Undergrad Doers Take Aim At SOPA and PIPA at PennApps` The bi-annual PennApps hackathon showcased top engineering students from across the Eastern Seaboard, with a focus on simplicity as this year's theme. The event featured several impressive apps that aimed to solve real-world problems and tackle big civic issues, such as combating piracy controls bills in US Congress. One team, Grassroutes, stood out by creating a widget that allowed users to petition their Congressional representatives with one-click, leveraging Twilio Client technology. Their hack quickly gained traction online, with 110,000 unique visitors the following day, and has been credited with inspiring a national conversation against SOPA and PIPA. The event highlights the power of young developers working together on social responsibility projects, showcasing the influence that can be achieved when web development meets civic engagement.