As a poor Mexican from Arizona who went to MIT, this story hits close to home. But after much reflection, I believe the sad reality has a enduring positive legacy which has only begun.

While perhaps not following the paradigm of success we on HN often consider, the team's victory in the competition and subsequent publicity became a widely distributed step-function for an entire generation of down trodden Latinos. Although anecdotal, I've witnessed a large swath of family and friends become engineers, go to med school or start their own business. This viable reality was made possible by the previous generation taking chances and working incredibly hard.

I admit that I've been envious in the past of my immigrant friends with parents who are from India, China and Korea, where studiousness and achievement are default conditions for upbringing. But I'm excited to see an inflection point in the Mexican culture and it starts with stories like these!