Computers and Robots in Education Using Computing to Understand the World Mark Guzdial, Georgia...
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Transcript of Computers and Robots in Education Using Computing to Understand the World Mark Guzdial, Georgia...
Computers and Robots in Computers and Robots in EducationEducationUsing Computing to Using Computing to Understand the WorldUnderstand the World
Mark Guzdial, Georgia Institute of TechnologyThe Institute for Personal Robots in Education
with Tucker Balch, Doug Blank, Deepak Kumar, Stewart Tansley, Jared Jackson, Natasha Eilbert, Keith O’Hara, Daniel Walker, Gaurav Gupta, Jay Summet, and Monica Sweat
Leonardo used painting to Leonardo used painting to understand his worldunderstand his world“He who despises painting loves neither
philosophy or nature. If you despise painting, which is the sole imitator of all the visible works of nature, you will be certainly despising a subtle invention which brings philosophy an subtle speculation to bear upon the nature of all forms- sea and land, plants and animals, grasses and flowers…’
“… whatever exists in the universe, in essence, in appearance, in the imagination, the painter has first in his mind and then in his hand.’
If Leonardo were alive If Leonardo were alive today,today,he’d use a computer!he’d use a computer!A computer allows us to represent the
world:PicturesSoundsStoriesMovement
And make it interactive.The Computer is da Vinci’s “painting”
for understand all the world’s nature.
Teaching Computing in Teaching Computing in the World at Georgia Techthe World at Georgia Tech
At Georgia Tech:Every student must take a course in computer science.We offer 3 different introductory courses,each contextualized: Taught using examples that draw on the students’ world.
Using computing to understand the world
Contextualized Computing Contextualized Computing Education at Georgia TechEducation at Georgia Tech
3 Courses:Introduction to Media Computation: Understanding how digital media workIntroduction to Engineering Computing: Understanding how Engineers create the world with computing.Introduction to Computing with Robots: Understanding how robots work in the world.
Using the computer to Using the computer to understand soundunderstand sound
Sounds are waves of air pressure
Sound comes in cycles
The frequency of a wave is the number of cycles per second (cps), or Hertz
(Complex sounds have more than one frequency in them.)
The amplitude is the maximum height of the wave
Turning Sounds into Turning Sounds into Numbers for the Numbers for the ComputerComputerRemember in calculus,
estimating the curve by creating rectangles?
We take samples: The amount of air pressure at any moment in time.
We take these samples very often. For CD-quality sound, 44,100 times per second!
Each sample is +/- 32,000
How would Leonardo use a How would Leonardo use a computer to understand computer to understand sound?sound?
Live Demo:What makes different instruments different?What does it mean to increase volume?How do humans understand speech?
Using Robots to Using Robots to understand Computing: understand Computing: IPRE OverviewIPRE OverviewResearch Project
Mission: explore making CS education more fun and effective through the context of a personal robot
Target: All levels, from middle school to graduate school
Joint effort hosted at Georgia Tech with Bryn Mawr College (+ MSR)
3 year seed funding provided by Microsoft Research (MSR)
Special ingredient and hypothesis:
A personal robot for every student
Personal RobotPersonal Robot
Every student gets their own robot
Small enough to carry in backpack
Cost about the price of a textbook
Wireless, controlled from computer
Interactive and easy to program
Personalizable
More than “just a robot”
IPRE Pilot Hardware KitIPRE Pilot Hardware KitFeaturing Parallax’s Featuring Parallax’s ScribblerScribbler 6 Light sensors
7 IR sensors
Stall sensor
Speaker
5 LEDs
2 motors
Bluetooth wireless
Camera
Gamepad
Scribbler with IPRE FlukeScribbler with IPRE Fluke
Now available at www.roboteducation.org
IPRE’s PhilosophyIPRE’s Philosophy
The Personal Robot provides the context
The needs of the curriculum drive the design of the robot, software, and text
The software should be easy to pick up, but scales with experience
An accessible, engaging environment for new, diverse students
Computer Science != programming
Computing as a social activity
Computing as a medium for creativity
Focus on performances rather than competitions
Curriculum GoalsCurriculum Goals
Bring in examples from other related disciplines (e.g., biology, AI)
Explicitly focus on robotics rather than programming constructs (e.g., chapter titles such as “Building Brains” rather than “Variables” or “Loops”)
But, implicitly focus on Computing
We believe this defines the notion of a context … and would work equally well with gameotics
Curriculum GoalsCurriculum Goals
Bring in examples from other related disciplines (e.g., biology, AI)
Explicitly focus on robotics rather than programming constructs (e.g., chapter titles such as “Building Brains” rather than “Variables” or “Loops”)
Using Robots to Learn Using Robots to Learn ComputingComputing
Programming as a social Programming as a social activityactivity
Making stories with robotsMaking stories with robots
19
Robot MoviesRobot MoviesWonderful project by Jay Summet: Creative, Collaborative, and Parallel!
Robots are characters.
Multiple characters mean multiple students with multiple robots.
One robot is cameraHow do you zoom?Aim and go forward!
Challenges: How do you know when your actors are in their places? How do you “cue” the others?
Post-processing media computation for eerie disappearing effects.
Example MovieExample Movie
Connections to Biology and Connections to Biology and PsychologyPsychology
Modeling AnimalsModeling Animals
How do animals sense light?
Why do moths move to the light?
How do they know which way to turn to get there?
Does it matter if you see vs. smell?
We can model light-seeking behavior as a way to understand animals using robots
Audibly signaling a turnAudibly signaling a turn
def signalingTurn():
left = 0
right = 2
while timerRemaining(10):
if robot.getLight(left) < robot.getLight(right):
robot.beep(0.25,400)
if robot.getLight(right) < robot.getLight(left):
robot.beep(0.25,800)
signalingTurn()
““Civic Computing”Civic Computing”
Initial AssessmentInitial Assessment
What was the most important or interesting thing that you learned in
this course?
"That computer science can be creative!"
Assessment ResultsAssessment Results
Two main trials so-far:Spring 2007: Attitudes robot (GT and Bryn Mawr) and non-robot (GT)
Interviews to establish themes
Surveys to test themes across whole class
Fall 2007: More careful testing of learning, same groupings
Attitudes in Spring 2007Attitudes in Spring 2007
All students enjoyed the robot, were comfortable with it, and found it easy to get working.
Personalizing the robot improved the course, in students’ opinion.
Reported that the class was about computer science
Found homework challenging
Differences in Attitudes Differences in Attitudes Spring 2007Spring 2007
BMC students did more on homework “because it was cool.”BMC students were undeclared majors.
Reported being more excited about CS afterward.
GT students were already declared majors.
Less excited about robots overall, but more interested than BMC in more courses in computer science.
W’s vs. F’s, W’s vs. F’s, statistically significantstatistically significant
Bryn Mawr College Data for Bryn Mawr College Data for 12 years of CS212 years of CS2
CS2 Data Structures Enrollment
0
2
4
6
8
10
0
5
10
15
20
Looks Promising!Looks Promising!
CS2 Data Structures Enrollment
Others: Storytelling, Music Video, Others: Storytelling, Music Video, AnalysisAnalysis
Combining Sound and Combining Sound and RoboticsRobotics
Learn about music by making a robot musician
ConclusionsConclusions
Leonardo da Vinci would have used the computer to understand his world.
We have shown today using computing and robots to learn about sound, biology, and stories.
Through the context of a Personal Robot we hope to make computing more personal, interesting, and effective
Initial assessment shows that students learn about computing, find it challenging, yet enjoyable