Finding Connected Components in Map-Reduce in Logarithmic Rounds

Abstract

This paper discusses the motivation behind the Royal Society of New Zealand funded project "New Zealand Robotic Olympics: Quickest, Strongest, Smartest". The paper introduces successful robotic contests that are incorporated into the curriculum of mechatronics engineering programmes at Massey University and the University of Waikato identifying their role in motivating study in an open ended manner. The paper also identifies several international robotic competitions and shows how the "New Zealand Robotic Olympics" complements these international efforts.