Friday Night Entertainment - will.i.am with special guests

[BIGWILLI2081]

For everyone saying FIRST is now celebrating celebrities instead of robots you are wrong. FIRST is getting celebrities to celebrate us and get our message out into the world. I think it's pretty cool that the BEP and other celebrities are willing to take up their time to come celebrate science and technology with us.

[ebarker]

Originally Posted by BIGWILLI2081

For everyone saying FIRST is now celebrating celebrities instead of robots you are wrong. FIRST is getting celebrities to celebrate us and get our message out into the world. I think it's pretty cool that the BEP and other celebrities are willing to take up their time to come celebrate science and technology with us.

Bingo !!

[Taylor]

Regarding celebrating celebrities:
I've seen pictures of Fred Armisen, several Mythbusters, Shaka Smart, Barack Obama, and that dude that makes cakes on TV on CD-Media. In none of those corresponding threads has there been grumbling about "pandering to celebrities" or "celebrating the wrong culture".
When will.i.am was part of the 2011 kickoff, before the splash page fiasco, people thought that was pretty cool, and were excited about the prospect of a live performance. People on this forum were practically foaming at the mouth, looking for some nod of the head to FIRST during the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

So what's different about this?

I appreciate concerns about crowding in the pits - there's another thread devoted to that. But what's done is done, we've got a tremendous opportunity to once again promote FIRST to the public, why not take advantage of it?

I, for one, am very happy about the way this has been handled, and the way our gracious STL hosts are treating us. IMHO, most of the times when FIRST is displayed to the general public (usually as a side story on CNN or 20/20 or 60 Minutes or some such show), it's displayed as this cute little boutique program. I'm yearning for the day when FIRST is above that, is given the same publicity as, say, an NCAA basketball game or NBA football game or the Chicago Marathon. For twenty years, the PTB in NH have been working to make FIRST a household-known entity; having a closed-doors concert by an internationally known act - and not in such a way as to portray us as a "charity case" - is a great thing.

Sure, it's a PITA. I completely agree that we should voice concerns about the space situation. But let's leave the pitchforks and torches at home.

[Madison]

Originally Posted by Taylor

So what's different about this?

All of those things you mention were provided to FIRST teams at no cost; they were each a neat bonus that did not appreciably affect the experience they have as participants in a robotics competition.

This time, their experience IS being affected so as to accommodate this performance. Now that the lunch isn't free, so to speak, people are thinking more critically about what is most important to them. The stakes are higher.

I am having trouble getting all riled up about it. While I'm fiercely competitive, the most valuable parts of FIRST for me have always been when we get to celebrate our achievements -- whether that was winning the event or making new friends. This concert could be a move toward making the Championship more of a celebration of our FIRST culture (again) and less about trying (and failing, in my opinion) to mimic sports.

At the same time, I also accept that some people think being on the floor of a major stadium is awesome. I never really felt that way. Upon reflecting about that some more this morning, I came to realize that the thing I enjoyed most about competing on the floor of the Georgia Dome was that it was, frankly, really quiet. That's probably not a ringing endorsement for branding this thing we do as the Super Bowl of Smarts, though.

[czeke]

One Hundred years from now, no one will care who performed or why. If it ends up benefitting FIRST, our teams, or even a couple of students, so be it.

[flyingcrayons]

this better be webcasted......................................... .. haha

[Chris_Elston]

Originally Posted by BIGWILLI2081

For everyone saying FIRST is now celebrating celebrities instead of robots you are wrong. FIRST is getting celebrities to celebrate us and get our message out into the world. I think it's pretty cool that the BEP and other celebrities are willing to take up their time to come celebrate science and technology with us.

BigWill has got it right in my opinion. Two-Thumbs Up.

I know it's hard to think about how the world works today. We've all been brain washed in the form of sports and celebrity culture. We view Will I.Am as a celebrity and "think" it's natural that all celebrity want in the spot light always. It's not about Will I.AM. It's about a culture change in what it is you and your team are doing by earning the right to show us this weekend. Will I.AM is coming to celebrate YOU and YOUR team, and your accomplishments in the FIRST program. This is his way to help you celebrate those new found skills or accomplishments in being on a world class robotics team. As Chris Fultz and many others have said, try to enjoy the weekend and let it sink in.....that someone is there to appreciate what YOU and YOUR team have done.

I recently read an article linked to us news from our own North East Indiana Talent Made Here Initiative:
http://www.usnews.com/education/blog...stem-standards

In this article sums up the culture change...

Tom Kalil, the White House's deputy director for science and technology policy, said in order for the United States to catch up to countries such as China, India, and South Korea, America needs to fundamentally change to embrace STEM.

"In China, Bill Gates is Britney Spears; in the U.S., Britney Spears is Britney Spears," he said. "We need to teach our kids that it's not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated—it's the winner of the science fair, too."

Best of luck to you teams competition at the World Championships. I'll be there Friday late and some Saturday, with a small group of kids but probably won't be able to see the concert because of the ticket structure. Someone can fill me in later...enjoy the fact that Will I. Am thinks GEEKS are kewl...or Nerds in the case of Woodie Flowers...