Prizes for Caithness primary pupils in Dounreay robot dog art challenge
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Two girls from a Wick primary school came out on top in a robotic dog art challenge set by Dounreay.
Noss pupils Mae Whitelaw and Leah Mackay were declared joint winners of the competition covering Caithness and north Sutherland.
Dounreay's robotic dog, Spot, had visited schools and nurseries across the far north in November during a two-week showcase of technological advancements and how they are used in nuclear decommissioning.
Spot's handlers told the children pupils how Spot and drones are used in the Dounreay decommissioning programme and also spoke about school subjects that support a career in robotics.
Spot – created by robotics design company Boston Dynamics – has the ability to climb stairs, avoid obstacles and move over rough ground, allowing it to monitor and collect data in hazardous areas.
The visits were well received by pupils and teachers.
Dounreay then invited pupils to enter a competition in which they had to submit a drawing of Spot, a drone, or both.
Joint runners-up were Lois Andrew (Miller Academy, Thurso) and Jaxon Garrett-Atkins (Dunbeath Primary School).
James Steven, senior electrical engineer at Dounreay and one of Spot’s handlers, said: “We were overwhelmed by the quantity and the detail in the pictures and drawings. The pupils certainly made our job of judging very difficult.
"The judging panel could not agree on a winner between Mae and Leah from Noss. Their drawings were outstanding and therefore they had to be joint winners.
"Likewise the runners-up – their drawings stood out compared with others in their age groups.
"The team really enjoyed the visits to the schools, being able to demonstrate the innovation being used at Dounreay to the young people in our community.”
The winners received a Petoi Bittle robotic dog for their school and each winner and runner-up was presented with a drone for themselves.
Leah, who is in P5 at Noss, said: “I’m really happy. I was nervous when the announcement was made but when I saw that my picture was part of the winning entry I was so excited.”
Mae (P7) said: “The visit from Spot the dog was really cool. I’ve never seen anything like that come to our school.
"There were so many great pictures in our class, so I was proud to be a winning entrant.”
Noss head teacher Fraser Thomson said: “It was great that so many pupils got to see such an amazing piece of digital technology and how it can be used in the energy industry.
"The initiative is a great way of promoting STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] subjects and Spot provided excitement and inspiration to our pupils.
"We are proud of Mae and Leah. They are extremely talented pupils in our school and this accolade reflects that.”
The Dounreay team will be bringing Spot the dog and drones to the Caithness International Science Festival's Family Fun Day on March 23.
