InSciTe+Illinois+-+The+Challenge

Our team is part of the

FIRST LEGO League (FLL) In Illinois ||
 * INSciTE Illinois
 * The State Sponsor For**

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Here's some more data on the challenges.

** 2010 -2011 Body Forward **
Engineering Meets Medicine Through the 2010 Body Forward™ Challenge, FLL teams will explore the cutting-edge world of Biomedical Engineering to discover innovative ways to repair injuries, overcome genetic predispositions, and maximize the body's potential, with the intended purpose of leading happier and healthier lives.

[|Click here] for the Body Forward Challenge Overview and links to the Project and the Robot Game.

**Past Challenges**
Each year, FLL creates a new challenge and a new theme. Some of the past themes have been Space Exploration, Volcanic Panic, Artic Impact, City Sights, and Mission Mars, Smart Move. The specific tasks the robot must accomplish are based on the theme for that year. The kids will also explain their robot and be asked to give a creative presentation to explain how robots could be used to benefit humans in ways based on the theme.

There are several sections to each year's challenge:

**Robot Tasks**
In this part of the challenge, the task is to build and program a working, autonomous robot to perform real world tasks. Of course this only a simulation, but the tasks are real and the design challenges and mental processes are real. The kids learn to build a robot that can help retrieve ice core samples on a future Mars mission, rescue stranded scientists trapped on an ice flow in the arctic, place scientific instrument packages in an active volcano and many other tasks, all with real world problems to solve. Using pieces from the LEGO Mindstorms kit and programming the robot on the computer, the kids develop a working robot that performs its task all by itself, with no remote control.

**Technical Interview**
An interview takes place the day of the competition and lasts about 10 minutes. The team members can present the key features of the robot and software. This is followed by questions about the mechanical ideas they used, and the software solutions they employed. The kids love to talk about what they did, and it opens up a discussion that the judges and the kids get excited about.

**Project (Formerly the Research Assignment)**
Using the theme for that year, the team is asked to relate how a robot could be used to help solve actual real world problems. Each year the project is a little different, but the team is asked to brainstorm ideas and find practical (though often far out) ideas to solve real world problems, now or in the future. These ideas are then put into a 5 minute presentation or skit to explain the project selected to the judges. This format provides a great deal of freedom and the skills and talents of the kids can really shine.

__Past Challenges:__

( [|Click here] for links to information about Past Challenges)

2008 - Climate Connections

Embark on an exploration of the earth's climate in the //FIRST// LEGO League's 2008 Climate Connections Challenge! Discover the links between science, people, resources and communities. Unearth how we learn about past climates and delve into questions surrounding our current and future climate conditions. Join FIRST LEGO League teams in creating a global game plan as they make these Climate Connections!

2007 - Power Puzzle

How do our personal energy choices to heat our homes, fuel our cars, charge our cell phones, power our computers, or even download music to our iPods impact the environment, economy, and life around the globe? Which resources should we use and why? Explore how energy production and consumption choices affect the planet and our quality of life today, tomorrow, and for future generations. Can FIRST LEGO League teams find the ultimate solution to this global Power Puzzle?

2006 - Nano Quest

There is a new frontier that will impact every facet of society, from medicine to computers to the environment. As visionaries and scientists, the 2006 FIRST LEGO League teams explored unimaginably amazing new technologies that start in the Nano world and lead to the things we do and use every day.

Teams discovered the secrets of everyday stuff through this cutting edge field of research, where carbon Nanotubes, Buckyballs, molecular motors and quantum dots will be considered part of daily conversations. Sure it sounds like science fiction, but the future has arrived!

2005 - Ocean Odyssey

FIRST LEGO League travels into the depths of the ocean to explore the mysteries that lie below. The oceans are of vital importance to the health of the Earth and to everyone that lives on this planet; yet only 1% of these magnificent bodies of water have been studied.

2004 - No Limits

Many people have difficulty moving or walking, or trouble reading a distant sign or climbing stairs. In NO LIMITS, FLL teams will find ways to help people with different levels of physical ability.

2003 - Mission Mars

Unlock the fascinating world that lives in MISSION MARS, and experience similar challenges encountered by the scientists and space engineers.

2002 - City Sights

Explore the challenges that urban planners face every day in order to provide basic services such as clean water, a safe environment, education, sustainable energy, and venues to the inhabitants of the city.

2001 - Artic Impact

Forget the shorts and suntan oil - we're going North - way North! Get ready for the dangerous world of icebergs, frostbite, carnivorous animals and mile-high slushies! Grab your mittens and stay cool with FLL in the biggest snow squall of the century!.

2000 - Volcanic Panic

Takes on a whole new meaning. We wake a sleeping giant like you've never seen before! Start running because the lava is coming and it's coming FAST!

1999 - First Contact

Which includes, Mission Objectives, and 3-D drawings of this years Playing Field, plus hear special messages from //FIRST// Founder, Dean Kamen and Astronaut, Dan Barry.