Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!uunet!noc.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!cs.uiuc.edu!kadie
From: kadie@cs.uiuc.edu (Carl M Kadie)
Subject: Re: "That's not robotics; that's toy building"
Message-ID: <CBq6n8.IvL@cs.uiuc.edu>
Organization: University of Illinois, Dept. of Comp. Sci., Urbana, IL
References: <CBHzGn.DI6@cs.uiuc.edu> <247cg1$9e4@wampyr.cc.uow.edu.au> <GERRY.93Aug10100832@onion.cmu.edu> <1993Aug12.190036.24847@phx.mcd.mot.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1993 01:25:56 GMT
Lines: 26

schuch@phx.mcd.mot.com (John Schuch) writes:

[...]
>Third. Many of the people working with amateur robotics are students
>who will eventually be working at your level.
[...]

When I started as a computer science undergrad in 1980, many of my
classmates had never used a computer or programmed before. The result was:
 1) time had to be spend teaching very basic computer and programming skills.
 2) many of the students had no real aptitude for computer science.
With the advent of the personal computer, this has changed.

I suspect that today many students of "robotics science" have no
experience building robotics. The likely results are:
 1) time has to be spend teaching very basic skills (e.g. soldering)
 2) many of the students have no real aptitude for robotics.
With the advent of personal hobby robotics, this can change ...

... unless robotics researchers insist that small and hobby "robotics"
is not real robotics and is worthless.

- Carl
-- 
Carl Kadie -- I do not represent any organization; this is just me.
 = kadie@cs.uiuc.edu =
