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GearHeadz bring home two awards from California

The GearHeadz robotics team displays its national trophy at Legoland in California. Photo from Chris Pinkenburg

What started with a small group of kids in a Long Island basement ended with cheers when the Rocky Point-area GearHeadz robotics team ran down the isle at Legoland in California to collect a national trophy.

“It was the greatest feeling ever,” GearHeadz coach Chris Pinkenburg said of how well his team produced on such a grand stage, to receive a fifth-place robot game and second-place programming award. “I’m extremely proud of them. They’re a very independent, unselfish team that can figure out a lot of problems on their own.”

The team competed in the FIRST LEGO League Long Island championship tournament back in February and was crowned second-place champion. From there, it competed on the national stage against 74 teams, including regional and state champions from the United States and Canada, as well as international guests from Germany and South Korea.

Each year, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, which was founded in 1989, presents a theme under which teams solve real-world problems and build and program a robot to compete in missions.

The theme this time around was Trash Trek, so students had to present a project that could be the solution to an environmental hazard. The GearHeadz tried over 20 times and eventually came up with the right recipe for biodegradable bags that would limit the mass death of sea turtles and other marine life from accidental ingestion of plastic.

The GearHeadz’s robot base and some of its attachments used to complete missions. Photo by Desirée Keegan
The GearHeadz’s robot base and some of its attachments used to complete missions. Photo by Desirée Keegan

“We’ve worked together well as a team,” said Pinkenburg’s 14-year-old son Jade. “We’ve solved a lot of problems and succeeded on the Long Island and national stage.”

Speaking of problems, his team ran into a big one at nationals.

“The first two rounds went really, really bad,” Chris Pinkenburg said. “We got back from the second round and sat down together to try to figure out what’s wrong with our robot. It behaved very differently from previous times.”

Recently turned 14-year-old Jen Bradley discovered a bad cable, when she started wiggling it and noticed that the sensor reading was changing. Thankfully it’s only your best round that counts, and the team had spent so much time fixing its robot that it had minutes to get ready to perform for the third time.

“Everything depended on that last round,” Pinkenburg said.

The robot performed well, which earned the team fifth place.

“We have a lot of smart people here that work really hard,” 14-year-old Rex Alex said. “We put in the time and effort and we get results. It was a big stage, a new experience for me, and we had the pressure on us, but we rose to the occasion.”

Bradley and the Pinkenburg bunch had been there before but had never garnered a national award.

“We’re finally one of the best teams in the country. That’s nice,” Pinkenburg said, laughing. “Hard work does pay off. It’s a total team win.”

It was the culmination of five years of hard work while learning and striving to improve.

For 13-year-old Julius Condemi, it was interesting to meet and compete against so many different types of teams.

“It was really cool to see everyone’s methods of finishing the missions to get high scores,” he said. “The competitions are energetic and it’s busy, but it’s a lot of fun.”

The GearHeadz group even works with other teams to help, something Pinkenburg said makes the program unique.

“It’s competing against technical problems, not other teams,” he said. “The kids show gracious professionalism when helping other teams. The camaraderie is good and I can see the progress. It’s an amazing gift to watch that and to help them on their way.”

The GearHeadz are hoping to move up to a higher level of competition. Photo by Desirée Keegan
The GearHeadz are hoping to move up to a higher level of competition. Photo by Desirée Keegan

As the kids are nearing the end of the age limit to compete in the FLL, the team is working to raise a minimum of $15,000 to compete in the FIRST Robotics Challenge, in which they will design, build, program and operate 120-pound robots to compete in floor games.

To be a part of this league is why Pinkenburg first created a team. A perk to being a part of this league is that it offers scholarships.

“Boeing, Grumman, Intel, they hire you afterward,” he said. “They see it as a means to attract talent and make them known to talent.”

Clayton Mackay, also 14 years old, mainly builds attachments for the base of the robot, which could involve adding pieces that compress air or use springs, to complete the different missions. He was a friend to a lot of the teammates, like Julius and Rex, before joining the team, which he said has helped them be able to work together to be able to compete at a higher level. It also wouldn’t have been possible without their coach, who has been a huge source of knowledge.

