Shooting Robots

Atlanta, GA — Shooting pictures of robots at the Georgia Dome.

VIDEOS MP4 / MPEG4 / AVI
Opening Ceremony
Team Introduction
Team Introduction 2
The Drivers Jump
Game Action (rear-view)
Team 341 Miss Daisy Scores
Team 341 Miss Daisy Scores Bigger
View From the Press Box
Robots Zoom Around The Field

Atlanta, GA — The FIRST Robotics championship is taking place at the Georgia Dome. Throughout the event, teams will be given the chance to win awards from a wide variety of categories. There are awards for enthusiasm and awards for ingenuity; however, perhaps… there should be a category that combines enthusiasm and ingenuity. When it comes to this type of achievement nothing shows how the kids use their heads better than the hats they wear. What about a medal for ‘off the top of my head engineering’? Or, maybe, the safest, funnest hat? You know, “You might poke someone’s eye out with that hat!”

Atlanta, GA — What happens when you gather geeks from around the world? Students interested in math and science gathered at the Georgia Dome for the FIRST robotics world championships. From Saudi Arabia to Israel and from Canada to Brazil, the youth traveled to Atlanta. There were over 500 high school teams from 22 countries. What happens when they get together? Well, they proved you do not need negative and positive to conduct electricity. The energy that flowed was 100% positive!

The children started the event with an opening ceremony “pep rally” hosted by some of the brightest adults that can be found. Woody Flowers, Dean Kamen, Bill Miller and executives from NASA, National Instruments and BAE Systems were among the dedicated adults in attendence.

“The US is in one of the biggest experiments in history,” said Woody Flowers. He is strategically obsessed with the economic situation. He believes the students are the most important element of a strategic plan to be rescued from the crisis. “We have a big, stubborn society to change.”

Co-operatition
Not only do the kids get serious hands-on experience with math and science, but they also get an advanced degree in business administration. The adults and students got into graduate level entrepreneurship and Intellectual Property (IP) rights.

The Chairman of the US Patent office announced that Dean Kamen received another patent. Unlike many of his previous patents that were for physical inventions, this patent was for business systems. The business system of co-operatition is how FIRST competitions are run — combining co-operation with competition. As well as receiving the patent, Mr. Kamen was also awarded trademarks for cooperation and gracious professionalism. In a display of gracious professionalism, Mr. Kamen assigned the patent and trademarks to the FIRST organization for $1 a piece.

Exploration
David Lavery, NASA Executive for Solar System Exploration, was awarded and recognized for his contributions as a volunteer. He announced NASA’s collaboration with Google.com on the ability to explore Mars in the same fashion as Google Earth. You can now use the technology to view every NASA image ever returned from Mars.

An astronaut from the upcoming space mission sent a video message declaring, “Let the games begin.” Yes, the robots would be singing “Georgia On My Mind”… if they only had one.

Stay tuned….

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Ambler, PA — Local robotics teams that made the achievement of qualifying for the world championships are in Atlanta, GA. The Wissahickon High School Team 341 “Miss Daisy” obtained many awards this season including first place at the Western Regionals in San Diego, CA.

Team 341 arrived in Atlanta on Wednesday. On Thursday evening, they attended the third annual “Robo Prom”. The Robo Prom is a great way to experience these fierce competitors off the field. The geeks and nerds trade in their pocket protectors for dress slacks or cocktail dresses. Not only are these some of the smartest kids around, they are also courteous, kind and able to dance. And, no… they don’t all dance the robot

On Friday, the competition begins at the Georgia Dome. NASA is providing a live webcast at robotics.nasa.gov.

NASA's Mobile Webcasting

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Anti-piracy Operations
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 14, 2009 – The U.S. military has initiated a review to look “broadly and widely and deeply” at the overall strategy on piracy off the coast of Somalia, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today.

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, speaking on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” complimented those who carried out the mission that freed Merchant Marine Capt. Richard Phillips. Somali pirates had held Phillips hostage since his ship, the Maersk-Alabama, was attacked April 8.

The Maersk-Alabama’s crew managed to regain control of the cargo vessel, but pirates took Phillips hostage and sought shelter in an 18-foot lifeboat. Navy SEAL snipers aboard the USS Bainbridge killed three of the pirates aboard the lifeboat when it appeared that Phillips’ life was in imminent danger.

Piracy has been a problem for America since the founding of the republic, Mullen said. “We’ve actually been focused on this issue for some period of time, and set up a task force out in that part of the world last fall,” he said. “We’ve had a focus on it.”

Some 16 nations have warships in the region, which covers 1.1 million square miles, a vast area that is difficult to cover; in fact, pirates captured the Greek merchant vessel Irene overnight. “It’s a going business for the pirates,” Mullen said.

Part of the problem with piracy off Somalia – a failed state – is what to do with pirates who are captured. Mullen said the United States and Kenya have a bilateral agreement for the African nation to prosecute any pirates captured on the high seas in the region. “There’s a lot of work to do. It’s a big challenge, but there are many, many people working on it right now,” Mullen said.

