It all started with VEX robotics! My academic interests in engineering and computer science, my drive for solving real world problems with AI, and many of my best friends all dated back in the fourth grade when I first got in touch with VEX competitions. I feel it is the right time to recollect my VEX memories.
By the first time I joined a VEX team, I was amazed at how smart and exciting to program a robotic machine to tackle the seemingly impossible tasks. In my team, I was the only one who loves both the robotics part and the programming part, and I naturally took the responsibility of programming designer in the team. I have been on the path of employing computational tools to tackle various challenge ever since.
Amongst the many competitions I entered over the years, the most unforgettable one was my first time at the World Championship in the United States. I was deeply impressed by the many American families who teamed up to participate in. Although they only stopped their journey in the first round of game, but they were so happy and enjoyed the game from the deep heart.
It seems the World Championship is not like a competition, but rather a gathering of VEX fans all over the world.
Figure 1. It was the fourth grade in the primary school that I entered VEX competition first time in my life, starting a challenging but fun journey.
Figure 2. In fifth grade, it was my first time to attend a competition out of the country. Our team won the silver medal in VEX Asia Tournament.
Figure 3. In fifth grade, it was also my first time entering the World Championships in the U.S. with my two other best friends in our team, winning a Gold medal.
Figure 4. Winning National Championship again in 2015 with teammates.
Figure 5. First competition representing my secondary school.
Figure 6. Great teamwork during the competition was admired even by our rivals.
Figure 7. The robotics lab at RDFZ (my secondary school) is my favorite place during the entire secondary school. I spent most of my time in the lab training on engineering the mechanical constructions and working on the programming optimizations for VEX robotics。
Figure 8. I keep a record of every single engineering log from the VEX training activities even till today.
Figure 9. Winning 2019 World Robot Contest Finals (WRCF) Champion. This is the last VEX competition before I went to the U.S. for high school.
Figure 10. Coaching 10-year-old students from the community near my high school
Having been involved in VEX for years up to now, I also started to coach the new generation such as my brother and his friends to enter VEX IQ competitions. To me, VEX is much more than a mechanical construction competition. It is a perfect storm involving many challenges including physics, mathematics, computer programming, intelligent control, on-the-spot response, and teamwork. The experience with VEX and the strategical thinking I have learned will help me to stand up to various real-life problems, including global challenges.