Erin J. Harris, R. Andrew Lamonica, and Jerry B. Weinberg
The public perception of technology and careers in technology is heavily influenced by mass media im-ages. Negative images can perpetuate unfavorable opinions and detrimental stereotypes. This paper de-scribes a project to develop an educational robotics website that is centered on a web controlled mobile robot. The intent is to engage K-12 students and the general public with positive and realistic images of the technology in hopes to foster positive attitudes toward science and technology. Taz, the central component of the project, is a semi-autonomous robot, performing navigation and localization while taking individual movement commands.