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Origional Content - Blog Posts
Love and Nature (Pt 1)
Osdea, the god of love, fell hopelessly in love with the god of nature, Ezella. Osdea tried everything she could to have the indifferent god acknowledge her, but Ezella never gave her the time of day. Osdea tried helping the flora and fauna, hoping to appeal to the god of nature through kindness. She tried befriending the different nature spirits, attempting to learn anything about Ezella. She tried just being in the same area as Ezella often, so maybe they'd take an interest in her, like she had in them.
Finally, when Osdea had given up hope in everything else, she brought Ezella a small bouquet of flowers, ones she had seen them care for, and tried talking to them. Ezella curtly turned Osdea down, but Osdea saw this as progress, for she had finally gotten Ezella to acknowledge her! And so Osdea brought another bouquet of flowers the next day, with the same result. She kept bringing flowers every day until finally Ezella grew tired of the frequent irritations and said "Every day you cut and bring me flowers that I have grown. Every day I turn you down, but that still does not seem to dissuade you. Your young naivety seems to know no bounds, so let me put this as plainly as possible. For as long as you continue bothering me and cutting the flowers I have grown and calling it a gift, I will never return your affections."
Osdea, stunned, watched as the god of nature turned and walked away, her eyes never lingering from their back, not even when her face grew warm or when the world in front of her clouded too an unrecognizable blur of colours. Only when Ezella was long out of sight was Osdea able to move, collapsing to her knees, crushing the flowers. She didn't even remember dropping them. Hastily, she tried straightening the broken stems and rightening the misplaced petals, but the tears and her shaking hands only worsened the damage until her lap was covered in flower petals and leaves. She held the broken and baren flower stems to her chest, head in her lap and arms wrapped around her trembling body.
Gradually, slowly, her tears sprouted new flowers, wrapping first around the edges of her feet, then her dress and legs, her torso, her arms, her neck, her hair, her head. Oh so gradually, the suffocating pain in her chest took on a new shape; a shape that made more sense. Oh so slowly, her tears did dry, and the flowers clinging to her form began to bloom.
Ideas for Teachers: Space Lesson Plan
When I return back to my hometown I will be visiting schools to share about my NASA experience and teach programming. This is my lesson plan for teaching about NASA and space. One of my first stops will be my Mom’s Kindergarten class so you will notice my lesson plan is catered for elementary students.
Morning: Letter Of The Day
Start the day with a regular greeting an opportunity for students to share thoughts around the room. Your usual "magic talking stick" can be replaced by a space related object like an inflatable planet or space craft.
"Today we are going to visit your letter of the week in a way that is out of this world." Cheesy I know but we should let the students define what outer space is. "What is outer space?" Write down the students answers and this is the dictionary definition... the void between planets and other celestial bodies. Kindergarten classes often have letters of the week and outer-space things are very easy to categorize into letters.
Story Time
I had a unique opportunity to meet Buzz Aldrin, purchase a children's book written by him, and get it signed by him. I plan to introduce the students to the author showing pictures of him and the Apollo 11 landing. There are many children's books written by or starring astronauts. This particular story has a project involving creating a Mars habitat that students will compete after story time.
Nap Time
Prior to nap time I show a neat star mapping project put together by Google called 10,000 Stars. You can tour stars from around the Milky Way and see their name, color, size and brightness. The ambient music playing in the background is excellent for nap time.
Afternoon Snack: Eat like An Astronaut
"The International Space Station is a science lab orbiting the Earth every hour and a half. Let's hear about how they live in space." Show a few clips like this...
Chris Hadfield's Space Kitchen making a "sandwich": https://youtu.be/AZx0RIV0wss
Karen Nyberg washes he hair in space: https://youtu.be/kOIj7AgonHM
Sleeping in space: https://youtu.be/UyFYgeE32f0
Running in space with Karen Nyberg: https://youtu.be/_ikouWcXhd0
Pass out freeze dried astronaut food like ice cream, grapes and strawberries. While watching the astronaut clips.
Scott Kelly, the astronaut on a one year mission, in his extra vehicular activity (EVA) suit and the International Space Station (ISS). NASA is holding a pumpkin carving contest for its employees. The crew aboard ISS will judges them as they are missing Halloween.
Grace Hopper Wrap Up: More Than Tech Swag
Hypocritically I have been posting pictures of all the neat swag collected at Grace Hopper Computing Conference (GHC) with just as much gusto as posting all that I have learned at the conference. GHC is so much more than swag - a unique conglomeration of ideas, tech unicorns and what is considered a rare commodity in industry, women. Here I share the coolest thing I learned about, how to make work welcoming to everyone, and final thoughts on GHC.
Robot Human Collaboration
Autonomous paints a picture of a robot working on its own driving, building products or even fetching coffee. Why should a robot be expected to complete a task on its own when we ask others for help all the time? With similar thinking Carnegie Mellon University has developed collaborative robots called CoBot complete tasks be asking humans and other robots for assistance. CoBot rolls around the halls of the computer science department, with the offices layout memorized. COBOT can escort a human to a professor's office pressing buttons on the elevator and letting COBOT know when its on the correct floor. A CoBot that is instructed to go to a professors' office upstairs can be alerted by another CoBot that the professor is currently out of office. Watch the CoBot's artificial intelligence work in action.
Make Work Welcoming
You may expect the nailing of 95 thesis by women of the tech industry explaining how work can be welcoming. Honestly making the work environment welcoming to everyone is pretty simple. There are probably more but here are the top three most focused on.
1) Celebrate Results And Not Hours - America is prideful of long hours and drinking lots of Starbucks. However, long hours doesn't necessarily efficient. Reward your employees and team mates for successes. be mindful that their hours fluctuate dues to personal matters and simply having a life outside of work.
2) Paid Parent Leave - Who doesn't want to spend time with their kid? This improvement is a no-brainer.
