What is Robotics: Why Do We Need It and How Can We Get It?

Robotics is an emerging synthetic science concerned with programming work. Robot technologies are quickly advancing beyond the insights of the existing science. More secure intellectual foundations will be required to achieve better, more reliable and safer capabilities as their penetration into society deepens. Presently missing foundations include the identification of fundamental physical limits, the development of new dynamical systems theory and the invention of physically grounded programming languages. The new discipline needs a departmental home in the universities which it can justify both intellectually and by its capacity to attract new diverse populations inspired by the age old human fascination with robots. For more information: Kod*la

Service-Learning and Civic Engagement as the Basis for Engineering Design Education

Service-learning (SL) is among the pedagogies that can be used to teach students the engineering design process. The similarities and differences of SL as implemented via engineering design are compared to community and civic engagement typical in disciplines such as social sciences. Although engineering design can be conceptualized via a number of paradigms, a human-centered design approach is particularly well-suited to SL projects. SL projects typically engage engineering students and instructors with stakeholders who do not have technical backgrounds. This approach is different than many industrially-sponsored projects that are more typical in capstone design projects and poses unique challenges and opportunities for engineering design education. Best practice recommendations for SL design projects have been distilled, with a particular emphasis on developing reciprocal partnerships and meaningful student reflection. SL design projects can lead to a rich array of knowledge, skills, and attitude outcomes among students, including ethical development, humility and empathy, and creativity and innovation. Enhanced recruiting and retention using this pedagogy has also been reported. Assessment of community partner satisfaction, learning, and outcomes are generally less well documented. SL design projects can be integrated into courses ranging from first-year to senior capstone, providing benefits to communities while enhancing students’ skills

Learning together: a transdisciplinary approach to student–staff partnerships in higher education

© 2019, © 2019 HERDSA. Partnership in higher education has gained prominence over recent decades, but recent studies have identified a lack of research exploring how partnership practices unfold in specific disciplinary contexts. This article explores how a transdisciplinary approach can be used to better understand and facilitate student–staff partnerships where staff and students have diverse disciplinary backgrounds and knowledge. We present a case study of the Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation at the University of Technology Sydney, focusing on the adaptation of our curriculum co-creation processes by drawing on multiple knowledge types through a reflexive process of mutual learning. We conclude that explicit consideration of these principles, which are common to both transdisciplinary and partnership frameworks, have the potential to enhance consideration of diverse perspectives and the roles played by worldviews, norms and values when building student–staff partnerships around curriculum co-creation

Meeting U.S. defense needs in the information age : an evaluation of selected comlex electronic system development methodologies

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 1995.Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-167).by Alexander C. Hou.M.S

ICS Materials. Towards a re-Interpretation of material qualities through interactive, connected, and smart materials.

The domain of materials for design is changing under the influence of an increased technological advancement, miniaturization and democratization. Materials are becoming connected, augmented, computational, interactive, active, responsive, and dynamic. These are ICS Materials, an acronym that stands for Interactive, Connected and Smart. While labs around the world are experimenting with these new materials, there is the need to reflect on their potentials and impact on design. This paper is a first step in this direction: to interpret and describe the qualities of ICS materials, considering their experiential pattern, their expressive sensorial dimension, and their aesthetic of interaction. Through case studies, we analyse and classify these emerging ICS Materials and identified common characteristics, and challenges, e.g. the ability to change over time or their programmability by the designers and users. On that basis, we argue there is the need to reframe and redesign existing models to describe ICS materials, making their qualities emerge

Design for Social Sustainability in Digital Fabrication for Development in the Global South

Context: The demand for humanitarian and development aid has risen to an unprecedented level. With an urgent need for new solutions, the aid sector has started turning to digital fabrication (3D printing, laser cutting and computer numerical control (CNC) milling). Collectively, these initiatives are referred to as Digital Fabrication for Development (DF4D). It is commonly believed that DF4D can support more low-cost, appropriate and localised forms of production in the Global South. Problem: Despite rhetoric about the transformative potential of DF4D, there is concern that technology projects in the aid sector have historically failed to create lasting impact. It is put forward that social sustainability is currently lacking and that this is limiting the success of DF4D. Despite recognition that social sustainability is the foundation for sustainable development, it is a challenging concept that is often neglected in mainstream sustainability research. In addition, the role of design in promoting social sustainability has not been well understood. Until this problem is addressed, it is believed that DF4D will not succeed in creating the social impact it desires. Research aim: To investigate how design can promote social sustainability in DF4D. Methodology: This thesis follows a pragmatic research paradigm. First, an exploratory study is conducted with fourteen case studies to validate that social sustainability is currently lacking in DF4D. Building on these findings, the main study is conducted with three case studies: a 3D printed otoscope in Nepal; a digitally fabricated prosthesis in India; and, a digital fabricated suction pump machine in Kenya. The main study diverges in two directions, with the first part focusing on an analytical approach and the second part taking a critical systems approach. In the analytical approach, thematic coding of case study data is used to identify the key principles of Design for Social Sustainability in DF4D. In the critical systems approach, Actor-Network Theory is used to investigate the networks of DF4D projects. Results: The analytical approach results in a normative framework to support Design for Social Sustainability in DF4D. It offers practical guidelines that are relevant in project planning and evaluation. The framework highlights the need for radical, systems-focused solutions. It reveals that design can trigger social sustainability at product, process and paradigm levels. The critical systems approach explores an interpretative version of Design for Social Sustainability. It supports the development of an initial toolkit that allows actors to collaboratively map their own networks during ongoing projects. Network analysis of the case studies clarifies the linkage between participation and Design for Social Sustainability. Reciprocity is highlighted as a key network metric that reveals (in)equitable relationships. The results of the analytical and critical systems approaches are compared to identify their complementary insights. It is put forward that Design for Social Sustainability in DF4D demands several shifts in practice from: products to capabilities; exogenous to endogenous development; passive to active actors; quick fixes to open-ended solutions; and, one-off projects to scalable interventions. It is argued that Design for Social Sustainability also has the potential to shape sustainability transitions beyond the project level. Theoretical implications: Synthesis of fragmented knowledge on Design for Social Sustainability and identification of its key principles in the DF4D context. Practical implications: The development of a practical framework and an initial toolkit that can support practitioners in DF4D to develop more socially sustainable solutions. Methodological implications: Explanation of how and why analytical and critical systems approaches can provide complementary insights for exploring complex phenomena.This research was supported by the EPSRC Doctoral Training Programme, grant number EP/L504920/

Sensitivity analysis in a scoping review on police accountability : assessing the feasibility of reporting criteria in mixed studies reviews

In this paper, we report on the findings of a sensitivity analysis that was carried out within a previously conducted scoping review, hoping to contribute to the ongoing debate about how to assess the quality of research in mixed methods reviews. Previous sensitivity analyses mainly concluded that the exclusion of inadequately reported or lower quality studies did not have a significant effect on the results of the synthesis. In this study, we conducted a sensitivity analysis on the basis of reporting criteria with the aims of analysing its impact on the synthesis results and assessing its feasibility. Contrary to some previous studies, our analysis showed that the exclusion of inadequately reported studies had an impact on the results of the thematic synthesis. Initially, we also sought to propose a refinement of reporting criteria based on the literature and our own experiences. In this way, we aimed to facilitate the assessment of reporting criteria and enhance its consistency. However, based on the results of our sensitivity analysis, we opted not to make such a refinement since many publications included in this analysis did not sufficiently report on the methodology. As such, a refinement would not be useful considering that researchers would be unable to assess these (sub-)criteria