Just got my daughter a Magician chassis and a MotoMama shield for 16th b'day....
I was at work before she got up this morning and she just texted me that it's really cool. 8) So looks like I did something right! Yay Dad.
Now all her future b'day and xmas presents will be really easy- sensors, motors, shields
Nice job. Get them interested early.
16 isn't all that "early": by the time I was 10, I already had a chemistry set, a microscope, my own shortwave receiver, and a good-sized Erector (Meccano) set. And a few of my very own hand tools, which I used to disassemble and (usually 
) reassemble my more-interesting mechanical toys.
It's true that I was a particularly nerdy kid who grew into a particularly nerdy adult. But I'm reminded of two findings of extensive research: we know that the brain physically changes such that language acquisition becomes increasingly difficult as kids grow older, and that the "girls are no good at math/science/engineering" socialization has strongly taken root by their mid-teens.
I wonder whether there might be some similar developmental path for math and/or science skills, such that kids who aren't taught and encouraged early are, not just less likely, but less able, to pursue those careers.
And it seems self-evident that adolescent girls are going to be much more able to resist the "Girls can't do that" message if they can respond "Oh, yeah? Well, I already have done that!" and show off their Arduino-controlled Legobot that detects the beat and dances in time to the music.
She plans on a BSc in aero engineering here locally in Joburg at my alma mater, and has her sights on postgrad at MIT.... not sure who's gonna pay for that part, but nothing like being focused...
@ran talbott
I got started with all of this at the age of 24. I actually think if I had started earlyer, I would not have become as passionate about it. Looking back at my interests I had with 16 - I hardly follow those hobbies any more.
I wish my parents had given me something like this for... well... any birthday. But then they are artist/sociologist/language people and don't have the slightest clue about these things.
I started with Programming Microcontrollers when i was 22 that is 2 years from now, initially when i was a teenager at 17-18 years of age i used to programme and learn the same in the institute and after that tried my interest in several things like other profiles but didn't got my heart settled but finally im here in the Physical Computing world .