Saratoga Middle Schoolers Compete At Robotic Tournament

SARATOGA, CA -- Who says math, science aren't for girls? Probably those jealous boys.

An all-girls foursome to be reckoned with are taking their knowledge and constructive nature on the road to compete in the First Lego League Robotics Tournament set at U.C. Berkeley this weekend. They were already crowned the Northern California qualifiers.

The team of Redwood Middle School seventh- and eighth-graders, respectively, consists of sisters Deeksha and Druthi Palle as well as Priyanka Meduri and Anushka Sankaran. They're everyday, bubbly adolescents -- but don't let that fool you. The girls are smart as a whip, creating a three-tiered project that may go over the heads of the average adult.

For the multi-part contest, they developed a titanium robot and problem-solving thesis intended to address "social and physical problems faced by astronauts" calling it "Dancing with the Stars - Solar System Style" Anushka explained. The girls had a little high-level assistance in the beginning, gaining access to a control room at NASA's Ames Research Center in Mountain View. It helps to have friends in high places and live in an area like the Silicon Valley where knowledge and how to apply it is just as important as attending Sadie Hawkins dances and finding friends in school.

As their focus, the girls chose to attack such pressing health issues as overcoming bone loss -- which the students discovered in interviews with NASA specialists that 14 percent of astronauts face in just six months in space. They created a centrifugal wheel to generate artificial gravity, so an astronaut may exercise using dance moves and simple movements. The wheel simulates gravity as though the astronauts were on Earth. In addition, the space inhabitants may wear virtual reality glasses to watch their family members dancing as a means of reducing separation anxiety.

It's a start-up waiting to happen.

"We're all excited about going to the competition," Deeksha said.

Mom Shobana Radhakrishnan was elated.

"We're very proud," she said.

If they win the regional competition out of 16 San Francisco Bay Area teams, the girls would elevate to the state tourney, then onto nationals.

To illustrate just how big this competition is for science whizzes, Yao Zhang -- who started Roboterra, a worldwide software robotics company based in Palo Alto -- said First Lego is the big shebang of robotic tournaments.

"These are important concepts in math and science. It's a fun way to have working groups that develop a team spirit," Zhang said.

Indeed, teamwork is one of the three aspects to be judged in the competition. Girls, especially these four who were friends to begin with, excel in that area.

--Image courtesy of Shari Nakahura