Engineering Out Loud

Can middle schoolers learn computer science concepts using tabletop games? How about during a pandemic, when classroom interaction takes place remotely? Researchers in computer science and education are working closely with teachers to develop an innovative curriculum designed to broaden participation in computer science classes.

• Learning Computer Science Through Tabletop Games in a Dual Language Immersion Middle School: description of NSF grant featured in the podcast.

• Board Game Language (BoGL): programming language used in the course curriculum described in the podcast.

• Once Upon an Algorithm: book by Martin Erwig, Stretch Professor of Computer Science.

• Ain't We Got Fun in the College of Engineering: video collaboration of musicians in the College of Engineering, recorded remotely.

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-10-pandemic-puzzles/using-games-teach-computer-science-remotely-s10e3

What can wastewater tell us about the spread of disease? Could the coronavirus' signature RNA sequence tip public health officials to where the next COVID-19 outbreaks will occur? In this episode, we'll talk to two researchers who are leading the effort to monitor Oregon's wastewater streams for coronavirus, in partnership with treatment facilities throughout the state.

• Watcher in the wastewater (Nature)
• Wastewater sampling proves useful in tracking coronavirus (Oregonian)
• TRACE Community (Oregon State)

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-10-pandemic-puzzles/tracing-virus-through-sewers-s10e2

What's life like for long-haul truck drivers in a COVID-19 world? We'll get behind-the-wheel perspectives from driver (and musician) Paul Marhoefer and from Associate Professor Sal Hernandez who's looking into how drivers have adapted to demanding conditions caused by the pandemic and the resiliency of the nation's freight system.

• Music by Paul Marhoefer (aka Long Haul Paul)
• Over the Road: Stories of American Truckers
• Podcast: The National Truck Parking Shortage

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-10-pandemic-puzzles/trucking-through-covid-s10e1

Self-driving cars and planes are in our future. What are we doing to make them safe? Assistant Professor Houssam Abbas uses tiny race cars to test autonomous driving systems. And Oregon State graduate Robert Rose is using his past experience with SpaceX to develop a safe system to automate existing aircraft.

• Beyond the Books - Autonomous Racing (video)
• Running in the real world (feature story about Houssam Abass)
• Explained: Neural networks, MIT News
• Reliable Robotics (website)

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-9-robotics-and-ai/age-autonomous-vehicles-s9e7

What will it take for robot assistants to become more integrated in our daily lives? Assistant Professor Naomi Fitter thinks they'll need to master the physical aspects of social interactions, while Associate Professor Cindy Grimm cautions against programming them to behave just like us.

• Social Haptics, Assistive Robotics, and Embodiment (SHARE Lab) at Oregon State University
• Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute (CoRIS) at Oregon State University
• How High Fives Help Us Get in Touch With Robots (IEEE Spectrum)
• A robot walks onto the stage: Robotic comedy, variety show comes to the Majestic
• Cindy Grimm research page

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-9-robotics-and-ai/little-help-my-robot-friend-s9e6

Will robots someday replace farm workers? Do we want them to? Assistant Professor and agricultural robotics expert Joe Davidson talks about the potential benefits of using robots in agriculture, and what goes into designing the perfect robotic apple picker.

• Design, integration, and field evaluation of a robotic apple harvester (Wiley)
• Robotics for Sugarcane Cultivation: Analysis of Billet Quality using Computer Vision (IEEE Xplore)

https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/season-9-robotics-and-ai/and-farm-he-had-robot-s9e5

Why should robots have artificial social intelligence? According to Heather Knight, assistant professor of computer science, if robots are going to help in hospitals or work with people in factories, they will need to be adapted to our social conventions.

For robots to be more useful around people, they'll need to go where we go. But how? Associate Professor Jonathan Hurst thinks the answer is simple. Walking. But actually making a walking robot is no simple feat.

For robots to be more useful around people, they'll need to go where we go. But how? Associate Professor Jonathan Hurst thinks the answer is simple. Walking. But actually making a walking robot is no simple feat.

Can we trust artificial intelligence to make good decisions? The answer is a resounding maybe. More and more, society and individuals are entrusting AI to make potentially life-changing decisions. Rather than putting blind trust in the judgment of these remarkable systems, Alan Fern and a team of computer scientists want to reveal their reasoning processes.