Lao NEWS on LNTV: Machines rises for Robot Contest 2014 in Vientiane.17/3/2014

VO Machines rises for Robot Contest 2014 in Vientiane INTRO: The Faculty of Engineering at the National University of Laos or NUOL hosted the 2014 Robot Contest, which took place on March 14 .The competition has been held every year since 2002 and has become popular not only among faculty members and students but also among other students in Vientiane. STORY: It is the eleventh time such a contest has been held, and this year, aside from the teams from the NUOL, some technical and vocational schools from other provinces also took part. The 2014 Robot Contest aims to provide young engineering students with an interesting avenue through which to put their theoretical skills to use, designing and constructing robots, which can perform practical applications. It is also hoped that through the contest bright young people will become increasingly interested in science and technology, which can be a driving force for the economic development of the country. Official said, the contest comes under the auspices of the Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youths Robot Programme, thanks to generous support from the government of Japan. This year, each team built one manual robot and one automatic robot. Building an automatic one is more difficult, so the points gained in this contest are set higher than the manual contest. The robot contest is also a great opportunity for students to work on creativity, strategy building and teamwork as well as to showcase what they have learned in class. It is thought the contest inspires young people to enter the fields of science and technology, which is one of the key areas for driving the country's economic growth and development. The Robot Contest has been held in Vientiane since 2002. It is popular not only among the faculty members and students but also among secondary students in the neighbourhood.