Phil - Considering the emotional and politicized nature of the Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) debate, I was actually gratified to see that the theme and project this year were worded in such a way as to not be specifically about AGW but instead about climate science in general. One only needs to read newspapers to know that there are many people who feel VERY strongly about AGW and would naturally look on AGW-oriented projects with great favor (or disfavor). It is often true that a student in a university class must write papers that please the professor's ideological "bent" or risk getting a bad grade. I would ask that the judges be reminded to not grade projects higher or lower based on whether they agree with the political implications of the project. That should ensure a level playing field for all to succeed on their merits. Thanks for all that you do, Phil! Your hard work is certainly appreciated (as is that of all our wonderful volunteer judges). Stuart Roll Team 1494 - Banano Splits (2006) Team 6567 - Solar Pickles (2007) Team 3502 & ???? (2008) -----Original Message----- From: First Lego League Discussion [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Phil Smith III Sent: Monday, September 22, 2008 10:46 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [VADCFLL-L] Project Dilemma I read Barry's statement to say it doesn't *need* to be about Global Warming, not that it *cannot* be. If that helps. -- Phil Smith III Virginia State Judge Advisor, 2007 Judge Advisor, Northern Virginia Regional tournaments, 2006 Division 1 Judge Advisor, Virginia State tournament, 2006 Coach, The Capital Girls, Oak Hill (retired) Team 1900 (2002) Team 2497 (2003) Team 2355 (2004) Team 1945 (2005) -----Original Message----- From: First Lego League Discussion [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Michael Blanpied Sent: Monday, September 22, 2008 10:20 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [VADCFLL-L] Project Dilemma At 6:47 PM -0700 9/21/08, Barry Wilbanks wrote: >This type question was raised at the FLL Partner conference in SC >where they introduced the challenge. > >It was specifically stated NOT be be oriented toward global warming >or climate change. Barry, Who was the source of this "specific statement" warning teams away from climate change? That would seem most bizarre to me, if it came from an official source. Climate change is a huge issue, one that kids should be aware of, and part of what makes this year's climate theme so compelling. While I see no requirement that the project be about climate change, it very well could be, and I expect that many team projects will be. After all, the instructions say, "Research how climate affects your own community. Identify a climate problem in your area...," and changing climate is a key problem for many communities, and one for which innovative solutions are needed. ______________________________________________________________ To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE YOUR SETTINGS, please visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or leave the list". If you want to join the VADCFLL-ADMIN-L mailing list - to which FLL administrative announcements will be distributed - visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-admin-l.html and select "Join or leave the list". ______________________________________________________________ To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE YOUR SETTINGS, please visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or leave the list". If you want to join the VADCFLL-ADMIN-L mailing list - to which FLL administrative announcements will be distributed - visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-admin-l.html and select "Join or leave the list".