Lapid seeks Senate commendation for RP Robo Team

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Senator Manuel “Lito” Lapid has filed a resolution seeking a commendation from the Senate for the Philippine Robotics Team for bagging two awards at the FIRST Robotics Competition Hawaii Regional.

In his resolution, Lapid said Filipino students could be at par with those abroad especially in fields like robotics with the appropriate training that the government could provide.

“The major awards garnered by our Filipino students in the Regional FIRST Robotics Competition in Honolulu, Hawaii last March 2009 show that with proper training, Filipino students can excel in the field of robotics and can ably compete with their foreign counterparts,” the resolution Lapid filed read.

The Philippine team to the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Hawaii Regional won two awards in its rookie year and competed in Atlanta, Georgia for the International Championship.

Team 3105 or Team Lagablab, the sole ASEAN participant in the FRC Hawaii Regional, beat six other high school teams from the United States in achieving the Highest Rookie Seed Award and the Rookie All-Star Award, the latter earning the Philippines a shot at the Finals last April 16 to 18, 2009.

Team Lagablab is composed of 20 junior high school students from the Philippine Science High School (PSHS) Main Campus, seven mentors from the University of the Philippines-Diliman and De La Salle University, and three coaches from PSHS.

Lapid said the feat by the students shows the need to improve further the educational system in the country with a focus on creating scientists and researchers.

“This excellent performance displayed by our Filipino students has renewed our determination to further develop and improve our educational system and establish the Philippines as a breeding ground for globally competitive scientists and researchers,” he said.

Dr. Ester B. Ogena, Director of the Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) and head of the Philippine delegation to the FRC Hawaii Regional, expressed gratitude to the senator for taking the initiative of paying tribute to Team Lagablab.

“A recognition by our legislators would be a bonus for the hardships our students have undergone before competing in Honolulu,” she said.

Ogena said the contest truly showed the immense potential the Philippines has in terms of human resources for robotics.

“We have found in Hawaii a treasure trove of talents and I am sure that there is more to tap in the Philippines. We have truly shown to the world that we can do it and we can make it big in international competitions, especially in robotics,” she said.

Ogena added that the Philippines is participating in the FRC to entice the students to venture into careers in robotics.

“We want our students to have the motivation and inspiration to become scientists and engineers by making them experience what it is like to be in the real world. We hope that through the FRC we would be able to give them an insight to the scientific community,” she said.

The Highest Rookie Seed Award is given to the neophyte team that gets the highest seed at the conclusion of the qualifying rounds.

Team Lagablab with its robot, Larry Labuyo, ranked 17 of the 33 competing teams with a standing of five wins, five losses, and one tie. The six other teams ranked lower than the Philippines.

On the other hand, the Rookie All-Star Award is given to a new team exemplifying a young but strong partnership effort, as well as implementing the mission of FIRST to inspire students to learn more about science and technology.

Team Lagablab trounced the teams from Prospect High School, Mililani High School, Damien Memorial High School and Farrington High School, Mid-Pacific Institute, and Kalani High School, all from the United States, in achieving the two awards.

The award was given at the closing ceremony of the FRC Hawaii Regional held from March 26 to 28 at the Stan Sheriff Center, University of Hawaii – Manoa and was attended by Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle and Lieutenant Governor James “Duke” Aiona.

In Atlanta, the Philippine team ranked 66 in the Curie Division where the team was placed. Team Lagablab won three games and lost three games in the Division.

However, the Philippine team got a chance to be interviewed in CNN and share their experience in competing.

FIRST is a US-based organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen in 1989, aimed at inspiring young people’s interest and participation in science and technology.

FRC is a unique varsity sport of the mind designed to help high school-aged young people discover how interesting and rewarding the life of engineers and scientists can be. FIRST teaches students “gracious professionalism,” which focuses on reaching out to your opponents and helping them out in the game.

Each year, FIRST unveils a new game for the students to solve using a common kit of parts where they are asked to build a robot that would perform based on the rules of the game.

For this year, the students engaged in a game called “Lunacy,” which simulates the conditions in the moon. Robots used a special kind of wheel rolling over regolith, a material which is almost frictionless.

The objective of the game is to place as many “moon rocks” into the trailer of the opponent in 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Labuyo showed its prowess in the FRC Hawaii Regional by dumping seven moon rocks to an opponent robot’s trailer in three seconds.

Other countries participating in the FRC are Great Britain, Netherlands, Germany, Mexico, Turkey, Israel, Brazil, and Chile. (30)