Robots are machines designed to replace human labor. A fear of vast unemployment due to robots seems unfounded, however, since industrialization creates many more jobs and automation requires technologists to build, program, maintain, and operate sophisticated equipment. Robots possess an intelligence unit, a manipulator, and an end effector.…

Major resources exist that can be used to develop or upgrade programs in community colleges and technical institutes that educate robotics/automated systems technicians. The first category of resources is Economic, Social, and Education Issues. The Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) report, "Automation and the Workplace," presents analyses of…

Discussion of the history and development of artificial intelligence (AI) highlights a bibliography of introductory books on various aspects of AI, including AI programing; problem solving; automated reasoning; game playing; natural language; expert systems; machine learning; robotics and vision; critics of AI; and representative software. (LRW)

A four-hour Introduction to Robotics lecture and laboratory course is discussed. Features of the three robot types used in the course are described, as well as how they are used in instruction. A computer program listing and two sample team projects are included. (MNS)

Proposes that full automation is the best current option for the United States' manufacturing industries. Advocates increased use of electronics, robotics, and computers in the establishment of unmanned factories. Implications of this movement are examined in terms of labor, management, and the structure of the economy. (ML)

A boom in industrial robotics has led numerous vocational institutions to launch extensive training programs in this specialty. ITT Educational Services offers two curriculum programs to train future manufacturing engineers. The firm's national director describes this model curriculum for meeting the needs of today's workforce. (JN)

The flexible manufacturing system (FMS), a new way of organizing the production process by means of numerical control machines, robots, and computerized workstations, is described. The author examines some of the implications of FMS and the challenges it poses. (Author/CT)

Using robots in the classroom can motivate students to learn basic skills. Suggestions are offered for adding excitement to the class with multidisciplinary activities, games, and a song. (DF)

This study examines what children learn about animals. The mental models that children reveal through their talk when they are faced with several different types of representations are reviewed. These representations are provided by robotic models in a museum, preserved animals in a museum, and preserved animals borrowed from a museum and…

Discusses a scrap sculpture project involving five sixth grade classes in making robots. (GB)

Offers such teaching activities as a one-line program contest, field trips, examining job openings in newspapers, and a writing activity speculating what would happen if robots did not follow Isaac Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics." Includes "Logo Goes to High School" by E. Paul Goldenberg, discussing problem-solving tasks…

Describes "Josef," a robot programing language similar to the LOGO turtle language, which has been designed as an instructional system through which the algorithmic problem-solving skills required in computer programing can be developed and tested in a controlled learning environment. Four figures and a reference list are included. (JL)

Reviews M.B. DeBevoise's "Conversations on Mind, Matter, and Mathematics," (a book of translated conversations between Jean-Pierre Changeux and Alain Connes), which explores the question of whether a machine could reproduce the activity of the human brain. Explains how mathematics might be able to mediate between mind and matter. (DDR)

Suggests that it is important to introduce liberal arts students to the essence of engineering. Describes Robotic Design Studio, a course in which students learn how to design, assemble, and program robots made out of LEGO parts, sensors, motors, and small embedded computers. Represents an alternative vision of how robot design can be used to…

Discussed are applications of robotics in the chemistry laboratory. Highlighted are issues of precision, accuracy, and system integration. Emphasized are the potential benefits of the use of robots to automate laboratory procedures. (CW)