[Kevin Sevcik]

Originally Posted by Tazlikesrobots

FIRST a robot building contest? I would have to disagree considering that winning the tournament is the lowest award one can earn. Don't take me wrong. There is a great sense of pride in winning the tournament, but I feel that FIRST is more a bout forging relationships and getting a taste of what scientists and engineers face every day. There are problems that need to be solved and it is important that today's youth have the ambition to take on those problems and find help find solutions for them.

FIRST is a great way to give you a real world challenge but have the safety net of a lab environment. I just wish they had a program like this when I was in school.

Exactly. FIRST is about teaching kids about engineering and getting them interested in it. I fail to see how this is possible without a robot. Or without some other form of engineering challenge that we'd be discussing instead of a robot.