After much uproar, media attention, and political pressure, Pres. Trump intervened and enabled all the teams headed to Washington, DC for the F.I.R.S.T Global Robotics Championship, whose visas had been held up or denied, to get their visas. Some visas were received as late as two days before the event. Although the Afghan team got all the press, the team from Gambia was also denied when they first applied.

The three-day event which started Sunday evening in Washington, DC with opening ceremonies, has teams from 157 countries (including the Afghanistan and Gambia teams) — and some multinational teams representing continents. FIRST has organized competitions for many years but this is the first year it is hosting an international competition.

FIRST Global founder Dean Kamen, the inventor who created the Segway, said: “The competition’s objective is not just to teach children to build robots and explore careers in science, technology, engineering and math; it drives home the lesson of the importance of cooperation — across languages, cultures and borders. FIRST Global is getting them [teams from around the world] at a young age to learn how to communicate with each other, cooperate with each other and recognize that we’re all going to succeed together or we’re all going down together.” 

Ivanka Trump met with the Afghan girls team and also put in an appearance at the competition. She Tweeted: “It is a game everyone can play and where everyone can turn pro!”

The Washington Post described another set of problems that got resolved in an unusual way regarding the team from Iran:

Because of sanctions, FIRST Global was unable to ship a robotics kit to Iran, where a group of teenagers awaited the parts to build a robot. That might have spelled the end of the team’s shot of going to the world championships. But the organization introduced the Iranian team to a group of teenage robotics enthusiasts at George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church, Va., calling themselves Team Gryphon. The team in Iran sketched out blueprints on the computer and sent the designs to their counterparts across the ocean and then corresponded over Skype.

Sunday, the team flew the Iranian flag at their station next to the flag of Team Gryphon — a black flag with a purple silhouette of the gryphon — as a sign of their unlikely partnership.

For Mohammadreza Karami, the team’s mentor, it was an inspiring example of cooperation. “It’s possible to solve all of the world’s problems if we put aside our politics and focus on peace,” Karami said.

Kirsten Springer, a 16-year-old rising junior at Marshall High, said she didn’t want the Iranian team to be locked out of the competition just because of the sanctions. “Everybody should be able to compete … and to learn and to use that experience for other aspects of their life,” she said.

Now that all the teams are present and the competition has begun, we wish them all the best, hope they have a lot of fun, particularly hope they meet and befriend a lot of fellow robot enthusiasts, and thank them all for participating and their team mentors and supporters for helping make this all happen.

3! 2! 1! Go! Suddenly, robots jerk into motion and zoom across the field to score points, crossing over several types of terrain and shooting balls into high and low goals. Another buzzer sounds, drivers pick up their controls and all six robots—three per alliance—are now under human control. As these huge 120-pound robots score points, cheers ring through a packed stadium, fueled by high school students who worked hard to build their robot in just six weeks. As the match ends, nervous and excited students wait to see who is the winner of the 2016 world championship.

This was my last match as a member of the Girls of Steel FIRST Robotics Competition Team #3504. FIRST (For Recognition and Inspiration of Science and Technology) is a robotics program for students from K-12, and I was in the last division, FRC. The program is about more than introducing students to STEM and giving them hands-on experience, it’s about helping students to grow and have positive impacts by recognizing community service efforts, celebrating good values, developing soft skills, and guiding students to pursue higher education.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtE6Va6oOhU

The next fall, I was off to college at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, studying to become a mechanical engineer. For the first time in my life, I was on my own. My time was so swept away by schoolwork, clubs, exploring the city, and making new friends that FIRST became a distant memory. Now, I fear that if I hadn’t bumped back into it, I would have lost touch with the program that played such a critical role in my life. While at a robotics club meeting, sign ups for the FRC Midwest Regional Planning Committee were passed around. Wanting to somehow get involved, I signed up.

I had no idea what to expect as I walked into a big conference room with a friend, and fellow FRC alum, for our first committee meeting. As the meeting progressed—densely filled with information and detailed plans for upcoming seasons and younger leagues—I sat there stunned. Regardless of if they were an alum or not, there were so many people who dedicated their time and effort to make this program work for students. It was a wake-up call. During my four years of being a member, I took so much for granted and didn’t realize the magnitude of hard work that volunteers and mentors put in for the students. They were the ones who supported and helped make me the person that I am today. So, to all of the volunteers and mentors who may be reading this, thank you for everything, I couldn’t have done it without you.

Just like that, I was hooked on FIRST once again. I kept going to meetings, trying to help as much as I could while making connections with other volunteers. Right before the season started, there were a couple teams who had a shortage of mentors, which is how I found Hawks on the Horizon FRC team #5125. The first meeting I went to with the students opened my eyes; I was so used to being a member, I had no idea how to mentor FRC. Eventually, I learned how to be a different figure in a familiar situation and how to adjust to the differences between a large all-girls team, with many resources, and a small family-like team. Yet, without a doubt, I knew this was my new team. From the very first day, I was welcomed with open arms by the mentors and students, who made sure I came back.