“He’s a really nice guy who knows so much,” Mackay said. “He’s a great coach. I’ve really enjoyed being a part of this team.”

Jade has learned a lot from and about his father during the process, and Pinkenburg has seen his son mature during the process.

“It’s brought out the best in him,” he said. “The social skills, dealing with the other teams, he’s really progressed tremendously. They all learned a lot about engineering and I see the personal development as the kids grow and evolve.”

Bradley said being on the team has been the highlight of grade school.

“It’s always been a big part of my life,” she said of robotics. “It’s really incredible. I’ve learned a lot about perseverance, about teamwork. I’ve made a lot of friendships while learning a lot.”

For more information about the team or to help donate to help them reach the next stage of the competition, visit the team’s website at www.rockpointroboticsclub.com.

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Children's book review: "Simon and Sedef: A Seal’s First Adventure" by Sheree Jeanes

Image of the cover of ’Simon and Sedef’ from author Sheree Jeanes

By Melissa Arnold

Sheree Jeanes has always loved animals, and last fall she channeled that passion into a captivating new children’s book. Jeanes, who grew up in Brooklyn and now lives in Huntington, published “Simon and Sedef: A Seal’s First Adventure” in November. A portion of the book’s proceeds will be donated to the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Ms. Jeanes about her book and what’s in store for the future.

Tell me a little bit about your background.
I’ve worked in marketing for close to 20 years now. I’ve also done grant writing, and I have my own copywriting business called Redwing Copywriting.

Have you always been interested in writing?
I always wanted to write children’s books. I have a collection of children’s books at home that inspire me, and I finally found the courage to do it.

Huntington author Sheree Jeanes/photo by Pat Dillon
Huntington author Sheree Jeanes/photo by Pat Dillon

Briefly summarize the plot for us.
“Simon and Sedef: A Seal’s First Adventure” is about a young seal who gets swept up in a sudden storm and is separated from his mother, Sedef. He needs to tap into his own resiliency, to see what he’s capable of, and learn to lean on others with trust.

What inspired you to write “Simon and Sedef”?
My mother-in-law lives in Rockaway Beach, which is a part of the story. Several years ago there was a story in her local paper, The Wave, about a little seal that got washed up on the beach, and it sparked my imagination. Simon’s story grew around him. When I got the idea for this book, I could see where it was going. I knew how it would end and that there could be sequels. I was able to enlist a friend who very generously edited and story boarded the book for me, and we went from there.

There are so many ways to write about marine life conservation efforts. Why did you choose to write a children’s book?
Honestly, I love to learn through stories. Historical novels are a great way to learn about different periods in history, for example. I did a lot of scientific research for the book, and when I do readings, I always bring someone from the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation. They always have an incredible wealth of knowledge to share and are able to answer additional questions about marine life while sharing how important it really is to all of us.

Who is your favorite character in the book?
My favorite character is Rita, a little girl that Simon meets on the beach. She’s actually named after my mother-in-law. Part of the book is about connection and being sensitive and kind to animals. She embodies what kids are able to do (if they encounter an animal), to engage them with respect on (the animal’s) own terms. She reflects the connection that humans and animals share and the animal part that exists in all of us. It’s a really beautiful part of the story, and she’s a lot of fun.

“Simon and Sedef” is full of vibrant, lifelike illustrations. Were you involved in the art development?
I’m not an illustrator, but I was a part of the process. I went onto (arts and crafts sale website) Etsy and put out a job request. I got a bunch of responses and spent a lot of time looking through portfolios. The artist I chose worked with these brilliant watercolors, and she was able to paint animals with so much expression and sensitivity. I ended up choosing her to do the illustrations — her name is Luminita Cosarenu and she’s from Romania. She was just lovely to work with. I told her what I had in mind and we went back and forth for a while until it was just right. She started with pencil drawings and finished with watercolor. They are just magnificent.

The Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation plays a big part in your story. Can you tell me a bit about what they do and your decision to work with them?
The foundation would have rescued Simon in the real world and they do such incredible work — it only seemed fair to include them in this way. We’ve been working together from the early stages of the publication process to figure out how to best promote the book and all of the great things they do. They do a lot of animal rescue, particularly of seals and sea turtles. They’re also affiliated with the Long Island Aquarium, where some of the rescued animals will remain for a while or even their lifetime if they can’t be released.

Is there a recommended audience for “Simon and Sedef”?
I think the littlest of kids should probably have the book read to them, but there’s nothing inappropriate for them in there. I did make it a little scary, but even younger children really tend to enjoy that.

What do you hope readers will take away from the book?
Every human character in the book is kind and also respectful to animals. That’s really the central message of the book — living and treating others with compassion.

What are some things we can do right now to help preserve marine life?
We can pick up after ourselves! So much garbage ends up going out to sea, where animals end up being choked or swallowing things that can impair their digestion or kill them. As for the bigger picture, go and experience the wildlife that’s all around us. Bring your kids. Lastly, really support the people who are out there doing the work of preserving marine life, whether that’s the foundation or another organization you care about.

What’s next for you?
I’m really enjoying the adventure of self-publishing and self-promotion right now. There is a sequel for Simon in the works right now that will be coming out soon — as you might expect, he has plenty more adventures to go on!

Where can people learn more about you or purchase the book?
My website is www.shereejeanes.com. I also have a Facebook page and an Instagram account to keep people up-to-date about the latest developments in my writing.

In celebration of World Oceans Day, Sheree Jeanes will hold a book launch on Wednesday, June 8, at the Long Island Aquarium, 431 E. Main St., Riverhead from 3 to 5 p.m. “Simon and Sedef: A Seal’s First Adventure” may be purchased online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, as well as at Book Revue in Huntington.

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Supervisor Ed Romaine, Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro and Suffolk SPCA Chief Roy Gross pose with a 32-inch female American alligator turned in on Amnesty Day. Photo from Brookhaven Town

Long Islanders turned in three American alligators and eight turtles at a recent animal amnesty event in Brookhaven Town, and all of the reptiles are shipping up to a Massachusetts sanctuary.

Brookhaven’s Holtsville Ecology Center hosted the event on Oct. 10 to allow residents to turn in any protected, endangered or threatened animals that require special New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permits without fear of penalties or questioning. It was the second annual event of its kind for the town, which operated with the help of those two agencies and the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

People with dangerous or illegal animals were able to turn them over to professionals, no questions asked.

Suffolk SPCA Chief Roy Gross called the recent amnesty event a success, saying the three alligators turned in “had the potential of ending up endangering the public.”

According to Brookhaven Town, the average length a fully grown female American alligator is a little more than 8 feet, and a fully grown male can be longer than 11 feet. Of the three alligators turned in, two were males, measuring 27 and 29 inches, and one was a 32-inch female.

“People should think twice before acquiring illegal reptiles or mammals,” Gross said in a statement from the town. “They do not make good pets and you are risking fines and possible jail time.”

At last year’s animal amnesty event, people turned in 25 animals, including a western diamondback rattlesnake, a green anaconda, four boa constrictors, an American alligator and two marmosets.

“These animals were turned in before the people harboring them as pets released them into the wild, creating a potentially dangerous situation in our local communities,” Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro said in a statement about the alligators and turtles turned over this year. “These animals will now receive proper care without posing a threat.”

Owners of potentially dangerous animals have dumped them in public places in the past, creating a public safety issue. In late August, a 25-pound alligator snapping turtle was discovered in a stream of the Nissequogue River opposite the Smithtown Bull on Route 25. The reptile is not indigenous to Long Island — it is a freshwater animal with enough power to bite off a human toe or finger, and is usually found in places from eastern Texas to the Florida panhandle.

“People need to understand that many exotic animals can be very dangerous if not handled properly or allowed to grow to their adult size,” Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) said in a statement. “They are even more threatening if released into the wild, where they could harm people or other animals.”

