Petition to end the shouting of ROBOT

[CalTran]

So we're competing in Arkansas this week, and even with the tiny arena, it's still unnecessary to yell "Robot!" Sure, you have to slow down because there's a lot of traffic, but when you have a line-of-site from your pit to the field, you don't need to go fast. Even from the teams in the wing, you can probably make it to the field in <5 minutes. So please just slow down, tap people and say "excuse me, please, robot coming through."

[gabrielau23]

Originally Posted by Alexa Stott

Are you freaking kidding me?

lol............

[Tow]

Well us as relative new team we actually didn't know that yelling ROBOT is kind of offensive for many people. This our third season (and my first) but we try not to say ROBOT because actually everyone can see people walking with a robot. We'll try to ask to move more politely with phrases such as "excuse me please"

[sabruce01]

I personally don't have much of a problem with it provided they are not being rude. The kids seem to have some fun with it so as long as they are not offending people...I'm fine with it. No place for being rude though....and "please" goes a long way!

[BigJ]

Just another anecdotal piece, one of my students told me he was commanded to yell ROBOT by a safety advisor on the way to queue at Midwest today.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by BigJ

Just another anecdotal piece, one of my students told me he was commanded to yell ROBOT by a safety advisor on the way to queue at Midwest today.

Could you try to speak to the lead safety advisor at the event? I'd be very interested to know where the "mandatory" practice is coming from. (And, you could also point out that there are other methods that are more polite, and possibly even safer, than yelling ROBOT.)

[Frenchie461]

While I agree that yelling "ROBOT" in the pit is completely unnecessary, I think that people should give people an idea that the robot is there. I'm not exactly the most observant person out there, so I would not be likely to notice a robot moving through. My favorite solution was Team 134's solution at DC, which was singing to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" "Ro-Ro-Ro-Robot, coming down the isle. If you'd please step aside, that would make us smile."

[Doc Wu]

Originally Posted by raffi383

From my understanding we didn't win the safety award at the Detroit event because of an issue we had with one of the safety judges. She stood in the aisle and would not move until we yelled robot. Instead, we walked around her.

Raffi

I would just like to point out that the correct title is Safety Advisor.

You are free to hear their advice and politely decline it. They have no authority.

Unless you are bucking for a safety award, they are not judges.

[tsaksa]

Originally Posted by Frenchie461

While I agree that yelling "ROBOT" in the pit is completely unnecessary, I think that people should give people an idea that the robot is there. I'm not exactly the most observant person out there, so I would not be likely to notice a robot moving through. My favorite solution was Team 134's solution at DC, which was singing to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" "Ro-Ro-Ro-Robot, coming down the isle. If you'd please step aside, that would make us smile."

I love it. I think this has the potential of being much less irritating, but without killing the fun some teams seem to get out from the yelling. Perhaps teams could try to come up with their own variation on this.

Soft robot,
Warm robot,
Little ball of wire.
Happy robot,
Sleepy robot,
Whurr, whurr, whurr.

[Alexa Stott]

Originally Posted by tsaksa

I love it. I think this has the potential of being much less irritating, but without killing the fun some teams seem to get out from the yelling. Perhaps teams could try to come up with their own variation on this.

Soft robot,
Warm robot,
Little ball of wire.
Happy robot,
Sleepy robot,
Whurr, whurr, whurr.

I don't understand this notion that teams are entitled to have fun by yelling at the expense of others.

Also, if yelling is the most fun thing about a FIRST event, you should probably reevaluate your involvement.

[viperred396]

Update from the Colorado regional:
Thus far very few have yelled "robot", there are plenty of "excuse me"

I love it!

[Tytus Gerrish]

Screaming робот is obnoxious and arrogant, but a petition against it is all those things and more.

[dictionaria13]

Disclaimer: This is my opinion, please do not give me little red dots for expressing it, controversial though it may be.

Background on me, as context: I'm fairly new to FIRST; I joined last year as a senior in high school, caught FIRST Fever, and came back to mentor my team as a college mentor.* I admit I've spent more time in the stands than in the pits at competitions (usually less "in" the stands than in front of them, where an area is usually set up for people to dance**), but I have spent my share of time in the pits, whether talking about the robot as a "pit ambassador" last year or just wandering around collecting buttons when I wasn't needed elsewhere.

What I've seen, as regards the shouting of "Robot": I haven't seen it being a problem. I've never witnessed teams caterwauling at the top of their lungs; instead, I saw teams approach a congestion point and say "robot" at a volume just above a normal speaking voice, at which point those blocking the aisle would acknowledge with an echo of "robot" and clear it. No muss, no fuss. It is possible there were teams at the events I attended who did engage in the more objectionable behavior and I was elsewhere or simply didn't notice.*** Yes, I can see how those that do constantly scream "ROBOT" can quickly get annoying, and I do agree that unnecessary noise in the pits can cause safety issues, as can people crowding out of their pits and into the aisles. However, I'm not sure arguing about it on Chief Delphi is going to do much to resolve the issue.**** This thread has turned nearly as acrimonious as the ones on student-built versus mentor-built robots, and has done about as much to resolve the issue as those do. Thank you, sanddrag, for bringing the issue to our collective attention, but fourteen pages of debate is a bit much, no?

Again, this is my opinion. If you disagree with my opinion, please PM me rather than giving me negative rep. Thank you!



*Yes, I know this is not strictly recommended, I just couldn't stay away.
**The Pacific Northwest regionals tend to have lots of people dancing, though I understand that isn't necessarily the case elsewhere.
***Yes, I really am capable of not noticing someone screaming "robot" six inches from my ear. Huzzah for Asperger's Syndrome.
****Yes, I know some of the higher-ups in FIRST read Chief Delphi. My point still stands, because the root of the problem does not lie with them.

[Alex2614]

I have been saying this for years. Thank you for voicing this up!

[Ginspiration]

Yeah, it's always kind of annoyed me that people constantly yell "robot," especially when you stop paying attention to it. I have the "priviledge" of yelling "robot" in front of my team's robot this year when we return from the field. I try to avoid yelling when possible, but when I don't (even if there are no people in front of me), I am always told by someone that I should be yelling. I understand yelling in especially crowded zones, but a simple "excuse me" should be the standard procedure when someone is in the robot's path.