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Jonas Di=F1o
         April 4, 2003
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Phone: 650/604-5612 or 650/604-9000
E-mail: jonas.g.dino{at}nasa.gov

RELEASE: 03-21AR

NOTE TO EDITORS AND NEWS DIRECTORS: News media representatives are
invited to observe the northern California botball tournament. The
competition will be held Saturday, April 5, at the Leavey Center on
the campus of Santa Clara University, 500 El Camino Real, Santa
Clara, Calif. Team practice rounds start at 8:00 a.m. PST, with
competition rounds beginning at 10:00 a.m. PST. Student programmers
and their mentors will be available for interviews following each
round of competition. To reach Santa Clara University, exit
interstate 880 north from interstate 280, exit on The Alameda
northbound. The Alameda becomes El Camino Real. Admission is free.

MINIATURE ROBOTS TO SHOWCASE SKILLS OF FUTURE PROGRAMMERS

No remote controls will be allowed as hundreds of students and their
autonomous robots compete at Santa Clara University on Saturday,
April 5, 2003.

The sixth annual KISS Institute for Practical Robotics (KIPR)
northern California botball tournament will highlight the programming
and engineering skills of 29 high school and middle school robotics
teams from northern California. The botball robotics program was
developed to give students an opportunity to apply science, math,
engineering and technology concepts in a stimulating and hands-on
environment. The botball tournament is the culminating event of six
weeks of design, engineering and programming of the robots by the
students.

"A major focus in the NASA mission is to inspire the next generation
of explorers," said Terry Grant, deputy director of the Robotics
Education Project at NASA Ames Research Center, located in
California's Silicon Valley. "So we are making educational programs
integral to every major NASA activity. We think the hands-on
experience with building and testing autonomous robots, as is
required for the botball competitions, is key to learning the
technology and inspiring the creative thinking we will need in future
scientists and engineers. Botball has proven appeal to students and
teachers across the country and in a wide range of educational
settings."

Each year, teams are introduced to a new robotics competition and
given identical kits of mechanical parts to build their robots. With
the help of mentors from NASA, industry and academia, student teams
are free to explore the infinite possibilities in design and strategy
to build their robots. Working side-by-side with professional
engineers and technicians, the students have a chance to see what
real-world engineering is all about while developing other valuable
skills such as teamwork, time- and project-management and leadership.

To make their robots 'come alive,' students program their robots
using interactive C, a software language that originally was
developed for a Massachusetts Institute of Technology autonomous
robot design contest. The software's interactivity and ease of use
made it the preferred means of programming botball robots.

NASA is a KISS Institute for Practical Robotics National Partner in
Education, providing tournament logistics and educational support,
mentors and team scholarships. NASA's Robotics Education Project is
supported through the NASA Office of Space Science, Washington, and
is directed by David Lavery, program executive for Solar System
Exploration. The Robotics Education Project supports a variety of
educational initiatives, including FIRST Robotics, which uses
robotics to motivate students to continue their education, especially
in the areas of math, science and technology.

Founded in 1993, the KISS Institute for Practical Robotics is a
private, non-profit community-based organization located in Norman,
Okla., that provides improved learning and skills development through
the application of technology, particularly robotics for students.

The NASA Robotics Education Project Web site can be found at:

http://robotics.nasa.gov

More information about the tournament, regional competitions and KIPR
can be found at:

http://www.kipr.org/

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