Symbiosis Foundation

Dear ERGO Participant,


Symbiosis Foundation, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) private charity incorporated in Florida.  The foundation was established in 1993 by the four founders of Symbiosis Corporation to support educational programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.  The foundation has sponsored science fairs, contests in robotics and rocketry, museum projects, and educational programs to encourage and reward young men and women who are solving real-world problems by applying science and technology.  The foundation is presently run by Tom Bales, President, and Kevin Smith, Chairman.

Symbiosis Foundation is proud to have sponsored:  elementary, middle-, and high-school teams in the FIRST Robotics and Lego League competitions; BotsIQ robot combat teams; curricular and extra-curricular elementary science programs; and, museum exhibits such as the Babbage Engine projects at the London Science Museum.  We are pleased to have sponsored the Lego League program in Haiti, working with Citadelle Robotics Team from Cap-Hatïen. 

Our goal is to make Earth a better place by helping youth discover the excitement and fun of applying science and technology to the problems faced by people the world over.  With the ERGO Energetic Ray Global Observatory, we hope to foster worldwide collaboration among students to engage in original scientific research and experience the thrill of discovery.

The Foundation would like to acknowledge the help and parcipation of the following individuals and groups:

  • Richard McCorkle, electrical instrumentation engineer, Fairbanks, Alaska, developed the PICTIC+ event-recording circuitry incorporated into the Timestamp Generator.
  • Michael Joyce has helped to develop the design, fabrication, and testing of the resistive-plate detectors to be used in advanced versions of the Muon Detector.
  • Alan Schimmel built the first ten “beta” Timestamp Generators and Detector circuits during a summer internship in 2010.
  • Jorge Piños and Jeff Landrum designed and produced the panels for the Timestamp Generators, RPC Muon Detectors, and G-M Muon Detectors.
  • Herb Meeker solved all the problems necessary to install a GPS antenna distribution system at Syntheon, where much of the development work was done.
  • Jorge Miranda has taken responsibility for writing the firmware for the embedded TCP/IP server and the SQL code for the central internet data-collection server at www.ergotelescope.org.
  • Nola Garcia and StarBot, Inc.,  have coordinated the organization and communications for the ERGO project—and have lent lots of enthusiasm and their famous “Can Do!” attitude.
  • The 305 Robotics Consortium, a group of local middle and high schools involved in robotics and other student science and engineering activities, are the first schools to work with the beta-test “pixels” to begin to work out the unavoidable bugs and operational kinks.
  • My partners at Syntheon, who have graciously allowed me to use Syntheon’s facilities for lab work, machine work, and hosting ERGO internships and project meetings.