Wannado City Feature Story: A Day at the M-Lab in Wannado City

It’s a busy day at Wannado City in Sawgrass Mills Mall in Sunrise, Florida. Children scatter from one venue to the next, portraying fire fighters, doctors, airline pilots, actors, fashion models, and actors, all in a single day. You are ten years old, with a pocket full of Wongas you earned working as a dentist, and three more hours to enjoy the park independently. Suddenly, you spot a new venue within the miniature city, near the entrance across from the bank. It’s the Motorola M-Lab.

You enter the high-tech environment and find yourself in Mission Control, where you watch an introductory video which discusses the importance of innovation and invention throughout history, and describes the task at hand. The video explains that you have been chosen to join Motorola’s team of M-Ventors, an elite and sought-after group of innovators skilled at solving difficult problems using teamwork and technology. Recently, the M-Ventors have been asked to help a group of marine biologists track and tag a strange, unknown sea creature so that scientists, and the world, can learn more about this elusive species.

But wait, you think, I thought Motorola only made mobile phones. Quickly you realize that this is much more than you initially expected. This is a hands-on lesson on the power of innovation, teamwork, and technology. Here, the problem – whether underwater or out in space – is not as important as the process of solving it.

The Field Operations Leader helps you and the others divide into three teams of up to four kids each. You receive a white lab coat with a badge indicating your role on the team, and a Log Book for jotting down ideas and inventions once you leave the M-Lab. Next, you walk through the Transition Tunnel that leads you to the M-Lab. The tunnel door opens electronically with a cool “whooshing” sound. As you make your way through the tunnel, you notice a slight dock scent, and hear dock workers in the distance. You enter the M-Lab, a submarine-like area with three pods, and are greeted by the Mission Leader. You are then directed to your team’s pod and are instructed to assume your position around the Control Console, a high-tech, futuristic table containing a flat panel monitor.

The descent begins. Outside the pod windows, you notice the bubbles of the ocean, then various sea life. An octopus swims by, and a large eye eerily presses against the glass. You hear the creaking sounds of the submarine moving through the water. The floor of the pod vibrates slightly as you continue your descent. The pressure inside the pod increases, and there is a slight chill in the air as the M-Lab descends into the depths of the ocean.

You and your team mates begin the game, competing against the other two teams as you race to identify the correct combination of components that will allow your team’s Smart Fish to catch and tag the elusive target fish. Each of you is given a specific sub-role on the team -- Engineer, Tracker, Enticer, or Tagger -- which determines which one of the four Smart Fish components -- engine, sensor, lure, or tagging method – you will be responsible for selecting and operating during your mission. You are assigned the sub-role of Engineer, making you responsible for choosing the best engine for the Smart Fish and maintaining the vehicle’s energy supply during the mission.

You analyze the target fish facts that are given to you and your team mates to select the optimal combination of Smart Fish components. You engage in an interactive invention process where each team member selects their component and places it on the Smart Fish circuit board. Once the Smart Fish has been assembled, you must test your component by operating it optimally via an interactive mini-game.

In the meantime, a 50-inch plasma at the center of your Control Console shows you the Smart Fish as it searches the depths of the ocean for any sign of your target fish. If you operate your component optimally during the mini-game, you will know whether your component is “Verified” or “Rejected.” If you do not operate your component optimally, you will receive a feedback message of “Incomplete.” This means you have to retest your component to find out whether it is “Verified” or “Rejected.”

You must all work together as a team, or you will be unable to track and tag the target fish. When each member of your team has selected the correct Smart Fish component and operated it optimally, your team will successfully catch and tag the target fish. All of a sudden, you realize time has run out – the M-Lab must return to the surface. As the M-Lab ascends, you feel excited by the results of your mission.

Your team has won! You were able to catch and tag your target fish. Everyone on your team receives a prize, an Advanced M-Ventor Upgrade Card, which will provide you with an advantage in future visits to the M-Lab.

The Mission Leader congratulates all teams on a fantastic effort and rewards everyone with an M-Ventor pen to use with their M-Ventor Log Books as you exit the M-Lab. With your M-Ventor Log Book and pen in your pocket, you feel a sense of accomplishment, knowing that you completed your mission. Upgrade card or not, you know that the next time you visit the M-Lab, you will have an advantage simply because of your experience. And, you know that innovation is a process best accomplished by trial and error, and most importantly, teamwork. Kind of like life itself.