NYC FIRST Robotics Competition
Sixty-six teams will face off at this battle of the bots, but we're placing our money on the kids from Downtown Brooklyn. Here's why.
Thu Mar 5 2009
Photographs: Caroline Voagen Nelson
THE ROBOTS:
For this year’s regionals, the team from George Westinghouse Information Technology High School has built two robots of aluminum and bulletproof glass; each weighs 120 pounds and stands about five feet tall. They play a game that involves blocking a goal while trying to place balls in an opponent’s basket.
THE PILOT:
Jason Lewis,
17, Crown Heights, Brooklyn
The team’s steadfast captain—who spends 40 hours a week working on the bots—is more confident than ever: “We’re going to go all the way this year,” he says. “I know the manual front and back. It’s like solving a Rubik’s Cube—and yes, I can solve it.”
THE TECH WHIZ:
Rashid Samuel,
15, Crown Heights, Brooklyn
“This guy is a genius on the computer—and I’ve worked in the Valley,” says Coach Nadav Zeimer, a former Netscape engineer. Samuel helped build the robots’ belt system, assigned functions to the remote, and worked on the team’s website.
THE Money MAN:
Jeremy “Big Man” Joseph,
17, Jamaica, Queens
Fund-raising is important; it costs $14,000 a year to compete. “Jeremy could sell anything,” says Zeimer. “I’ve seen teachers who don’t like chocolate buy five bars from him.” On average, Big Man sells two boxes of candy a day (about 104 bars).
THE ROOKIE:
Daniel Torres,
14, Bushwick, Brooklyn
You won’t see this eager-to-please freshman sitting on the sidelines. “I suggested having a shooter instead of a crane; that way we can shoot the balls into our targets,” says Torres. “Plus, the cannon swivels, so you don’t have to move the entire robot to aim.”
THE COACH:
Nadav Zeimer,
Tribeca
The physics and technology teacher says he lets the students just do their thing: “I don’t know how to make robots at the level they can. We’re the underdogs here. The last time I checked, 70 percent of our students live below the poverty level. Our team doesn’t rely on anybody else.”
GOOO TEAM! The New York City FIRST Robotics Competition: Javits Center, 665 W 34th St at Eleventh Ave (603-666-3906, nycnjfirst.org). Fri 6 10am--5pm; Sat 7 9am--5pm, Sun 8 9am--4:30pm. Free.