3) Mentorship - Talent can be retained in a company by providing mentorship all throughout your career. People oriented and extroverted individuals may seek mentors naturally as well as seek to mentor others. As team and project leaders encourage those who may not
Final Thoughts on Grace Hopper Conference
Visually I could not imagine the support and number of women in technology at this conference. There were 12,000 women including a collection of engineers, software designers, project managers, CEOs, CTOs, start up leaders, programmers, and much more. GHC's majority is easily the minority and industry so solutions to solve this disparity were found. One solution discussed at GHC that show immediate impact includes showing others how fun technology can be through mentorship, hosting coding camps, visiting past schools to talk to current students, and holding maker challenges. Physically sitting down with someone and spending time to share a piece of the world of technology with them means so much more than any tweet, post and plea of advocacy. GET ACTIVE!
Well that solves the pipeline problem but retaining those interested in tech in tech roles can be achieved by making the work environments welcoming as shown above. When receiving my swag bag day one at GHC I pulled out a smart phone accessory with the Go Daddy logo on it thinking, "What on Earth is that company doing in my Grace Hopper bag?". A question backed by series of not so appealing ads. This question answered after Go Daddy CEO apologized for the companies actions and showed data on how they are improving company culture, Maybe this demonstration was a little clunky but still an attempt to right wrong, expose companies short comings, and move forward. Having conversations, coming up with solutions and following through is what it is all about.
Conference content wise I personally wish I attended more technical related talks as opposed to soft skill and leadership related talks. I found myself getting my tech fix by visiting the career fair booths with coding challenges. Yes, I am an Amazon Code ninja who now understands the magic of a static variable, inheritance rules and function following. Also fellow coders and I solved Best Buy's parsing challenge as well as finding all of the wrong answers. I consider attending GHC again in the future and bringing some more Minnesotans along with me.
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
Host an hour of code party
Join a FIRST Robotics Team
Host a made with code party
Attend Square coding camp
Build Rube Goldberg machines
Join NCWIT (National Center for Women in Information Technology) Aspirations in Computing Community
A journal book I covered in little black star drawings
NASA Co-Op Week 1: Mission Control
What Am I Doing?!
For my first post as a NASA Co-Op I’m going to skip the typical “Houston we have a problem” and “All systems go” intro and get right to the good stuff. I just completed my first week as a NASA Pathways Intern at Johnson Space Center, what NASA calls their Co-Op program. I will be flip-flopping between working at NASA and my university studying Electrical Engineering until I graduate. 98% of students get hired on full-time with NASA after a successful Co-Op experience. This fall 16 out of over 1000 applicants are Co-Oping this fall. I am thankful to be working alongside such talented and passionate people.
Flying The Space Station
I am “touring”, what we call our Co-Op work tours, in a team in Mission Control called PLUTO. No, I am not working with New Horizons, PLUTO is in charge of the Plug and Play-Ability of hardware and software on the International Space Station (ISS). I will be helping develop technology that assist astronauts in experimenting in space, writing procedures for astronauts and sitting console in Mission Control. I can’t rent a car without an extra fee but I can help fly the multi-billion dollar ISS, makes sense.
How To Get Involved
Follow my weekly posts for the Co-Op perspective, Follow NASA on Tumblr, watch what NASA is up to, and apply for an internship or Co-Op with NASA.
Intern Week 9: Flying With An Astronaut
T-38 Simulator To get ready for intensive piloting into space astronauts train on the Northrop T-38 Talon, the first supersonic two seated trainer. I hear astronauts flying through the air in the T-38s every morning around Johnson Space Center. Before you can even think of piloting, it's essential to fly in a simulator to get use to the controls and indicators. I had the gracious opportunity to fly in the T-38 simulator with Astronaut Gregory C Johnson. With myself in the front of the tandem simulator and Johnson in the back (often entering God commands) I preformed rolls, buzzed the landing strip, and attempted a loop d' loop. I did enjoy flying in the simulation and would consider finding a flight simulator on Steam and hooking up my Logitech controller for practice.
Truth About The Russian Agreement Following the $490 million dollar deal NASA made with Russia to continue to use Soyuz, many are expressing concern about sending money overseas. This week Johnson Space Center Director Ellen Ochoa and Deputy Director Kirk Shireman spoke with us interns sharing career advice, illustrating their vision for the future of NASA and addressing this concern. Ochoa shared, while we are currently dependent on Russia for human transport to the International Space Station (ISS) NASA has assigned SpaceX and Boeing the task to transport astronauts from NASA to space from American soil. We are still purchasing seats on Soyuz because there must be overlap. While troubleshooting launching our own transport vehicles we must ensure there is still a way to get astronauts to the ISS. Reflecting on all the science that has been done on the ISS - the collaboration between the United States and Russia has propelled space flight into the future and expanded exploration. Shireman noted that although the United States will create a transport vehicle the partnership with Russia and other nations will continue. Shireman shared that the European Space Agency (ESA) is creating Orion's Service Vehicle after their experience with solar panels on the ISS. In the future Shireman sees many nations apart of the journey to Mars. What I took from this lecture is that it takes a planet to get to another planet.
Flight Director Wisdom Astronaut Michael Fossum and Flight Director Royce Renfrew shared career and life wisdom to interns and Co-Ops. A question I find helpful during my transitional time as a college student is - What would you tell your twenty year old self? Fossum shared that you should chase after what you desire to do, if you want to pursue a particular career find someone who got there and ask for advice. In respect to becoming an astronaut do not just check items off a list of skills and experiences you think astronauts should have, people have ruined their lives doing that. I asked Renfrew what key characteristic that an aspiring flight director should have. Renfrew mentioned this concept of having, Command Presence, meaning when you step into a room everyone knows the meeting is about to start. This presence doesn't necessarily have to do with your personality, how tall you are or how old you are. It is a very ambiguously defined characteristic but apparent when someone has it.
Intern Update This week I was primarily finishing documentation on my displays, writing my abstract, practicing my intern accomplishment summary presentation and creating a simple low fidelity interface the audio system can be tested with.
