BAE Systems’ Marianne Murphy sends the following regarding this year’s FIRST Robotics Challenge, which we intend to follow here at the ‘Grok. This program is part of the GOOD stuff one finds in education today, as opposed to some of the junk that gets mixed in. We’ll have some students from our local team in studio with us this Saturday on MTNP radio…
NASHUA, N.H. – Teams from 18 New Hampshire high schools and three community teams will unveil their FIRST robots at Nashua High School North Thursday, Feb. 12.
At the unveiling, teams will discuss their design approach and performance capabilities to solve this year’s FIRST robotics challenge — "LunacyTM."
The unveiling, which is free and open to the public, is in preparation for the seventh-annual Granite State Regional FIRST Robotics Competition, Feb. 26 to 28, at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester.
FIRST – For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology -designs accessible and innovative programs for young people to help build their self-confidence, knowledge and life skills. The programs seek to motivate students to pursue careers in science, technology and engineering.
Approximately 50 New Hampshire teams have registered to participate (click here to see teams by town.)
The Granite State Regional, sponsored by BAE Systems, brings more than 1,500 students and their mentors together in a competition that emphasizes teamwork, innovation, and strategy. In early January, teams received a challenge to design, develop, and build a robot in six weeks using a common parts list. The robots then compete in randomly selected alliances, performing a variety of tasks for scoring points.
This year’s challenge – "Lunacy," asks teams to design a robot, within specifications, that operates on a low-friction playing field, picking up and transporting balls to the opposing robot’s trailer. Performance is measured by the total number of balls in the opponent’s trailer following timed rounds at regional and championship competitions.
Initial public rounds will be held on Friday, Feb. 27, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. On Saturday, Feb. 28, the meet continues at 9 a.m., with final rounds scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Organizers advise audience members to come early for the best seats.
BAE Systems has supported FIRST since the early 1990s, shortly after the nonprofit organization was founded by inventor Dean Kamen. This year, BAE Systems, a FIRST "strategic partner," doubled its commitment by increasing contributions of money, employee volunteering, and other resources to more than $2.2 million for the 2009 season.
To learn more about the regional competition and its teams, please click here.