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Lincoln robotics teams shine at multiple events

December 13, 2016

Jack Hutchinson, Dante Muzila and Calvin Terpstra operate their robot during the FTC event.

The last two weekends have been very busy for Lincoln robotics, as the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) team and all six of the Lincoln Recreation Department’s FIRST Lego League (FLL) teams competed in their first events this season.

FTC is an annual challenge in which teams of students in grades 7-12 build robots that fit into an 18-inch cube to accomplish certain tasks. The game is played in a 12-by-12-foot playing field. FLL is similar to FTC, posing an annual challenge with new obstacles to be completed by a robot, though in this case the machines are made of Legos and the students are in grades 4-8. The FLL teams also create a project in which they brainstorm a solution to a real-life challenge.

At a qualifier in Canton on December 4, the FTC GearTicks received the Think Award, which is given to the team whose engineering notebook best reflects the team’s engineering design process journey. Jack Hutchinson, one of the team’s drivers, thought it was a great opportunity to test out this year’s robot. “This excellent start to our season really got our team excited for the coming year,” he said. Teammate Anna Sander agreed. “We had a great chance to meet other teams and see all the cool designs they’re using,” she said.

In separate qualifiers, the FLL Orange GearTicks took second place in their robot competition and received the Champion’s Award given to the top team at the competition, and the Green GearTicks had a great project presentation and ended the day with their robot in 11th place. The Purple GearTicks received the Inspiration Core Values Award, and the Yellow GearTicks received a judges’ award as Rising Stars. Meanwhile, the Blue GearTicks received the Robot Design Award for their interesting turret design and the Red GearTicks won the “Programming Award” for their understanding of PID controllers.

The Lincoln robotics program derives much of its strength from the support it receives from the community. Although the GearTicks FLL teams are run through the Recreation Department, they rely entirely on parent and high school volunteers to coach each team.

The FIRST Tech Challenge robotics team. Front row: Evan Lee, Howie Tsang and Irene Terpstra. Back row: Caleb Sander, Dante Muzila, Laura Appleby, Jack Hutchinson, Calvin Terpstra, Catherine Appleby and Anna Sander.

“The judges were impressed by the range of in-town experts we consulted for our research project,” team member Emily Appleby said. For their “Active Deer Warning Signs” project, the students worked with Chris Bibbo at the DPW and Tom Gumbart at the Conservation Commission to investigate the problem of deer and cars on Lincoln’s roads.

FLL students agreed that the team has been a great experience. Emily Feng joined the Lincoln robotics program because she wanted to “improve my teamwork skills and learn about programming and building robots,” and she and her teammates certainly succeeded. The team also learned a lot about STEM (science, technology, engineering and math and how to compete under pressure.

“It’s interesting to see how other teams solve the same missions that we do in very different ways,” said Amelia Pillar.

“Out team really learned a lot and improved our teamwork,” said Alex Stewart.

“Sometimes it’s stressful to set up the robot in a gymnasium full of screaming people,” but the teams were equal to the pressure, said Stavros First.

The FTC team advanced from the Canton qualifier and will compete in the Massachusetts FTC State Competition on March 4 at Natick High School. The Orange GearTicks also advanced to the Massachusetts FLL State Tournament, in which they will compete on December 17 at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The Red and Blue GearTicks FLL teams will also compete in further qualifiers.

Lincoln is #5 in the state for early voting

December 12, 2016

In the inaugural year of early voting in Massachusetts, Lincoln wound up with 40.7 percent of its residents casting ballots early—the fifth-highest percentage in the Commonwealth.

The highest percentage belonged to Eastham with 47.4 percent, followed by Carlisle, Mashpee and Concord. Overall turnout (the proportion of eligible voters who cast ballots) in Massachusetts was 68 percent in Massachusetts and about 58 percent nationally. The official number for Lincoln wasn’t in as of late last week, but Town Clerk Susan Brooks estimated it would be close to or slightly above the 2012 turnout of 78 percent.

Thirty-four states permitted early voting in some form for the election last month. “There are a lot of variations on the theme” in terms of when, where and by what method early voting may take place, Brooks said. As it was this year in-person early voting (in addition to absentee ballots) will be an option in even-numbered years in Massachusetts from now on.