Intern Week 5: Astronauts, Shuttles and Excitement
Excitement is unavoidable after experiencing a week like this. Attending an exclusive unveiling of TIME's new Documentary Series 'A Year in Space', creating a display for a water distiller on board a space habitat, meeting Astronaut Clayton Anderson, touring the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility, and listening to Ginger Kerrick speak about her journey through NASA. Where do I start?
A Year In Space
"We must test the only hardware we didn't design, the human body". Jeffrey Kluger, Author of Apollo 13, reflects on the importance of Scott Kelly's year long mission in space. Two summers ago during my internship at NASA Glenn I was frustrated with how slowly our journey to Mars was taking. Even co-workers and fellow interns were perturbed by what seemed to be minimal progress. What I didn't understand at the time is that there are many variables to test, that are currently being tested, before we can ethically send a human to Mars. Scott Kelly's mission is one of those trial runs to learn about the effects of long duration space flight. During the unveiling we watched the first to episodes of 'A Year in Space', produced by Jonathan Woods, which captures Scott Kelly's professional and personal trials and tribulations while preparing for the mission. The first two episodes were cinematically spectacular and emotionally captivating. You can watch them here:
http://time.com/space-nasa-scott-kelly-mission/
Distiller Interface
Resources are extremely precious, especially if you are 250 miles or further (distance of the ISS) away from spaceship Earth. Among the human essentials for life absent in the big black vacuum of space is water. According to NASA's Consolidated Launch Schedule approximately 420 kg of water (887 bottles of water) has been transported to the International Space Station (ISS). This may seem like a lot of water however it is used for consumption, washing, experimenting, cooking, and many more activites. ISS has a highly efficient distiller system which takes the waste water and separates un-salvageable waste from reusable drinking water. This week I created a display so the crew members to monitor the water distiller's functionality. By programming visuals that illustrate the direction the liquids are flowing, visually displaying liquid levels with dynamic images of tanks filling and emptying, indicating the pressure, temperature, and amount of liquid flowing through the system crew members can keep track of the vitality of their distiller system.
Astronaut Clayton Anderson
Tenacity is a key ingredient in becoming an astronaut. One of the things Astronaut Anderson is known for applying to become an astronaut candidate 15 times before being accepted into the program. I was honored to meet Astronaut Anderson at his book signing for "The Ordinary Spaceman" telling his journey as a NASA intern-employee turned astronaut. He has spent 167 days living and working on the ISS. Check out his work: http://astroclay.com/ "Astro Clay" is also very active on Twitter and fun to follow: @Astro_Clay
Space Vehicle Mockup Facility Tour
Although these are referred to as "Mockups" in reality they are exact replicas of the vehicles in space right now so astronauts can accurately simulate missions. My mentor gave us interns a ground tour of the facility. We were able to explore inside the shuttle replica, visit Soyuz spacecraft and look inside the latest Orion mockup where they are currently positioning the displays to the correct eyesight for crew members. Visitiors to Johnson Space Center (JSC) can also tour the Mockup Facility also known as the astronaut training facility. If you are ever in Houston stop by Space Center Houston and you can take a tram tour which takes you around JSC and into a walkway overlooking the mockups: http://spacecenter.org/
Ginger Kerrick
Interns and Co-Ops (Pathways Interns) had the gracious opportunity to attend a lecture by Ginger Kerrick. As a young girl Kerrick dreamed to become an astronaut. From childhood dream to intern to Co-Op to employee to astronaut candidate to astronaut assistant to Capcom to Flight Director to essentially the head of ISS to... *catching breath* - Ginger Kerrick is amazing. Hear her story on Women@NASA: http://women.nasa.gov/ginger-kerrick/
It has been an amazing week with sadly only five more to come. I wish you all could have this experience and I encourage you if you are interested in an aerospace or space related career to intern at NASA: https://intern.nasa.gov/ossi/web/public/main/ All photos were taken by myself or fellow interns of me.
Resources for Women in STEM
As a women in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) I wanted to share my resources with you. Each of these camps I participated in, teams I joined and communities I became a part of boosted my confidence in my STEM abilities and fueled my passion to pursue my dream career.
1) NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Award- National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) hosts an award for high school students interested in pursuing a career in computer science. “The NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing honors young women at the high-school level for their computing-related achievements and interests. Awardees are selected for their computing and IT aptitude, leadership ability, academic history, and plans for post-secondary education.”
As an Aspirations Award winner you have access to exclusive scholarships, internship opportunities and get to be a part of a network of thousands of other women passionate about computer science. I know many groups over-hype their networking but this group has honestly opened so many unique doors for me. Five of us NCWITers had the opportunity to represent the group at President Obama’s Champions of Change Event at the White House. There were receptions at Facebook, Google, and the main event at the White House. We got to advocate for Women in STEM and I talked about project based learning.
Another opportunity that was a result of being an Aspirations Award Winner was my ability to attend Defrag Tech conference in Denver Colorado on a scholarship. My first posts on this blog are about Defrag.
2) NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Community Women studying in computer science in college, from an academic alliance institution, a major or minor in a related major, and qualifying GPA can become a part of this community! (very similar to the aspirations award group described above). In addition there is also a yearly collegiate award for $7,500 for three members in their junior year or above.
3) St. Olaf Engineering and Physics Camp for Girls this is a top notch camp for high schoolers where for a whole week you are spending the majority of your time with power tools in your hand designing a Rube Goldberg machine using solenoids, motors, and limit switches. The other part of your week? Presentations from women engineers, liquid nitrogen ice-cream, looking a Saturn through a telescope, and the best college food in the Midwest. Think Northfield, MN is too far away? Trust me, this camp is worth that trip.
4) Women In Engineering Camp at Michigan Tech College High schoolers get ready for a week long crash course in engineering. Learn about electrical, chemical, computer, and mechanical engineering. While I was there we built submarine robots and imaged logo figures onto glass with a laser.