“Who is your role model?” was a common question for me when I was very young, and I’d respond with a superhero. Now it’s never asked, but I have a better answer since I’ve gotten the chance to meet some of them. One of my role models is a student mentor from my old team. Although I haven’t seen her in a long time, I found myself remembering conversations we’d had years ago about some of the challenges of being a student mentor. Knowing I wasn’t alone, and how she’d dealt with some sticky situations, helped me guide students to find their own answers and become comfortable being hands-off myself. I’ve learned so much from past mentors like her, fellow mentors, and the students themselves. I’m happy to have found my FIRST family again.

The Midwest Regional was a whole new experience for me. During high school, my competition days were hectic, filled with fixing the robot, talking to other teams, and cheering for our alliance. At this past regional, it was an entirely different world. I was the student volunteer coordinator, helping run the student ambassador program and talking to people about how to get involved. I only visited my team when I got the chance. I was less aware of specific robots and paid more attention to what happens behind the scenes to ensure regional runs like a well-oiled machine. I want to be more involved in the process, since these competitions ignited a passion for engineering within me, and I cannot express with words how grateful I am.

Regardless of the changes within the past year, by the end of the competition, I still rocked the uniform. I’m incredibly proud of Hawks on the Horizon, thankful for Girls of Steel, and amazed by everyone in the Midwest Planning Committee. This transition from being a member to mentor has been an amazing journey and it doesn’t stop here. I’ll be working to give back for the rest of my life by helping make programs like FIRST happen for future students. Thank you to everyone who is a part of this organization and to find a team or event, go to firstinspires.org.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also want to read:

• FIRST 2013 photo essay: Girls of Steel in the trenches at the FRC championship finals
• FIRST 2014 photo essay: Girls of Steel back in St. Louis
• ‘It’s a reminder we are making a difference in the world’: Girls of Steel follow-up
• Getting into the driver’s seat: Girls of Steel tell us how they got hooked on robotics
• The story of Atlas, FRC Team #3504 Girls of Steel
• A vision for Nigeria’s youth: FIRST LEGO league competition held in Nigeria

On March 11, FIRST^® announced that its worldwide high school robotics competition, FIRST^® Tech Challenge (FTC^®), will be using the Qualcomm^® Snapdragon processor as the platform for its robot and driver station controls. Moving to a communication and control system based on Android and Snapdragon will keep FIRST Tech Challenge students at the forefront of new technology developments.

FIRST teams will be using Java, a programming language built into more than 3 billion devices. “Current FIRST Tech Challenge teams can use their existing equipment in the exciting new platform,” said Ken Johnson, director, FIRST Tech Challenge. “A simple interface between Android devices and their current sensors and motor controllers will allow for a simple transition. Sensors built into the Snapdragon-powered devices will expand the teams’ options in future competitions as well.”

FIRST Tech Challenge is designed for students who want to compete head to head using a sports model. Teams design, build, and program their robots to compete on a 12’x12’ field in an Alliance format, against other teams. Teams are required to develop strategy and build a robot based on sound engineering principals, such as rapid prototyping and iterative design.

“In the foreseeable future, robotics will permeate our everyday lives,” said FIRST Founder, Dean Kamen. “Our FIRST students are ahead of the game as they are already adept users of three emerging technologies: sensors; 3D printing, and open-source software. Now that we are adding this mobile element to the already-robust FIRST technology equation – just watch what these kids will be capable of doing.”

For more information.

Highly visible, key volunteers are needed to judge or referee at the FIRST Tech Challenge West Super-Regional Championship, presented by Google. The top 72 FIRST Tech Challenge teams will be coming to the Oakland Convention Center between March 27-29. This 3 day event will feature teams from the Western United States including Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. This event is highly prestigious for the teams to attend and their invitation was merit-based on strong performance at one of the 13 regional/state level championships around the west.

Volunteer training takes just a couple of hours (max) and consists of reading a reasonably short training document and taking a short certification quiz. Additional onsite training will be available as well. We particularly need technical women and under-represented minority men in these roles.

Judges are needed Friday through Sunday between ~8am and ~6pm each day.
Referees are needed Friday evening (~5pm) through Sunday.

To learn more, you can visit   http://ftcwest.org/volunteer-information/
If you have questions about volunteering, email Bill or Loridee at volunteer@ftcwest.org

Diversity Supporters Needed:

On Friday morning 3/27, we are hosting a Diversity Breakfast celebrating the achievements of under-represented minorities and girls in the participating teams.

We invite you to sponsor this event by choosing one of the two options:

1. Diversity Breakfast Lead Sponsor at $10,000. The sponsor will keynote during the breakfast and will be recognized in the event Program Book and other materials as an event sponsor. The Lead Diversity Breakfast sponsor will have the opportunity for a 10×10 booth available throughout the 3-day event, will be able to hand out promotional materials, and will receive two table sponsorships.
2. Table Sponsor. Each table sponsor will host 6 students and 2 group representatives. Sponsorship ranges from $500 for college groups and engineering societies to $2500 for corporations/corporate groups. The group representatives will be able to connect with the student members at their table, answer questions and possibly even recruit potential summer interns!

FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is designed for students in grades 7-12 to compete head to head, using a sports model. Teams are responsible for designing, building, and programming their robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. FTC has a strong history of merit-based team advancement at all levels of the program. Top teams advance from local qualifiers to the state/regional Championships and then to one of 4 Super-Regional Championships before heading to the FIRST World Championship. We believe that it is important to reward excellence, and this advancement system is one way that our program does that.  The events will be highly visible and prestigious for teams to attend.

To learn more, you can visit   http://ftcwest.org/2014-2015-event-info/sponsor-info/celebrating-diversity-in-tech/

Have questions,  email Jill at ftc@playingatlearning.org

THANK YOU!! We are also still looking for event sponsors as well as companies that could offer a “tour” for the high schoolers to visit on Thursday 3/26 (afternoon or later) and Monday/or  3/30 (mostly morning).

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

• Lynn Urbina on FIRST, Watson and the Girls of Steel
• Six weeks to build a robot: A FIRST photo essay
• Getting into the driver’s seat: Girls of Steel tell us how they got hooked on robotics
• FIRST 2013 photo essay: Girls of Steel in the trenches at the FRC championship finals

See all the latest robotics news on Robohub, or sign up for our weekly newsletter.

This year’s game, called Aerial Assist, involves passing a 2-ft diameter exercise ball across a field to different teams to gain points, and there are also various goals through which the ball can go to score more points.

Our six-week Build Season recently came to a close, and we finished our robot close to schedule. Here is the adventure that we had along the way!

Week 1
Kickoff, the day when the game is announced to the world, starts the Build Season with a bang! During this week, the team brainstorms about strategy and robot design. It is a week focused on paper designs, written strengths, and possible full robot designs. By the end of the week, the team has decided our general design, our chosen chassis design, and identified our robot’s strengths and weaknesses.

Week 2
This week is all about the initial design, 3D modeling, and prototyping. A group of girls begin to design the robot and figure out how it will do the tasks it is supposed to do. When an idea needs to be tested, other girls on the team help by building prototypes. We also begin to fabricate our chassis. By the end of week two, we have several working prototypes, the frame of the chassis welded, and the pieces to start assembling the rest of the chassis.

Week 3
Fabricating and designing are the two main activities that are going on for the mechanical team. As more designs become finalized, we being to fabricate and assemble everything together. Girls receive diagrams, or ‘(technical) drawings’, of the parts and then machine the parts using tools such as the mill, drill press, band saw, and lathe. While the robot is being build, girls are programming the basic code for the robot. By the end of week three, we have built a working chassis and have most of the frame ready to be assembled.

Week 4

Past the halfway mark! As the rest of the robot is being assembled other important parts, like bumpers, are being made. Code is being written and electronics are being placed on the robot. Our 3D model is also almost finished. By the end of Week Four, most of our robot is assembled and is in the final stages of having the electronics put on. Most of the programming is complete and waiting to be tested. This week we name our robot Atlas, after the greek mythological figure, because when our robot holds the ball, it looks like it’s holding up the world!

Week 5

The mechanical team finishes building the robot, and the electronics girls finish their work so that programming can begin to test their code. This is also the week where the drive team, a small group of girls that competes with the robot during the competition, begins to practice with the robot as well.

Week 6

While drive team practices and programmers test code, the mechanical girls are finishing up a second Atlas that will just be used for practice – not in competition. After so much work over the weeks, the final night, called Bag and Tag, is the final day we get to work on the robot until competition. It is an exciting night as our robot is placed in a giant plastic bag, waiting to be revealed at competition.

After a busy six weeks, the robot is finished and we are ready to go into competition! Atlas is an awesome robot, I hope you enjoyed learning about Build Season and FIRST. We just found out we are going to the championships!

If you would like to learn more, please visit the official FIRST website and our website as well.

[Photo credits: Arushi Bandi, Elizabeth Kysel, and Walt Urbina]

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

•  FIRST 2013 photo essay: Girls of Steel in the trenches at the FRC championship finals
• Introducing the Cybathlon
• ROS 101: Intro to the Robot Operating System
• ICRA 2013 robot photo essay: “Anthropomatics – Technologies for humans”
• Flying Donkey Challenge announces 33 entrants for first subchallenge
• Lifehand 2 prosthetic grips and senses like a real hand

See all the latest robotics news on Robohub, or sign up for our weekly newsletter.

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

• Robohub focus on robotics education
• Mentors of Steel: The role of mentoring in robotics education
• Getting into the driver’s seat: Girls of Steel tell us how they got hooked on robotics
• FIRST 2013 photo essay: Girls of Steel in the trenches at the FRC championship finals
• Lynn Urbina on FIRST, Watson and the Girls of Steel

See all the latest robotics news on Robohub, or sign up for our weekly newsletter.