“Lincoln is highly educated and highly opinionated,” Brooks said when asked why she thought Lincoln had such a large early turnout. Also, it’s possible that “people voted early to be done with paying attention” to the bitterly fought race, she added. “They just wanted to be able to check out.”

Correction

December 12, 2016

The December 8 article headlined “Dwyer hopes to modernize town government’s outreach methods” incorrectly stated that Jonathan Dwyer met his wife Carolyn at the First Baptist Church in Newton. They actually met when both were students at Hamilton College. The article also gave the wrong year for when he started serving on the Parks and Recreation Committee. Dwyer joined in 2010 and is currently in the first year of his third three-year term.

Obituaries

December 11, 2016

Peter Pantazelos

Peter Pantazelos, 85 (November 26) — Executive nice president and CFO of Thermo Electron for 40 years.

Edward Gerrig, 87 (November 14) — husband of Bernice “Bunny” (Hoffman) Gerrig; resident at The Commons.

Mary T. Tori, 90 (November 17) — wife of the late John E. Torri, great-grandmother of five.

Braun reflects on his two terms on Board of Selectman

December 8, 2016

Peter Braun (2014 photo)

Looking back on his six years as one of Lincoln’s selectmen, Peter Braun is proud of his accomplishments but is looking forward to a future oriented more around grandchildren than town government.

“I feel strongly that it’s important to encourage new people to come into the office and for selectmen to step aside and play some other role, if they are so inclined,” Braun said when asked why he decided not to run for a third two-year term. “It’s not about me, it’s about the long-term stability and governance of the institution we call the town of Lincoln.”

A second consideration for Braun is the pending arrival of a grandson, the child of his son and daughter-in-law in Jamaica Plain. “This is going to a big deal for us,” said Braun, adding that he and his wife “are very baby-oriented.” His daughter-in-law and her family are Chilean, so he also plans to learn Spanish. Meanwhile, his career as lawyer working for community hospitals is winding down, largely because many of his clients have been swallowed up by larger hospitals.

“I’m getting to a point where my life circumstances are changing,” said Braun, who is 67. “You reach a certain point in life where you real you need to think about the horizon.”

As Braun ran for his second term in 2014, the town was grappling with the fallout of the failed school funding vote in 2012. Challenger Vincent Cannistraro—who had been a critic of the projects’ cost estimates—ran a vigorous campaign against Braun but lost to the incumbent by a margin of 487-372.

Parks and Recreation Committee Chair Jonathan Dwyer, who has declared his candidacy for the vacant seat, “has my strong endorsement,” Braun said. Dwyer’s father-in-law John Caswell, himself a former selectman in the 1980s, was one of those who urged Braun to try for a seat on the board. “He was one of my inspirations to run for selectman,” said Braun, adding that Caswell unfortunately passed away shortly before his mentee was sworn in.

As a selectman, Braun played a major role in expanding the membership and overall role of the Capital Planning Committee. The panel, which at one time consisted of a single at-large member and four members from other boards and committees, added four at-large members.

The planning for Minuteman High School’s new building and the construction of the Route 2 flyover at Crosby’s Corner were two “challenging issues” that also reached major milestones during Braun’s tenure, though Braun noted that the Route 2 project had been in the works long before he became a selectman. “I was just a steward for the implementation phase” of the Route 2 project, though “it happened to be a pretty active tail end,” Braun said, referring to the controversy over tree-cutting when work commenced in 2013.

As for Minuteman, “I know not everyone was happy with the result, but I think in the long term it will serve us well,” Braun said. Lincoln residents voted to withdraw from the Minuteman district in late 2015 after failing to win concessions from other towns for being the host community for the new school.

Still unresolved is the fate of the Lincoln School. After the 2012 defeat, the town reapplied several times for state funding and expects to hear by January about its 2016 application. Braun initially raised questions about the project but eventually became an “avid proponent,” he said. Now the town may be faced with paying for a major renovation of school replacement entirely with its own money.

