

Goal: maximize TRUE_RATING

while (true) { locate_weakest_point(); improve_weakest_point();}

Skill vs Time graph

The Infinite Loop of Improvement 2.0

while (true) { if (not_being_efficient()) { improve_efficiency(); } else { locate_weakest_point(); improve_weakest_point(); }}

The Infinite Loop of Improvement 2.0b

Optimization ProblemGoal: maximize TRUE_RATING at some point in the futureState: (time, efficiency, set of current skill levels)Transition function: various tasks you can perform, generally tuples of (used_time, efficiency_delta, skill, skill_improvement)

Knowledge vs Skills

Knowledge has a narrow application Skill has a wide application It's easy to obtain new knowledge It's hard to obtain new skills Skills > Knowledge

Exponential Growth

Some skills/traits affect the tempo of obtaining new skills The goal is to obtain them as soon as possible Examples:

Better physical shape Better long-term and short-term memory Knowing good ways to relax Being better at understanding yourself Better concentration

Poorly drawnexponential function

Choices

Customization of our tasks that we can perform. We can think of them as parameters.

Examples: Using pre-written code Code styling Using macros in C++ How much time do we spent trying to solve a problem Style of debugging Forcing certain working conditions (well-rested/tired, silence/with music)

Lack of Full Information

No one exactly knows his state No one exactly knows how the tasks affect his state This is the main reason why coaches exist This is the main reason why you shouldn't have a coach

Confused?

Just stick to practicing ;)

This page is intentionally left blank

Guide to Improving Yourself 2:A different view

Back to Basics

Goal: maximize TRUE_RATING (?)

while (true) { locate_weakest_point(); improve_weakest_point();}

Wisdom from the Old(er) Man

No one really knows what they are doing No one really knows what their life is going to look in the next

5 years

Wrapping things up

Don't be results-oriented. One of the advantages of competitive programming is that it

provides great feedback. Try to prioritize learning general skills over specific knowledge. Grinding specific types of problems is the least effective

method of training. Each time you do anything, try to understand the reason

behind it and potential gains. That's what lazy people do :) Winning sucks because it doesn't tell you what went wrong. You don't need a coach. Have fun.

Slajd 1Slajd 2Slajd 3Slajd 4Slajd 5Slajd 6Slajd 7Slajd 8Slajd 9Slajd 10Slajd 11Slajd 12Slajd 13Slajd 14Slajd 15Slajd 16Slajd 17Slajd 18Slajd 19Slajd 20Slajd 21Slajd 22Slajd 23