Didn't see something for your age group? Check the “Launch your Career in Aerospace” post. Photo descriptions in the captions.
Go Green: Conserve Water, Land & Air Resources
Christopher Nolan’s 2014 motion picture “Interstellar” depicts future earth careening towards an environmentally apocalyptic demise. Humans did not care for Earth well enough which has led to dustbowl-esk storms, lack of resources, and the need to establish humanity elsewhere. Although this outlook is extreme this science fiction prediction can become reality. NASA’s Global Climate change webpage complied findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and US Global Change research Program. In this report NASA expands on the environmental out look of the Midwest describing Extreme heat, flooding and risks to the Great Lakes. On that same site NASA reports the highest levels of carbon dioxide, 1.4 degree avg. raise in temperature, and 1.5 million sq. km less trees.
No matter who or what there is to blame it is time that we respond to this call to action and find ways we can be more environmentally friendly every day. No one wants to hear they need to retire their favorite mudding truck or stop eating bacon. Below is how you should respond to this call to action to go green. We will be focusing on going green to preserve water, earth, and air resources.
WATER
California is settling in its fourth year of little rainfall and record breaking temperatures as reported by US News and World Report Article “Climate Change Caused California Drought” by Jeff Nesbit written on April 14th, 2015 . The drought has already hit the average American’s pocketbook with a price hike in berries, salad, and beef. Concerns of our daily expenses aside the science behind this drought is unquestionable and due to climate change. Despite Earth being covered in 70% water, fresh available drinking water is becoming more and more of a valuable resource and should be preserved.
The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) released a WaterSense Guide on how to save water last updated April 3rd, 2015 with tips on easy things you can do to save water.
Indoors you can turn the tap off while shaving or brushing your teeth, spend less time in the shower, add food waste to a compost pile instead of the garbage disposal, and fix leaks. Outside create a water smart landscape that utilizes slopes and plant vegetation that requires little water. In addition to EPA’s tips I have taken special interest into how ingredients in hygienic products effect wildlife in lakes and rivers. A report from Minneapolis St.Paul’s NBC news station KARE 11 reported “Study finds antibiotics in Minnesota groundwater” by Associated Press June 28th, 2014. A government study finds that measurable levels of antibiotics, detergents and other consumer chemicals are turning up in Minnesota Ground Water. These come from landfills, septic systems. And sewage treatment plants. I have not gone as far as scraping hand washing and showering all together but have been buying hygienic products with ingredients that do not effect water resources. Below are hygienic products from lush. I have gotten shampoo bars that last much longer than liquid shampoo which contain all natural ingredients except Sodium lauryl sulfate, antibacterial free soaps, and No Rinse Shampoos. No rinse shampoos sound like they would not clean as well but it is one of the ways long haired astronauts on the International Space Station clean their hair.
EARTH
When I think about preserving land resources I imagine reducing garbage in landfills, reducing the use of plastics, and disposing of things that must be thrown away correctly.
Once again the EPA, our MVP for environmental tips, reports Tips for Reducing Solid Waste last updated November 15th, 2012.
Reduce the amount of products you buy with unnecessary packaging Buy recyclable products. Sell and donate items. Buy, maintain, and repair durable products. There are times however when you absolutely have to toss something out like a corroded batteries, medicine, old cans of paint, and meds. This is what our local WLSSD Western Lake Superior Sanitary District is for and other hazarous waste collections sites are for. Be mindful of what you throw out, recycle, and keep for hazardous waste collection this spring. A guide can be found here: http://www.wlssd.com/uploads/HHW_Guide_Apr_2010.pdf
AIR
The topic of conserving air resources may be pickup truck owner’s least favorite topic as again reported by NASA’s global climate change webpage car emissions accounts for the large spike of carbon dioxide in the air following the industrial revolution. This time The American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest posted Clean Air Choice with ideas on how to conserve clean air with unfortunately no update time.
Carpool while if you and your friends are going to the same location such as class. Shut off your engine of you are stopped more than a minute so don’t be texting in your car in the parking confusing people who want to take your spot. Lastly avoid rapid acceleration and hard breaking.
In response to the call to cation to go green I have mentioned some of ways to conserve out air, earth, and water resources as I mentioned here today. These tips included little things you can do every day to make a positive environmental impact with little inconvenience to you.
The idea to relocated humanity has been explored in Interstellar and considered by NASA to set up a habitat on Mars. If you have ever seen pictures of Mars it may have some of the basic requirements for inhabiting but it looks rocky, boring, and bleak. We got this one fully habitably planets, with only a few possible habitable planets many light-years away, so let’s take care of it.
Works Cited
"American Lung Association Clean Air Choice: Conservation Tips." American Lung Association Clean Air Choice: Conservation Tips. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://www.cleanairchoice.org/air/tips.cfm
Associated Press. "Study Finds Antibiotics in Minnesota Groundwater." KARE 11 Minneapolis St. Paul, MN A Gannett Company NBC. N.p., 28 June 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://www.kare11.com/story/news/local/2014/06/28/study-finds-antibiotics-in-minnesota-groundwater/11618827/
"Global Climate Change: Effects." Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet. NASA Global Climate Change Vital Signs of the Planet, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://climate.nasa.gov/effects/
Household Hazardous Wastes. Duluth: WLSSD, 2010. Western Lake Superior Sanitary District. Web.