Pirates have vowed reprisals on the United States for the successful operation to free Phillips.

“I certainly take their comments afterwards seriously,” Mullen said. “That said, we are very well prepared to deal with anything like that. And that will be part of our military review.”

Also See Pirates Of Somali

Oklahoma And Texas Fires

Western and central Oklahoma, as well as, Texas are experiencing severe wildfires. Paul Cunningham, the Sheriff of Montague County in North Texas said, “We’ve lost communities. Stoneburg is pretty much gone.”

Hundreds of homes and businesses have burned. Seventy mile-an-hour winds are fanning the fires. Just in Texas, more than 100,000 acres have been charred.

Indian Ocean — It is like some kind-of retro Pirates of the Caribbean meets a futuristic War of the Worlds. Somali pirates have attacked ships from Norway, Germany, North Korea, France, the Philippines, Russia and the United States to name a few. They hold over 250 hostages. The most recent kidnapping is of a U.S. captain. The pirates originally overtook the whole crew; however, the captain negotiated that he be taken hostage in exchange for the release of the crew. The pirates escaped on a lifeboat with the captain. Later, the captain tried to escape by jumping overboard. The pirates fired weapons and re-captured him. Now, the U.S. is sending in the Navy. Two warships are on the scene and a third with 12 attack helicopters is on the way. The FBI and CIA are also intervening. Ironically, the unarmed U.S. ship was carrying relief supplies for Kenya.

The cargo ships are unarmed for insurance reasons. If the crews were to arm themselves, insurance rates would skyrocket.

Over the weekend, one of the pirates was taken prisoner. The three remaining pirates appeared to be putting the captain’s life in “imminent danger.” In the dark of night and on rough seas, U.S. snipers killed the pirates.

These guys are pikers compared to Wall Street. Perhaps we ought to send the best and the brightest from Wall Street to the bazaars of Ghazni .

“…American and Afghan officers who cite some examples: police officials who steal truckloads of gasoline; judges and prosecutors who make decisions based on bribes; high-ranking government officials who reap payoffs from hashish and chromite smuggling; and midlevel security and political jobs that are sold, sometimes for more than $50,000, money the buyers then recoup through still more bribes and theft.”

But the peasants know where to go.

“People have no choice but to go to the Taliban to solve their problems.”

“Residents take complaints to local Taliban leaders, not the police, he said. “They have a judge and prosecutor.”

And resolution is swift and certain.

“They burned the three men and chopped their limbs off with axes,” he said. “

From Kipling:

“When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier.”

Read the article, courtesy of the New York Times:

Unique solution opens new horizons in personal mobility

NEW YORK – General Motors Corp. and Segway today demonstrated a new type of vehicle that could change the way we move around in cities.

PUMA Concept Car (Credit GM)

Dubbed Project P.U.M.A. (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility), GM and Segway are developing an electrically powered, two-seat prototype vehicle that has only two wheels. It could allow people to travel around cities more quickly, safely, quietly and cleanly – and at a lower total cost. The vehicle also enables design creativity, fashion, fun and social networking.

GM and Segway announced their collaboration, while demonstrating the Project P.U.M.A. prototype in New York City this morning.

“Project P.U.M.A. represents a unique solution to moving about and interacting in cities, where more than half of the world’s people live,” said Larry Burns, GM vice president of research and development, and strategic planning. “Imagine small, nimble electric vehicles that know where other moving objects are and avoid running into them. Now, connect those vehicles in an Internet-like web and you can greatly enhance the ability of people to move through cities, find places to park and connect to their social and business networks.”

Trends indicate that urbanization is growing, and with that comes increased congestion and more competition for parking. Cities around the world are actively looking for solutions to alleviate congestion and pollution. Project P.U.M.A. addresses those concerns. It combines several technologies demonstrated by GM and Segway, including electric drive and batteries; dynamic stabilization (two-wheel balancing); all-electronic acceleration, steering and braking; vehicle-to-vehicle communications; and autonomous driving and parking. Those technologies integrate in Project P.U.M.A. to increase mobility freedom, while also enabling energy efficiency, zero emissions, enhanced safety, seamless connectivity and reduced congestion in cities.

“We are excited to be working together to demonstrate a dramatically different approach to urban mobility,” said Jim Norrod, CEO of Segway Inc. “There’s an emotional connection you get when using Segway products. The Project P.U.M.A. prototype vehicle embodies this through the combination of advanced technologies that Segway and GM bring to the table to complete the connection between the rider, environment, and others.”

Project P.U.M.A. vehicles will also allow designers to create new fashion trends for cars, and to focus on the passion and emotion that people express through their vehicles while creating solutions that anticipate the future needs of urban customers.

