Livingston Jr. FLL Expo Results

Great turnout for the Livingston Jr. FLL Expo and the robotics exhibition hosted by the Livingston Robotics Club on May 29, 2010 at Livingston, NJ.  For more information, see TheAlternativePress.

The winners from the “Smart Move” Jr. FLL teams presentation are:

For additional event pictures, see Landroids’ Facebook.

Livingston Jr. FIRST LEGO League Expo

Where: Town Oval, 357 South Livingston Ave., Livingston, NJ 07039
When: Saturday, May 29, 2010 (10:00 - 15:00)

Free admission, open to all visitors!

Livingston Robotics Club (LRC) is hosting a Jr.FIRST LEGO League Expo during the Livingston Youth Appreciation Week to showcase Livingston student teams and any other interested Jr. FLL teams. Jr.FLL is a non-competitive program for children ages 6-9 as part of global robotics competitions organized by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). The teams of elementary school students will display their “Smart Move” projects, and their LEGO robotics models which are about the transportation systems. Any Jr. FLL teams who are interested in participating, please contact LRC’s Jr. FLL division organizer, Mr. Surasit Nithikasem by 5/17/10, registration fee is $20.

The participating Jr. FLL teams are (tentative):

#103 Spongebots (Livingston)
#1375 Harrison Kidz Club Team A (Livingston)
#1375 Harrison Kidz Club Team B (Livingston)
#1375 Harrison Kidz Club Team C (Livingston)
#1428 Pantheon (Cedar Grove)
#1436 Mario (Livingston)

12:00 pm: Jr.FLL teams arrival
12:30pm to 1:00pm: Video Conference and Q&A session with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer, Ravi Prakash about the next Mars rover called “Curiosity”.
1:30pm to 2:15pm: Judging time. All children will be at the team’s table to present the project and the LEGO model to the judges
2:15pm to 2:45pm: Work on a greeting card for NASA’s Mars mission team 
2:45pm to 3:00pm: Award ceremony.

As part of the Jr. FLL Expo, there will be other activities for children to participate. These activities are open to general public with no admission fee:

Imagine Mars (in collaboration with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory): An interactive exhibition on Mars Exploration Programs, which includes video presentation and Q&A with NASA Engineer, poster boards, 3-D images from Mars, simulated noise, and Mars soil simulant. Children will have a chance to design a transportation system that will be constructed for an imaginary community of 100 residents on Mars. The designs  artwork and writing will be hung and displayed in the exhibition tent.

EcoCar: Video presentation from EcoCar team of University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada to discuss with children on the benefits of alternative fuel in our vehicles.

Princeton Autonomous Vehicle Engineering (PAVE): An exhibition from PAVE team of Princeton University on their projects such as autonomous vehicle (driverless cars).

FIRST LEGO League Teams: Affiliated Livingston Robotics Club FLL teams will showcase their Smart Move research projects and LEGO robots from the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) competition for children ages 9-14. The participating teams are Landrias and Landroids, they will also be assisting the Jr. FLL Expo as judges.

Bike Rodeo (from 4 PM to 6 PM), organized by Livingston township police, supported by FIRST LEGO League team Landrias as part of their Smart Move biking project with the Livingston Robotics Club, everyone is invited to come by to register your bike, get a safety inspection and helmet adjustment, learn about proper riding etiquette, and bike around the high school oval with road secured by the police.

Farewell Graduating Seniors

Seniors from Team 3112, Gateway Falcons, move on to bigger and better!

Alex Germosen received an $18,000 FIRST scholarship at SUNY Canton, he plans to study biology and technology, perhaps leading into bio- engineering.

Kenneth Rivera will be at the University of Arts in Phily, studying Animation Design.

Fidel Ojimba will study Liberal Arts with the hope of eventually entering Computer Science at Wabash College in Indiana.

Richard Cyrie got accepted at Embry Riddle Aeronautical Academy in Arizona, on his way of becoming a pilot.

Ammichelle Coste, one of the girls in the team will be at Devry or Berkeley.

Montogomery High robotics team ready to face rivals

MONTGOMERY — Montgomery High School’s Cougar Robotics Team this weekend will compete against 42 teams across Central Jersey and beyond when the students host the 5th annual Monty Madness Competition…

Want to read more?  See the full article HERE.

FIRST Team files for patent

Our friends at Team Overdrive, FRC Team 2753 sent us this note:

Congratulations to the Teen Technology - Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam,

It is official!  Your Patent Application for a “Pedal-Operated Threshing Machine” has been filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (US Serial No. 12/777,949).

It is hard to believe that we started our journey almost two years ago.  Congratulations - you have done a lot of hard work and learned much.  We need to take a deep breath and consider what’s next.  

Students - promise me that you will send a thank you note (via US mail) to Sam and Geoffrey at Sustein Law (Boston).  Their pro bono work is no small matter.  Remember, invention and innovation help to secure a better future for all.  Sustein Law encouraged you as young inventors while teaching the world about your machine.  Let’s hope that your invention will help the poor in Africa and Asia to process sorghum and millet more efficiently.

