Fall 2021 Colloquia
Designing More Affordable Dynamic Robots
Speaker: Dan Aukes
Tuesday, December 7, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: While generalist robots continue to demonstrate a wide range of impressive feats, these systems are ultimately limited by the cost of development, which constrains their usefulness to highly structured environments and low-risk tasks. The long-term promise of robotics, by contrast, supports people by completing repetitive, dangerous, or dirty tasks that can risk the health and safety of humans. In order to realize this vision, the workflows used to develop robotic technology to solve such problems needs to better support affordable materials, accessible design methodologies, and fabrication approaches that scale. This talk discusses the innovations required for such a transformation, and a number of research initiatives currently underway to solve them.
Bio: Daniel M. Aukes is an Assistant Professor at Arizona State University, and is the Principal Investigator of the IDEAlab. His research investigates the nexus of design, manufacturing, and data-driven decision-making towards the development of robots that can operate in niche environments, with a focus on affordability and accessibility. He is a former Technology Development Fellow at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University and completed post-doctoral research in the Harvard MicroRobotics Lab with Rob Wood, developing manufacturing planning software for origami-inspired robots. Dr. Aukes received his PhD and Masters degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University, studying the design of underactuated robotics hands under Mark Cutkosky. He received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University. Dr. Aukes’s industry experiences have focused on manufacturing automation across a wide range of industries including automotive, pharmaceutical, and food-processing.
Developing a Digital Health product? Intro to Digital Health, Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) & FDA Digital Health Center of Excellence
Speaker: Aubrey Shick
Tuesday, November 16, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Are you developing or thinking about developing products to improve health or wellness?
Your product may be subject to oversight by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Digital Health Center of Excellence is here to help you interpret and navigate regulatory policies. We’re committed to empowering innovators like you and helping patients gain access to high-quality digital health innovation. In this talk we will define software as a medical device (SaMD) and how the FDA interprets different emerging digital health technologies from a regulatory perspective. We will also discuss the FDA Digital Health Center of Excellence and useful resources available to you as a researcher or developer.
Bio: Aubrey Shick is a Digital Health Specialist in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH), Office of Strategic Partnerships and Technology Innovation (OST), Division of Digital Health (DDH). Before joining the DDH in 2021, Aubrey worked in industry leading product strategy, software user experience (UX) architecture, and validation programs for multiple Wellness and Digital Health startups, Intel’s New Devices Group, and Medtronic. Aubrey’s product experience encompasses artificial intelligence (AI), virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR), wearable computing, embedded computing (IoT), and surgical robotics.
Failure is Not an Option: 51Թ's Technique at the DARPA Subterranean Challenge, Lessons Learned, and Next Steps
Speaker: Chris Heckman
Tuesday, November 2, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Is robotics a modern-day snake oil? In this talk, Heckman focuses on his recent investigation into where the limits of autonomy are for the highly sought-after application to subterranean emergency response operations. This application was motivated by the DARPA Subterranean Challenge, which just last month concluded with the 51Թ team "MARBLE" taking third place and winning a $500,000 prize. In this talk, Heckman will give an overview into the genesis of our solution over three years of effort, especially with respect to mobility, autonomy, perception, and communications. He'll also discuss the implications for present-day robotic autonomy and where we go from here.
Bio: Chris Heckman is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Colorado at 51Թ and the Jacques I. Pankove Faculty Fellow in the College of Engineering & Applied Science. He earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley in 2008 and his PhD in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from Cornell University in 2012, where he was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow. He had postdoctoral appointments at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC as an NRC Research Associate, and at 51Թ as a Research Scientist, before joining the faculty there in 2016.
We Are What We Attend To: Attention-Driven Learning and Implications for Design
Speaker: Lei Yuan
Tuesday, October 26, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Learning starts with attention to the right input. But, 1) what is the right input, 2) how to get learner’s attention to it, 3) how to sustain their attention long enough for them to learn? In this talk, Yuan answers these questions in the context of toddlers’ development of sustained attention during toy-play, and preschoolers’ development of externally- and internally-guided attention during the learning of symbol systems (e.g., maps, graphs, multi-digit numbers).
Bio: Dr. Lei Yuan is an Assistant Professor in Psychology & Neuroscience at 51Թ. She received her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology at Northwestern University in 2016, followed by an NIH NSRA funded Postdoctoral fellowship at Indiana University. She joined 51Թ in the Fall of 2020. She is the director of the DEL (Development, Education, and Learning) lab. Her research examines the structure of input data in children's early learning environment, the processes and mechanisms through which children learn from this data, and how this learning creates hidden deficits or competencies for later school learning. To answer these questions, her lab combines large-scale cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, training experiments, computational modeling, high-density behavioral data collection (e.g., eye tracking), and translational research in schools.
Secret Agents
Speaker: Tom Williams
Tuesday, October 19, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Robots are Secret Agents. While computer scientists and roboticists may not view their robots as being fully autonomous, interactive and adaptive, everyday users perceive them as such. This creates a whole host of user expectations that may be hard to live up to—and that may cause problems when violated. This talk explains how robot design choices impact how people perceive robots and expect them to behave.
Bio: Tom Williams is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Colorado School of Mines, where he directs the Mines Interactive Robotics Research Lab (MIRRORLab). Prior to joining Mines, Tom earned a joint PhD in Computer Science and Cognitive Science from Tufts University in 2017. Tom’s research focuses on enabling and understanding natural language based human-robot interaction that is sensitive to environmental, cognitive, social, and moral context. His work is funded by grants from NSF, ONR, and ARL, as well as by Early Career awards from NSF, NASA, and AFOSR.