“This is a truly essential part of our future. Whether we fix what there is in place or do some more expensive and transformative, it’s essential that we step up and do the right thing for our schools,” Braun said.

Braun was also instrumental in launching the Selectman’s Newsletter and serving as an active liaison to Lincoln’s state and U.S. legislative delegations, as well as with Hanscom Air Force Base and the Hanscom Area Towns Committee. Going forward, he hopes to stay involved with those efforts in an informal or ad hoc way, “but that would be up to the future Board of Selectmen,” he said.

News acorns

December 7, 2016

Karin Levy (left) and Nancy Fleming, co-chairs of First Parish in Lincoln’s Touch of Christmas Fair, with the greenery that volunteers will use to make holiday wreaths and centerpieces. The fair will be on Saturday, Dec. 10 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Santa arrives to greet children and pose for pictures at 11 a.m.

Jackson Gillman at next LOMA night

Jackson Gillman will perform a half-hour hour set starting around 8:30 p.m. at the next LOMA (Lincoln Open-Mike Acoustic) on Monday, Dec. 12 from 7-10 pm. in the Lincoln Public Library’s Tarbell room. Admission is free and refreshments are provided. Jackson has been described as zany, intelligent, professional, whimsical and inspirational, or in his own words, a “stand-up chameleon” who incorporates comedy, drama, music, dance, mime, and sign language. Jackson featured at the National Storytelling Festival in Tennessee four times (watch this video of him telling his “Foodie” story at Club Passim) and has thrice been Teller in Residence at the International Storytelling Center

LOMA is a monthly event. Performers can sign up at the event or email Rich Eilbert at loma3re@gmail.com for a slot. There is a sound system with mikes and instrumental pickups suitable for individuals or small groups.

“Finding Dory” movie matinee

Finding Dory will be shown at the Lincoln Public Library on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m. In the animagted film, amnesiac fish Dory journeys to be reunited with her parents. Along the way, she is captured and taken to a California public aquarium, from which Marlin and Nemo attempt to rescue her. Rated PG. Running time: 1 hour 45 minutes. Free popcorn.

Town and state sign Community Compact

December 6, 2016

Lt. Gov. Karen Polito, State Rep Thomas Stanley, Selectman Peter Braun and Town Administrator Tim Higgins at the signing of the Community Compact.

In a December 1 ceremony in Lincoln, Lt. Gov. Karen Polito and town officials signed a Community Compact by which Lincoln will pursue best practices in three areas: water resource management, housing and economic development, and business continuity. In return, the town can get technical assistance as well as extra points on grants and grant opportunities from the state.

Under terms of the two-year agreement, Lincoln will work to implement stormwater management measures and land use regulations that help promote infiltration, control flooding and reduce pollution. Lincoln is now eligible to join nine other area towns in applying for a $99,000 Efficiency and Regionalization Grant, a regional grant that would provide technical assistance for communities to comply with permitting requirements for municipal separate storm sewer systems.

In the area of business continuity, the town hopes to digitize paper records and implement a permit tracking software program as well as creating a more robust GIS/GPS program that integrates with the software. These measures should result in improved operational efficiencies, both interdepartmentally and with the public. The town is also eligible to apply next year for a Community Compact IT Grant of up to $200,000.

Lincoln will look into aligning land use regulations, capital investments and other municipal actions with housing and economic development, the master plan or other plans for future growth. The town will also promote development and reuse of previously developed sites and create opportunities for various stakeholders in economic development efforts, such as by helping identify priority development projects, improve local permitting processes, and proactively address obstacles to housing and job creation with a focus on the South Lincoln area.

“We really want to make it a vibrant village center,” Director of Planning and Land Use Jennifer Burney said at the ceremony.

Polito praised Burney, Town Administrator Tim Higgins, Selectman Peter Bran and town Lincoln officials for their efforts. “You are our public workforce across our state that really binds us together,” she said. “The state is not a place where we should be making decisions; it’s really at the local level, and you are the people closest to the grassroots. If we strengthen local government, we will truly knit together a stronger Massachusetts.”

