S TU D EN T ’ S
C O R N E R
For the Students by the Students
Editor’s Note This column is by and for IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Student Members. In this issue, we have the reports from IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Student Activities Chair Tamas Haidegger (on plans for student activities at IROS 2010), Student Activities Committee Cochair Michel Franken (on student activities at the IEEE ICRA 2010), and a collection of very useful hints (not for students only!) on successfully presenting your research at conferences and competitions by Student Activities Committee Cochair Alejandro Perez. Send your suggestions for this column to Tamas Haidegger at
[email protected].
ROS Robot Competition Tamas Haidegger
It was a great pleasure to see old friends and meet new people at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). I am glad many of you joined the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) Student Activities Committee (SAC) programs that we organized (read the more detailed report by SAC Cochair Michel Franken on the activities below). At the RAS Administrative Committee meetings, which are usually held at ICRA and the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), financial and organizational decisions are made regarding the Society. I am happy to announce that the RAS is fully committed to improve SAC programs, to inspire and boost student projects, competitions, and cooperation. This means that we are able to extend the successful ICRA programs for the upcoming events as well. First and foremost, you can find the call for participation for the midterm Student Photo Contest and the student reporters in this issue. We hope many of you will submit your great pictures and share fascinating stories about robotic events. Also, as IROS is quickly approaching, we want to call your attention to programs listed in the following. Fostering Interaction Between Robotists and Students: Student/Chair Mentorship Program At this year’s IROS, students can get involved in a fun way again. Get the behind-the-scenes experience with a conference. Participants in Fostering Interaction Between Robotists and Students (FIBRS) will get to directly see how sessions are organized and run. This program will also give you a chance to interact with key researchers in your field. Students will be paired with a session chair, where you will learn how to run a session. After Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MRA.2010.938494
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arriving early to the session you’ve signed up for and introducing yourself to the session chair, you will have the opportunity to observe up close how the chair is coordinating the session. Afterward, depending on the session chair’s schedule, you should have the opportunity to ask questions related to the topics discussed in the session. Students who are interested should first find out who they would like to work with, by reading the session guide and selecting a chair that they would like to be their mentor. Please e-mail the name of the session, the date, and your relevant contact information to,
[email protected]. Keep in mind that people are occasionally very busy, so you may also wish to provide an alternative mentor name. Student Photo Contest You are welcome to submit your photographs taken during the IROS 2010 conference. This is a seasonal amateur photography competition that is open to IROS undergraduate and graduate student attendees. The judging of the submitted photographs will be made by the IEEE RAS SAC, involving independent judges. Three winners will be announced and awarded after the conference. The submitted photos will be used for archival purposes. The RAS SAC sponsored a student photo contest at ICRA 2010. See the winning pictures in “ICRA Student Photo Contest Winners.” Student Reporters Program The chance is given to you to become famous with your writing skills: we are calling for entertaining, yet professionally relevant, reports on the different sessions of IROS. You can register for a session via the SAC Web site (http://wiki.ieeeras.org/mab/sac). The best reports will be awarded and published in IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine’s upcoming issue or on the RAS Web site. Write out your impressions! SEPTEMBER 2010
ICRA Student Photo Contest Winners
First place winner. Remote manipulation by Armin Hornung, University of Freiburg, Germany.
Second place winner. Denali (Mount McKinley) from George Parks Highway by Richard Moore, University of Queensland, Australia.
There was a three-way tie for third place.
Third place winner. Third place winner. Reception by Rachana Ashok Collecting glacier data Gupta, North Carolina State University, USA. at Byron Glacier during ICRA 2010 by Hae Won Park, Georgia Tech, USA.
Third place winner. Enjoying rolling banquet by Rachana Ashok Gupta, North Carolina State University, USA.
See more ICRA and Alaska photos at http://icra2010.grasp.upenn.edu/?q=node/67.
Lunch with Leaders A midday event will be organized, where you can sit and chat with the prominent professionals of our field. List of leaders (invited by the RAS SAC) both from industry and academia will be published at the IROS and SAC Web sites. Register early, seats are limited. Student Breakout Programs For most of us, visiting Taiwan will be an exotic experience; therefore, we will organize tours to see the Shilin Night Market, the famous temples, visit the National 12
IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine
Palace Museum, hike Yhangmingshan and climb up to Taipei 101. Don’t forget your camera and multiculturalism at home. Finally, there are many more (currently unconfirmed) programs, such as a student reviewing tutorial, a ROS robot competition, laboratory tour to IRCAD, and many more. Make sure you get the updates through the SAC Newsletter, the SAC wiki page, and the official IROS site. If you are willing to join us in organizing these events, just let us know. You are most welcome, and we hope to see many of you in October. SEPTEMBER 2010