The Girls of Steel – a competitive FIRST team located in Pittsburg, PA – is on a mission to draw more young women into engineering. We’ve already heard what it’s like to be part of an all-girls robotics team, we now catch up with the team’s mentors, Theresa Richards and George Kantor, to hear about their roles in inspiring and mentoring the team. Here’s what they have to say …

How and why did you become a mentor?

George: My lab, the Field Robotics Center at CMU, was approached by Patti Rote about creating an all-girls FIRST Robotics Competition Team in the summer of 2010.  I have been involved in various K-12 robotics outreach activities dating back to the 90s, and I had always wanted to learn more about FIRST.  So I offered to lead the team.

Theresa: I became a mentor because I was very interested in learning more about FIRST robotics and about how I could work with the FIRST program to support and encourage girls in the interdisciplinary field of robotics.  The study of robotics includes all STEM fields.

Did you have a mentor when you were growing up? If so, can you tell us about this person and the impact they had on you?

George: Growing up, I had a swimming coach who taught me lessons about setting goals and perseverance. In graduate school and throughout my time as a researcher at CMU I have had a series of mentors who have helped shape my technical career.

Theresa: I had several mentors when I was growing up. Most of my mentors were my high school science teachers who offered opportunities for me to do activities with them outside of school. For example, my biology teacher invited me to participate as his teaching assistant at an evening class he taught. My chemistry teacher helped me get a part-time job and she introduced me to my college – the same one she attended, and my zoology teacher took a group of us on a special field trip and she arranged for an “extra credit” dissection lesson after school. These awesome teachers recognized my interest in science and made sure to offer opportunities. When I think back about it now, I feel so grateful that they took extra time with me. That’s what I try to do for my students.

Do you have any suggestions for teachers or others who may want to get started as a mentor?

George: Just do it! There are plenty of opportunities to mentor young people, and it is an extremely rewarding experience.

Theresa: Other teachers who are interested in finding out about a FIRST robotics team should go to the website and click “What teams and events are located in my area?” I bet they’ll find a robotics program that will welcome them with open arms. If the teacher feels unsure about being a robotics mentor, he/she should attend a meeting or two before making a decision. Working with the students is inspiring because of their interest in creating something and learning so many new things. And it’s amazing to hear a student say, “So that’s why we learned this in math or in physics” or “I never would have considered engineering if I weren’t on this team.”

What’s the hardest part about mentoring?

George: It is important to encourage people to dream big, but on the other hand aspiring engineers often have unrealistic expectations about what they can accomplish. Helping students define achievable goals often involves encouraging them not to pursue some of their more ambitious ideas, and delivering that message in a positive way can be a challenge. I want my students to believe they can do anything, but I also need to teach them to approach their dreams in a realistic way.

Theresa: The hardest part about mentoring – there really isn’t a hard part, except that having meetings during after school hours from 5 pm until 8:30 or later means we have some late nights, especially during the 6-week build season. Mentoring is a rewarding experience on multiple levels. I enjoy the experience of working together with students, and colleagues and parents who have similar interests of encouraging girls in STEM fields. Like they say in FIRST, “It’s the hardest fun you’ll ever have” – that goes for mentors as well as students.

Do girls need female role models?

George: Yes. It is inspiring for girls to see women in the roles they aspire to, especially in fields like computer science and engineering that are currently dominated by men.

Theresa: Girls need female role models in STEM fields in order learn about various careers and to be able to see themselves in various positions or careers in STEM fields. Girls also benefit from belonging to a network or group of girls who share similar interests while in high school, college, and beyond.

Which students should participate in robotics competitions?

George: All students, especially those with technical interests. Robotics competitions are easily accessible, and they provide an opportunity to learn valuable technical skills in a fun way. They also provide an opportunity to learn life skills that are useful regardless of what career they decide to pursue: teamwork, goal setting, time management, etc.

Theresa: I believe all girls will benefit in some way from joining the Girls of Steel or another FIRST robotics team. The level of the benefit will depend on their level of participation.  Participation on the Girls of Steel FIRST robotics team can range from 4 to 20 hours a week during the year. The number of hours depends on the “season” – preseason, build season or competition season – and on a girl’s particular role on the team – e.g. leaders spend time preparing for team meetings and have additional leadership meetings to attend. Why do you recommend robotics competitions for everyone? Not only do the students apply what they’ve learned in computer science, math, science, and engineering classes they also learn that it can be fun to work hard. They learn so much about themselves by being a part of the team. For example, I’ve heard girls say things like “only girls on the team understand why I like ….”, “I found my best friends on the team”, “now I know the difference between a personal goal and a team goal” , “ Only you get my jokes,” and more.

There are many robotics competitions for students. Why FIRST?  