Standards and Innovations
Speaker: Ken Krechmer
Tuesday, October 12, 11:30am - 12:20pm MT
Abstract: The technical history of the world. The waves of civilization from barter, agriculture, development, manufacturing, communications and programming are correlated to the successions of technical references/standards that are developed—symbols, measurement, design, similarity, compatibility, and adaptability. Each new succession is a paradigm change, enabling increased value creation and creating new means of control. Standards successions follow an evolutionary model, identifying how market control occurs and where new value is created. By extension this evolutionary model also suggests emerging markets and new ways to create value.
Bio: Ken Krechmer started his technical career working as an engineer for several electronics companies in the 1960s and 1970s. He was Program Chair of the Standards and Innovation in Information Technology (SIIT) conference in 2001 (51Թ, CO), 2003 (Delft, Netherlands) and 2007 (Calgary, Canada); and was a co- Program Chair of SIIT 2009 (Tokyo, Japan) and SIIT 2011 (Berlin, Germany). He was Conference Chair of SIIT 2115 (Sunnyvale, CA, USA). He is a Senior Member of the IEEE, as well as a scholar in residence in the College of Engineering and Applied Science at the 51Թ.
A Rosy Retrospection: The Psychological Importance of Nostalgia and Its Influence on Product Creation and Design Processes
Speaker: Thea Nalls
Tuesday, October 5, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Objects communicate more than just their utility. Designers and consumers may not realize nor recognize the manifestation of past and shared experiences in objects. Through memory-reward co-activation, our brains assign joy, positivity, appreciation, and clarity with objects that evoke nostalgia. From consumer goods to digital media, how can we begin to understand nostalgic cues and their influence on design decisions? We often teach design as ‘form follows function' and incorporate ‘emotional design’ without fully understanding the weight of nostalgia when it comes to new object adoption. Let’s explore the personal and cultural connection between nostalgia and product.
Bio: Thea Nalls is a cross-disciplinary designer and educator, combining engineering, biosciences, and image design when creating products and media. She designs content and visual narratives for her clients using a unique, “soft” methodology, pulling inspiration from psychological motivations in combination with macro-emotional trends. Thea holds a BSc in Aerospace Engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and an MSc in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology from the University of Florida. While living abroad, she earned an International Fashion Design Postgraduate Degree in Image Design from Institut Français de la Mode. She is currently teaching Product Design at the Program in Environmental Design at 51Թ.
Video Games as Philosophical Thought Experiments
Speaker: Sherry Jones
Tuesday, September 28, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: In moral philosophy, the concept of cultural relativism poses ethical challenges by proposing that morality is dependent on culture, and thus, any critique of a culture's morality is impossible. In game design, a game can be defined as a system of affordances and constraints for framing space for play. Game constraints can represent the cultural conditions that limit a society’s range of possible moral responses. We can consider games as thought experiments that express cultural values. Through game playing, we can learn to identify the conditions that limit the game’s ethics, thereby re-consider real-world ethics.
Bio: Sherry Jones is a philosophy and game studies subject matter expert at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, where she develops courses on the philosophy and psychology of game design. She serves as a steering committee member for the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) Learning, Education, and Games Special Interest Group. She also serves as a member for the state of Colorado’s gaming and esports subcommittee; she co-authored and led a proposal for creating a state-wide esports league and developing a game-based curriculum for Colorado’s institutions of higher education. Jones also conducts research and publishes writings on the ethical design of technology and on the future of open education.
Informal STEM packages for the people
Speaker: Shaz “Dr. Z” Zamore
Tuesday, September 21, 11:30am -12:30pm MT
Abstract: With time-traveling, cyborg scientists, superpowered students, and experiments using fantastical devices, Craniate is creating a one-of-a-kind STEAM* learning experience! Craniate’s two-part package treats young minds to neuroscience through the interactive comic Axon Squad, complemented by MOD Capsule project-based experiments. With Craniate, Dr. Z is seeking to explore how scientifically authentic experiences, coupled with visual storytelling influences comprehension, as well as attitudes toward STEM and STEM belief abilities in middle school students with minoritized identities.
Bio: Dr. Shaz Zamore is an instructor and STEAM outreach director at ATLAS. They currently teach a new course The State of Technology (ATLS 4/5529-005) which examines tech-involved social problems focused on 4 main units: Human-Computer Interface (AI, assistive tech, robotics, UI), Mechanical Technology (agriculture, commercial and industry), Medical Technology, and Entertainment technology (art, creative, social media).
Tempestries: Textiles, Tactility & the Climate Emergency
Speaker: Jools Gilson
Tuesday, September 14, 11:30am - 12:30pm MT
Abstract: Jools Gilson is an Irish Fulbright Scholar/Artist based at 51Թ for the Fall Semester 2021. Her Fulbright project is focused on the ways movement and textiles shape a sense of place within an Irish context. In particular, it connects practices of textile hand making and the somatic experience of dress with climate. Jools Gilson introduces her previous work with textiles and performance / installation with the conceptual and practical development of her current practice.
Bio: Jools Gilson is Professor of Creative Practice in the School of Film, Music & Theatre at University College Cork, Ireland. She is an artist who moves between the disciplines of visual art, writing and dance theatre. Her work is characterised by a poetic playfulness, a lively curiosity about communities, textiles and femininity and the climate emergency. Her work has been performed and exhibited internationally, and has received awards from The Arts Councils of Ireland and England, Culture Ireland, Fulbright Ireland, BBC Radio 4, The Banff Centre for the Arts (Canada), New York Festivals and others.