A few weeks ago, ABC showed an hour long special called “i.am.FIRST – Science is Rock and Roll” – a program dedicated to inspiring the next generation of innovators, scientists and entrepreneurs.

Will.i.am at the 2010 MTV VMA's

The name, “i.am.FIRST” came about when pop singer Will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas collaborated with serial inventor Dean Kaman, who created the Segway, amongst numerous other pieces of technological wizardry. So the story goes, will.i.am was so fond of his Segway that he Googled the name of the inventor and called him out of the blue.

“FIRST” or “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology” is a robotics competition started by Kaman that has so far not been able to gather the attention and publicity that Kaman believed it deserves. Now 20 years’ old, this year’s FIRST competition featured 200,000 students from over 57 countries all interested in robotics and engineering.

FIRST took place this year in the Edward Jones Dome, normally the home of the NFL St Louis Rams and featured an Olympics-style series of competitions and events, such as one where robots competed as teams to arrange inflatable shapes in the formation of the FIRST logo. Continue Reading»