"NASA's OCO-2 Will Track Our Impact on Airborne Carbon." Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet. NASA, 26 June 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://climate.nasa.gov/news/1109/
Nesbit, Jeff. "At the Edge: Climate Change Caused California Drought." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 14 Apr. 2015. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/at-the-edge/2015/04/14/climate-change-and-the-california-drought
"Tips for Reducing Solid Waste." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, 15 Nov. 2012. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://www.epa.gov/osw/wycd/catbook/the12.htm
"Water Sense Start Saving." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. http://www.epa.gov/watersense/our_water/start_saving.html
Be a Super Fan at a FIRST Robotics Regional
Robots will be swerving around the playing field starting with the first regionals held February 25th every weekend leading up to the FIRST Robotics Championships April 22nd in St. Louis Missouri. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) challenged students to build 120-lb competitive robots in just six weeks. The moment for students has come to showcase their tote stacking machines at regionals throughout the world. As a robotics enthusiast, friend or family of a team member, or you just want to get a piece of the tech action attending a regional is exciting! Below are five tips on how to be a super fan at a FIRST Robotics Regional and make the most of your experience watching these glorious geeks' gadgets.
1) Discover Where To Attend FIRST Robotics Districts/Regionals are free and open to the public! If you don't already know where and when your closest FIRST Robotics Regional is being held scroll through this list to find out: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/regional-events A typical account of a regional: The event starts on a Thursday and teams compete in practice matches that do not effect their ranking. Friday is when qualification matches for ranking starts and teams compete in a Round-robin fashion. Team's rank determines if they will compete in finals. Some awards are given out Friday evening. Saturday begins with qualification matches in the morning. After lunch finals are held, a winner is declared, and awards are given out. Saturday is the best day to watch for fierce competition. If you cannot attend a regional in person each competition is broadcast online.
2) Learn About The Game: Recycle Rush In Recycle Rush, two alliances of three teams race against the clock to stack as many game pieces as possible in two and a half minutes. Game pieces include totes, recycling containers, and pool noodles (litter). The stack that grants the most amount of points is six totes and a container! For double the points alliances can cooperate with their opposing alliance to stack totes in the middle of the field. Recycle Rush Game Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6UYFKNGHJ8
3) Explore The Pit Area Shouts of "Robot robot!" can be heard from students clearing the aisles for their machine. Beyond the playing field is a sea of teams fixing their robots, formulating game plays, and exchanging buttons with fellow FIRST members and fans. The pit area is a must see stop for fans and tech enthusiasts. Each team has approximately a 10ft x 10ft x 10ft space to work on their robot, store hardware, and chat with fans about their work. Similar to a NASCAR pit stop, team members quickly change out their robot's 12V batteries and replace burnt motors. Pick up a pair of safety glasses at the entrance of the pit area and feel free to collect buttons from teams, check out the diverse robot designs, and ask about a team member's experience. From my experience at competitions Thursday and Friday mornings are prime times for button collecting.
4) Know The Robo Lingo Every sport seems to have their own language using slang like hail mary, alley-oop, and meatball. This sport of the mind has a jargon of its own.
Gracious Professionalism (GP)- This is the most powerful mantra of FIRST Robotics, a mind set that promotes "competing like crazy" yet "treating others with respect and kindness" as co-founder Woodie Flowers explains. As a result you will see team members helping other teammates from rival teams fix their robot, patch some code, and loan a few tools.
Buttons- Generic name given to giveaways teams hand out to students and fans in the pit area. This robot swag can consist of necklaces, hats, bandannas, pens, candy, miniature safety kits, and of course buttons.
Chairman's- Short for the Chairman's Award, the most prestigious award presented to teams for their efforts in community outreach, promotion of STEM, and embodiment of FIRST Robotics' goals. The teams selected serve as role models for other FIRST Teams. Regional Chairman's award winners win the opportunity to compete in the World Championships. Teams preform outreach, write an essay, create a video, and give a presentation to be eligible.
Poolitics (Pool noodle politics)- Coined by robotics strategist and coach Karthik relating to decisions made about the use of pool noodle game pieces. The pool noodles act as litter in Recycle Rush and an alliance receives points if the opposite alliance has litter in their zone.
Coopertition (Co-Op)- Another ethos of FIRST that "is founded on the concept and philosophy that teams can and should help and cooperate with each other as the compete", as described on usfirst.org. To further encourage cooperation a part of Recycle Rush is creating a sack of yellow totes with the opposite alliance.
Worlds- Short for World Championships, FIRST teams dream to compete at Worlds where there are eight competition fields and hundreds of robots. Teams can win the right to go to words by winning a Regional/ District event, Chairman's Award, Engineering Inspiration Award, and Rookie All Star Award. Awards are given out on Saturdays, the last day of competition.
Team Number- Each team is assigned a number when they register for first robotics. Some teams have been registered for over 20 years! The higher the number, the younger the team.
Chute Door- Whoops, almost left out poor chute door. Chute door is where players can drop totes into the playing field for their robots to receive. There has been a surprising amount of speculation by teams debating if their robot should receive totes from the door or pick up existing ones on the field. Several videos are up online with students observing how the tote falls through the chute door to determine if it will even land upright in a robot, Chute door has become this year's obsession for many strategists.
5) Volunteer At A Regional Take super fanning to the next level by volunteering at a Regional or District event. To be a volunteer and help the cause there are both technical and nontechnical positions. Volunteers have helped with field set up, field take-down, pit announcements, game set up, food distribution, judging, and more. Check it out! http://www.usfirst.org/community/volunteers
Get Hooked on Programming Quick
Highly sought for and praised- the ability to program. Admit it, being comfortable with technology makes you an admirable candidate for your dream job and allows you to navigate the modern world more fluidly. Unfortunately the idea of becoming tech savvy was soiled by the thought of dry lingo and geeky stereotype. For the tech enthused or not, young or wise I have seven ways you can get started with programming in a few hours or much less. (In order of what I thought of first)
1) Codecademy
Best for: Middle School - Adulthood and beyond
Project Time: 30min - As long as you wish
Languages: Web development, Ruby, Python, PHP
Where: http://www.codecademy.com/learn
Friends from internships used codecademy to get exposed to a number of languages relatively quickly and from there decided what to dive into.
2) Code.org
Best for: Elementary - High School
Project Time: 30min - As long as you wish
Languages: Java Script, HTML, basic logic, Lego Robotics, and more
Where: http://code.org/
A really fun way to learn programming by playing games or making your own! President Obama was visited by some aspiring programmers and completed a Disney Frozen themed project.