The Project P.U.M.A. prototype vehicle integrates a lithium-ion battery, digital smart energy management, two-wheel balancing, dual electric wheel motors, and a dockable user interface that allows off-board connectivity. The result is an advanced and functional concept that demonstrates the capabilities of technology that exists today.

Built to carry two or more passengers, it can travel at speeds up to 35 miles per hour (56 kph), with a range up to 35 miles (56 km) between recharges.

Since the introduction of the Segway Personal Transporter (PT), Segway has established itself as the leader in the small electric vehicle space. Its approach to congestion and environmental challenges is balanced with a strong understanding of the functional needs of its customers, enabling them to do more with less. Segway has delivered more than 60,000 lithium-ion batteries to the market.

GM has been a leader in “connected vehicle” technologies since it introduced OnStar in 1996. Today, this on-board communications package connects six million subscribers in North America to OnStar safety and security services. GM has also pioneered vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications systems and transponder technology. These and additional connected vehicle technologies could ultimately enable vehicles that don’t crash and drive themselves.

“Imagine moving about cities in a vehicle fashioned to your taste, that’s fun to drive and ride in, that safely takes you where you want to go, and “connects” you to friends and family, while using clean, renewable energy, producing zero vehicle tailpipe emissions, and without the stress of traffic jams,” said Burns. “And imagine doing this for one-fourth to one-third the cost of what you pay to own and operate today’s automobile. This is what Project P.U.M.A. is capable of delivering.”

General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), one of the world’s largest automakers, was founded in 1908, and today manufactures cars and trucks in 34 countries. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 243,000 people in every major region of the world, and sells and services vehicles in some 140 countries. In 2008, GM sold 8.35 million cars and trucks globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and Germany. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.

More About Segway And P.U.M.A.
About the Inventor of the Segway, Dean Kamen

Italian Red Cross Responds to Earthquake in L’Aquila

Italy — At least 217 people died in an an earthquake centered around L’Aquila. Overnight, more than 100 people were rescued from under fallen buildings. It is estimated that thousands of people are without homes.

The Red Cross says:

The American Red Cross will continue to monitor the situation and communicate with our sister society, the Italian Red Cross, and the International Federation, and stands ready to provide further assistance if requested. The Italian Red Cross has not yet asked for international assistance.

At 3:30 a.m. a powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the city of L’Aquila in central Italy, 75 miles northeast of Rome. It’s the worst earthquake to hit this region in nearly 30 years.

According to recent reports at least 90 people have been killed and 400 injured. The numbers of dead and injured are expected to grow as search and rescue efforts continue. Tens of thousands of people have become homeless in the city which has a population of 70,000.

Italian Red Cross rescue teams were on the scene of the disaster within an hour after the earthquake struck, searching for people trapped in the rubble and providing emergency care for the injured.

The Italian Red Cross has established a field hospital to relieve the burden on local health facilities which are under an enormous strain due to the sudden upsurge in demand. Also, the Italian Red Cross has set up mobile kitchens with the capacity to provide 10,000 meals a day run by a team of 16 Italian Red Cross staff and 30 volunteers. Two soup kitchens providing up to 400 meals a day have been mobilized to respond to the needs of L’Aquila Hospital, whose patients are being evacuated to other cities.

Thirty-six ambulances from the Italian Red Cross are on rotation to evacuate injured people from L’Aquila to hospitals in Tagliacozzo, Pescina and Avezzano. They are also providing care for children evacuated from an orphanage in San Gregorio. Additionally, five psychological support teams from the Italian Red Cross are now on the ground to help deal with the emotional needs of survivors.

Additional resources, including 30 search and rescue dog units, five other psychological support teams and three veterinary teams, are on standby depending on the needs.

With up to 10,000 buildings in the city believed to be badly damaged or destroyed, the Italian Red Cross foresees growing problems with shelter, warm clothes and food provisions for the survivors.

“Once we have addressed the need to reinforce emergency health care in the region, the next major challenge, apart from urgent search and rescue, is to find a solution for the thousands of homeless survivors,” says Tommasso Della Longa, Head of Communication for the Italian Red Cross.

Working in close coordination with the Italian Civil Protection, the Italian Red Cross has activated its national operations center, as well as four regional offices, to respond effectively to the growing needs of survivors.

In consultation with the Italian Red Cross, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is currently assessing which assistance can be best provided right now to supplement and support the efforts of the Italian Red Cross.

Since 1968 the International Federation and member National Societies have supported the Italian Red Cross three times after earthquakes in 1968, 1976 and in 1980. In 1980 some 3,000 people lost their lives after a deadly quake hit the region of Naples. In 1992 a quake in Umbria claimed 13 lives and countless cultural treasures. The most recent deadly quake was in 2002 when 30 people died, including 27 pupils and their teacher, in the southern Italian town of San Giuliano di Puglia.

UPDATE
Now, calls are being made for a criminal investigation into building techniques. The structural integrity of many buildings is being called into question over shoddy construction. Some evidence points to corrosive sea sand being used in concrete mix.