TEAM DUCT TAPE

From Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Academy blog:
PITTSBURGH—A new four-year, $7 million educational initiative by Carnegie Mellon University will leverage students’ innate interest in robots and other forms of “hard fun” to increase U.S. enrollments in computer science and steer more young people into scientific and technological careers.
The initiative, called Fostering Innovation through Robotics Exploration (FIRE), is [...]

Interesting look at the new Samantha module and Samomoto, a (free!) app that allows wifi control of a robot via the Samantha module, emulating  standard game controller hardware:

Ken Johnson reports, on his FTC blog, on some ”behind the scenes” work for the new season:
“We’ve now produced 2,500 Samantha WiFi modules and they are in transit to PITSCO/LEGO for inclusion in the new kits! As a reminder these are being provided free of charge thanks to the generous donation of time and money from John [...]

[ June 7, 2010 12:00 pm to June 8, 2010 5:00 pm. ] TDT at PTC USER World Event in 2009Team Duct Tape will be in Orlando Monday and Tuesday, at the 2010  PTC/USER World Event , showcasing the Hot Shot! game and reaching out to conference attendees to inform them about FIRST robotics opportunities for them as professionals, and for youth in their home towns.
PTC is a Crown-Level Supplier [...]

Check out the new 2010 FTC Season Kit of Parts options at the U.S. FIRST FTC website.  Veteran teams have a couple of more cost-effective choices this year, including a $70 Software Renewal kit that includes the new Samantha wifi module, or a $200 Resource Kit that includes the software license renewals, as well as some [...]

We might be just unpacked from Atlanta, but we’re rarin’ to go for the 2010 games!  Fortunately, FTC’s just announced we’ve only got five months to wait: new game kick off is set for Sept. 11, 2010! 
 And the 2010-11 FIRST World Championship venue has formally been announced - next year’s event, and the two after that, will [...]

FIRST Robotics episode of the Education for Innovation podcast, the first podcast dedicated exclusively to understanding how and why students study technology and engineering K-12. This episode is hosted by Dave Janosz and features guest Randy Schaeffer.