Free Radicals: Battlebots
The Electrochemical Society Interface FEATURED ARTICLES Free Radicals: Battlebots To cite this article: Dale Hall 2002 Electrochem. Soc. Interface 11 9 View the article online for updates and enhancements. This content was downloaded from IP address 170.106.202.58 on 25/09/2021 at 19:07 hus begins another on. And while contes- televised half-hour tants who watch their of Battlebots, a robots get taken apart cable television in the ring grimace in show with a real pain, good modestT but enthusiastic sportsmanship gener- audience who enjoy The box is locked, the lights are on, it’s robot fightin’ time! ally prevails. In post- watching mechanized fight interviews, monsters locked in mortal combat. winners are gracious toward their oppo- Every week, pairs of angry gizmos by Dale Hall nents, while losers praise the mechan- square off in three-minute bouts to ical prowess and driving skill of the of torque, and the like. (I can hear a decide which is the mightiest of them victors. million ten-year old boys now: "But all. Piloted by their builders via radio As a scientist with a materials back- Mom! It’s educational!") controls, the robots fly around a walled ground, I like to see what happens How about robot combat as an arena full of deadly obstacles, wheeling when material meets material on the exemplar of family values, a sense of and turning, always probing for the field of combat. How much punish- opponent’s weak spot — ment can 10 mm Lexan perhaps a tire, or a pro- take, anyway? (A lot, jecting feature that can judging from recent be grabbed, torn off, combat.) Is there any real sliced, or beaten into a advantage to Kevlar in the pile of twisted metal.
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