More than 700 boys and girls ages 9 to 14 will build and race Lego robots in the third annual Finger Lakes FIRST LEGO League Tournament Series this year. The championship tournament will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 9, in the Alexander Palestra on the University of Rochester's River Campus.
This year, children from the Rochester region and across the world are using their Lego contraptions to research and consider the costs, benefits, and impacts associated with existing and emerging energy sources and energy utilization technologies, such as hydrogen vehicles, solar panels, hydroelectric power, coal and oil extraction and use, wind and ocean turbines, bio-fuels, and the electrical grid.
Using Lego bricks, children work alongside adult mentors to design, build and program robots to solve real-life world challenges. After eight intense weeks, the competition season culminates at high-energy, sports-like tournaments.
Approximately 72 teams from the area will compete, and the top 36 teams will make it to the championship tournament. The University of Rochester and the tournament's local sponsors are proud to make this educational opportunity available to so many young people within the Rochester community, says Jack Mottley, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.
If you are interested in learning more about this event, serving as a volunteer or becoming a sponsor, please contact Monique Nikki Terry at (585) 275-9082 or mterry@ur.rochester.edu. You can also visit the Web at www.seas.rochester.edu/SEAS/FLL.html.
The Finger Lakes Tournament Series is sponsored principally by Bausch & Lomb, Xerox, and the University of Rochester, with additional support from many local and national companies.