As President of Teen Technology, I would like to thank the following companies and individuals who made this milestone possible:

• Lemelson-MIT Program (especially Leigh and Ellen)
• Ethicon
• Evonik
• Umicore
• Johnson Matthey
• Colonial Metals
• National Sorghum Producers and the US Sorghum Checkoff Program (especially Dr. Jeff Dalhberg)
• United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) - (especially Mr. Jeff Wilson)
• Healthcare Facilities Management Society of New Jersey
• Sunstein Kann Murphy & Timbers LLP - Boston, MA (especially Sam and Geoffrey)
• Stonecrest Community Church (Warren, NJ)
• FIRST Robotics (especially Mr. Don Bowers)
• Parents of the students (especially Howard, George, Bridget, and Janice)

Best regards to all,

Tom Moser

For more information about Teen Technology and the Lemelson-MIT program, please follow the following links:

www.teen-technology.org
http://web.mit.edu/invent/

Inventors:

• Tyler P. Moser
• James Wittel
• Phyllis Schlafly
• David Schmidt
• Bethany Shotyk
• Kenneth Shotyk
• Marissa Scalzo
• Gina Scalzo
• Adrianna Scalzo

LRIG Awards John Morin Memorial Scholarship

Yesterday, the Laboratory Robotics Interest Group (LRIG) Mid Atlantic Chapter in cooperation with NJ FIRST awarded 4 Scholarships to members of FIRST^® Robotics Competition and FIRST^® Tech Challenge Teams at their annual Technology Exhibition at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick NJ.  The 2010 recipients of the John Morin Memorial Scholarship are:

• Saager Deshpande
  • Livingston HS
  • FTC Lancer Robotics #3415
  • Attending Harvard University
• Kevin Fritz
  • Home Schooled
  • Team Overdrive FRC #2753
  • Attending the University of Pennsylvania
• Lauren Nowicki
  • Hopewell Valley Central HS
  • NJ FRC Team #293
  • Attending Gettysburg University
• Kathryn Todd
  • Rancocas Valley Reg. HS
  • FRC Team #87, The Red Devils
  • Attending Embry-Riddle

About LRIG

We are a rapidly growing special interest group focused on laboratory automation. Our membership consists of scientists and engineers, primarily from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, with chapters across the US and in Europe. Our semi-annual regional meetings are informal and are intended to facilitate communication and to share current best practices and experiences in laboratory automation. Presentations and vendor exhibits cover such topics as high throughput screening, drug discovery, combinatorial chemistry, compound purification and distribution, data management, pharmaceutical dosage form, dissolution testing and product formulation along with others.

John Morin Ph.D. -  Biography

John Morin was Director of HTS in the Screening Sciences Department of Wyeth Research. John trained as a Biochemist at Purdue University and as a Molecular Biologist at the University of Vermont and the University of California in San Francisco before joining Wyeth in 1984. His work experience includes protein purification and enzymology, the development of viral vectors as live vaccines, hit to lead activities in an antiviral chemotherapy screening program and positions of increasing responsibility in Wyeth’s core screening group.

Dr. Morin passed away on June 30, 2008 at the age of 56.  John received a Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1982.  Following his post-doctoral training in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Vermont College of Medicine and Metabolic Research Unit at the University of California – San Francisco, Dr. Morin had a 24-year career in pharmaceutical research. In 2002 he became the Director of High Throughput Screening at Wyeth Research in Collegeville PA.  John was involved in a number of professional science organizations including Laboratory Robotics Interest Group (LRIG).  In 2009 the LRIG – Mid-Atlantic Chapter established a memorial scholarship in John Morin’s name.

FIRST LEGO League World Festival NJ Young Volunteers – Part 2

Amongst hundreds of volunteers at the World Festival each year, there is a group of young people who are just as dedicated to contribute as the adults.  Many are middle school students and FIRST LEGO League (FLL) alumni, working as the field resetters, team queuers, judges’ assistants or the stand-in team.  Two of such young volunteers from New Jersey were at the 2010 FLL World Festival in Atlanta recently.  Their journey and reflection are featured in parts here. We welcome other FIRST young volunteers to contribute their stories and experiences.

~ By Karlin Yeh  ~

Two years ago, in 2008, I attended the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) World Festival in Atlanta with my rookie team, Landroids.  I was a good foot shorter in height and a lot more nervous.

This year, our team was nominated but not selected as a core values team to go to the 2010 World Festival again, I found that now I really wanted to go back to Atlanta.  My opportunity came when my parents took time off to volunteer at the World Festival, I quickly signed up to join them.  In the last three seasons with FLL, I have learned so much, I wanted to give back to the FLL community.  For me, being a World Festival volunteer meant lack of sleep since I was multi-tasking several different responsibilities between FLL and FTC, but it was also a lot of fun, well worth of skipping school.

Besides as the official FLL team queuer and the one-person FLL robot stand-in team at the World Festival this year, I was also a fill-in FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) hardware inspector, and a young  mentor of a high school FTC team Lancers, who is also attending the World Festival.  Previously at the State level, I had volunteered as a FLL and FTC field resetter and FTC software inspector. I had also conducted FLL programming and training sessions with my teammates in the last two summers. It’s gratifying and worth all the preparation effort to inspire other new FLL enthusiasts. All of these volunteering experiences gave me opportunities meet new people, learn new skills and different design ideas, which prepare me for the future competitions.

