Both of MTA’s robotics teams competed in the FIRST Tech Challenge qualifier on Sunday, December 5, and advanced to the semifinals! High schools from all over the world compete in the FIRST Tech Challenge, an exciting robotics competition with new challenges every year. Students design, build, wire and program impressive robots. They drive around, grasp objects, place them precisely, spin a carousel and avoid obstacles. Sometimes the robots are operated by remote control, but some tasks must be done autonomously, using sensors and preprogrammed instructions to earn points. Seventeen teams participated in the qualifier round and MTA is proud that both of its teams made it to the semifinals! It was a roller coaster of a day, with parts breaking and being repaired at lightning speed, some impressive performances and some lucky breaks. Team members have been building the robots that competed in the qualifier since October, and their hard work really paid off. Both teams look forward to the next round of the competition in February.