Science Club Members graduate Basic Robotics!

This week science club members completed their third lesson in Robotics.  They now have a basic understanding of:

• ELEMENTS OF ROBOTS
• CONTROLLING ROBOTS THRU SENSORS AND LOGIC
• DESIGNING, LOADING, AND TESTING PROGRAMS ON THE LEGO NXT 2.0 ROBOT

This week we examined the iRobot Roomba vacuum cleaner behavior.  Students designed and tested programs (using touch sensors and the ultra-sonic sensors) on the Lego Mindstorms robot to react to walls and obstacles – just like the Roomba vacuum.

Phases of the Moon - Oreo Style

Every 28 days, we see the Moon's appearance change as it transitions through eight distinct, traditionally recognized stages, called phases. The phases designate both the degree to which the Moon is illuminated and the geometric appearance of the illuminated part.  A bit of creativity and Oreo cookies (with some of the middle removed) become great models for our phases of the moon. 

This has got to be the absolute best way to learn Science !!

ROBOTS !!!!!

Science club members are not just learning about Robots, they are actually programming Lego Mindstorms NXT 2.0 Robots.   All over  Alabama and nationwide, robots perform amazing tasks like painting cars, welding, drilling, dispensing medicine, even performing surgeries.

The last two weeks, we learned some basics about robots, and programmed our robot to move and speak.  This coming Friday, we will begin using sensors and will teach our robot to make decisions !