Christmas church happenings in Lincoln

December 6, 2016

First Parish in Lincoln

The First Parish in Lincoln (FPL) will present Handel’s Messiah on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 3 p.m. in the Parish House Auditorium (14 Bedford Rd). Experience the magic of Handel’s holiday classic performed by world-class artists including Ian Watson (conductor/harpsichord), Guy Fishman, Aisslinn Nosky and more, plus the Lincoln Baroque Players and Chorus. Seating is limited and is first come, first seated; doors open at 2:30 p.m. Suggested donation is $30, but any amount is appreciated. For more information, contact Mary Briggs at maryhbriggs@gmail.com.

The FPL’s Handbell Choir will present its annual holiday concert on Tuesday, Dec. 20 at 7 p.m. in the Parish House Auditorium. The concert is free and all are welcome. During the holiday season, the Handbell Choir also takes to the road. They will present the following concerts at senior living residences:

Thursday, Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. — Benchmark Senior Living at Waltham Crossings, 125 Smith St., Waltham
Thursday, Dec. 15 at 2 p.m. — Newbury Court, 100 Newbury Court, Concord

The First Parish will celebrate a Winter Solstice service marking the longest night of the year on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. at the Parish House. This day has been celebrated in many cultures and religious traditions for centuries, and FPL’s service will incorporate elements from polytheistic and earth-based traditions and center on the themes of darkness and light.

St. Anne’s in-the-Fields Episcopal Church

From now through Christmas Eve, St. Anne’s will offer additional prayer services. Monday through Friday, Morning Prayer will be offered in the side chapel from 9:15-9:45 a.m. On Tuesdays, Contemplative Prayer will be offered in the Spiritual Room from 11:30 a.m. to noon. On Wednesdays, Silent Meditation will be held in the Spiritual Room from 5:30-6:30 p.m. On Sundays, St. Anne’s has three standard services: Holy Eucharist at 8 a.m., Holy Eucharist with Choir at 10 a.m. and Still Your Soul, a rotating series of contemporary services, at 5 p.m.

On Sunday, Dec. 18, at 5:00 p.m., St. Anne’s in-the-Fields Episcopal Church will offer Christmas Lessons and Carols. This is a festive, celebration modeled on the famous Anglican service of Nine Lessons and Carols held in King’s College, Cambridge, using traditional language, favorite congregational carols and glorious anthems sung by the choir. A festive reception will follow.

On Christmas Eve, Saturday, Dec. 24, St. Anne’s will offer three worship services: Family Holy Eucharist with Pageant at 3 p.m., and Holy Eucharist with Choir at 5:30 and 10 p.m. On Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, St. Anne’s will celebrate a service of Holy Eucharist at 9 a.m.

Modern technology sheds light on Revolutionary War battle in Lincoln area

December 4, 2016

Minute Man National Historic Park. The area in the red box is shown in an expanded view below (click to enlarge).

The brown shaded area indicates the Parker’s Revenge archeological study area (click to enlarge).

The Friends of Minute Man National Park have released the final archaeology report on the Parker’s Revenge battle – the April 19, 1775 encounter in which Captain John Parker engaged the British regulars on their march back from Concord through Lincoln to Boston.

Parker was commander of the Lexington colonial militia that exchanged fire in Lexington on the first morning of the Revolutionary Way. Eight militia were killed (including Parker’s cousin Jonas) and the Americans fled. But that afternoon, colonials ambushed the British at several points during their return march to Boston, including at a sharp bend in the Battle Road in Lincoln now known as the “Bloody Angle.” The Parker’s Revenge skirmish took place further east around the current Lexington/Lincoln town line. (The Bloody Angle fight is memorialized in a painting and document now hanging in the recently renovated basement of Bemis Hall.)

The 320-page report summarizes historical research on the battle, details the full range of technologies deployed in the archaeological research, and describes battle tactics likely utilized by both colonial and British forces. The project findings are especially noteworthy in light of the fact that only one brief witness account the battle has ever been identified by historians.

