Robotics

Year 11 student James McArthur is a member of the Robotics FRC Team 3132, The Thunder Down Under at Macquarie University.  James' main focus is strategy and he is responsible for business plans, media footage, photography, community outreach, sponsorship and award submissions.

This year James is also a member of the Chairman's team whose mission is to spread science, technology, engineering and mathematics as widely as possible. And this is certainly what James is doing at Pittwater House as he works with our Robotics team under the teacher guidance of Ms Lord.

James has also been selected to undertake a public speaking workshop, sponsored by Google Australia in preparation for a regional competition in Hawaii at the end of March, where his speech will be the cornerstone of the presentation. And if the team has success, then the World Championships is the end goal … in St Louis.

First Lego League

Two Pittwater House FIRST LEGO® League (FLL) robotics teams competed at the National Tournament at Macquarie University on Sunday 24 February. Over 35 teams from the 250 around Australia competed and had fun in the process.

The Manic Engineers consisting of Year 5 and Year 7 students Matthew Rose, Daniel Nemstev and William Swift and The Professional Lunatics consisting of  students from Year 5, 7 and 8, Joshua Udell, Robyn Garrad, Aaron Auld and Duncan Easter all took part in the event. They were coached by James McArthur (Year 11) and Fredrik Westling (Alumni) throughout the 2012 season.

The Manic Engineers had to forfeit their first match due to technical difficulties. This did not deter the team, working together they kept calm and got their robot going again. This didn't go un-noticed by the judges, and for their perseverance and sportsmanship, The Manic Engineers won a judges award for their efforts and great team work.

Fresh off the back of their regional robot game win, The Professional Lunatics went into the competition with open minds, knowing that their robot was to be up against the best of the best, and they did not go away disappointed. Although their robot did not win, they scored a very high score of 215 points! This team showed what it meant to have fun, never losing their smiles.

The students all deserve congratulations for their spectacular efforts and for representing the School at a national level, doing the school a great service.