Summer school where robots do the talking

Young people with a passion for science, Maths, design or technology are being invited to sign up for a new Robotic Engineering summer school at Staffordshire University.

Independent educational charity The Smallpeice Trust is looking for 15-17 year olds (Years 11 to 12) to attend the residential course at the University’s Stafford campus from July 26 – 29, 2010.

Sponsored by Staffordshire University, the course is designed to give 40 students a unique insight into how robots work, the roles that they will be called upon to perform in the future and the advanced computer software that drives them.

Under the guidance of experts, students will be take part in activities such as communicating with robots using computer programmes, participating in laboratory sessions about artificial intelligence and text-to-speech synthesis and learning how some robots can communicate with humans using speech.

Spokesperson Gemma Murphy from The Smallpeice Trust commented, “We are delighted to be teaming up with Staffordshire University to run this course. The students’ creative thinking and problem solving skills will be put to the test as they tackle programming of robots to perform a variety of tasks.”

Dr Gordon Bancroft from Staffordshire University added: “Our belief is that the use of robots will become more and more prevalent in years to come in many areas of our lives including industry, medicine, and in our homes. We look forward to welcoming students to Staffordshire University and working with them to develop their knowledge and skills in this increasingly important area”.

The course is highly subsidised and costs £175 for 4-days full board and which includes all course materials and supervised social activities.  Students are advised to apply early as applications are reviewed and places offered on a first come first served basis. Application forms can be accessed from www.smallpeicetrust.org.uk or by calling 01926 333200.

• The Smallpeice Trust, founded in 1966 by Dr Cosby Smallpiece, is an independent charitable trust which promotes engineering as a career, primarily through the provision of residential courses for young people aged 13 to 18.  All Smallpeice courses are designed to improve core skills such as team building, communication and problem solving and are also linked to the National Curriculum. Students will also gain experience of university life and industry that will accelerate their personal development and their potential for greater academic achievement.