Looking Ahead to a Rosie Future
Letter from the editor
When I was a child in the 1970s I loved watching television on a Saturday morning. Somehow I managed to find my entertainment from three to four channels.
Today’s kids have between 40 and 400 channels to choose from, not including On Demand, Netflix and YouTube.
“The Jetsons” was my favorite show. It was a cartoon about a futuristic family that had flying cars and a robot that cooked and cleaned up after them. Even as an adult I fantasized about the Jetsons’ house-cleaning robot named “Rosie” tidying up my house.
In light of that dream, when I received a robotic vacuum cleaner for my birthday, we jokingly named it Rosie. She was a dream come true initially. But we quickly saw that she would get stuck or jammed.
Somehow Rosie, my automatic vacuum, always needed human assistance. The dirt bin quickly filled up with dog hair and had to be emptied. She ate a few socks and “got sick.” When she went missing, we had to rescue her from under the couch. I have to admit, though, it was amusing to see my dog’s reaction to her.
Like all the other automated things popping up in our world, from the grocery store checkout to the banks downsizing to drive-through ATMs, without people behind the scenes to help when it got stuck, it was of no value.
Last week on the “Shore Local Live” radio show we had the pleasure of interviewing some high school and middle school students who recently competed in a worldwide STEM competition.
STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. These students from Egg Harbor Township, Linwood and Galloway competed at the highest level. The Egg Harbor Township PAL (Police Athletic League) offers a phenomenal opportunity for students throughout our area to participate and compete in this.
Nationally, STEM and robotics competitions are gaining momentum and may soon be recognized as a high school sport.
The skills students can learn including teamwork, collaboration and problem solving are the same as those learned in other sports. However, unlike most sports, robotics provides all students an opportunity, regardless of their physical ability.
With Embry Riddle University helping Atlantic County develop an aviation maintenance academy, more high school students than ever will be given the opportunity to explore careers in technology and engineering.
We all have that one “techy” friend that we take our questions, problems and glitches to for advice. In this age of computer everything, the “tech” person is usually the most popular in a room. Sure, good looks, people skills and athletic prowess are admirable, but the tech person is downright useful.
If you are like me, you didn’t have the advantage of growing up with computers or computer classes in school. We are the “learn as we go” generation that is forever playing catchup and often learning from our kids.
We have done pretty well, though, my friends. Just imagine how far these young computer programmers and engineers are going to take us into the future. George Jetson would be proud.
Peace
& Love,
Cindy
