Three of the seven teams which set out to represent Guyana in the International Youth Robotics Competition held virtually in South Korea, have carted away medals with a mask distribution and sanitizing robot earning silver.
The junior and senior teams who represented Guyana, were asked to identify a challenge affecting their community and to create a robotic solution to address the challenge.
The competition saw more than 540 students, comprising 182 teams from 29 countries participating, and for the first time junior teams ages 8 to 13 were prepared for international competition.
The International Youth Robot Competition is an annual youth competition in robotics, programming, and digital technologies. It is organised by the International Youth Robot Association (IYRA) and the competition was previously held in South Korea, Thailand, China, and Malaysia, however this year it was held virtually. The competitors from 28 states included the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, South Korea, China, USA, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Spain, Israel, Algeria, Morocco, Turkey, India, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Philippines and Cambodia. This is the first time Guyana has participating and the teams were required to send videos of themselves describing their robot as well as the making of it to the IYRA.
According to a press release from STEMGuyana, the country is fielding another senior team which is currently in competition at the First Global Robotics competition attended by 180 countries around the world. Team Guyana 2020 is currently at 32nd place out of the 182 teams with opportunities to raise their ranking before the end of the competition in October. In 2019, Team Guyana brought home the gold Albert Einstein medal.
Meanwhile, for the IYRA, teams Lunar and Conquerors brought home medals, respectively, for the junior competition while team Power Thinkers brought home the silver medal in the senior competition. Team Lunar created a sanitizing robot which uses ultraviolet lights to kill the COVID-19 virus on surfaces. This team was made up of Naliah Fordyce, Michael Blake, and Tushaant Sanichara and coached by STEMGuyana member Immanuel Meusa.
Team Conquerors designed and built the All-Terrain Rescuer which is able to navigate through any weather condition to deliver food and medical supplies to a community. It also provides information about the coronavirus to the villagers. The team comprised On Beaton, Lucas Simpson and Rashad Quintin and was coached by STEMGuyana member Kenita Roberts.
In the senior category, team Power Thinkers won the silver medal. The team included players Rajeshwar Meghbaran and Emelio Persaud and they were coached by STEMGuyana members Stephanie Simon and Joshua Reece. This two-person team created an automated mask distribution and sanitising robot.
Stabroek News was able to speak with some of the junior competitors who all said they thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the competition and looked forward to competing in more of them. The children also acknowledged that there were challenges but those were easily overcome by their enthusiasm and willingness to represent Guyana.
Stabroek News first spoke with brothers Lucas and Logan Simpson. The two were very elated as they spoke about their experience being part of the competition. The pair who have been part of STEMGuyana for some time related that after brainstorming for robots that would fit the requirement of the competition, the teams would have met via Zoom. They said that all the planning had been done through the meetings so the meet-up only entailed them building, this meant less time figuring out concepts and design.
Both boys also complained that they had some difficulty wearing masks throughout the entire day when they had to build but they did not allow anything to distract them from getting the job done. Logan, the younger brother, said “When we built it was hard with the mask, my mouth used to sweat, so I’d be wearing a sweaty mask and I would go take it off in a corner. I would usually take it off to eat and drink. I was so occupied with work sometimes that I would forget to eat my lunch,” he recounted before stating that he was happy with the way the competition turned out.
His mother explained that Logan’s design was aired on Stem’s Facebook page. He also spoke on behalf of the team but the team did not receive a place in the competition. Logan admitted being sad about this but not deterred from trying again.
His older brother Lucas said everyone had fun building and team Conquerors (his team) received a medal for their design. Lucas described the function of the all-terrain robot, “It’s like a truck that could go through any type of weather to deliver supplies of medicine and water to the people who are at risk of getting the virus.” He added that the truck has a light for travelling at night and gives information about the disease. At the rear of the tracks are crates which hold the supplies, which include sanitisers, vitamin C in orange juice form, and masks.
Sanitation bot
Michael Blake was a part of team Lunar who received the bronze medal for the sanitation bot. The 11-year-old said that it was his first competition of this type and he was very excited for the opportunity although it was challenging because of the pressure of worrying whether persons would like it and enjoy using it.