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East Setauket “school on the hill,” the Setauket Union Free School was opened in 1911 and closed in 1951. Photo taken from the school field also shows the one-story first- and second-grade classrooms. Photo from Beverly Tyler

By Beverly C. Tyler

My daily experiences in the community around me in the 1940s and ‘50s was an extension of my experiences at school.

The first seven-and-a-half years I attended the Setauket Union Free School on the hill in East Setauket. We had lessons and studying, but most of that is a blur of unremembered activity in the classroom. The real school day consisted of relationships with many of the same people I would see outside the classroom setting. Brief, but wonderful, free times each day on the school playground, on the grassy areas around the school building and on the school field were times to talk and play with classmates and other kids.

We were outside winter and summer, even occasionally when it was raining and definitely when it was snowing. While we played, we joked and talked about teachers, about each other and many things that really didn’t matter, but they were shared experiences.

We knew a lot about each other without ever really spelling it out, and we had no idea how close we were to each other. We cared, we shared, we laughed and we occasionally cried, and we did it face to face every day.

Most of the kids around my age lived within a couple of miles of the school, and many lived within walking distance. I took the bus most days, especially when the weather was bad, driven by Jesse Eikov or one of his other bus drivers like Bill Owen or Gene Hutchinson.

Sometimes a few of us would walk the mile to school, but, since there was so much to do along the way, we were in danger of being late. In the first couple of years in school, explorations into the community and neighborhood around my home and between home and the school were done with my family.

By the time I was in third or fourth grade, it was mostly with schoolmates and friends around my age. We explored woods, fields, ponds, streams, wetlands, abandoned buildings and neighbors’ yards with abandon. We easily walked and biked a mile or two from home without any concern from our parents. Many of our schoolmates and friends had parents that worked in the local area.

Our schoolmates’ parents ran the East Setauket stores, and many of our teachers lived close by, often too close when we were not behaving the way we knew we should.

We never called each other on the phone; we just met on the street after school and on weekends. We were always at the post office in Setauket when the mail was delivered from the train around 6 p.m.

Everyone in the community picked up their mail between about 6 and 6:30 p.m. We hung around near the post office where the old men sat on the benches outside and smoked their pipes, not just waiting for the mail but catching up on the news of the day and the latest goings-on.     

There was never any reason for teachers to take us on field trips in the local area, even places like the firehouse.

We went there with our parents or classmates or friends. This does not seem to be the case today, at least not to the same extent. Children are not on their own after school as we were. My grandchildren, like many children today, have soccer, baseball, T-ball, dance, gymnastics, karate, music lessons and other activities that fill every day after school.

We might have had an organized sport or music lessons once a week and then Sunday school and church on Sunday, but that was it. Now, too often, it’s seven days a week for organized or group activities. We learned the joys of just playing. We made up games, played with balls, bats and sticks.

We rode our bikes around the area and skinned our knees racing around the macadam tennis court by the Neighborhood House. In the summer we found old, leaky rowboats and used them as pirate ships on the millpond. We walked the stream where it went through the woods behind houses along Main Street, caught frogs and played with turtles. We built forts wherever we could and had secret hiding places in the woods and along the stream.

We learned to protect and appreciate the areas that were our own places to play. We climbed the trees and looked into the birds’ nests and tried to put back young birds that had fallen to the ground, usually unsuccessfully. We picked up box turtles on the road and placed them in the woods.

We knew all of our neighbors and understood where we were welcomed and where we were not. Looking back on that time and place, I know how much it meant to me and how much it still means. Classmates who have moved away come back for reunions and say that there was no better place to grow up than right here.

Beverly Tyler is the Three Village Historical Society historian.

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By Daniel Dunaief

Many dads don’t plan the same way moms do. Sure, we want what’s best for our kids, and, of course, we think about the present and the future while remaining aware of the past and the lessons it might teach us.
But, many of us have a hunter-gatherer mentality, or now-approach, to life.

Perhaps it’s easiest to illustrate this with a description. For my daughter, waiting for a big party six months away is something she savors. She can contemplate what she needs to do to prepare and keep the bigger goal in mind each week.