George: I really like FIRST’s approach to competition. Winning is important, but greater importance is placed on cooperation and professionalism. FIRST has invented words that capture this spirit and are central to everything that FIRST does: “coopertition” and “gracious professionalism”. In addition, FIRST goes to extra efforts to make its events exciting. The games are well designed, with attention paid to making the matches interesting to watch. The competitions are narrated by professional emcees and the field set-up has a high production value. The result is something that is a cross between a rock concert, a sporting event, and a science fair.

Theresa: I really don’t know much about other competitions except that some involve “fighting robots” rather than “game playing robots,” and the robots vary in size. FIRST® (USFIRST.org) is an organization that promotes robotics competitions for all ages that involve more than just a robot. Our team competes at the FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) level that involves designing and building a 120 lb. robot over a period of 6 weeks to play a game with 5 other robots on the field. The awards structure of FIRST promotes other aspects of the team – like fundraising (to raise money for registration fees), outreach, teamwork, public speaking, leadership, media, and more. We’ve found that having a FIRST team seems to be like running a business with students having the opportunity for major leadership roles. High School level FIRST teams are encouraged to support STEM awareness for younger people in the community. Publishing Lynn’s comic about the 2012 FRC season on our website and on Robohub is just one way the Girls of Steel FIRST robotics team contributes toward that goal.

Thank you both very much for your time, and best of luck to you and the Girls of Steel in future competitions!

The Girls of Steel – a competitive FIRST team located in Pittsburg, PA – is on a mission to draw more young women into engineering. We asked team members Mackenzie Ferris (16), Sylvie Lee (16), Molly Urbina (15), Lynn Urbina (17), and Becca Volk (15) to give us the inside scoop of what it’s like to be part of an all-girls robotics team. Here’s what they have to say …

Lynn Urbina Age: 17 Grade: 12 Years on GoS: 3 Technical Sub-Team: Mechanical	Mackenzie Ferris Age: 16 Grade: 11 Years GoS: 3 Technical Sub-Team: Programming	Molly Urbina Age: 15 Grade: 10 Years on GoS: 2 Technical Sub-Team: Mechanical

Rebecca (Becca) Volk Age: 15 Grade: 10 Years on GoS: 2 Technical Sub-Team: Electronics	Sylvie Lee Age: 16 Grade: 11 Years on GoS: 3 Technical Sub-Team: Programming

How did the “Girls of Steel” form as a team?

Lynn: In the summer of 2010, one of our founding mentors, Patti Rote, wanted to create an all girls FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) robotics team in Pittsburgh. Patti asked George Kantor, of the Field Robotics Center at Carnegie Mellon University, to help. In the fall of 2010, Girls of Steel FIRST robotics team 3504 was formed with about twenty girls. This year is our fourth year and we expect to have around forty girls on our team.

Was this your first introduction to robotics?

Mackenzie: Yes. I didn’t do anything robotics-related until I joined.

Becca: No. I did FLL (FIRST® Lego League, a division in FIRST® Robotics for younger children) and was on a different robotics team before joining. Girls of Steel is a different level of robotics that my other teams.

Lynn: Sort of. I did some Lego Robot Kits when I was in middle school, but that was all.

Sylvie: I was interested in computer science because my mom is a computer scientist, but I didn’t do anything robotics-related until joining the team.

Molly: No, but I did some Lego Robotics when I was younger and attended Tech Nights (a program in Carnegie Mellon University that aims to get middle school girls into technology).

What were some technical challenges that you faced with FIRST, and how did you solve them?

Becca: Electronic boards often don’t fit on the robot due to changes we’ve made, so we have to rearrange the electronics in order to fit them on the boards. Other times, electronics just don’t work, so we have to replace them. Usually we find out about broken electronics after we put them on.

Lynn: I had to create a square hole with a mill; a mill is a machine that usually drills round holes, but I had to make a square hole. In order to do this, I had to learn about a new drill bit, do a lot of math and then drill the hole. After drilling the hole, I discovered I had drilled it to the left by one extra inch. I had to do it all over again!

What is your best experience from being in Girls of Steel?

Mackenzie: Definitely being a driver last year. Before being a driver, I wasn’t in the Pit (the area where we work on our robot during competition) as often as I wanted to be, and therefore wasn’t as involved. As the driver, not only did I get to drive the robot, I was in the middle of all the action and I really knew what the team was doing.

Becca: My favorite moment was ‘bag and tag day’ (the final day to work on your robot) with Watson, our 2012 robot. We accomplished a lot that day. The Great Migration (when all the electronics are moved from one position to another in 3 hours) was the night before … programmers were programming until five in the morning, and then we still needed to fix things mechanically.  It was a hectic day, but we were efficient, productive and got it finished.

Lynn: Two years ago I was the driver, and I had to practice four hours or more each day for the few weeks leading up to championships. At the championships we were mediocre in the rankings, which made me a little disappointed because I put so much work into practicing. My spirits were lifted when I found out that we were the number one balancer (an aspect of the game where the robot had to balance on a bridge) in our division, and in the top twenty in the entire competition of four hundred teams.

