In this video from SciTech Now, learn how robotics is changing today's medical landscape. Robotic instruments are used to help surgeons perform ultra-precise surgeries, sometimes even replacing the surgeon! Bionic limbs are used to help paralyzed patients stand and walk again, improving the patients’ health and spirit. It’s an exciting time to be in the robotic engineering field, as these medical bots continue to improve. This video can be played during a lesson on exploring and predicting how advances in computing technologies affect job-opportunities and/or processes now and in the future.
See the "Designing a Robotic Instrument" handout and sample answers in the Support Materials section for a hands-on activity to get students engaged with the design process and robotic engineering in relation to medicine and human anatomy.
Robotic devices are everywhere: in factories, law enforcement, caretaking. Today they are smarter than ever, but they only excel when the task is clearly defined. This video can be played during a lesson on identifying emerging technologies in computing.
Researchers in the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory working on emerging technology to engineer smarter robots. They are now building a machine that interacts socially with people in this video segment adapted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This video comes with discussion questions.
A team from the Mechanical Engineering Department studies snail movement for inspiration that may lead to new emerging technologies of robotic locomotion in this video segment adapted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In the field of robotic locomotion, designers are finding the study of animal and insect movement an exciting area of research. Inspired by nature, these designers are creating robots that are extremely nimble and capable of moving over a variety of surfaces, such as rough terrain, steep inclines, and even vertical walls. This video comes with discussion questions.
Students will explore a wide variety of new and innovative computing platforms while expanding their understanding of what a computer can be.
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