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Robots Compete For Sports VictoryMar 19, 2010 (Grunion Gazette - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- It's something one would expect to see in a sci-fi film, but the robots going head to head in a series of competitive soccer matches this weekend are of the nonfiction variety. Since 1992, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) has hosted robotics competitions around the country to help young people get out of the classroom and experience physical applications for engineering and science. This Friday and Saturday, the public is invited to watch the competition at the Long Beach Arena. Admission is free. The engineering contest was originally started by inventor, physicist and entrepreneur Dean Kamen. Kamen, who is most famous for inventing the Segway Human Transporter, organized the first robotics competition in 1992; there were 28 teams that competed in a New Hampshire high school gymnasium. This year, more than 42,000 high school students will participate in FIRST robotics competitions nationwide, competing for more than $12 million in scholarships. Each team of 15 to 25 high school students will design, build and operate a robot, explained FIRST Regional Director Jim Beck. The students are given six weeks to prepare their strategy and have a robot ready for game play. Teams also are required to come up with business models and raise $6,000 before they are accepted into the competition. The soccer-style contest this year requires robots to traverse a half basketball court (barriers on the court include bumps up to 12 inches high) and kick a ball into a goal for points, Beck said. Points also can be earned if the approximately 120-pound robots are able to raise themselves off the ground from a platform in the center of the court. Mark Abrams has been a judge for FIRST Robotics Competitions in Southern California for nine years. This year, the Los Angeles resident and engineering site manager for Eaton Aerospace's hydraulic systems division, is leading the panel of 20 judges to award participants for sportsmanship, professionalism, machine design quality and more. Abrams said that while he initially planned to judge just one competition, he has returned year after year because the event helped him realize the importance of supporting young people interested in science and engineering. "Classes have become focused on using software to design ... students haven't felt the greasy gears in their hands and had to figure out why things don't work," he said. "This is a real world application, and they get to experience that in a team environment. "This is not just another science fair type of thing." Abrams said the competition is a fun, high-energy experience for both participants and spectators. "This is true creativity in action, and it is a way to see the near impossible get done by high school students," he said. The top three teams from Long Beach's competition will be invited to participate in the FIRST championship competition next month in Atlanta. While there are many student teams from the Los Angeles area, Beck said there are no Long Beach students involved in this year's event. An estimated 10,000 spectators are expected to attend March 26 and March 27, Beck said. The Long Beach Arena is located at 300 E. Ocean Blvd. For more information, visit www.usfirst.org. To see more of the Grunion Gazette or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.gazettes.com/. Copyright (c) 2010, Grunion Gazette, Long Beach, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |