I just got back from an amazing talk down at Norwich University. the speaker was Dean Kamen, the inventor of the Segway.. and a ton of very amazing biomedical devices. Kamen has always bee a hero of mine for the things he’s created.. but the most amazing thing he has created isn’t really a ‘thing’ I’ts the FIRST robotic competition..a worldwide multilevel robotic sporting event that nw involves more than 250 thousand kids worlwide.
The talk was in the old armory of the University.. iWhen Homer and I got there it was absolutely packed with Norwich students including the uniformed core cadets..
THere were so amny that some had to stand p on the balconey.
The president of the college… who’s also some sort of General.. opend the event.. which is the first of a series of endowend talks where the public is invited.
He poitned out that there were kids in the audience who’d participate in Kamen’s FIRST an FIRST Lego legue competitions.
Kamen made a dramatic neterance on one of his segways.. He imediately started talking.. He started with a segement where he was on the Colbert report.. it was hilarious..
His talk was abotu half abou t the inventions that Kamen’s company has developed … including a wearable insuling pump, a home dyalisis machine, a new type of heart stint, a new type of helicopter, a wheel ahcair that stands up and walks up staris, a stirlingin engine powered hybrid car,a prosthetic arm a stiriign power generator.. and a companion water cooler which togeher can bring power and fresh water to folks all over the world. These were all very, very impresive acomplishments,..
But as I said befrore.. Kamans biggest accomp;lishment ishsi creation of the IRST ropbitc leage.. teh robot sporting event that is cnverting more kids to scince and enineering careers. Form it’s beginning in 1992. th e program as grown amazingly.. there are now 42 reginal events across the us.. and several overseas. The finals fill up the Georgia Dome in atlanta… Wevery year the winners get to go visit the president in the white house. Kamen also pointed out soem amazing statistics on graduates of his program.. Numbers on college entry, women and minority participation , the nmber of participants who chos engineering or related skills were all remarkable.
Kaman’s story really undercored some of the messages in the paper I’m doing for ISSCC that it’s not up to the teacher and the politicians to change this.. it has to be us as practicing engieners. He said that the best way for us to help is to become involved in a program lie FIRST. Man do I agree with that.
Kamen got a long standing ovation afte r the talk..we got to speak with him for awile.. that was cool. He’s a very smart and purposeful guy !
After the talk, we got to watch some of the kids play with their robots.. most impressinve !
It was very lucky timng hearing this talk. .. it really resonated with the nergy I’m putting into my outreach programs.. I’ll have to see how to work in soem of these examples into my talk ext feb
For right now.. I better find a way to make it to bed.. I’m falling asleep out here.
OK.. all for now.. Nite folks.. Nite Sam
-me
ps At on point, Kamen sited a great Einsein qute to hilight how our goverment has responeded to the educational demand of kids worlwide. He said..
The dfiference between genius and stupidity is that genious is bounded…