IEEE Spring 2009 Robotics Competition - Bragging!

[fos]

The IEEE Spring 2009 Robotics Competition in Lubbock, TX was held last month. My daughter's team did very well.

As you will see in the attached video, colored blocks were placed in each corner of a field and had to be picked up and then placed in the proper colored box in the center of the course. The boxes had to be picked up from each corner in a sequence that was randomly selected just before the run. In addition to the corner sequence, the color placement changed from run to run.

My daughter's team was the only one that had a robot that broke into four units, communicating with each other to coordinate their actions. Using
this technique, they were able to best everyone else's time by a considerable margin.

They were the team to beat.

You tube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfc4Kzlk_Sc

Another angle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecadx4e4vBM&feature=related

And another: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jjEojR4A_0&feature=related

She graduates tomorrow at the top of her class as an EE major with a computer hardware concentration. She has a position in graduate school to continue her study of robotics secured for next year. At present she will be working for an engineering firm in Florida.

I'm really proud of her!

[lisi]

I'm really proud of her!

And justifiably!

I am too. I am old enough to have been sent an anonymous letter when I was young saying that I could at least have had the grace to come last if I had to push myself into the class. (The others were all male and I had come top.)

I was told that the three lowest forms of life, in descending order, are negroes, Southerners and women, and that I qualified under the last two. (This is England, and I was in the north. Southerners speak "posh" and are not tough like the salt of the earth Northerners. ;-) )

So I am proud and delighted that your daughter is illustrating that women can do well in what were once seen as male preserves; and hopefully now she has been spared the nastiness.

Lisi

[fos]

Hi Lisi,

During a few interviews for internships she was confronted with prejudice. One good ol' boy was didn't try to hide it at all. I told her that she was their loss and not to waste time worrying about it.

She is a strong willed and capable young lady. I sure wouldn't want to get in her way.

fos