Twenty-first-century technologies utilized in the research informed formal excavations and 1775 battlefield reconstructions included 3D laser scanning; GPS feature mapping; and geophysical surveys including metallic surveys, ground penetrating radar, magnetic gradient and conductivity/magnetic susceptibility. Taken together, the technologies enabled researchers to locate a farmhouse that figured prominently in the battle terrain, to recreate the actual 1775 battlefield landscape and battlefield features, and even to model exactly what combatants could and could not see at various positions along the battle road.

A musket ball recovered during the archeological study.

Artifacts discovered included 29 British and colonial musket balls from the battle. The location and spatial patterning of the musket balls recovered enabled archaeologists to interpret the exact positions where individuals were standing during the battle—and then outline battle tactics most likely deployed.

“Using an integrated approach to interpreting this battlefield enabled us to literally peel back time and expose the artifacts that tell the story of Parker’s Revenge,” said project archaeologist Dr. Meg Watters.

The report indicates that Captain Parker positioned his men at the edge of a wood lot on an elevated slope above the battle road. This particular site had two distinct advantages: it provided a clear view to see the advancing British forces and the landscape featured a number of large boulders and trees that provided cover.

A view shed is an area visible from one specific location in a landscape. Archaeologists ran a computer simulated view shed analysis taken from the perspective of a 5’5”-tall marching British soldier and also from the point of view of a mounted British officer (nine feet above ground). The analysis indicated that the undulating terrain surface, combined with other obstacles, meant the British force could not easily see the position of the Lexington militia until it was in close proximity.

Property sales in September and October

December 4, 2016

111 Old County Rd. — Patrick and Alida Zweidler-McKay for $1,235,000 (October 31)
219 Sandy Pond Rd. – Mary S. Lyman, trustee to Jason H. and Lucia Chu $879,000 (October 28)
16A North Commons – Peter N. Daniel to Marissa Lisec for $249,640 (October 21)
165 Bedford Rd. – Brien B. Daniels to Peggy and Colleen Fong for $550,000 (October 21)
80 Tower Rd. — Bradley Clifford to 80 Tower MCH LLC for $400,000 (October 21)
245 Aspen Circle — Joseph E. DiFranco to Martin Deacutis and Cynthia Sheriff for $485,000 (October 19)
15 Stonehedge — Diane F. Haessler to Seth C. and Lynne B. Miller for $775,000 (October 19)
99 Tower Rd. — Stephen J. Sakowich to Mark Bazin and Jennifer L. Lachey for $818,750 (October 17)
211 Sandy Pond Rd. – Erik R. Babayan to Authur H. Thornhill III and Lucy B. Lower for $1,900,000 (October 7)
93 Tower Rd. — Ruth F. Potter to Seppo Tapani Rinne and Jocelyn Westport Rinne for $810,000 (October 7)
8 Silver Hill Rd. — Robert Laurent Cannon, trustee to John and Robin Peters for $830,000 (September 30)
1 Millstone Lane — Michael S. Fee to Brent K. and Sarah T.M. Benjamin for $879,000 (September 30)
178 South Great Rd. — Kenton J. Ide to John Bockoven Jr. for $700,000 (September 29)
82 Virginia Rd., Unit B10 — Bruce Sorrentino to Mary A. Pilecki for $406,000 (September 16)
331 Hemlock Circle — Neil Baumgarten to Ellen Z. Hazen for $619,001 (September 16)
15 Todd Pond Rd. — Joel A. Kahn to Tristram Oakley and Robert A. Stringer for $1,265,000 (September 15)
12 Airport Rd. — Civil War Preservation Trust to United States of America Minuteman Park for $42,000 (September 14)
0, 1, 6, 8 and 10 Millstone Lane — Winthrop W. Harrington Jr. Trust to Joseph A. Wheelock and Andronica Stanley Wheelock for a total of $4,450,000 (September 9)
138 Sandy Pond Rd. — Cambridge Trust Co., trustee to Alexander J. Taylor and Amy R. Anthony for $855,000 (September 7)
144 Sandy Pond Rd. — Philip A. Copper to Ventianni LLC for $2,895,000 (September 7)
106 Concord Rd. — Lucy M.A. Cotoia to Nicholas and Lindsay Cotterpond for $535,000 (September 1)