Ship date has arrived . . .

State of robotics 1:00 am ship date: Soooper troopers Shirin, Sophia and Chrissy stayed on and persisted until they witnessed a bit of a miracle. Rosie drove itself out of its starting position, turned left in the middle of the field, headed towards the goal and shot two balls into the goal, all on her own accord.

That’s some serious perseverance.

Ed came by with a leaner meaner cart, Jimmy lended a hand yet again with the hopper and made it easier to load balls into, Doug and Eric came by for EE and software support, and multiple parents, which included Shirin’s entire family, dropped by to bring food and good things.

It’s really cold in the gym. The electric blanket really helps. A spot of the couch really helps too.

Goodnight.

It's been a whirlwind of a week.

I'm overwhelmed and amazed by the generosity of so many people - Jim Feuhrer for stepping up this week pulling through a full seven days of midnight departures to build the hopper and the ramp, rebuild the turret plate, and mount multiple sensors, George Schnurle for coming by to give moral support and good humor even though his daughter is 3000 miles away, Doug Bourn for somehow managing to find time to come by even though he is up against an even tighter and tougher deadline at Tesla Motors, Eric Macintosh for some serious coding prowress, Bud Delisle for being there for the girls, Chris Countryman for animation advice and helping me in my braindead state to implement an RC switch debounce, George Aye for coming ALL the way from Chicago to offer his rendering expertise to Shirin, Beth Schnurle, Debbie Hara, and Heidi Crone for their undying wisdom, encouragement and support, and of course, David Berger for the famous quiche that keeps me coming back for more.

More here: http://gatorbotics-build.blogspot.com/2006/02/under-hood.html

Pulling your own weight

I will pull my weight if you pull your weight. This applies not only to the students but also to the mentors, parents and teachers involved. It is realistic to point out that in the majority of project teams and organizations I’ve been in, there is dead weight. These are people who claim that they are capable of taking responsibility and delivering on their promises, but don’t live up to their claims. This is ignorance, arrogance and stupidity to put it frankly. I have all the respect in the world for people who are aware and sensitive of their limits and their abilities, and when they realize they cannot deliver on a promise, they have the integrity to go ask for help as soon as possible. We cannot do much on our own – everyone leans on everyone else to pull through, but when you do not do your part and are afraid to admit it and ask for help, it hurts everyone else, a lot.

The lone inventor is a myth. Thomas Edison had hundreds of people working with him to invent the working lightbulb. He alone could not have tested thousands of materials to come upon the tungsten filament, which finally proved to be the right material. Robotics here is the same. If you promise to hit a deadline, if you promise to have something prototyped, if you promise you can have a certain amount of money raised, if you promise to show up get something done, you should hold to that promise and if you cannot, at least raise your hand early enough and let the community know. We will not berate you for not trying and ask for help. It is when you do not ask for help and wait until little can be done anymore will we ALL fall to the ground.

I have been hurt, a lot, during the last six weeks, by people who claim they can do things, but don’t raise their hand and share with everyone when they have trouble delivering. I’m on my last straw – and I want to make it clear that it is not only the students, but some of us big people who are not pulling our own weight. There are many of you out there who are being proactive and doing more than your part, but there are a few of us in the community who have been given a lot of responsibility but are not or cannot deliver. How many more times do I have to get a slap on the wrist for picking up after you?

I'm crying. This is unfair. I don't know how else to be polite and honest at the same time.

Women, Robots, and Good Things

Dearest reader,

I hadn't realized that people actually read this blog and pay attention. It has become a fantastic outlet for the things on my mind. More so, I appreciate more than anything the kind words, the food and the emotional support all around. This is not just a technical adventure, but an emotional rollercoaster. And the more times we go through the journey, the better we get a figuring out how to control and manage that emotional rollercoaster.

For me, working with a group of young, strong willed women and being a woman is something really special. I think, I've grown up to keep my emotions in during my struggles in school, and at work. It goes with the thinking that 'if I want to play with the big boys, I can't cry'. More and more, I believe that perhaps this is not the way to approach life, and perhaps I've been doing it so long, that I have to unlearn it. A very wise and insightful woman said to me last night: 'Emily, perhaps it's a good lesson for the girls to see you crack at the surface. It's important for people to be able to share their emotions, to be true to ourselves in the way that we feel, and to feel comfortable sharing that'. You know who you are out there - and I really appreciate you.

I think what makes this team special is that we are all women and that we can work things out in a way that is emotionally supportive and perhaps different from how much of the engineering and science world works. I think we can be much more open and understanding with each other. I did break into tears last Friday - it was a culmination of many things in my work and life - but after that, and after a number of heartfelt conversations with people at work, and with a few of you, I am definitely on the upswing. I believe that having opened myself up to you, our friendships have grown stronger and our ability to work together has grown stronger.

Like work hardened steel, we only become stronger people when we work through our trials and tribulations in robotics, and in life.