OTHS Robotics Team 1208

US FIRST Robotics

The Vision
US FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) has been in existence since 1989, and is continuously growing by leaps and bounds. The major focus of US First is to create a better world by inspiring young people to pursue futures in scientific, mathematic, technologic, and engineering careers while building communication, self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills. The vision of US First, as quoted by founder Dean Kamen, is "To create a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology heroes." In these aspirations, US FIRST hopes to transform students into generations of ambitious, innovative gracious professionals so as to create a diverse engineering culture worldwide.

The Competition
The FIRST Robotics Competition is an exciting, multinational competition that teams professionals and young people to solve an engineering design problem in an intense and competitive way. The competitions are high-tech spectator sporting events: the result of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring, and project timelines. The program is a life-changing, career-molding experience and a lot of fun. The competition connects over 42,100 high-school-aged students on 1,648 teams in 40 regional events, 7 district competitions, and the final championship, which is held in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Uniting teams from all across the world, these competitions will place teams from all across the world on alliances, encouraging strong communication, effective organization, leadership, and outstanding teamwork. Countries such as Canada, Brazil, the UK, Chile, the Philippines, Germany, Turkey, Mexico, Israel, and 48 U.S. states will participate in US FIRST programs this year.

Impact
When Brandeis University's Center for Youth and Communities compared a group of non-FIRST students with FIRST students, they found that FIRST Students are:

More than 3 times as likely to major specifically in engineering.
Roughly 10 times as likely to have had an apprenticeship, internship, or co-op job in their freshman year.
Significantly more likely to expect to achieve a post graduate degree.
More than twice as likely to expect to pursue a career in science and technology.
Nearly 4 times as likely to expect to pursue a career specifically in engineering.
More than twice as likely to volunteer in their communities.

US FIRST additionally offers participants more than
*$9 million in college scholarships
*600 individual scholarship opportunities
*120 scholarship providers

These paragraphs don't even come close to summarizing the goals of US First, but we strive to do our best at Team 1208 to achieve them. If you would like more information on the goals of US First or more details on US First in general please visit http://www.usfirst.org/. Their web site also contains videos that express their vision and mission!

2010 Robotics Game: Breakaway
In the 2010 Robotics game "Breakaway," two alliances made up of three teams each will compete with their robots to try to shoot soccer balls into the opposing goal. The field of play has dimensions of 27' by 54' and is split into three separate areas, which are split off from each other by a bump traversing the width of the playing field as well as a "tower" in the middle of each bump.

The game is split into three periods of time. First is the autonomous period. Each robot is programmed to play the game "by itself" in this period, which lasts 15 seconds. Following the autonomous period is the teleoperated period, when the human element is introduced into the game. Drivers control the robots in order to gain the most points by the end of the game. This period lasts two minutes; however, in the final 20 seconds the teams must maneuver their robot to a tower and attempt to hang from it. Bonus points are awarded to teams hanging on another robot. The scoring for the game is simple and is as follows:

          *One point for each ball scored in the goal
          *Two points for each robot hanging on the tower
          *Three points for each robot hanging on another robot

		US FIRST Robotics The Vision US FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) has been in existence since 1989, and is continuously growing by leaps and bounds. The major focus of US First is to create a better world by inspiring young people to pursue futures in scientific, mathematic, technologic, and engineering careers while building communication, self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills. The vision of US First, as quoted by founder Dean Kamen, is "To create a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology heroes." In these aspirations, US FIRST hopes to transform students into generations of ambitious, innovative gracious professionals so as to create a diverse engineering culture worldwide. The Competition The FIRST Robotics Competition is an exciting, multinational competition that teams professionals and young people to solve an engineering design problem in an intense and competitive way. The competitions are high-tech spectator sporting events: the result of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring, and project timelines. The program is a life-changing, career-molding experience and a lot of fun. The competition connects over 42,100 high-school-aged students on 1,648 teams in 40 regional events, 7 district competitions, and the final championship, which is held in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Uniting teams from all across the world, these competitions will place teams from all across the world on alliances, encouraging strong communication, effective organization, leadership, and outstanding teamwork. Countries such as Canada, Brazil, the UK, Chile, the Philippines, Germany, Turkey, Mexico, Israel, and 48 U.S. states will participate in US FIRST programs this year. Impact When Brandeis University's Center for Youth and Communities compared a group of non-FIRST students with FIRST students, they found that FIRST Students are: More than 3 times as likely to major specifically in engineering. Roughly 10 times as likely to have had an apprenticeship, internship, or co-op job in their freshman year. Significantly more likely to expect to achieve a post graduate degree. More than twice as likely to expect to pursue a career in science and technology. Nearly 4 times as likely to expect to pursue a career specifically in engineering. More than twice as likely to volunteer in their communities. US FIRST additionally offers participants more than $9 million in college scholarships 600 individual scholarship opportunities 120 scholarship providers These paragraphs don't even come close to summarizing the goals of US First, but we strive to do our best at Team 1208 to achieve them. If you would like more information on the goals of US First or more details on US First in general please visit http://www.usfirst.org/. Their web site also contains videos that express their vision and mission! 2010 Robotics Game: Breakaway* In the 2010 Robotics game "Breakaway," two alliances made up of three teams each will compete with their robots to try to shoot soccer balls into the opposing goal. The field of play has dimensions of 27' by 54' and is split into three separate areas, which are split off from each other by a bump traversing the width of the playing field as well as a "tower" in the middle of each bump. The game is split into three periods of time. First is the autonomous period. Each robot is programmed to play the game "by itself" in this period, which lasts 15 seconds. Following the autonomous period is the teleoperated period, when the human element is introduced into the game. Drivers control the robots in order to gain the most points by the end of the game. This period lasts two minutes; however, in the final 20 seconds the teams must maneuver their robot to a tower and attempt to hang from it. Bonus points are awarded to teams hanging on another robot. The scoring for the game is simple and is as follows: One point for each ball scored in the goal Two points for each robot hanging on the tower *Three points for each robot hanging on another robot