If I mention something, like, say, a trip to Yankee Stadium, to my son, he wants it now, now, now, even if it’s the middle of the winter. Something happening in six months might as well be happening in 2020.

When boys become men, many of us keep this view of the world. We see today as an unfolding series of decisions and not a script.

Like women, men follow the schedules we set out for ourselves and, more often than not, for our children. We don’t have the luxury of saying, “I agreed to coach this team, but I feel like taking a canoe ride today.”

The time known as now was often planned weeks and, perhaps, months ago, making it harder to react in the moment. As we grow up, we rarely pursue the impulse to do whatever we want most of the time because what we planned takes precedence.

As a father on Father’s Day, I imagine there are plenty of men out there for whom the greatest gift on the day would be the ability to make a decision in the moment. Feel like having a catch, son? Sure, dad. Feel like taking a jog and looking for deer, turtles and cardinals? Hey, why not? Want to head to The Good Steer for lip-smacking, spectacular onion rings? Definitely!

As Father’s Day approaches, I think about my own dad, who died over a quarter of a century ago. I remember those moments when as a family we walked along a trail in Quebec, stepping carefully through shallow, icy cold water on our way up the huge steps near a waterfall.

I recall those rare moments, which were much more unusual back then than they are today, when my father would put on a mitt and have a catch with us, or when, on vacation, we’d play family baseball.

How do we plan to be spontaneous? When we leave open some time, is there a chance we should be doing something better? And, what if something better, for one or all of us, comes along? Is it selfish to want to hang out, watch an old movie, sway in a hammock, drive to a farm stand to pick berries, or fly a kite?

Yes, I still love to fly kites and no, I’m not good at it. I find something about the way the wind in the moment sends the kite diving and climbing entertaining.

It’s ironic, really. When my father was annoyed, he used to say, “Oh, go fly a kite!” My response, especially on Father’s Day: “Don’t mind if I do.”

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DeForest Williams property is open to public

A scene at the grand opening of Wawapek Preserve in Cold Spring Harbor last weekend. Photo from North Shore Land Alliance

Local officials gathered to mark the grand opening of the Wawapek Preserve last Saturday. Located in Cold Spring Harbor, residents will now be able to walk through the 32-acre parcel’s trails and take in its unique nature.

Thanks to the collaborative efforts of the North Shore Land Alliance, Huntington Town, Suffolk County, New York State and the local community, $8.5 million was pitched in to preserve the property, following a negotiation that spanned years.

This property, once part of a 600-plus acre piece of land that encompassed the Wawapek Farm, has remained in the DeForest Williams estate for more than 100 years. Originally owned by Robert Weeks DeForest, a lawyer and philanthropist, the family expressed interest in having the property preserved in 2006.

Unfortunately, Huntington and Suffolk County did not have the funds at the time to purchase the land. But three years ago, threats of development become more foreboding, and the land alliance came on board to help guarantee that the property would be conserved.

Huntington Town Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) said in a statement that the town is happy to have partnered with the county and the land alliance on the purchase, and he hopes that many people will walk these trails to see some of the unique flora and fauna that call the Wawapek Preserve their home.

These partners were able to raise the millions needed to purchase the property, with the help of the residents of the community, nonprofits and local businesses.

Eastern box turtles, a species on the New York State special concern list, and at least three state-protected plants have been documented on the land, Lisa Ott, president and CEO of the alliance, said in a press release.

It has also been discovered that it’s very likely Wawapek Preserve serves as a breeding spot and stopover habitat for many migratory songbirds and other species. The scarlet tanager, a neotropical migrant species, was expected to be discovered there, although comprehensive biological surveys have been limited due to restricted access.

Long Island has a strong commitment to protecting the habitats of endangered birds. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Long Island Field Office has worked with state and local governments to protect the habitat of birds like the piping plovers.

More than 60 percent of the land is comprised of mature hardwood forest, which protects air quality, provides erosion control and is home to a variety of wildlife, trees and wildflowers, according to Ott.