3) Alice
Best for: Elementary - High School
Project Time: 30min - As long as you wish
Languages: Java
Where: http://www.alice.org/index.php?page=downloads/download_alice3.1
(Younger programmers may need help downloading and getting started)
Alice allows you to program in pseudo Java code and control characters. You can make movies or perform skits with your characters by moving blocks of code around and assigning values. This was my first exposure to programming in high school. As I continued with my computer studies in college found that what I learned from Alice to be extremely useful.
4) Java Seal
Best for: Middle School - Adulthood and beyond
Project Time: 30min - As long as you wish
Languages: Java
Where: https://www.youtube.com/user/JavaSeal
This is my shameless plug; I started this You Tube channel this past summer and recorded some videos about how to get started with Java programming, a basic 10 minute starter program, and a 30min more complex program. Although I haven't downloaded videos recently these are a good start and I expect to make more this summer.
5) Made With Code
Best for: Elementary - Middle School
Project Time: 5min - As long as you wish
Languages: Basic Logic
Where: https://www.madewithcode.com/projects
My Mom's kindergarten class loved to make a Yeti dance and lights shimmer using the Made With Code project. I visited her classroom and had students drag and drop blocks of code on a Smart Board. These projects teach about basic programming logic and assigning values to variables.
6) Khan Academy
Best for: Middle School - Adulthood and beyond
Project Time: 30min - As long as you wish
Languages: Game, Animation, Web Development
Where: https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/computer-programming
Khan Academy has great videos for every subject imaginable in school and now for programming. There are many projects where you can make video games, a website, or animation. There is even a gallery of what other programmers have made while following along with the video.
7) Major League Hacking
Best for: High School - College
Project Time: Few hours to 3 day event
Languages: Any language! Common ones include C++ and Java
Where: Select Colleges https://mlh.io/seasons/f2014/events
This isn't a website to visit but a Hackathon event to go to! Hackathons are events where students are challenged to create a solution to a problem such as an app that can send you texts to keep you on task, a light that can let you know when you need to wear warm clothes, or the next big social media hot spot. Hackathons can run for a few hours to three days. Most of the Hackathons don't require programming experience and are a great place to learn.
(These age groups are just suggestions, feel free to check out any of them you like. I didn't make any of the logos except my Java Seal one so kudos to you other logo makers.)
Start Studying For Finals NOW
The semester has hardly started and you think it's already a good idea to start studying for finals?
I think its a good idea to avoid the panic looming at the end of the semester. I don't need a crystal ball to predict the posts on Facetumblinstatwitter - students stressing about what grade they need on the final to pass their class rather than actually studying. In attempt to snuff this distress I have a few proven habits if used throughout the whole semester will make finals week more zen.
1) Office Hours
As intimidating as the master behind your grade may seem the value of visiting your professor during office hours well outweighs the fear. Sometime not even the internet has the answer to your problems. After exhausting the knowledge of your friends, teaching assistant, and solutions manual studying can feel hopeless. Professors can often detect when your thinking is heading in the right direction and how to help you out if you are completely lost. Remember that they want you to succeed as long as you are willing to put in the effort.You can get the most out of office hours by trying the problem first, and coming up with question beyond "I don't get it". It is obvious when you are putting forth your best verses just fishing for an answer.
2) Optional Homework Is Mandatory Homework
Don't be fooled by a professor's modern teaching ideologies of "graded homework is a waste of time". Even if the professor assigns optional practice problems for your success in the class "optional" in professor speak means"mandatory". Why not become as comfortable with the material as possible? Understanding concepts a little at a time is much more manageable then cramming at the end of the semester.
3) Allocate Study time
Studying for courses between classes and attending your weekly study group may seem like enough time was dedicated. After recollecting the number of times you checked twitter you realize not a lot of studying went on. Printing out a copy of your class schedule and blocking out time strictly for studying will help you visualize how much time is needed. Two hours of study time should be dedicated for every credit you have per week. As a full time student of 12 hours that would be 24 hours of studying a week. As an engineering student with a 12 hour course load you square it and get 144 hours of studying (just kidding). If focusing for longer than the duration of a Spongebob episode is difficult for you consider using the 50/10 study rule. Study for a solid 50 minutes and then take a 10 minute break (not the other way around).
4) Take Useful notes
While attending lectures (and not sleeping in) be mindful of what you jot down. Will you be able to decipher your chicken scratch by finals week? Reconsider what will be useful to write down as a homework reference and what to underline for review during finals. Take advantage of presentations and notes professors posts online so you can record only what's most important to you. As the only person in your study group with legible notes you have rights to charge a Chipotle burrito tax every time they want to copy them.
Wiring the basement of my team’s robot.
Robotics Molds Students Into Professional Triple Threats
It’s no shock that FIRST Robotics promotes science, technology, engineering, and math. FIRST’s message of STEM education is smeared all over its challenges, image, and very name “FIRST”- For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology. What FIRST robotics didn't expect to do is create a new breed of professional triple threats. FIRST has molded a generation of confident communicators, tenacious culture changers and gracious leaders.
Communication A stereotype for anyone in STEM industry is that you are socially impaired and enjoy being locked in a dark room with your work. Out in industry, why would the media want to speak with an engineer when there is a whole marketing department dedicated to doing just that? Especially when the marketing knows to NOT speak techy geek lingo that makes anyone want to forget every ounce of high school algebra they remember. This communication challenge is constantly navigated on a FIRST Robotics team. There is a different set of dialog for the media, fans, fellow teammates, and supporters. A phrase like “the new FRC roboRIO has integrated PWM, servo, and analog I/O channels capabilities” could be useless to you unless you were on a team while “this year’s robot controller allows us to add more sensors on our robot” is more meaningful. Students learn how to identify who their audience is and communicate accordingly. Teams often present to companies, schools, communities, some tech literate, and some not. Tech industry will soon be welcoming individuals in STEM that can communicate to a wide audience and not just among themselves.
