REU Site: Robots in the Real World

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This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site will inspire students with the possibilities inherent in multi-disciplinary research in robotics. They will complete the program excited about continuing to do research in robotics, having the necessary tools to successfully transition to graduate-level research, and achieve further academic progress and research at their home institutions. Robotics is a multi-disciplinary field ranging from mechanical design, to understanding physical systems, to exploring human-robot interaction. This array of skills makes it both a challenging and exciting field of study for many undergraduates, but exploiting that appeal can be challenging for a small institution because of the inherent infrastructure cost. This site is particularly targeted at academic institutions that do not have extensive robotics infrastructure, and to enable students at those institutions to both successfully compete for graduate positions and bring back robotics culture to their home institutions. The design of this REU site contains a number of programmatic elements designed to teach undergraduates how to approach research, what life as a graduate student is like, and how to write solid graduate applications. Broadly speaking, the research in robotics focuses on physical robots operating in the real world, and the challenges inherent in designing, building, controlling, and interacting with them in complex environments. One intangible but important benefit to a summer REU program is networking - meeting students with similar interests who, potentially, will go on to graduate school in related areas, and even, long-term, into faculty positions. This site has several mechanisms to support the creation of these networks, from peer-to-peer mentoring and shared activities through longer-term social networking tools. These long-term relationships will help to form multi-disciplinary bridges in the next generation of researchers in robotics.