Sylvie: My best experience was getting to work in the Pit. When I was working on the robot in the Pit, I got a huge adrenaline rush. All of us were working together quickly and it was really exciting.

Molly: Welding is my favorite. I never had to deal with hot metal before and after burning my hand once, I learned not to get near hot tools without proper safety equipment. Welding is still really fun, even after the burn.

Any fun anecdotes?

Sylvie: Programming jokes! I have so many! One is, “Oh, I’m out of your scope”.

Lynn: Ha! I get it!

Molly: I don’t get it.

Sylvie: A variable can be out of a scope, or out of certain curly brackets, so parts of the program can ‘see’ it. The expression basically means, “I’m out of your league,” in programming language. And then there are the comment out fingers //: “I can no longer see you.”

Becca: I saw a comic of two guys sword fighting and their boss comes in and asks, “Why aren’t you working?” They responded, “Our code’s compiling.”

Sylvie: That’s so true!

Mackenzie: Drive team practice. Period. We have such a blast! Once I was practicing with my phone, with one hand holding my phone and the other controlling the joystick, and Lynn scolded me. Then another time Molly set up cones so close together that I knocked down them all with the robot.

Becca: During the night of the Great Migration I drank four bottles of Mountain Dew. Not cans, bottles. I first crashed, then after ten minutes I was so hyper. I was up until 2am working on the robot, and then I came home and realized I didn’t write a paper that was due the next day. I wrote it, then got to bed at four 4am. 

Sylvie: That’s an impressive feat for two hours.

Becca: I know! The thing with procrastination: it takes eight hours to get thirty minutes of work done, but it takes thirty minutes to get eight hours of work done.

Molly: One time another welder and I were behind the welding curtain (a curtain to protect other’s eyes). We were trying to get our mentor’s attention so we were moving the unfinished heart-shaped chassis above the curtain. When that didn’t work, we moved it around while yelling his name.

Lynn: There was the time I broke the Chrome Book screen and Sylvie had to work with colors.

Sylvie: Oh yeah! My mother was teaching me how to use the Chrome Book after the screen cracked and her instructions, literally, were: “Click CTRL+A, wait until the screen turns light purple, and then continue. If the black crack by the left corner flickers, that means you have done it wrong, restart the computer.” It was so bizarre!

Lynn: That’s gold!

If you could build any robot, what would it do?

Becca: Fly.

Molly: A chore robot because I really don’t like chores. Or a robot that can use my face to figure out what food I want to eat, like in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.

Sylvie: Something that can get me places without me moving. I have a thing about moving. Or a cooking robot, I like food.

Lynn: A robot that can map the ocean floor and can identify new species of fish. There are robots that map the sea floor, but I want to create one that can identify new fish.

What do your friends at school think about you being part of a robotics competition? Do they “get” it?

Lynn: I’m cyber-schooled so I don’t know many of my classmates, but my friends think it’s nice. They don’t understand why I spend so much time on it though. Robotics isn’t just a hobby, it becomes a lifestyle.

Mackenzie: At my first school, my friends would tease me about it in a kind way, but they thought it was really cool. In my second school, my friends thinks it’s cool and interesting.

Becca: I always talk about it and my teachers and friends think it’s cool. They like it, but they don’t think they would want to do it. Some of my friends have come to our competitions, too. That was really fun. 

Molly: My teachers love it, but my friends call it a ‘nerdy thing’. A few of my friends understand, but they don’t want to come to competitions. It’s okay though; I enjoy it and that’s what really matters.

Sylvie: My friends know it’s a big part of my life and that it’s a huge time commitment, but they don’t know too much about it. They just know that it’s about robotics.

Has it made a difference for you to be part of an all-girl team? Would it be the same if your team were co-ed?

Becca: My other team was a coed team and was run differently. Many times the boys took mechanical jobs, so girls did more of the business tasks, even though we all got to build the robot. In Girls of Steel it’s different. We’re more open. I also think we are more connected because it’s an all-girls team. Even though we’re stubborn, we depend on each other. Also, girls have a similar mindset, so we understand why we do certain things better.

Molly: We can speak our minds easily because we are all girls, but we have more drama.

Sylvie: We are dramatic, but not in a normal way.

Becca:  Its drama in a very robotics way.

Sylvie: Things like, “My design wasn’t used,” or “I didn’t get to work on this part.” Even, “Why wasn’t she here working on the robot?” It’s really funny because it isn’t about boys or the classic drama. There is also some bitterness between the programmers and the mechanical girls that appears once in a while. It’s more because we are a bit stubborn and each one of us has our own view of the robot.

Becca: In the end, the robot is a mesh of all the girls’ ideas.

Sylvie: Also, if there were boys, I wouldn’t feel as comfortable. When it’s all girls, we know each other really well because we do a lot together … mainly eating.

Mackenzie: It would be different on a coed team. On some other coed teams girls do business, guys do the mechanical work. It’s unfair. Also, I took a class for engineering and, although the teacher was good, he favored the boys.

