Petition to end the shouting of ROBOT

[efoote868]

Originally Posted by Oblarg

What you hold so dear to your heart is fundamentally unsafe and is often loud enough to cause permanent hearing loss. It is a complete shame that FIRST does this at regionals.

I think there's an opportunity for teams to demonstrate safety here instead of participating in safety theater - measure sound intensity and hand out ear plugs for hearing conservation. Would be much safer than yelling "ROBOT."

[Wayne Doenges]

At Crossroads, I was talking to Andy Baker and Samir (formerly Team 1501) in an area away from the robot pits, when a team came off the field and yelled "ROBOT" when they could have easliy gone around us. There was plenty of room to go around.

[IndySam]

Thursday at Crossroads I had a student yell robot right in my ear. Needless to say I didn't let it pass without a comment.

[MichelB]

{raises hand} To save the sanity, and hearing, of everyone in the pits and stands, I agree we should end the hollering of "ROBOT!". Also, when someone inadvertently spent close to a team/robot after they yell, they are snapped at, as if the yelling of "ROBOT!" automatically keep everyone away.

[Amo10]

At the palmetto regional I thought that there were much less people yelling robot than last year there were only a couple of teams yelling when there was no reason to.

[Zuelu562]

As a queuer at GSDE, I had more than a couple teams literally following me out of the pit to the queuing area. Most teams only said something about "Robot" when there was a crowded aisle (something the Safety Advisers were aware of) and as I walked ahead of these teams I often said something like "hey heads up, there's a robot coming in just a second guys." as I passed by groups of people ballooning outside the area of the pit. It wasn't bad, but it's still around. I'm going to do my best to make sure people are aware of an incoming robot, but also not wake up the students in the Campus Center at WPI.

[colin340]

{raises hand}

Originally Posted by xSAWxBLADEx

We have a megaphone that we say, "Exuse us, robot coming through." or "Please hold up, robot coming through."

yeah if you could go ahead and stop that, that would be great.

[kk052]

ROBOT!!!!!!!!!!

[Steve W]

SIGNED!!!!!!!!

Most of those that have problems moving through the pits and elsewhere usually have a team of followers yelling and no one in front of the robot. I usually stop in front of them and explain the better way to do it. Sometimes works, sometimes not.

[Monochron]

When someone obnoxiously yells 'ROBOT' in my ear I cover that ear, act offended, and tell them to be careful next time "safety is important". It usually produces a nice confused effect in the person because they think they were being safe by yelling.

Calling out the very thing they do for safety as unsafe itself is the best thing I have found to rustle people's jimmies.

[Wayne Doenges]

Originally Posted by kk052

ROBOT!!!!!!!!!!

HUMAN!!!!!!

[Oblarg]

Originally Posted by Wayne Doenges

HUMAN!!!!!!

Please, do not do either of these things at competition. If you shout "HUMAN" at the top of your lungs in response to someone shouting "ROBOT" at the top of their lungs (as people have mentioned doing earlier in the thread), you are contributing to the problem just as much as they are. It is not witty, it does not discourage bad practice, and it generates unneeded animosity. Don't do it.

[Alan Anderson]

Originally Posted by Oblarg

If you shout "HUMAN" at the top of your lungs in response to someone shouting "ROBOT" at the top of their lungs (as people have mentioned doing earlier in the thread), you are contributing to the problem just as much as they are. It is not witty, it does not discourage bad practice, and it generates unneeded animosity. Don't do it.

I agree completely. The appropriate response is a calm explanation of a better way to do things.

However, in a different context, it can generate amusement and appreciation. I've called out "HUMAN!" on a couple of occasions when a group of students was standing in the natural path of pedestrian traffic -- but never in the pits, and never in response to an inappropriate shout of "ROBOT!"

[TheOtherGuy]

Maybe I was in the right place at the right time, but I never heard it shouted at Hub City a few days ago.

Maybe Texans are just polite.

[David Brinza]

I was a key volunteer at Inland Empire and spent almost all of my time there in the pits. I was amazed at the number of students who would shout "ROBOT!" while standing in their pits, sometimes when no robot was not moving near them!

I asked these students to stop shouting, explaining the pits are already noisy enough. One mentor asked me why I confronted his student for just having fun. Geez, I suppose it would be OK to shout in classrooms because it's fun, right??

I told the offending students (and several mentors) about this thread in CD. They didn't think I was serious. I hope at least a few took the time to check this thread to better understand the issue.