I have learned that KAIST is a very big deal in Korea. There is mandatory military service for all male citizens of Korea, but many KAIST students are exempt for going here to get their PhDs. KAIST is a highly esteemed university, where I've met brilliant postgraduates in programs from physics to nuclear engineering. Whenever I told someone in Seoul that I am a student at KAIST, I got shocked and admiring looks and often the compliment that I am very smart. It makes me feel like I belong, that I have status, even as a foreigner in this country.
2. Summarize your project status.
This week, I formed an understanding of the work being done in the lab, and where my research can fit into it, by sitting in on the weekly presentations and by conferencing with Dr. Jun Ho Oh and Cheol Son. I have also updated my research project plan:
Lauren Neudorfer Plan, as of 5/19/2010
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The Psychology of Humanoid Robotics: Communication and Intention
Week 1
Research project conception with BMC advisory
Write a proposal and plan
Week 2
Orientation at Drexel
Meet Jaemi Hubo, and Drexel Team
Week 3
First week at KAIST
Meet KAIST Team
Explore Hubo's capabilities
Week 4
Explore the idea of the Uncanny Valley
What behaviors does Hubo do well? Which ones seem
artificial? Why?
What could be done to make Hubo seem more human?
Week 5
Explore Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
Week 6
Explore "Social Robots"
What sensors and behaviors does a robot need to be able
to communicate and signal intentions?
Week 7
Explore Computer Vision
Week 8
Summary write-up
Last week at KAIST
Week 9
Project debrief with advisory back in US
Presentation
Week 10
Project debrief with Drexel
Lauren Neudorfer Plan, as of 5/26/2010
---------------------
The Psychology of Humanoid Robotics: Emotion, Personality, and Communication through Facial Expression
Week 1
Research project conception with advisory on campus
Write a proposal and plan
Week 2
Orientation at Drexel
Meet Jaemi Hubo, and Drexel Team
Research Human-Robot Interaction (HRI)
Introduction to Bryan Kobe’s Hubo Face LED display
Week 3
First week at KAIST
Meet KAIST Team
Explore Hubo's capabilities
Learn about current efforts to create emotional
expression in the robots
Week 4
Research past experiments done on human perception of
robotic expression
What factors influence that perception?
Week 5
Research microexpressions and muscle activation in
facial expression
What are the crucial mechanics of facial expression?
Week 6
Design facial expressions and minimal animations for
happiness, anger, and sadness on a 5x20 grid using
MatLab
Week 7
Research past experiments on emotive gestures in
Robotics
How can gestures complement or complicate facial
expressions?
Week 8
Summary write-up
Last week at KAIST
Week 9
Project debrief with advisory back in US
Presentation
Week 10
Project debrief with Drexel
Lauren Neudorfer Plan, as of 6/3/2010
---------------------
The Psychology of Humanoid Robotics: Robotic Body Language
Week 1
Research project conception with advisory on campus
Write a proposal and plan
Week 2
Orientation at Drexel
Meet Jaemi Hubo, and Drexel Team
Research Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) in order to
understand the key issues therein
Week 3
First week at KAIST
Meet KAIST Team
Gather research materials
Week 4
Read through the research materials
Prepare and present summaries and trends
Week 5
Work with Cheol to quantify the findings
Week 6
Research facial expressions that pair with the body
language cues
Week 7
Summarize and present my findings
Design animations for each of the universal emotions:
happiness, anger, sadness, disgust, and fear
Week 8
Summary write-up
Last week at KAIST
Week 9
Project debrief with advisory back in US
Presentation
Week 10
Project debrief with Drexel
3. Take photos and select one to be the photo of the week. Describe it and why you shot and selected it.
This is not a picture of a real person. It is a traffic scarecrow. I took this picture in Seoul this weekend, and it made me do a double-take at the time. I chose this as my picture of the week because it is so representative of all the things that I find fascinating in Korea. I take notice of all the little things that people do differently here than in the west, or at least in the States. And that's the beauty of life here, that it's so easy to notice and enjoy the little things.
4. What did you learn about yourself this week?
This week, I've learned that I am a very independent person. Traveling to Korea meant navigating the world on my own, or at least without an authority figure. I was surprised at how easily I took responsibility for myself in the unknown without any fear or homesickness.
And now, in this collectivistic society where strangers care so much about other strangers, I find myself at a striking contrast. I would like to think that I would help someone in need, and I have often stopped to help people that look lost on my own campus, but I definitely draw a harder line between my life and the lives of others. Even at Bryn Mawr there is a culture of group unity, where I often wait for my friends before going to a meal in order to eat with them. What I've learned since coming here is that I feel like those ties are a burden at times. I enjoy walking and eating by myself just as much as in a group. I've even found that I prefer small groups to large ones, but perhaps that is a different issue.
5. Who are the new people (Koreans not affiliated with the Hubo Lab) that you met this week?
We (Sara, Liz, and I) spent a good amount of time with Bill and Yumi this week between our trips off campus, playing pool on campus, and hanging out in Seoul. We also spent one evening this week tutoring three KAIST students who approached Sara and me to ask for English tutoring sessions.
This is not a picture of a real person. It is a traffic scarecrow. I took this picture in Seoul this weekend, and it made me do a double-take at the time. I chose this as my picture of the week because it is so representative of all the things that I find fascinating in Korea. I take notice of all the little things that people do differently here than in the west, or at least in the States. And that's the beauty of life here, that it's so easy to notice and enjoy the little things.
4. What did you learn about yourself this week?
This week, I've learned that I am a very independent person. Traveling to Korea meant navigating the world on my own, or at least without an authority figure. I was surprised at how easily I took responsibility for myself in the unknown without any fear or homesickness.
And now, in this collectivistic society where strangers care so much about other strangers, I find myself at a striking contrast. I would like to think that I would help someone in need, and I have often stopped to help people that look lost on my own campus, but I definitely draw a harder line between my life and the lives of others. Even at Bryn Mawr there is a culture of group unity, where I often wait for my friends before going to a meal in order to eat with them. What I've learned since coming here is that I feel like those ties are a burden at times. I enjoy walking and eating by myself just as much as in a group. I've even found that I prefer small groups to large ones, but perhaps that is a different issue.
5. Who are the new people (Koreans not affiliated with the Hubo Lab) that you met this week?
We (Sara, Liz, and I) spent a good amount of time with Bill and Yumi this week between our trips off campus, playing pool on campus, and hanging out in Seoul. We also spent one evening this week tutoring three KAIST students who approached Sara and me to ask for English tutoring sessions.
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