Animatronic Chain Chomp
This is an animatronic Chain Chomp, best known from a number of Nintendo games and the perennial enemy of uncoordinated Mario kart...
"You have nothing to lose by asking people. Worst case scenario isn't even that you’ll hear 'no.' You can learn a lot from a no, but you can't learn a whole lot from radio silence."
Note: This is a direct transcription of a radio interview, so phrasing and structure is slightly atypical.
“I think that we should be proud of the skills that [our members] have gained, and hopefully they’ve learned a little bit about problem solving and teamwork.”
“I think [our members] are interested because theme parks are really complex and create unique problem-solving opportunities. It mixes urban planning, engineering, design, theater production, just about anything you can think of.”
“[In movies] you design something, film it once and then tear it down and it never happens again. In the themed entertainment industry, you have to design an effect that impresses guests and adds to the story but is repeatable 2,000 times an hour for 18 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 10 to 20 years.”
"Just like in the real world, any one of these projects is a team effort. It takes a city to run a theme park."
“In a lot of my engineering curriculum, there’s not necessarily a big emphasis on the practical implications of making something — designing a project from start to finish and following through with the actual construction of it. I really like being able to come out here and walk in with a giant stack of lumber and walk out with a finished project.”