Outside of the Box

Robot Roundtable: 2023 NHRL Finals Preview | Outside of the Box

In advance of the most competitive NHRL Finals yet, I sat down with a number of the competitors across the 3lb, 12lb & 30lb weight classes. Joining me were Ariel Smith of Beetlejuice, Zach Knight of Pramheda, Eli Davis of Hot Wings, Brandon Young of Phenomenon, Vorion & Fracas, Jake Hoffmann of Maximizer, Johnny Tsoumpas of Spartan, Tony D'Ambrosio of Blackbird, Michael Schorr of Voxel 12lb, Kevin Biagini of IDKWTFID and Corey Nason of Synthesis 3lb & 30lb. There was plenty of friendly smack talk amongst this group of seriously talented builders as we dove into each division and everyone gave their favorites and also potential dark horses to win it all. Check it out!
#nhrl #combatrobotics #championship #goldenbrett

STEM Spotlight w/Aly Moore of Bugible | Outside of the Box

Many people are not fans of being near bugs let alone eating them, however Aly Moore is out to change minds about the power of bugs when it comes to things like improving food insecurity issues, creating jobs and so much more. We spoke at length about her position as a STEMbassador for the National STEM Challenge which is accepting submissions through November 12 from the creative minds of 6th-12th graders. We also got into an array of interesting topics such as the many insect products available today, how bugs could be the sushi of the future and the very interesting dilemma for vegans that is not as straightforward as it may seem. Aly was such an amazing guest so please check it out!
#stem #stemeducation #eatbugs #nationalstemchallenge

BattleBots Breakdown w/Ashley Beckman | Champions ll Episode 3 | Special Delivery

We're back with more BattleBots Breakdown for an episode that seemed likely to end in some domination from down under, but ended up with free slushies for everyone courtesy of Free Shipping. We saw a couple of bots in this episode that we have only seen in exhibition matches - Double Tap and Slammo along with a couple of BattleBots regulars in Gigabyte and Mammoth. We also saw a couple of returning international favorites this season in Beta and DeathRoll as well as relative newcomer Triton. There certainly were some big hits and surprise knockouts in this one! See what we have to say about all of it! Also, hear our thoughts on the next two weeks of these qualifying rounds. Who else might make it in?

BattleBots Breakdown w/Ashley Beckman | Champions ll Episode 2 | This Bot Is On Fire

It is week 2 of BattleBots Champions and you know Ashley and I were ready to talk about everything that went down on Whiplash's way to punching its ticket into the Golden Bolt tournament. The first round of fights in this episode were mostly short-lived and several of them ended in fire. Black Dragon gave the judges a lot to think about and Malice tried to keep their hot season going. Hear what we thought about all of it!

J Lee of Game Over on Bot Buddies | NHRL | Outside of the Box

There are not many mech walker robots in combat robotics, but trying to bring this concept to NHRL in September was J Lee whose robot Game Over certainly drew a lot of attention at the event and was gloriously sacrificed to Chainsaw Kitty in an epic freestyle match. I talked to J about the inspiration behind Game Over which includes robots such as Chomp, Pawsitively Hissterical and Mark Setrakian's epic creation Stalker. We talked about the support J has gotten from Game U on this project as well as what may come next in the next iteration of this design.

BattleBots Breakdown w/Ashley Beckman | Golden Bolt Tournament Episode 1 | Shreddit WHOA

Welcome back to BattleBots breakdown where Ashley and I discuss all of the robot action from the previous episode of BattleBots. We kick off the season with some heavy NHRL representation as Shreddit Bro and Valkyrie slash their way through the competition to face each other for a place in the Golden Bolt tournament. We saw so many exciting matches in this episode that was all about redemption for two teams that had challenges in the main season. Hear us talk all about the excitement of seeing NHRL regulars Evan Arias and Lucy Du square off along with all of the fights that lead up to it.
#battlebots #nhrl #shreddit #valkyrie #combatrobotics #stem
 

Outside of the Box Ep 142 | Corey Nason of Synthesis | NHRL

In one of my favorite discussions ever, I got to sit down with my friend and mentor Corey Nason whose robot Synthesis took down two amazing robots simultaneously - not once, but twice by defeating both Loophole and Booty Brigade to move onto the finals of NHRL's September event. We touch on the event as a whole which was dominated by our friends from Brazil and Claw Viper's Kevin Milczewski in the higher weight classes as well as how the day went for the 3lb division including my robot Poison Apple which held up well against Loophole who would later be one of many bots who Corey left in his wake during this amazing run.

Outside of the Box Ep 141 | Kezia Skye - Chainsaw Kitty | NHRL

She may be named Kitty, but she fights like a tiger and after many requests I finally sat down with the builder/driver of Chainsaw Kitty - Kezia Skye. We talked about how she got started in combat robotics (shout out to Just Cuz Robotics), why it is important to stay grounded and not get overconfident as well as how she feels about the much anticipated Final Botdown being brought to you by NHRL on September 30. Will Chainsaw Kitty qualify for finals? I certainly hope so! Check out this great discussion with one of combat robotics' seriously talented builders.

Outside of the Box Ep 140 | Kari Byron | National STEM Challenge | EXPLR Media

It is time for a very special episode with a personal hero of mine and likely so many young people who grew up watching her be a curiosity communicator on Mythbusters - Kari Byron. We talk heavily about the National STEM Challenge which she organized as part of EXPLR with her business partner Jenny Buccos as well as collaboration with the Department of Education as well as Chef Andrew Zimmern. We get into the details of the festival including who can participate and the windows for submitting projects. Kari and I also discussed EXPLR's other initiatives, her personal journey in STEM and how art is closer to science than you think!
For more information about the National STEM Festival, including submission guidelines, visit: www.nationalstemchallenge.com
Follow Kari and the EXPLR team: Twitter/X - @nationalstemfestival @nationalstemchallenge @karibyron @jennybuccos @andrewzimmern IG: @nationalstemfestival @nationalstemchallenge @therealkaribyron @jennybuccos @chefaz Threads: @nationalstemfestival @therealkaribyron @chefaz

Outside of the Box Ep 139 | UK Combat Robotics Roundtable | Bristol Bot Builders | BattleBots

It is time for a giant serving of pits and chips with this roundtable full of amazing UK builders and event organizers to have a chat about the scene across the pond. I was joined by Tom Brewster & Sarah Asplin of Monsoon, James Cooper of Quantum plus two of the hardest working guys in UK combat robotics - Joe Brown and David Weston. There is also a bit of a bonus chat at the end with Sarah Malyan of Bugglebots. We all discussed how David Attenborough could revive Robot Wars, the pits and hazards that the UK is so well known for and the thriving scene there that is fueled by the passion of so many builders.