Robotics Exhibition At Bruce Museum

Explores The Science Behind The Operation Of Robots

GREENWICH — With the rapid advance of technology in the past 50 years, robots have moved from the world of science fiction to the reality of becoming an integral part of our daily lives. The Bruce Museum will examine this burgeoning phenomenon in its major winter exhibition of 2008, “Robotics.” On view from Saturday, January 26, through Sunday, April 20, the show explores the science behind the operation of robots in an environment designed for fun and also presents fictional robots that inspire the imagination.

 “Robotics” features an extensive interactive area developed by the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, Penn., that gives visitors the opportunity to compare the skills of humans and machines. Through 13 interactive displays, visitors learn about the essential elements of any robot — sensing, thinking and acting — and discover how robots detect the world around them and then process that information to perform a task.

The Bruce Museum show also includes robots such as iRobot’s floor-cleaning Roomba, an industrial robot from Fanuc Robotics, Inc, research robots from the MIT Museum, and a third-scale replica of the successful Mars rover from Cornell University’s Center for Radio Physics and Space Research. Favorite robots of science fiction, including a 10-foot-tall Optimus Prime from the recent Transformers movie and an 8-foot Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet, greet visitors to the exhibition.

In addition, images from Photo Researchers, Inc, and others illustrate the variety of robots in use today — in industry, medicine, security, military, science and exploration. Initially designed to perform the three “D’s”— dull, dangerous or dirty work — robots have evolved to also become increasingly involved in education, entertainment and everyday. Video clips show robots in action, including Honda’s service robot ASIMO and the latest robotic vehicles that competed in the November 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge, which required autonomous ground vehicles to maneuver in a mock city environment.

Robots of the imaginary world preceded their real life counterparts. The word “robot” comes from the Czech language meaning forced labor and was first introduced by the playwright Karel Capek in the 1920 play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots), which was published in English translation in 1923. By the 1950s and 1960s, toy robots had their golden age as the space race came to a zenith and imagination met technology.

More than 35 robot toys on loan from collectors highlight how popular culture has embraced robots of fantasy and entertainment. Classics like Mr Mercury, Zoomer and Attacking Martian are on view along with more recent additions such as Hasbro’s Mio Pup, Pepsi Japan’s NEX BOY, Sony’s AIBO, and Transformer’s Bumblebee.

A stripped-down version of a robotic toy from Hasbro allows visitors to view its inner-workings and demonstrates the sophisticated technology behind some of the latest playthings. A small theater shows video clips of favorite robots from more than 80 years of film and television, including Maria from Metropolis, Gort from The Day the Earth Stood Still, Robby from Forbidden Planet, R2D2 from Star Wars, Sonny from I, Robot, Autobots from Transformers, and Bender from Futurama.

“Robotics” Programming

The museum has scheduled a number of programs related to “Robotics,” including the following:

*Teachers’ Preview on Tuesday, February 5, from 3:30 to 5 pm: Teachers Preview includes a staff tour of the exhibition followed by the presentation of the school program and teachers’ materials. Curriculum connections to science, math and social studies will be highlights, and student docent information is also available.

Open to schoolteachers only (.1 CEU).

*Robots Vacation Workshop, Tuesday through Friday, February 19-22, 10:30 to 11:30 am each day: Students in grades 1-3 will explore the exhibition and then work on creating their own robot projects. Cost is $7 per child per day ($5 for members), which covers all materials; reservations are required.

Programs are inclusive and suitable for students of all ages. Projects will change each day: Tuesday, participants will make a grabbing robot claw; Wednesday, rolling cup robot; Thursday, NASA Nanorover; and Friday, big box robot.

*Family Movie Night on Friday, February 22, at Greenwich Library, 101 West Putnam Avenue.

Join Bruce Museum staff for a special screening of the classic 1956 science fiction film Forbidden Planet, which featured a number of groundbreaking special effects and the first screen appearance of the famous Robby the Robot.

Showtime is 8 pm, doors open at 7:40, and admission is free.

*Robotics For Families on Sunday, February 24, from 1 to 4 pm: Fun, educational activities for the whole family will include making robot masks and an exploratory gallery hunt through the exhibition.

At 3 pm, James McLurkin of Kid-in-the-Box Consulting, and a graduate student at MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, will present a lively, educational program called “What Do Robots Do?” The program will start with Hollywood robots and progress to real, working robots before culminating in a live demonstration of the SwarmBots, a mass of aoutonomous robots.

All activities are suitable for visitors of all ages and abilities, and are included with museum admission.

*Sunday, March 2, at 3 pm: “Robots at Work” lecture by William “Red” L. Whittaker, Fredkin professor of robotics, The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University.

Professor Whittaker will discuss his current projects at the institute including his team’s winning entry in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge, where driverless robotic vehicles competed against each other on city streets, and the Lunar Rover Initiative, a pair of mobile robots for the first privately funded lunar mission with telepresence for public participation and education.

Lectures are $5 per person (free for museum members), and reservations are strongly recommended; call 203-869-0376.

*Wednesday, April 2, at 7:30 pm: “Exploring Mars with Spirit and Opportunity,” lecture by Diane Bollen, research support specialist, Cornell University, department of astronomy.

Ms Bollen has been involved with the NASA Mars program for the past ten years. She is part of the rover tactical operations team, planning the day-to-day activities of the rovers, and is a member of the Pancam imaging team, whose function it is to calibrate and evaluate images taken by the rovers.

This month will mark the fourth anniversary of the Mars exploration rovers Spirit and Opportunity landing on the surface of Mars. Find out what scientists have learned from the data collected over the past four years by these robotic geologists, and view the breathtaking landscape panoramas from the eyes of the rovers.

Lectures are $5 per person (free for museum members), and reservations are strongly recommended; call 203-869-0376.

*Sunday, April 13, at 3 pm: “Almost Human: Making Robots Think,” lecture by Professor Lee Gutking, author, edot and founder of The Creative Nonfiction Foundation, and professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh.

Prof Gutkind will speak about his latest book (which is also the name of his lecture), which goes behind the scenes at the Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute, offering a remarkable, intense portrait of the robotic subculture and the challenging quest for robot autonomy. Copies of his book will be available in the museum store.

Lectures are $5 per person (free for museum members), and reservations are strongly recommended; call 203-869-0376.

*Robots Family Day on Sunday, April 20, from 1 to 4 pm: Fun, educational activities for the whole family including making robot masks and a gallery hunt through the exhibition.

Visitors will also see a robot in action with a CT FIRST Robot, which will demonstrate their 2007 competition robot.

Again, activities are suitable for all ages and abilities, and will be included with regular museum admission.

The Bruce Museum is at 1 Museum Drive. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 1 to 5 pm. Regular admission is $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and students; free for children age 5 and under, for museum members, and for all visitors every Tuesday.

For additional information, call 203-869-0376 or visit BruceMuseum.org.