When MacArthur Foundation announced its 2002 fellowships late yesterday, among the winners of the so-called "genius grants" was Dartmouth's own Daniela Rus, a professor of computer science.
Each year the foundation -- started by John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur -- names between 20 to 40 new fellows to win its prestigious award, which includes a $500,000 grant.
The MacArthur Foundation recognized Rus for her excellence in robotics and her recent work "building innovative devices ranging from abstract information processors to self-reconfiguring robots," according to a foundation press release.
Because the MacArthur Foundation makes their nominations and decisions in complete secrecy and without formal applications, Rus was taken by complete surprise when she was informed of the news last week.
"I was at home in the morning packing for a trip to St. Johns," Rus said. "Nobody calls me at home, so when the phone rang I thought it was a telemarketer. When he told me, I couldn't believe it."
The fellow program is designed to acknowledge American scholars and artists from a variety of fields and imposes no constraints on the types of accomplishment that can be honored.
Among other winners of this year's fellowships are a trombonist specializing in improvisation, a molecular ecobiologist researching bacterial communication and a seismologist working on structural engineering in some of the world's most seismically active and poorest countries.
In addition to the international recognition for her excellence in her field, Rus will receive the $500,000 grant over the next five years. The MacArthur Foundation attaches no strings to the grant, and Rus said she has not yet decided what to do with the money.
"How often do you plan ahead for a half million dollars dropping in your lap?" Rus said. "I would like to find something special and exciting, and possibly a little risky, on which we could make some progress."
Rus, 39, joined the Dartmouth faculty in 1994 after having received her Ph.D. from Cornell. That year, in addition to teaching computer science, she founded the Dartmouth Robotics Laboratory.
"When I came to Dartmouth, the robotics laboratory was an empty room. Now it's a bubbling place. A place where I work, and where I just hang out with my team," Rus said.
Rus is most well-known for her work on self-reconfiguring robots. These "bots," which range in size from two to four inches, break the generic stereotype of current robots.
"Most robots are designed with a specific purpose. They are good at one task. If you remove them from their environment they don't work so well. These robots are designed to be put in any environment and take the best shape. Think of them as smart Lego blocks," Russ said.
Future applications could include exploration of places inaccessible to humans including outer space and the deep sea. Depending on the situation these small robots can join together, to form a functional greater structure. A single set of "bots" could form a snake to navigate a tunnel or a six-legged walking robot to make it over tough obstacles. Additionally, the robots have future possible applications as self-assembling structures, and miniature versions could be used for activities including non-invasive surgery.
Rus gives much of the credit for her progress in the field of robotics and her award to those around her.
When Rus began her studies at Cornell, she met with Bruce Donald, who was at the time an assistant professor at Cornell. Donald is now an "energetic and inspiring" colleague at Dartmouth who "shared the way I think about robotics and solving problems," Rus said.
"It's all possible because of the good people I work with," she said. "I'm grateful for the opportunities I've had to work with students, graduate and undergraduate, and for faculty collaboration, and I only hope for more."