Local lawmakers including Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D), county Legislator William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport), Petrone, Councilwoman Susan Berland (D), Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D) and former Councilman Mark Mayoka (R) gathered back in September 2013 at the DeForest Williams property, when the funds were first committed to make the purchase possible. Spencer called it an “incredible victory” at the time, and believed it was government work at its finest.

“The opening of Wawapek represents the ideal blending of conservation and community,” land alliance Chairman Carter Bales said in a statement.

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Associate professor and his team look at stages of frog reproduction: egg to tadpole to frog

An attacking snake causes the eggs of most red-eyed tree frogs to hatch immediately, sending young tadpoles that were developing on leaves in the air to plunge into the water below to escape the slithering predator.

This is just one of many life-history strategies frogs have developed over the more than 200 million years since they started snatching insects and hopping and lunging around waterways.

While just over half the frogs in a survey of 720 species of frogs around the world follow the same life history they employ on Long Island — namely, laying eggs in water, hatching as tadpoles and developing into frogs — the others go through a range of reproductive cycles, including laying eggs out of the water (like the red-eyed tree frog) or even developing directly (i.e., hatching as frogs).

Those frogs that develop directly are found primarily in moist, warm regions in the tropics.

Stony Brook Associate Professor John Wiens, in collaboration with Ivan Gomez-Mestre from the Donana Biological Station in Seville, Spain and Alexander Pyron from George Washington University, wanted to know how these different reproductive strategies evolved and why so many frogs continued to employ the aquatic approaches.

“It seems like laying eggs terrestrially is great because the eggs are out of the water and are protected from aquatic predators, but at the same time, that comes with a cost,” Wiens suggested.

Indeed, the frogs that lay eggs out of the water typically produce fewer offspring. There’s a mechanical explanation for this: the eggs are larger but the momma frogs are the same size. The eggs of direct developers also need to contain all the resources necessary to become a frog.

Frogs that lay eggs in the water, on the other hand, can lay more and smaller eggs, because the tadpoles can feed themselves. The squiggly swimmers can eat algae that they scrape off rocks, bacteria at the bottom of ponds or invertebrates like freshwater shrimp. Some tadpoles, Wiens pointed out, eat other tadpoles and, in some species, the mothers feed the tadpoles with unfertilized eggs.

But, as with the red-eyed tree frog, some of these amphibians have stayed with what might be considered an evolutionarily intermediate stage: instead of choosing direct development or aquatic development, they place their eggs outside water, until they hatch into tadpoles.

In South America, for example, glass frogs have been laying their eggs outside of water for over 50 million years. Once they hatch, tadpoles breathe and eat in the water until they become frogs. For glass frogs, this isn’t a true intermediate stage, because they never evolved into direct development.

For some frogs that make the evolutionary hop from aquatic to direct development, however, the intermediate steps may not be necessary.

“In about half the cases in which direct development evolves, it seems to evolve directly from the primitive mode,” Wiens offered. While it is possible that intermediate stages occurred in these frogs, the results “suggest it would have had to do so relatively rapidly.”

Frog reproductive cycles can provide insight into medical questions or problems.
There is an extinct frog that was a gastric brooder in Australia. That frog kept its eggs and young in its stomach. Somehow, during its reproductive cycle, the frog turned off its gastric juices, allowing its young to grow and develop in the relative safety of its mother’s stomach. Scientists have been hoping this frog’s life cycle might provide additional tools to treat ulcers.

In addition to frogs, Wiens studies salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

He studies the interface between evolution and ecology.

“Using the reconstructed or evolutional history of reptiles and amphibians and other groups, we try to understand how biodiversity originates,” he suggested. He looks at questions such as why there are more species in the tropics.

Wiens lives in Stony Brook with his wife, Ramona Walls, a postdoctoral research associate at the New York Botanical Garden. The scientific couple, who have a daughter in college, enjoy visiting beaches on the island and hiking.

As for frogs, the recent study contradicts some of what scientist had believed for years.

“In many cases, rather than going from having eggs laid in water to eggs laid on land to direct development, frogs jumped the queue, going straight from eggs laid in the water to direct development,” he offered.

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