Sunday is Pi Day, the day that celebrates the mathematical constant ? (3.14). Pi Day was founded by Physicist Larry Shaw in 1988 and has grown in every area of science, especially as areas like gaming and analytics continue to be even more interesting to a younger demo. Maybe it wasn’t what Dr. Shaw had in mind, but it certainly is more applicable today than maybe ever before.
While there was a time, even recently, where science, including all areas of STEM (Science Technology, Engineering, Math) were on the downside, the growth of areas like streaming, VR, AR, the use of analytics in all areas of sport, gaming, esports, even most recently the explosion of NFT’s and games of strategy played in the digital space, like Chess, and sports gambling have continued to show how the worlds of science and sport continue to meld.
There used to be the great divide; those who loved sports and those who loved science, and rarely the two crossed paths. An area that we continue to watch, one that has taken a bit of a hit and pivoted from the tangible to the virtual this past year, is competitive robotics. Now we are not really talking about Battlebots, which has made its mark on TV, although it certainly doesn’t hurt. We are talking about the competitions that have arisen in high schools and middle schools around the country which combine teambuilding and competition with every area of science.
The annual National Robotics Kickoff usually starts in early January in high schools around the country, with teams were given their assignment to build not just the device, but the narrative around the project, all leading to a world championship head to head competition later this spring. No different than say, the NCAA basketball championship or even the NFL Playoffs. However in the past year, thousands of kids who love science and competition have not been able to engage in the way that had in the past. Some have found new ways to help and stay busy during the Pandemic, using their team skills to build devices that helped the elderly or the medical community. Some have found ways to stream and conduct other sessions that can keep their communities together until, soon, normalcy in robotics competitions can return.
When they do, there may be an even brighter frontier tan existed last March when things went dark. Why, it’s because all areas of science, have again become cool, and robotics as a crossover genre, blends the competitive side of sport with high tech like nothing else.
They have names like the RoboWarriors and the Miracle Workers, LuNaTecs and Pi-oneers. There will be faces painted and logo’ed flags to rival any traditional sporting contest. The field of play even resembles a hockey rink, complete with boards and plexiglass. Teams as large as 100 students or more work on various aspects of the presentation, from video and animation to programming and design, each helping to task and tell the story around the assigned robotic project.
The original program is entitled FIRST, standing for Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology and was the brainchild of Segway PT inventor Dean Kamen over 25 years ago with the goal of boosting science in the way that high school’s glorify sports.
The competition is not your father’s Erector Set version of building a robot. Each team trains for weeks many using the designated program to have its robot perform a series of complex tasks against another table of robots, with competition set up in teams of three.
However what is more amazing is the sense of fun, competition and creativity that each of the teams have throughout the event. From posters to mascots to elongated signs, the students and their supporters cheer with a fervor that would match any athletic event. Everyone who goes sees the best of what robotics has to offer…healthy competition with a mosaic of children from every ethnic and social background in a healthy competition devoid of many of the trappings that childhood events have these days. There may be some uber parents in the crowd, but most are there for good natured support both moral and emotional.
It’s disappointing that Robotics has been tabled in its biggest form this past year. However it remains a key area of growth as we come out the other side of this…a competition that is fun, ties to STEM, unites people from all backgrounds and since it has its science and team ties, streams really well for an audience that is mobile first.
I’m looking forward to seeing where Robotics, in this new science friendly environment can go.
March Mathness can return, bigger than ever before.
