Who needs FLL any more?

[JesseK]

Read an interesting article on arstechnica, then went to the website and watched the video. WOW. I mean, 118 & 148's robots are definitely inspiring to me, but to little kids they're probably just scary. And FLL/LEGO's are great -- but only to the extent that a young child can learn programming (and let's face it ... some of us programmers are just plain wierd to non-programmers...). So what about those kids who don't show any interest in a computer screen at that age, or think that lego's are only meant for boys?

Here's a [upcoming] product I think may inspire kids who would otherwise be disinterested: Cubelets
http://www.modrobotics.com/

Video:
http://vimeo.com/19712586

I think my little cousin's Barbie just got a new hot rod for her birthday

[maltz1881]

Just for boys???? OH NO!!! Don't tell that to our FLL captian...SHE has a black belt and might come looking for you!!!! FLL is so important to any FRC team. This is your "farm team".. These kids are head and shoulders advanced than somebody who just comes in fresh. They know how to interact with the judges on the higher level than a fresh eyed kid. They can program, they have tons of ideas on building and they are a team player. Most of the kids on my FRC team came from FLL and you sure can tell the difference between the kids who have and haven't.
There is SOOOOO much more than just building a robot and programming in Lego's. When the robot is on the playing field that is only worth 9% of the overall score. FLL is extremely important to a great FRC team.

[Andrew Schreiber]

I am a former FLL student (back in ma day the field was all cut wood and tape lines, none of these fancy schmancy printed mats) and distinctly recall seeing T3's old robots at events. For those of you who don't recall T3's bots back in the old days they were intimidating. I saw their 2003 bot in their shop over the weekend and it STILL intimidates me. Here was a machine that weighs more than I do now and has a wingspan of 27'. Yet, as an FLL student I just kept wishing I could get to build cool stuff like that. To me those were the real robots. They were big and fast. I was working on their little brothers because I wasnt ready to work on the big boys.

Cubeletes are a nifty idea but not at all what would have inspired me as a kid.

And Legos are just for boys? Tell that to the team leader of 3450...

[Joe G.]

FLL is much more than programming. I spent 6 years in FLL. I learned about structure, self-correction, creativity, gear ratios, linkages, pneumatics, teamwork, prototyping, iteration, and so much more. The hundreds of thousands of kids in FLL today are learning the same things. I could go on and on about how my FLL experience made me who I am today, and not just because it made me explore FRC.

Just because you wouldn't build a real world robot out of LEGOs, don't underestimate their teaching potential.

That said, cool video!