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