Learning to Ground Natural Language Instructions to Plans

Nakul Gopalan, Brown University

2:30-3:30pm Thursday, 21 March 2019, ITE 346, UMBC

In order to easily and efficiently collaborate with humans, robots must learn to complete tasks specified using natural language. Natural language provides an intuitive interface for a layperson to interact with a robot without the person needing to program a robot, which might require expertise. Natural language instructions can easily specify goal conditions or provide guidances and constraints required to complete a task. Given a natural language command, a robot needs to ground the instruction to a plan that can be executed in the environment. This grounding can be challenging to perform, especially when we expect robots to generalize to novel natural language descriptions and novel task specifications while providing as little prior information as possible. In this talk, I will present a model for grounding instructions to plans. Furthermore, I will present two strategies under this model for language grounding and compare their effectiveness. We will explore the use of approaches using deep learning, semantic parsing, predicate logic and linear temporal logic for task grounding and execution during the talk.

Nakul Gopalan is a graduate student in the H2R lab at Brown University. His interests are in the problems of language grounding for robotics, and abstractions within reinforcement learning and planning. He has an MSc. in Computer Science from Brown University (2015) and an MSc. in Information and Communication Engineering from T.U. Darmstadt (2013) in Germany. He completed a Bachelor of Engineering from R.V. College of Engineering in Bangalore, India (2008). His team recently won the Brown-Hyundai Visionary Challenge for their proposal to use Mixed Reality and Social Feedback for Human-Robot collaboration.

Host: Prof. Cynthia Matuszek (cmat at umbc.edu)

The post talk: Learning to Ground Instructions to Plans, 2:30 Thr 3/21, ITE346 appeared first on Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering.

The office of Off-Campus Student Services (OCSS) seeks motivated, passionate, hardworking, and ethical transfer students to employ as Transfer Student Network Leaders (TSN Leaders) for the Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 semesters.

TSN Leaders will serve as advocates for transfer students on the UMBC campus, and they will assist with the retention of these students through the planning and implementation of intentional and impactful programs and events. TSN Leaders will also assist with administrative work within the OCSS office, and serve as peer mentors for our Transfer Mentor Program.

APPLY HERE- 

https://umbc.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_aWx63BLFZiQNAkB

Transfer Student Network Leader Duties:

 · Plan and implement workshops and programs that address the needs of transfer students
· Serve as a peer mentor to incoming transfer students (meet 1:1 with each mentee at least once a month, attend campus events with your mentees, etc.)
· Represent OCSS by sitting at the front desk and answering student, staff, and visitor questions
· Serve as a role model to UMBC students and develop a sense of community among transfer students
· Foster relationships with prospective students at surrounding community colleges and Shady Grove campus transfer students
· Assist with OCSS events as needed, including but not limited to, Welcome Week, Transfer Appreciation Week, and Commuter Week

TSN Leaders must be:

-Transfer Students

-Undergraduate Students

TSN Leaders must maintain a 2.5 GPA prior to and during employment with OCSS.

This application closes on Friday, March 29th at 11:59 PM.  A resume must be attached at the end of this application in a PDF file. 

Summer 2019 Job Openings

Residential Life accommodates approximately 3,000 summer conference guests at a given time in our suite-style halls and apartment communities. We are looking for key individuals to fill positions within Summer Conferences and Facilities. Students in these positions are front-line ambassadors and are integral in creating a welcoming environment for our guests and to the overall success of our summer program. These positions offer students an excellent opportunity to cultivate their customer service, management, leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills. 

Questions for summer conference staff should be directed to Jessica Williams, wjessica@umbc.edu or Matthew Wood, matt21@umbc.edu for facilities.

Please Note:

1. Below are job descriptions and requirements for all summer opportunities, please read each.
2. If you’re interested in more than one job please indicate that on your application.
3. To apply for summer conference employment click here.
4. In addition, students must submit 2 professional references. (1) choose your reference (2) confirm participation from each reference (3) email your reference the following link.
5. Best consideration date for applicants is February 28, 2019 with references due by March 11, 2019 all other applications will be reviewed, as needed.

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DuPont’s Information Technology division has revamped their undergraduate co-op program and kicked off recruiting for the fall 2019 class. 

According to DuPont, "Our Technology Development Programs provide a variety of meaningful assignments that will enable you to gain valuable experience in the rapidly changing worlds of information technology and digital solutions".

Below are links to open positions:

2019 Fall Technology Co-Op Opportunity: Strategy and Digital Solutions

2019 Fall Technology Co-Op Opportunity: Enterprise Services

2019 Fall Technology Co-Op Opportunity: Cyber Security

2019 Fall Technology Co-Op Opportunity: Enterprise Solutions

For more information on the exciting changes at DuPont, please visit The New DuPont site.