Georgia Institute of Technology, GA

United States

Research Areas

Computing and Electronics, Engineering and Society, Ethics and Morals

Biography

IEEE Life Fellow (IEEE Fellow, 2003), Ronald Arkin, was born in New York City in 1949. He received B.S. degrees in chemistry and applied mathematics from the University of Michigan, an M.S. in chemistry from Stevens Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Arkin has taught for many years at Georgia Tech where he is currently Regents’ Professor, Director of the Mobile Robot Laboratory, and Associate Dean for Research and Space Planning. Funded by organizations such as the NSF, DARPA, SONY, and Samsung, his research has focused on autonomous, behavior-based robotics and robot ethics. Arkin has also served as an Associate Editor for IEEE Intelligent Systems and on the Board of Governors for the IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology and is an IEEE Fellow.

Interview Synopsis

In this interview, Arkin discusses how he became interested in robotics, his early work with robot navigation, his volunteer positions within the IEEE, and his most popular research on robot ethics. Not only does Arkin outline the applications of robot ethics and robot deception, he also describes the funding of his research and its coverage by the media.