UNT hosts the Texas BEST 2008 robotics competition
On November 14 and 15, 2008 the University of North Texas (UNT) hosted Texas BEST, the regional robotics championship for high schools and middle schools.
About 40 teams comprising about 1,000 competitors from Texas and New Mexico contended for the top title in the two-day 15th annual Texas BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology). The teams advanced from their local hub competitions to the regional championship.
Tom Fitzmaurice, regional director, said the competition attracts students interested in math and science — two subjects that open several opportunities and “can be just as much fun as sports.”
Some students enter college to obtain engineering degrees, but they don’t pursue additional math and science courses in middle and high school that will prepare them, he said.
“If our young students stop taking math and science or become deficient in middle school or in high school, they’re already limiting their career options,” Fitzmaurice said. “Just because you take math and science in high school doesn’t mean you have to be an engineer or rocket scientist, but it also means you could be.”
As part of the event, the G-Force Student Outreach Group, the Eagle Ambassadors Group, and other UNT student volunteers, guided the visiting students on tours of the UNT main campus, and the College of Engineering.
Keynote speaker Anousheh Ansari, the first female private space explorer and first astronaut of Iranian descent, addressed contest attendees at the UNT Coliseum. Teams competed with robots they built over a six-week period for the use of aircraft assembly.
Judges evaluated team notebooks, oral presentation, table/booth displays, spirit and sportsmanship, and robot performance. Faculty and students from the Colleges of Engineering, Visual Arts and Design, and Business Administration, helped judge the various aspects of the competition. The event was free and open to the public.
Miguel Garcia-Rubio, Associate Dean of the UNT College of Engineering, said the idea behind this competition is to give participating students the experience of having created a device that connects the subjects taught in class, with a tangible activity that’s fun and challenging. “Once they make that connection, it motivates them to study difficult subjects such as math.”
Texas BEST is free for participating teams and schools. It is paid for through sponsors such as Texas Instruments, Lockheed Martin, Wells Fargo, Raytheon, Devon Energy, UNT, and the Denton Convention and Visitors Bureau.
BEST Robotics Inc., a nonprofit organization, was organized by two Texas Instruments engineers in 1993 and includes 36 hubs in 16 states.
More than 10,000 students participate in BEST nationwide. It offers regional championship contests in Texas, Arkansas and Alabama.
