Discovery Day Proves An Overwhelming Success

Robbinsville High School (RHS) Robotics Team FRC 2590, Nemesis, hosted their annual Discovery Day Robotics Camp, an event welcoming second through sixth graders to work with team members to create unique robots. On Saturday, December 7th and Sunday, December 8th, ninety-two excited campers gathered in the RHS Technology Lab to learn more about engineering and design from Nemesis team members and mentors.

When given the opportunity to drive Nemesis’ 2013 robot, Athena, participants vibrated with excitement.  “It was really cool—I liked building the robot and driving the robot,” gushed Atishay, a second grader. With assistance from Antonio Papa, lead programmer, students took Athena for a spin, aiming and shooting Frisbees into the high scoring goal.

Younger students participated in the Ping-Pong Projectile Challenge. Participants created remote-controlled, motor-powered robots challenged to fire ping pong balls the furthest. Students Ava and Ruhi designed and engineered a robot that launched the ping-pong ball an impressive distance of 78.5 inches.  Griffin, a fourth grader,  made the suggestion “messing around with the trajectory a little bit” which improved his machine.

Choosing from a variety of sensors, experienced campers completed the NXT LEGO®   Mindstorms Basketball Challenge, building robots able to carry and shoot ping-pong balls into a basket.  With a winning time of 1.17 seconds,  campers Luke and Gurveer programmed and tweaked their robot for success.

Discovery Day provided participants with a new perspective regarding Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Computer Science (STEM). Students successfully learned the importance of not only creating a good design, but how to approach solutions to difficult problems. “There’s a lot of error in making a robot,” explained fifth grader Kavya. “You have to troubleshoot.” Steve David, father of a satisfied participant, enthused: “thank you to you and all the students that ran the program—it certainly presented a compelling picture of a career in engineering [for my son], and in my opinion, was an overwhelming success.”

Discovery Day prompted excitement from both participants and Nemesis team members alike.  Several other students expressed their excitement for next year’s program, leaving with content smiles. The event serves as one of Nemesis’ largest fundraisers, allowing them to travel and therefore compete in regional and international competitions.