What is a Bit Bucket?
The Bit Buckets Robotics Team has inquisitive students from nine schools learning the ins and outs of engineering, programming, electronics and fabrication. This group of high school and middle school students come together to enhance their learning capabilities and also have some fun!
The "bit bucket" is nerd slang for that mysterious place where lost computer data has gone. As a Bit Buckets member, each of us hopes to journey deep into the bit bucket, exploring STEM and robotics. However, we are on a quest for more than just science.
- We are a community, building skills, future opportunities, and experience. We include students with diverse backgrounds and financial situations who work together to emerge out of the bit bucket, enlightened.
- In order to continue providing this opportunity to generations of children, we need every bit of help we can get. That's where you come in. Donations of any amount help create this outlet of intellectual energy and take us to local and national competitions. We are starting a nonprofit so we can grow and serve even more students in the future.
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- There have been many milestones in our journey:
Awards
FIRST Robotics Competition:
* Judges Award, Arizona Regional 2013
* Rookie All Star Award, Utah Regional 2012
* World Championship Participant, St. Louis 2012
Vex Robotics Competition, Team 5485, 5485B & 5088A:
* Tournament Finalist, Southern Arizona Regional Vex Tournament 2012
* Robot Skills 2nd Place, Southern AZ Skills Challenge Competition 2012
* Build Award, Microchip Vex Tournament 2012
* Tournament Finalist, Southern Arizona Regional Vex Tournament 2011
National Underwater Robotics Competition (NURC)
* 2nd Place NURC 2013
Tucson Pumpkin Toss:
* 2nd Place High School Trebuchet 2012
Our Purpose
Your contributions are essential in order for the team to construct a robot: not just any robot, but one built in only 45 days! Students will supplement the basic kit of parts along with additional hardware, motors, accelerators and potentiometers. Extra donations will be spent on registration fees for the FIRST robotics competitions, which are $5,000 each. We will pay for travel and lodging for the team, as well as tools and the hacker-space to build in. Our goal is to reach our team number, $4,183. This is not a discouragement from extra donations, though! They will be used excellently for the remainder of the registration fee. $4,183 might seem daunting but all of the proceeds will provide a life-changing opportunity for students of all backgrounds.
Or, in some cases, provide necessary life to our ambitious students.
Other ways to Help
If you work in Arizona, you could help us with an AZ School Tax Credit
Donation. Individuals can give $200/year to support an after-school
program and married couples filing jointly can give $400/year. When you
file your AZ State Income Tax you apply 100% of your donation as a tax credit. See this site for more information: http://www.bitbuckets.org/az-tax-credit-donations/.
There are more ways to help than just donations, such as liking us on Facebook, following our Twitter, and visiting http://www.bitbuckets.org. In other words, getting the word out makes a difference.
If you happen to be around Tucson, come support us at our events!