By Omar Tanamly and Stephen Twentyman (January 9, 2004)

In the past few weeks, the Falls Church community has come together, supplying the Science Club with the $5000 in fundraising it needed for the 2004 FIRST Robotics Competition at DCU in Richmond tomorrow. FIRST is an acronym for "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology." 

The competition looked like a pipe dream not too long ago, as the club had only raised a pittance on such fund raisers as an evening at the showing of the Star Wars Trilogy, while the deadline loomed on the horizon. Furthermore, the club was turned down for a substantial NASA grant that would have bailed it out. Since then, however, the club orchestrated a successful fund-raising campaign to raise all the required funds.

Business in Education (B.I.E.) coordinator Dr. Cheryl Fontes was one of the catalysts behind this turn of events. Fontes sent a letter to the community pleading for support. Before long, some large checks, some upwards of $500, began to fill the club’s coffers. 

FIRST offers a unique three-day experience where contestants work together in teams, competing with other teams to build the ultimate robot. The Annual FIRST Robotics Competition is an esteemed opportunity for engineering enthusiasts to gather from worldwide to participate in an intense, mechanical engineering setting, to gain important knowledge for possible future careers, or just to partake in a favorite hobby.

Many schools participate in the spring tournament. Every team receives the same kit, with all the same equipment. The winning team is the team that makes the most elaborate and able robot.

The uniform kit offers first-rate motors, battery systems, gears, and software systems, explaining the pricy entrance fee that the GMHS Science Club managed to scrape up, with the help of a dedicated community. Co-sponsor Mr. Ballou said the average donation was around $50. "We found the community is really behind this," said Ballou.

A small letter-writing campaign was employed to ask for donations, particularly backed by some of the Science Club’s hardest working members like Luisa Fairfax, Kevin Zhou, and Alex Douglas. "Not only does this competition seem like it will be tremendous fun, it also looks like a good way to learn both technical and team-working skills," said Douglass. 

Mr. Ballou, who was a spectator in the tournament last year, decided it was a good idea for this year’s Science Club. He spoke with roughly 30 schools, and there was nothing but positive things to say about it. The average team size was 10-15 students, so with a 20-member Science Club already, George Mason is set on that level.

At the competition, the robots that are pre-made with equipment distributed in the uniform kit 6 weeks prior to the competition, are all presented with the same challenge to perform or an obstacle to overcome (putting a basketball in a hoop, for example). Students have to rethink their designs, and alter their robot on the spot, decide what the best course to take is. A team’s robot must rack up the most points from this challenge, and eight runs through an obstacle course in order to take the first place trophy. Robots should expect ramps, collisions, and always the unexpected. Extra points are added for animation, crowd support, and anything that shows teamwork (even t-shirts). 

"We have no idea if we’re going to win, but I don’t care. We’re starting on the ground floor. The real accomplishment is that we participate," Ballou commented in an interview with Lasso Online. The Science Club is still open for students interested in partaking in this unique experience, contact Mr. Ballou or Mr. Applegate for more information.

For more information, seewww.usfirst.org