pervasive media studio

Robot Relays

Robots consider means of escape from giant mirrorball

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Robot Relays is a potential Cultural Olympiad RELAYS project that, through a series of workshops in schools would lead to an event combining robots, children and challenges - both  technological and sporting - in Bristol's Millennium Square, making use of the BBC LiveSite Big Screen to broadcast the event across the UK, and exploit the screen’s interactive capability. Ideally this event would take place in 2012 at around the time of the London Olympic Games and would involve a partnership between AtBristol, Walking with Robots, a robot maker, David Buckley, Science TV and 'RELAYS at Watershed' (website launching soon). The event would be accompanied by film screenings and probably some located media activity and games.

An initial exploratory workshop day was held on 22nd April at the Pervasive Media Studio and in Millennium Square with the BBC providing access to the Live SIte screen (interrupting the Budget speech by the man who opened the Studio last year - Alistair Darling! Sorry Alistair!) and some willing children who came to test out some challenges and suggest their own ideas - see photos here and and video on  Science TV's blog.

Matt Thurling, Science TV, outlines the project:
"The rapid rise of robotics technologies poses interesting questions for the future.  How will humans and robots live together?  Will they get along?  How, for instance, would they fare in a 4 by 100 metre relay race as a mixed robot and human team?
This innovative event to be held in Bristol Millennium Square will pit teams from across the world against each other in a series of challenges that combine the cutting edge of robot development with human sporting endeavour. Schools workshops will be part of the programme and schools will participate in the event in Millennium Square.
Examples of events:  relay races; problem solving; location-based challenges etc”