Students at Career Regional Magnet High School have been hard at work on their entry into the FIRST Robotics Competition founded by Dean Kamen, president of DEKA Research and Development Corp.
The students' entry is sponsored by Yale's Office of New Haven and State Affairs, according to Claudia Merson, public school partnership coordinator.
The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition is a national contest that immerses students in the world of science and engineering.
Touted as "the ultimate mind sport" of students in middle and high schools, the competition is "varsity excitement on the challenging academic playing field," says Kamen, winner of the 1994 Engineer of the Year award from Design News magazine.
"FIRST's mission is to stimulate interest in math and science among young people," he notes. "By putting the companies together and putting them in FIRST, which I like to think is the Olympic Committee of Smarts, we're saying 'Do for science and technology what you do for other things -- create demand among kids, and the rest
will follow.'"
Over 380 teams are expected to participate in the competition, a 40% increase from last year, with over 90% returning this year. The finale is a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, for the National Championships April 6-8.
Partnering with volunteer engineers from The United Illuminating Company (UI), the students work as a team building their own robot, programming its actions and operating it during the competition.
The Career High School team's robot will compete with another robot in an arena 24 feet wide by 48 feet long, with goals at both ends. The robot must be able to place as many of the 21 balls located at one end of the arena into a goal at the opposite end after traversing a moving "bridge" midway up the field. The team that accumulates the most points after playing a series of two-minute rounds is the winner.
The next step for the Career robot team is a regional playoff held in March. If they win the regionals, it's off to the nationals in Orlando.
The Career High School team includes Theresa Matthews, Career High School physics teacher and the project's engineering advisor; Jim Crowe, retired UI executive and project volunteer; John Buffa, UI engineer and project volunteer; Charlene Cupole, Career High School teacher and project adviser; and students Patrick Harewood, José Ramos and Uchenna Nwachuku.
-- By Thomas R. Violante
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