Want to win a contest without answering a single question?

Yes, you can do that. You need to pose a simple and interesting question about molecules.

FIRST Teams Sought to Participate in Nobel-Prize-Winners Contest

The Molecular Frontiers Inquiry Prize: Deadline: May 6

http://www.molecularfrontiers.org/pages/programs/molecularfrontiersprize.php

One of the great things about the size and quality of FIRST is that it is draws attention from many other groups. One of these groups, who attended this year's Championship and was particularly impressed, was the sponsor of The Molecular Frontiers Inquiry Prize.

Take their online challenge – which is to pose a simple and interesting question about molecules – and see if you can win one of 10 iPods. Among the Judges who pick the winners are selected Nobel Prize winners.

The contest is for students under the age of 17. Compete by submitting a creative question about molecules and explaining why your question is important. Ten student winners will receive an iPod, a medal, and an invitation to attend a symposium at which the Nobel Prize winners will be in attendance.

2009 FIRST Championship Results

The 2009 FIRST Championship took place April 16-18 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA. Over 500 robots competed on six fields while teams met and worked in the pits in this celebration of everything that makes FIRST unique!

Results can be found here: http://www.usfirst.org/who/content.aspx?id=4190

Robots of the future unveiled (from BBC News Channel)

Speaking at the Robo Business 2009 Conference and Expo in Boston, Tandy Trower, the general manager of Microsoft Robotics, noted that in the next 40 years, the number of pensioners - those aged 65 and over - is set to increase by two billion worldwide.

With that ageing will come the need to help families and other caregivers cope with decreased mobility and chronic diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Mr Trower said that robots could have a "profound impact" when it comes to helping seniors communicate with family members and each other, or reminding someone to take their medications.

"Even just having robots do lightweight transport of objects from one room to another, whether it's grandma's knitting or a cup of coffee, could be tremendously valuable."

See the rest of the story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8002850.stm

From ORTOP: Dean Kamen on 60 Minutes

Dear ORTOP Community:

If you didn't watch 60 Minutes last night, please consider looking at the video on this link. It is the first story of the show. .

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4937835n

Dean Kamen, founder of FIRST, is interviewed about his company's (DEKA) revolutionary robotic prosthetic arm being developed for injured veterans. It is a moving and inspirational story.   

FIRST LEGO League has already announced Biomedical as the 2011 FLL theme.

NXTLOG Climate Connections Building Challenge

In honor of the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) World Festival this April 16th -18th in Atlanta Georgia, USA, and Earth Day (April 22nd) NXTLOG, http://mindstorms.lego.com/news/#109513,  is hosting an online FLL Climate Connections Challenge.

Your goal is to design an NXT robot that can complete any of the missions from the FLL Climate Connections Challenge see all missions here.

But... you can add more to your robot!

There's no limit on amount of LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT sensors, motors, NXT programmable bricks, HiTechnic sensors, Codatex RFID sensors, or Bluetooth communication you can use.

If you have not competed in FIRST LEGO League or the Climate Connections Challenge, here is your chance. But, you will need to study the missions and rules of the robot game from the FLL website carefully so you know what to do:

Don't worry if you don't have the official FLL mission mat or LEGO Models, you can make your own!

How will your robot make the right climate connections?

You have until Thursday April 30, 2009

See http://mindstorms.lego.com/nxtlog/ProjectDisplay.aspx?id=b1c98d61-dd7c-49bc-83c7-f77ac83bc062  for details