[Taylor]

We've been hard at work on this initiative to get kids interested and excited about Science and Technology; some of us for nearly a quarter century. Tens of thousands of kids certainly have been inspired by FIRST; many of them are on their way to changing the world in which we live.

Meanwhile, these folks in Virginia and California decide to put a Mini-Cooper on Mars in the middle of the night, and millions* of kids are getting interested and excited about Science and Technology.

So ... how do we measure up? Did the work we've done in FIRST and other STEM initiatives lay the groundwork for getting the kids geeked, or did NASA just lap us in one fell swoop?**

*I don't think I'm overestimating here. At all. The only thing I can think of that supercedes this in terms of captivating the collective imagination is the events of July 20, 1969.
**Don't read that as implying that I'm bitter. I'm just as thrilled as the next guy (provided the next guy isn't wearing a Hawaiian shirt).