Lynn: Girls of Steel is a family. We have all our sisters, plus our mentors who are like uncles, aunts, older brothers and sisters to us. It really is a family, and I think it’s because of the culture we have.

What would you say to other girls who are curious about robotics but who aren’t sure if it’s for them, or who don’t know how to get started?

Molly: Come to the dark side, we have robots and cookies.

Becca: Honestly, try it. Google ‘robotics’, or look up different teams and research things you have heard.

Lynn: Get a Lego Robot Kit. You can build robots out of Lego, and it is simple programming. If you want to get more advanced, buy an Arduino. It has a reasonable price, plus you can find a lot of tutorials online for using other devices with the Arduino. Also look for teams around the area, including FIRST®  teams, VEX teams and Battle Bots teams.

Sylvie: For programming, there are a lot of internships and others opportunities if you look for them. Some of them aren’t robotics-related, but still try programming. There is nothing to be afraid of … there is nothing to lose.

Mackenzie: Join a team to see what it is like. There is something for everyone, even if you don’t think there is anything for you. If there are any robotics events around town, go to them. Also, go to competitions nearby and talk to people … you never know who you will meet.

My educational robotics experience ranges from FRC- and FLL-level FIRST robotics teams to using the Hummingbird Robotics kits in the classroom and at summer camp.  For the past three years I have worked with the Girls of Steel FIRST Robotics team at Carnegie Mellon University as a high school faculty advisor/business mentor, and in each of the past two years my high school human anatomy students at The Ellis School used Hummingbird Robotics kits to create a robotic arm as a part of the unit on muscles. Most recently, my robot arm lab lesson was successfully adapted for middle school students in a C-MITES summer camp at CMU called “Anatomy and Robotics.”

The greater Pittsburgh area in Pennsylvania is a wonderful place to get a robotics education if you are a middle school or high school student.  Teachers here have access to workshops and professional development programs so they can be trained to bring robotics into the classroom using the Hummingbird Robotics kit or the LEGO Robotics kits. Students can enroll in summer camps to learn robotics at the Carnegie Science Center, Carnegie Mellon University, or Sarah Heinz House, and they can join FIRST or VEX community robotics teams at CMU (Girls of Steel) and Sarah Heinz House or the teams at their schools.

Read more answers →

Below is a story about a similar science program and series of robotics competitions in a small town 40 miles north of Atlanta, Georgia. It is written by a high school junior, Brandon Gross, who asked to write about his and his fellow student enthusiasts and their program. 

The underlying issues in both stories are the same: using competitive robotics to stimulate STEM training in middle and high schools and the need for mentoring and local business participation.

By Brandon Gross, Forsyth Central High School, Cumming, GA

High school is where students learn important skills to function as capable members of the community — but not necessarily about the concepts and components of why or how something works. This is where the STEM Academy at Forsyth Central High School comes into play. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) are an important aspect in everyone’s lives and are often overlooked; my high school did not even have funding for an engineering department until our STEM Academy was founded.

Our robotics program is under the umbrella of the Forsyth Alliance, which is home to teams that participate in First Robotics Competition (FRC), First Lego League (FLL), VEX Robotic Competitions, Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology (BEST), and Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) robotics. The main goal of the Alliance is to put a robotics team in every school in Forsyth County, GA, and they are close to achieving that.

The Alliance was founded in 2005, and started with a single FRC team made up from two of the five high schools in the county. Now, just 8 years later, the Forsyth Alliance has three FRC teams and hosts some of the largest qualifiers for FLL and VEX in the state.

Robotics engineering is important for the future and encompasses many different disciplines, e.g.: mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer hardware and software development, industrial engineering, and more. Robotics in school is a great tool to teach the key skills that a employer would want to hire. Robotics is also a perfect match for STEM, as it meets all the criteria that STEM requires.

Forsyth Central High School’s STEM Academy has achieved great things: our first year brought several teams to the Forsyth Vex Robotics qualifier. 40 teams competed, 2 placed in the top 16, and one of the teams competed in the Finals. That team received the “Build Award” for a competing robot that is very robust. The following year, three teams participated in a tournament at the South Forsyth Vex Qualifier. Two of the teams were knocked out in the final match against the home team but one of the teams received the “Judges Award” for design process and documentation. Later that year, five teams from my school returned to compete at the Forsyth Qualifier. Three made it to the Finals, and one won the tournament and qualified for the Vex World Competition. The same team also took home trophies for highest drivers score, and highest autonomous skills score. In FRC, Forsyth Central H.S. competed at the Peachtree Regional, and placed 6th (but was knocked out in the Finals).

Much of our achievements are due to the help of our teacher and mentor, Mr. David Johnson who provides knowledge and input wherever students require it. He also pushes them to be creative and solve things on their own. Mr. Johnson puts in more hours than many teachers and coaches, receiving the payment of only satisfaction seeing a team succeed.

