Robot Talk

Claire chatted to Stefano Mintchev from ETH Zürich about robots to explore and monitor the natural environment. Stefano Mintchev is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Robotics at ETH Zürich in Switzerland. He has a Ph.D. in Bioinspired Robotics from Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Italy, and conducted postdoctoral research at EPFL in Switzerland, focused on bioinspired design principles for versatile aerial robots. At ETH Zürich, Stefano leads a research group working at the intersection of robotics and environmental science, developing robust and scalable bioinspired robotic technologies for monitoring and promoting the sustainable use of natural resources. Support Robot Talk on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher  

Claire chatted to Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi from Ohio Northern University about bipedal robots that can walk and even climb stairs. Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi (Wami) is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Ohio Northern University. Her research focuses on controls with applications in bipedal locomotion and engineering education. She is the first Black woman to receive a PhD in Robotics at the University of Michigan. During her Ph.D., she developed the Biped Bootcamp technical document, which she is transforming into an undergraduate curriculum —introducing students to bipedal robotics while providing advanced coursework for juniors and seniors. Join the Robot Talk community on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher

Claire chatted to Shimon Whiteson from the University of Oxford and Waymo about machine learning for autonomous vehicles. Shimon Whiteson is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of Oxford and a Senior Staff Research Scientist at Waymo UK. His research focuses on deep reinforcement learning and imitation learning, with applications in robotics and video games. He completed his doctorate at the University of Texas at Austin in 2007. He spent eight years as an Assistant and then an Associate Professor at the University of Amsterdam before joining Oxford as an Associate Professor in 2015. His spin-out company Latent Logic was acquired by Waymo in 2019. Join the Robot Talk community on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher  

Claire chatted to Chapa Sirithunge from the University of Cambridge about what robots can teach us about human anatomy, and vice versa. Chapa Sirithunge is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellow in robotics at the University of Cambridge. She has an undergraduate degree and PhD  in Electrical Engineering from the University of Moratuwa. Before joining the University of Cambridge in 2022, she was a lecturer at Sri Lanka Technological Campus and a visiting lecturer at the University of Moratuwa Sri Lanka. Her research interests span assistive robotics, soft robots and physical human-robot interaction. In addition to her research, she founded Women in Robotics Cambridge to help young minds navigate their path into robotics. Support Robot Talk on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher  

Claire chatted to Kevin McAleer from kevsrobots about how to get started building robots at home. Kevin McAleer is a hobbyist robotics fanatic who likes to build robots, share videos about them on YouTube and teach people how to do the same. Kev has been building robots since 2019, when he got his first 3d printer and wanted to make more interesting builds. Kev has a degree in Computer Science, and because his day job is relatively hands-off, this hobby allows his creativity to have an outlet. Kev is a huge fan of Python and Micropython for embedded devices, and has a website - kevsrobots.com where you can learn more about how to get started in robotics. Join the Robot Talk community on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher