During our latest trawl of the Internet to find tidbits of interest for the M&F audience, we came across BBC Tech Reporter Jane Wakefield's report on the Robot World Cup, which took place recently in Bristol, England.
The video report features an interview with one of the robots competing in the weightlifting event. Canadian competitor Jimmy, a self professed "off the shelf Darwin Op robot, manufactured in South Korea," is one the pioneers in the fledgling sport for man-made machines.
Jimmy went on to say the folks at the University of Winnipeg equipped him with some gripping hands that would come in handy while he was competing during the weightlifting event. Jimmy, we love that you have taken to weightlifting. Be it man or machine, weightlifting is a great sport to make you feel good and look great.
However, we feel it necessary to stage a lifting intervention, Jimmy, as some of your lifting was dangerous to both you and your fellow competitors.
We would like to point out a few lifting 101s to ensure that you can continue your lifting career in safety and without injury.
1. Where the hell was your spotter?
Don't be a dumbbot. Don't let all the mechanical tweaks and training count for naught if you don't have a buddy to spot you when you start your lift.
2. Always. Secure. Your. Weights. Properly.
I know in your case it was two stacks of cds, but the premise remains the same. If the cds had crashed to the ground, your lift would have been ruined (check out the cds wobbling precariously at 0:50ish). Also, we couldn't help noticing that you made the lift on a soccer field. Was the game going on at the same time? If so, the cds could have flown off the bar, whizzed into one of the soccer players and interfered with his circuit board. Remember Jimmy, you are not the only one with World Cup aspirations. Don't shatter someone else's dream with sloppy preparation.
3. Don't allow your personality to interfere with your form
We love characters and we applaud positive self-expression. However, what the hell were you thinking wearing that beanie? Yeah, you rocked it and you looked cool, but it almost wrecked your lift (check out the video at 1:00 ). The bar wobbled a little Jimmy, all because you decided to wear a woolly hat to the Games. Sort it out.
That said, carrying that weight one meter was pretty impressive, so congratulations on that. We'd invoke the M&F mantra and say "More Power to You," but we're not entirely sure that this would be within the rules of robotic competition. Instead, we say get the fundamentals right and you will be a better lifter for it Jimmy. No excuses!
