THE 10TH ANNUAL SLUGS VS. BUGS COMPETITION TOOK PLACE ON THURSDAY AT UC SANTA CRUZ’S ENGINEERING AUDITORIUM. NEARLY 60 STUDENTS WERE IN THE COMPETITION, WHICH INVOLVED SPENDING ON THE ORDER OF 100 HOURS PER WEEK, DESIGNING SOFTWARE AND CREATING SHOE-BOX SIZED ROBOTS THAT ARE ABLE REACT TO THE ENVIRONMENT AND MAKE DECISIONS. ONE DEMONSTRATION WAS FOR THE ROBOTS TO DETECT OBSTACLES WITHIN THE BOUNDARY OF A BATTLEFIELD SCENE AND SHOOT PING PONG BALLS AT THE OPPONENTS. THE AUDITORIUM HAD SCREENS PROJECTING THE ACTION TO AN AUDIENCE OF NEARLY 400 VIEWERS. ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR GABRIEL ELKAIM STARTED THE EVENT AS AN AID TO HIS INTRODUCTION TO MECHATRONICS, WHICH LEADS TO A CAREER IN SYSTEMS PROGRAMMING AND WRITING CODE FOR ROBOTS.