The Forsyth Alliance’s primary sponsor is Automation Direct, a national electronics parts sales company headquartered in Cumming, GA. Automation Direct provides startup money for all new robotics teams in the county, and has been a crucial component in the development of the robotics community at Forsyth. They also provide the resource of time with valuable mentors. Mentors such as Rick Folea (primary founder of the Forsyth Alliance), who are invaluable resources to the teams. Their motto is “Real Engineers, Real Mentors, and Real Projects.”

Back left to right : Emily Brickell, Trent Callan, Jacob Boyer, Bradley Shuford, Brandon Gross.
Front left to right: Drew Mclean, Richard Garcia, Caleb Puentes.

Forsyth Central H.S. competed against 412 other teams from several countries at the Vex World Championship in Anaheim, California in April, 2013. Our team had many issues such as tripping motors and bent axles. But we pushed through the problems and kept our heads high, and managed to get our act together by the last day. We ended with a 3-7 win-loss record, two of the wins coming from the last day of competition. We also ended with a 195 point driver’s skills score, placing us at 39th in the world. Instead of sleeping on our flights home, we started designing and brainstorming for our next robot. The team found their first world competition was an invaluable experience, and hope to compete at a much higher level the following season.

This summer, our school is the official service department for our local Sheriff’s bomb squad robots. We are in charge of fixing one of the robots, and revamping another. On one of the robots they are adding a manipulator to drag suspicious bags away from the general public. The team hopes to see the real life application of their robotic knowledge from working on these robots.

My school is hosting a Vex robotics summer camp for 6th graders. The goal is to inspire young students to take an interest in robotics and STEM. The camp is 5 days long and will involve lessons on gear ratios, programming, space management, and teamwork. The teams will also be given a budget that they must manage to build a robot. The student teams will compete against each other (and maybe even a few high school robots) for trophies on the final day. Hopefully these students will be inspired enough to continue the legacy that the current class of Forsyth Central has created.

Also this summer, our robotics team and our Technology Student Association are making an engineering/robotics presentation in front of the local Rotary Club to gain exposure and educate the community about the exciting experiences we have accomplished.

I hope that many other schools in the USA get involved in offering STEM and Engineering/Robotics programs to their students as the future holds many outstanding opportunities in the employment arena for all involved. It takes many people in the community to make programs such as ours successful. I personally want to thank each and every one of them for the time and money they have invested into my education to help make my dreams come true and my future bright.

I’m always surprised when I come to Stanford. I find new companies setting up shop in the area. Ford’s new research lab wasn’t there the last time I drove by, for example.

Later, when walking around Palo Alto and in a restaurant I could hear snippets of conversation that were different than most other college towns. Bio med devices, hardware, software, VCs, appointments with funders, crowd funders, etc. nothing about love, philosophy, literature.

At the Robot Block Party held on the Stanford campus and part of National Robotics Week, everybody had a chance to see and talk with somebody about what they were seeing.

Instead of just seeing a Lidar spinning around on top of a car, at the block party you could walk around the back and see a sun-shaded monitor showing what the Lidar was seeing. And talk with an eager young salesperson about what you could do with the data.

Crowded with lots of kids, one booth stood out as a kid-pleaser. This year’s F.I.R.S.T. contest includes shooting frisbees into a raised box so nearby Sarasota high school team was there at the block party with their entry into the contest shooting off frisbees to clutches of happy kids trying to catch them.

Elad Inbar of Robot App Store got to demo his new STEM package, a novel approach to teach by example using different robotic products.

Intuitive Surgical was showing the simplicity of their arm/wrist/fingers but also the amount of complex mechanics that make it work.

Bosch, although showing their new Indego robotic lawn mower, was really recruiting for all the different types of activities that Bosch Research is involved with.

And then there was a phd candidate telling about the progress he’s making with his VTOL quad copter/4-engined plane.

No refreshment stands or even bottled water — and it was hot (85)! But it was a beautiful day and the chatter from kids and adults was upbeat and appreciative for the event. As was I.

A high school student by day and a power-tool-toting Maker by night, Lynn Urbina is a member of the Girls of Steel – an all-girl competitive robotics team located in Pittsburg, PA that’s on a mission to draw young women into engineering.

Next week the Girls of Steel will compete in a robot frisbee match in the FIRST regionals in Pittsburg. Each year FIRST competitors face a different challenge: last year it was basketball.  Short for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology,” FIRST was founded in 1989 to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. And these girls are clearly inspired: despite having only arrived on the competition scene in 2010, they have already made it to the FIRST World Championships twice, have won a pile of awards (including the Rookie All-Star and the Engineering Inspiration Award) and are hoping to make it to the finals again this year.

Lynn shares her experience with the FIRST competition, the Girls of Steel team, what it was like to build their 2012 robot (affectionately called “Watson”) in a series of drawings she made …

(You can also download the full comic as a PDF here.) 

(The real Watson) 

(The Girls of Steel)

Key Info:
Competition: FIRST, founded 1989
Team: 3504 The Girls of Steel, Pittsburgh, PA, founded 2010
Mentorship: Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute