Liam Pedersen

Former robograd.... NOW graduated and working for a living... THIS IS MY OLD HOMEPAGE. PLEASE NOTE MY NEW CONTACT INFORMATION!! I am (WAS) a graduate student at the Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. My research focuses on the problem of robotically locating and identifying meteorites on the Antarctic ice sheet. This differs from regular pattern classification problems because of the robotic issues involved, particularly the cost of using sensors, path planning, sensor availability and robot resource allocation. I recently travelled to the Atacama Desert in Chile, and to the Antarctic continent to research the issue. The Intelligent Mechanism and the Onboard Science Understanding groups at NASA's Ames Research Center have cooperated with us in these endeavours.

A native of South Africa (making me a "Euro-African", although if I should become a US citizen would I be an "African-American" or even better a "Euro-African-American"?), I was born in Cape Town, which I think is the most beautifull city in the world. Both the Atlantic and Indian oceans are there, and Table Mountain is right in the middle of the city for a quick climbing jaunt. And wine estates surround the city. An interesting town to visit is Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. Every year in June it is host to the Grahamstown Festival, a huge drama event with lots of drama and German tourists. It is actually one of the biggest such festivals in the world, drawing from both European and African traditions, and is well worth visiting. You should stay at Longleat Bed and Breakfast.

Page maintained by Liam Pedersen, Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University. Last update on May 22, 1999

Comments? Questions? Mail me at pedersen+@ri.cmu.edu