One of the important rewards from volunteering, I think, is the friends you make.  At these competitions, you meet people from all over the state, country, or even the world.  Not surprisingly, many veteran FLL members of my age were also volunteers at the World Festival.  Each volunteer, young or old, is about as crazy and enthusiastic about FIRST as the next.  They gave up their vacation or free time, self funded to organize and help out at these events to ensure everything runs smoothly.  Most people probably don’t even notice how hard these volunteers worked behind the scene until you are one of them.  You learn to work together quickly, and develop a friendship and respect that last a long time.

Besides being a volunteer at the World Festival this year, I was also privileged to have an unofficial robot round opposite this season’s Georgia State Champion who was also volunteering at the World Festival.  Behind the black curtain after the FLL competition was over, we had a mock competition complete with a referee! I don’t remember who scored what but we got to exchanged contact info and talked about programming obstacles we faced.  It was very nice and special to have no stress and just sharing ideas with the best minds.

Volunteering is the basis of FIRST no matter where in the world.  Ordinary people sacrifice their own time and money to organize and run these events to make all the teams have a good time.  Whether it was inspecting robots, hosting a seminar, or just helping out a local event, the volunteering effort was well worth it and I’ve have gained so much from these experiences.

FIRST LEGO League World Festival NJ Young Volunteers – Part 1

Amongst hundreds of volunteers at the World Festival each year, there is a group of young people who are just as dedicated to contribute as the adults.  Many are middle school students and FIRST LEGO League (FLL) alumni, working as the field resetters, team queuers, judges’ assistants or the stand-in team.  Two of such young volunteers from New Jersey were at the 2010 FLL World Festival in Atlanta recently.  Their journey and reflection are featured in parts here. We welcome other FIRST young volunteers to contribute their stories and experiences.

Tersa Hensen was born into a FIRST family…not the ones who live in the White House, but the ones who are dedicated to the volunteering tradition of FIRST.

Following her farther Carl, who is a FIRST fanatic since 1994, Tersa started to go FIRST robotics events in Minnesnowta, then in the south Jersey, Philly and Delaware areas at a tender age of two. By the time Tersa was eight in 2004, she was already a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) field resetter, diligently picking up stray balls after each round.

In 2005, Tersa and her best friends Chelsea wanted to start their own FIRST LEGO League (FLL) team. The girls made their own flyers to recruit team members, but had a hard time to find enough “tomboys” to fill the teams with only girls. Nevertheless, with her father Carl as the coach, FLL team Tabernacle Techno Tigers competed from 2005 to 2007. Only in the team’s last season, could they finally have all-girls roster.  After three seasons of FLL competition, at age 12, Tersa was ready to move on to be a FLL volunteer.  She and her friends have volunteered at the Delaware FIRST State FLL events, with the Champions Tournament at the Bob Carpenter being the final event of the year.  They have worked themselves up to being one of the primary groups of volunteers doing competition field reset!

In 2008, Tersa and four kids from Canada got together to form an official FIRST FLL fill-in team at the FLL World Festival.  One of her rounds was opposite the then rookie team, the Landroids from NJ.  She and her dad continued to volunteer at the FLL World Festival and FRC Championship in Atlanta for the next two years.

Tersa was the FLL team queuers on the competition fields in 2009; and this year, manned the queuing table where the teams picked up their match cards in.

With years of FLL competition and local volunteering experiences, a young World Festival volunteer like Tersa, needs very little training. She knows exactly what is required and what has to be done.  A position such as the team queuer gave Tersa the opportunity to interact with the 84 teams from all over the world.

When Tersa is not ‘on the job’ at the World Festival, you can usually find her out on the plaza between the GWCC and the Georgia Dome giving out hugs.  Next year, you can be sure that she and her best friend Chelsea will be back to the World Festival volunteering.

Camden Country Tech goes to Hawaii

What’s it like to be a NJ robotics team attending the Hawaii FRC Regional event?  Read the blog from Team 203, Camden County Technical School, HERE.

Team 224 and Sigma Phi Delta demo robot at Rutgers Day

FIRST Robotics team #224 of Piscataway High School is very fortunate to have the students of Rutgers Engineering fraternity Sigma Phi Delta serve as mentors to help them design, build and test their robot.  One of the fraternity’s goal is to share with the local community and students an interest in the science and technology of engineering.  Several of their college mentors have experience participating in FIRST Robotics as a PHS alumni or from other area high school teams.  Some of the mentors have graduated from Rutgers and are now working in related engineering fields.  This relationship provides team 224 the opportunity to develop a greater appreciation and understanding of engineering along with future career goals and college responsibilities.  The team annually hosts a “Rutgers Engineering Night” for  high school students and their parents.  Fraternity members give presentations of each of the schools of engineering offered at Rutgers and provide opportunities to answer questions.  In the spring, Sigma Phi Delta members invite the robotics team to join them on Rutgers Day to demonstrate their program to the entire college campus.