Friday

Mentor Students

Once a week during the school year, I work with fourth grade students as a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® mentor. LEGO MINDSTORMS for Schools is a program started by National Instruments, the LEGO Group, and Tufts University. It introduces students to engineering concepts by building robots with LEGOs and an NI LabVIEW-based software called LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT. LEGO MINDSTORMS is educational, sure, but mainly it's just fun.

Today, the fourth-grade teacher teaches the students about gears. She talks about ratios and how they're applied in vehicles. The students then must create a robot with gears that can go up and down ramps. I'm primarily an assistant. I answer questions the students have and help troubleshoot problems they encounter.

Toward the end of class, we talk about LEGO MINDSTORMS Mania, our annual event that gives the LEGO MINSTORMS students the chance to show off their robots to parents, friends, and the community as a whole. There's even a competition that requires students to navigate their robots through an obstacle course. Last year, more than 500 students attended LEGO MINDSTORMS Mania. We expect even more this year as this popular event continues to grow.

Go To Deck Party

In the afternoon, I go to a party on our multi-level wood deck. Sometimes we have deck parties to celebrate the release of a product. Sometimes we have them for a company-wide honor, such as being named a Fortune 100 Best Place to Work. Sometimes we have deck parties just for the heck of it. Whatever the occasion, it's a hoot to kick back with coworkers. Oh, and for the record, I'm okay with the food, beer, and live music, too.