Culture Hot topics like celebrity gossip may catch your attention but for most not this week’s newest innovations. Why? Culture. For what I like to call the engineering golden years, 50s and 60s, engineers were celebrated as superstars. The media and government were behind their innovative visions, currently that support is there but not as visible. Its obvious that students in FIRST try to change culture by showing that STEM is cool, but they also change culture in a more powerful and subtle way. Students engage in a unique form of cooperation scarcely observed in industry. Yes, during build season students keep their team's design hush hush, but when a rival asks for help they rise to the occasion and assist. You don't see Microsoft asking Apple for help with font design or firmware advice. Students recognize that the success of all teams is more important for the success of their own. Once these individuals enter into industry their mindset of advancing humanity rather than stock competition will allow innovation to occur faster.
Leadership The word leadership often evokes an image of a CEO, suits shaking hands, and a cheesy stock image pasted on a motivational presentation. Although being an executive leader is a lot of people’s goals there are just not many of those positions open. Getting to that level of management maybe involve some ungracious acts, climbing the ladder while stepping on a few people's toes. FIRST robotics has shaped a more realistic image of leadership in the mind of this generation. These students understand leadership doesn't just come in the form of leading others but also the leading of self. Autonomously identifying when you have nothing to do, thinking of a way to drive a goal forward by contributing, and completing that task sounds like a relic of a time gone by. For individuals on FIRST robotics this self-motivation is the key to their team’s success. Students learn that their team's goal would not be reached without their daily drive.
Disguised by the whirring motors and blinking lights a new generation is being fashioned. These professional triple threats graciously reform communication, culture, and leadership. At competition, beyond the field and into the robot pits is the best place to watch this transformation take place. Not convinced? Grab a pair of safety goggles, shake a few hands with students, collect a few robot buttons, ask about their robot design, hear about their aspirations, and see for yourself.
Find your nearest FRC competition: http://www.usfirst.org/whats-going-on
Robotics Engineering Challenge Recycle Rush
Around the world FIRST Robotics teams huddled around screens big and small to watch their newest engineering mission be unveiled. Some in awe, shock, and disappointment students reacted to their newest challenge Recycle Rush. By February 17th, just six weeks, teams must create a robot that race to stack totes, lift containers, and herd pool noodles.
In Recycle Rush, two alliances of three teams race against the clock to stack as many objects a possible in two and a half minutes. This is a unique game for FIRST Robotics since each alliance will be separated by a six inch barrier, there will no longer be a need for defense. Although some students are disappointed in the lack of defensive plays and butting heads with the opposing alliance this gives them an opportunity to focus on intricate game piece manipulation rather than protecting their robot. Coopertition, coined by professor and co-founder Woodie Flowers, is a unique characteristic of Recycle Rush as well. For double the points alliances can cooperate with their opposing alliance to stack totes in the middle of the field.
Recycle Rush Game Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTyCIYZQ_1s
How I'm Helping Out: During build season I will be mentoring the Duluth East Daredevils Robotics Team's media department. We are joining forces with a rival team and Duluth News Tribune to do reporting on the build season and FIRST robotics regional competition February 26th-28th in Duluth, MN. Here is what was published previous seasons: http://www.daredevils2512.org/media/bluedevil-press/
How You Can Help Out: FIRST Robotics competitions around the globe are in need of volunteers. To be a volunteer and help the cause there are both technical and nontechnical positions. Check it out! http://www.usfirst.org/community/volunteers
It Begins 4,900 Teams of Robot Builders
You may or may not have noticed the anxious stir experienced by high schoolers around the world. Not the stir associated with the holiday season or fear of returning back to school but caused by anxiety for a six week long engineering mission. Tomorrow, January 3rd, over 4,900 FIRST Robotics teams will be assigned a game for which they design, fabricate, and program a 120lb robot to compete. Really, a bunch of high schoolers are going to build a sophisticated machine requiring skills way beyond what they learn in school? Sounds like 4,900 teams of overly confident loony toons to me. I assure you from experience being on one of theses ambitious bot building teams that it is possible with copious amounts of drive and dedication.
Tubes, balls, frisbees and even miniature robots have been tossed, thrown and launched by these high schoolers' mechanical creations. At competition following their build season, teams compete with each other in the game assigned weeks prior. Games in the past have been similar to traditional sports such as soccer, basketball, ultimate frisbee, and volleyball. Until tomorrow teams have no clue what kind of robot they will be creating.
FIRST Robotics is the master mind behind getting students and their communities hooked on robotics. Inventor Dean Kamen and professor Woodie Flowers, FIRST founders, wanted to inspire the next generation of innovators. Their mission is reflected in the competition's name FIRST Robotics - For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology. Kind of a mouthful but tech savvy love their acronyms.
Get in on this crazy tech action by watching the FIRST Robotics Kick Off where the new game will be revealed January 3, 2015 10:15am EST : http://corporate.comcast.com/news-information/news-feed/2015-first-robotics-competition-kickoff
This is last years game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5zWzICG5to
The FIRST Robotics team a part of is the Duluth East Daredevils team 2512. Here is a previous robot a robot designed for an ultimate frisbee competition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZqM96bJaH4
FIRST Robotics Link: http://www.usfirst.org/
Defrag 2014 Wrap Up
Defrag's Predictions for the Future of Tech
So what is in and growing in the world of technology? For sure containers, clouds and APIs. Containers allow developers to run more applications simultaneously and currently Docker is the king of containers. Docker provides open source application deployment through containers creating an additional layer of abstraction and replaces virtual machines. Google has developed Kubernetes, an open source container cluster manager to manage your Dock containers. IBM recently launched Bluemix, a platform that enables developers to launch applications on a cloud and scale up to handle increases of traffic. Personally I will be playing with Bluemix because a representative of IBM shared how Bluemix was used at a hackathon to quickly deploy an app. APIs (Application Programming Interface) are a set of tools used to build software applications. Each layer of APIs abstract from machine code, make interfacing with the machine easier by using more human language, and become more relevant to the application being designed. Managing APIs makes sense for developers especially because those in computing value abstraction and code reuse. Platforms for sharing, storing, and developing APIs are popular since developers will not have to reinvent the wheel to get an application running. Many companies need the same kinds of applications. Pools of APIs provide an interface for these generic needs.
