Donald Savage

Headquarters, Washington October 25, 2002

(Phone: 202/358-1547)

RELEASE: 02-208

NASA SPONSORS STUDENT ROBOTICS COMPETITION

Heavy metal will rock -- and roll -- at seven different

locations across the country early next year. Students,
engineers and their robotic creations take center stage during
NASA sponsored regional robotics competitions and a final
national championship "Bot Bowl" in April 2003.

Teams must design a robot that can complete a specified set of

tasks within rules announced at the robotics kickoff ceremony
in January 2003. This is the fifth consecutive year NASA has
sponsored student teams. Applications are available online at:
http://robotics.nasa.gov/

The deadline for submitting a sponsorship application is Nov.

8, 2002. Last year, NASA sponsored 193 student teams from
across the country. This year NASA will fund more than 200,
including some already selected.

The annual nationwide robotics competition is conducted by the

non-profit FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science
and Technology) organization in Manchester, N.H. Teams
entering the competition are sponsored by NASA and a number of
corporations.

Each year FIRST presents a game problem and identical parts

kits to each team. The teams, composed of high-school
students, teachers, professional engineers and scientists,
work together to construct robots for the competition. The
engineers come from NASA, private industry, other government
agencies and universities. More information about the
competition and FIRST is at: http://www.usfirst.org/

FIRST was started in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen to provide an

exciting and inspirational experience for American youth while
exposing students to the potential of engineering and
technology fields. The annual robotics competition is
patterned after Massachusetts Institute of Technology
professor Woodie Flowers' engineering design course. NASA
participation in the FIRST program is directed by Dave Lavery
of NASA Headquarters, Washington, and provided through NASA's
Robotics Education Project and the Office of Space Science at
Headquarters. More information on NASA's Robotics Education
Project is at: http://robotics.nasa.gov
The FIRST Robotics Competition aims to inspire students,
provide hands-on activities and foster teamwork. The program
provides students with opportunities to work side-by-side with
professional engineers to build a robot.
Each year, the teams are given a complex task their robot must
perform in competition. They receive a kit filled with motors,
control computers, raw materials and many of the parts they
will need to get started.
NASA's Robotics Education Project will select approximately
130 new teams to receive sponsorships to participate in the
2003 Robotics Competition. Teams may receive sponsorship from
NASA for a maximum of two years. Funding for sponsorships is
awarded through a competitive selection process. NASA recruits
volunteer engineers to be team members and to mentor schools.
The competition is geared toward high-school students, but
other schools may participate.
"Education is key to the success of our country, and this
approach represents one of the most powerful ways to get
students motivated," said Mark Leon, project manager of the
Robotics Education Project, located at NASA's Ames Research
Center, in California's Silicon Valley. "Some of these
students may go on to help NASA engage in bold new missions of
exploration of our solar system. The idea here is to involve
students in hands-on activities to turn them on to science and
math," he said.

The robotics competition kicks off January 4, 2003, at the

Verizon Center in Manchester, N.H., with a demonstration of
the task for this year's regional and national competitions.
Rules, goals and other details, such as the layout of the
playing field, will be revealed during NASA TV's broadcast of
the ceremony.

The FIRST Robotics Competition is partially sponsored by NASA

as part of the Robotics Education Project. In collaboration
with FIRST, NASA's Robotics Education Project is hosting seven
of the 23 regional competitions around the country. The dates
and cities where NASA is hosting regional competitions are
March 6-8, 2003, in Cleveland, Richmond, Va., and St. Louis;
March 13-15, 2003, in Annapolis, Md.; March 27-29, 2003, in
Atlanta; and April 3-5, 2003, in Seattle and Los Angeles.

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