Lois Lowry's The Giver

The Giver by Lois Lowry is a book that has made an impression on me. The Giver is a a story of a boy named Jonas who lives in a perfect city. In this city all forms of emotion, such as happiness, fear, pain, love and sadness, are removed. The emotions are all stored inside one person called the "Receiver of Memory" who holds memories of the past. The memories are kept away and brought out when decisions are needed to be made to prevent making similar mistakes. In this world there is no color and they kill off defective people. The book made an impression on me because it shows that you cannot have a perfect world. Our flaws are what help make us who we are.

RoboFrog, My 3 lb. Battlebot

This year I made my second generation battlebot, a 3 lb. combat robot called RoboFrog.

 Its weapon is an aluminum spinning drum with spikes on it. I competed at a 3 lb. battlebot competition in Miami at Starbot, Inc on December 7, 2013. I won three out of the five matches I competed in.

During one of the matches, another drum robot ripped my drum off and I had 10 minutes to completely rebuild it.

I was able to rebuild it and compete again. I took 2nd place in the competition.

Robotics Competitions - Mini Robots Battle

My essay on Battlebots was selected and published by The Bunk Room magazine. Robotics Competitions - Mini Robots Battle

105 miles on the Appalachian Trail

In the summer of 2012, I hiked 105 miles on the Appalachian Trail with Eagle’s Nest Foundation.When I decided that I was going to hike the Appalachian Trail I trained for 9 months by going to the gym, lost 30 pounds and got into great shape. Now I am training for a triathlon with my dad. We run, bike and swim in the ocean every weekend. When I set a goal, I work towards it.

 I carried a 50 pound pack containing food, clothing and tools needed to survive. I love the simple living on the trail, from cooking delicious meals over a portable alcohol stove to sleeping under the stars in a sleeping bag. The surrounding area was mostly a luscious green forest. The experience was challenging but very gratifying and rewarding.