Philosophy of Defrag
Nerd Nite is an event where science meets good times. Individuals present about their tech passion while the crowd enjoys a drink. Presentations from Nerd Nites have been memorable to me due to the pure energy driving the presentation and the motivation behind the presenter to simply share their ideas. There has been presentations about Star Wars, creating a to scale replica of the Big Dipper, and our Mayor's take on the method of choosing political delegates. Defrag is like Nerd Nite on crack. It is two days of back to back Nerd Nite-ish presentations topped with an evening of networking. Defrag's philosophy is to provide a conference for people to share their ideas while attendees to enjoy without being bored by sales pitches. Sure speakers are a part of a company but the focus of their presentations are bigger ideas. Defrag did such a good job implementing this philosophy that I felt uncomfortable when a speaker tried to make a plug for their product. It was like they were tarnishing Defrag's pure intent to simply share ideas. As I am sure many other Defraggers agree, it was refreshing to hear the tech industry is still human.
What I Learned
As a sophomore in college I'm sure what I got out of this conference was pretty different than the majority of attendees working in industry. I could talk to you all day about new applications/technologies I learned about, but mostly I felt relieved about the kind of environment, although still not ideal, tech industry will provide in my career. IBM's Most Prolific Female Inventor, Lisa Seacat DeLuca, presented about her daily life patenting, inventing, and raising two awesome kids. She is the proof of concept of work life balance; pursuing your personal and career goals. In tech industry, getting eight hours of sleep and having a social life is possible! Author Jane Miller wrote this kick butt book debunking stereotypes in the workplace, "Sleep Your Way to the Top", after someone in her workplace questioned if her current position in the company was not due to her ability alone. While flipping through my copy I see great tips on how to handle awkward situations in the workplace, how to defend yourself in industry, and how leaders in these companies can be good leaders. Miller's advice to the audience is "give honest feedback, don't be a jerk, and mentor". At Defrag I saw people aware of the change needed in industry to make work environment more female friendly, as well as more friendly in general, and an attitude to make that change.
Experience at the conference confirmed my decision to study what I am and motivated me to continue pursuing what I love. I enjoyed representing NCWIT as an Aspirations in Computing Award winner, representing University of Minnesota Duluth for the first time at a tech event and meeting others with similar passions in technology. Defrag you rock!
Links to Check Out (Basically what I will be doing, reading, and playing with over winter break)
"We'll do it live!!" Bluemix where I will be making apps this winter: https://console.ng.bluemix.net/
Docker/ Container Links: https://www.docker.com/ http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Docker_(software)
NCWIT National Center for Women in Information Technology go to for Women in Tech stats and proven ways to close the gender gap in tech: http://www.ncwit.org/
SKYNET IS REAL bow down: http://developer.octoblu.com/
Robots that forecast weather: http://understoryweather.com/
Defrag Conference: http://www.defragcon.com/2014/
First Impressions of Defrag 2014
In just a few hours attending Defrag 2014 my skepticism about drones has been eliminated, early computing has become extremely interesting, and I now believe that the vacant/occupied bathroom indicators on airplanes are genius. Experiencing Defrag starts by being welcomed into an idea intimate environment with tech "swag" (goodie bags), refreshments, and an imitate establishment that we are here to share ideas and grow ourselves. These ideas are first shared via keynote presentations by professionals from across the spectrum of tech including Chris Anderson from 3D Robotics, George Dyson author of "Turning's Cathedral" and Amber Case from Esri.
When the word "drone" is mentioned initial things that come to my mind include military drones that are used in combat and the seemingly foolish idea to use drones to deliver packages from Amazon. A word that didn't come to mind was Orangutans. Orangutans... you mean the primate? Yes. Anderson shared a unique and useful application of drones is to track wildlife and their well being. Primates make nests daily and can be identified from imaging captured by drones. In industry, a practical application for drones includes surveying of farm land. From an aerial view farms can get real time feedback in their crops and react accordingly without wasting money on chemicals and waiting to see a result.
"Imitation Game" is a motion picture releasing on November 28th which follows Alan Turning's challenge reverse engineering the Enigma Machine. Dyson provided an excellent crash course in computing's journey, including Turning's contribution, from analog to digital. He shared most importantly the unbiased vision of the future of computing that was imagined before computing was born. A way computing can grow is by letting the computer make mistakes and learn. Reliability isn't necessarily ideal. In conclusion Dyson shared his vision for future of computing... 1) 3D computation 2) Template-based addressing 3) Pulse-frequency coding 4) Analog Computing
Technology can be overwhelming! Bells, whistles, and features galore. Sometimes we just want something to accomplish a task when we want it and not give annoying notifications. Amber Case spoke about Calm Technology that promotes "Great design (which) allows people to accomplish their goals in the least amount of moves". Airplane bathroom vacancy indicator is a calm technology approach to alert a user of information they need in an un-invasive manner. "A person's primary task shouldn't be computing but being human."
How you can get involved...
Drones: Imaging of the future is surprisingly affordable and even available in toy stores! They can be picked up for easily under $500 and programmed to your will.
History of Computing: Often neglected in education, history of computing and technology is a way to look back in order to look forward farther. Research about the history of technology and find unbiased inspiration.
Calm Technology: Case mentioned a fun exercise where you design the most overly complicated piece of technology and try to "calm it". Get your product to be as efficient in helping reach the end goal as possible.