West Windsor-Plainsboro’s FIRST Robotics Team 1923, the “MidKnight Inventors,” have begun building their robot for this year’s international competition. Each year, students from high schools North and South join with volunteer engineers, scientists, and other professionals from our community, as well as parents, to work cooperatively to design and construct a large, complex robot in the short six weeks allowed.
Founded by Dean Kamen (inventor of the Segway and much more), the mission of FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is to inspire young people to pursue careers in the fields of science, technology, and engineering by making the competitions as fun and exciting as competitive sports. In recent years, our local students have successfully competed with teams from Brazil, Israel, Canada, England, and Turkey, winning at two of the most highly competitive regional competitions in New Jersey (2009) and Connecticut (2011).
Thanks to the generosity of MadisonMarquette, the MidKnight Inventors will be building their robot over the next six weeks in Plainsboro Plaza between SuperFresh and H&R Block. We invite everyone to stop by in the evenings and on weekends to watch us as we construct our robot and experience the challenges and thrills of discovery and invention in a very “real world” setting.
Our local team is 100 percent funded through the generosity of the West Windsor and Plainsboro communities. Building a competitive robot and transporting the team to competitions are costly undertakings. We are very proud of our sponsors and are pleased to display their logos on our robot, our website, community outreach materials, and team apparel. The MidKnight Inventors are still short of their fundraising goal for 2012 and are seeking additional partners to help “engineer success.” In addition to financial contributions of any size, the team is seeking donations of metal working and electrical tools and donations of time and experience from current and retired teachers, scientists, mathematicians, and engineers.
If you have an interest in helping your local FIRST Robotics team achieve success in the only “sport” where every student has the opportunity to become a professional, we encourage you to stop by the build site, E-mail us at info@FIRSTRobotics1923.org, or leave a message at 775-372-8326.
Michael Stevens, Pharm D
West Windsor
www.FIRSTRobotics1923.org
