| FIRST Robotics Competition
 Genius in Action
The core of the high school-level FIRST Robotics Competition
(FRC) is the design and building of a robotic competitor.
Each year in early January, FIRST
unveils the competition or “game” at an annual
kick-off event that is beamed by NASA satellite to
auditoriums all over the world. This is the first glimpse
students get of the game they will have to design their
robot to play.
Working in teams, students have just six weeks
to create their robot. They get the opportunity to work
with programmable radio controls, pneumatics, motors, electrical
circuits, mechanics, machining, web design, computer animation,
computer assisted design, and other technologies – just like professional engineers and technologists do.
Following the six-week design and build phase,
teams enter local and regional competitions. In 2007, there
were 37 regional competitions, with over 1,300 US high schools
participating in the “game”.
Two FIRST Robotics
Competitions are held in the New York City / New Jersey
region, which are attended by over 5,000 students, family
and friends, and draw teams from as far away as Brazil and
the UK.
The season culminates in the FIRST
Championship, which is held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta,
GA. Over 20,000 students, family and friends attend this
3-day celebration to watch the teams compete. The competition
is deliberately designed to have the feel of a sports match,
complete with play-by-play announcers and cheering fans.
More
about the FIRST Robotics Competition.
 The 2008 Challenge: FIRST Overdrive!
Click here for more information and the game animation.
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