Three PCCS Lego Robotics teams finished their 2018 season on December 15 after competing in the regional qualifier event at ISU. We had three teams this year with 19 students ranging from fifth to seventh grade. Every year, FIRST LEGO League releases a Challenge based on a real-world scientific topic. (FIRST is an acronym “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology” and more information about the program can be found at http://www.firstlegoleague.org/. )
This year’s topic was “Into Orbit” and PCCS students chose their team names fittingly. The Men in Black, Galactic Wolves and the Supernovas programmed an autonomous robot to score points on a themed playing field and completed a research project where they developed a solution to a problem related to extended duration space travel. The Men in Black addressed astronaut loneliness by designing a program called “Space Skype with Students” where they would lead middle school classes through experiments that students conducted on earth while they completed them in space and shared results via video conference. The Galactic Wolves invented “Galactic Gummies” which are vegetable-based gummies to ensure astronauts get their vitamins in fun, colorful shapes. And the Supernovas presented an idea for a solar-powered battery backup plan for astronauts visiting Mars. It was an out-of-this-world season!