“It started out as three ideas that we each made. Then we got out into the teams and combined our ideas,” he related, “We all got along well because we knew each other from STEM but we had some challenges when it came to our ideas. We didn’t always agree,” the young bronze winner disclosed.
He also informed that the results were sent to them through their parents’ cell phones and they were both excited and surprised.
Sean Duncan of team Alpha, which did not win a medal but was just as creative as the other teams, said that his team created a robot that dispenses sanitizer and groceries. “When you put your hand in front, there is a censor which picks up the motion and sanitizer is poured out,” he explained. He recalled his experience as being a fun one because all of their ideas went into one project. He is looking forward to more competitions.
Rashad Lancaster, another member of team Conquerors told this newspaper that building the strong robot which can navigate through any weather was exciting but it was also a scary experience because he was fearful of contracting COVID-19. He said that he was happy to know that the many safety protocols were followed and in the end it was a success.
The designer of the sanitising robot, Naliah Fordyce, of team Lunar said that she was nervous at first because of the novel coronavirus that is spreading rampantly. But the idea of representing Guyana made her brave enough to go out and compete and although building the robot was a challenge, the young designer was able to work with her team members and this earned them a silver medal.
Her teammate, Tushaant Sanichara who also spoke to Stabroek News said that he was not nervous about the competition. He said that he mostly felt excitement and found it to be quite easy coming up with the ideas and then engaging in the process of building. He was elated to know that his team’s creation was going to be helpful once it was created.
Two group members of another team which competed but did not earn a place were Angel DeMendonca and Jaheim Lindo. The pair created a robot which checks the temperature of persons and delivers groceries. Lindo said that both he and his teammate had to combine their ideas to create the robot and it was actually a bit scary to do that having to meet up all the while trying to follow COVID-19 safety measures. However, he enjoyed every bit of it.
The parents of the junior competitors also expressed their gratitude to STEMGuyana for the opportunity afforded the children. They all said that they appreciate STEMGuyana for the programmes which cater for children from all walks of life. This is the fourth year that teams were prepared for global competition by the STEMGuyana organisation which has a working robotics lab at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall. This is where the children built the robots. The current lab is sponsored by the Department of Youth and the Office of the Prime Minister, which provides a secure location and internet connectivity for the work of the organisation.
The parents also shared their worry about having to turn out while COVID-19 cases continue to rise. Especially since Guyana’s participation was in doubt because of the impact the crisis has had on persons’ financial status as well as the ongoing political challenges in the country. However members of the Guyana Diaspora were determined to ensure that Guyanese youths had an opportunity to showcase their talents globally, and for the first time, sponsored the participation of all the 2020 teams.
However, the parents had to be convinced that all measures would be taken to ensure the young competitors were safe at all times throughout the competition. The mother of the Simpson brothers told this newspaper that like most parents she is very proud of her sons and she noticed their interest in the competition, and so allowed them to participate. She disclosed that having them at home since March also persuaded her to let them take part, “It was nice in that they were house-bound since March. This is their first real interaction with other children,” the proud mother said. “I’m really proud of both of them. They were on two separate teams so they were in a bit of competition with each other. It was Lucas’ team that was awarded the bronze medal. Team Conquerors,” she added. The pair’s mother said that she accompanied them every day and stayed throughout the entire session as she was not only curious about what they were making, but also to ensure that their environment was COVID-19 safe. However, after the first day, she noted there was nothing to worry about as they were constantly monitored and reminded to be cautious.
Similarly, Blake’s mother related that with everything going on, her family had also been house-bound. Having Blake out of the house and interacting with other persons was quite worrying and she had been questioning the child’s safety. She was eventually assured after seeing the safe environment STEMGuyana provided for the children.
Duncan’s mother was also concerned and shared that Duncan had only been out of the house to write the National Grade Six Assessment. But she too dismissed her concerns after seeing all the COVID-19 protocols that were in place. She was also impressed by the work done and encouraged him to continue participating.
Fordyce’s parents told this newspaper that they let their daughter participate because they could see that she wanted to be a part of it and they both supported her. Her mother said that she found it to be a brave move to represent Guyana, while her father said that it seemed somewhat challenging. “They had to build and come up with something that would fit the situation. Our endeavour was to make sure that she gets out there and be herself,” the proud father said while disclosing that Fordyce has always been enthusiastic.
