Screenshots: FRC 25 + Red 60 =

Carnegie Mellon celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Field Robotics Center and the 60th birthday of its founder, William "Red" Whittaker, during the university's Homecoming festivities.

On Friday, Oct. 24, Whittaker--Fredkin Professor of Robotics, director of the Field Robotics Center, and founder of the National Robotics Engineering Consortium--delivered a free public lecture in Wean Hall entitled "Robots at Work."

The Robotics Institute hosted some of the most distinguished experts in the field on Saturday, Oct. 25 for a day-long symposium. Speakers included David Akin of the University of Maryland; Hugh Durrant-Whyte of the University of Sydney; David Lavery of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Robin Murphy of Texas A&M University; Marc Raibert of Boston Dynamics; John Reid of Deere & Company; Sebastian Thrun of Stanford University; Brian Wilcox of Jet Propulsion Laboratory; and Dana Yoerger of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

(Video and biographies of the speakers are available at www.fr25.org.)

A reception and banquet followed at Phipps Conservatory. At right, Whittaker autographs one of the table favors for Murphy. Both are wearing coonskin caps to celebrate Whittaker's status as a robotics "pioneer." Below, a shot of the symposium in the Giant Eagle Auditorium of Baker Hall.

(Wade H. Massie photos)
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For More Information: 
Jason Togyer | 412-268-8721 | jt3y@cs.cmu.edu