Tuesday 11th July
Welcome and Introduction
Professor Gordon Blair (Head of Computing Department) officially opens Headstart 2006 at Lancaster University with a warm welcome to all.
This year's Headstart course promises to build on the experiences gained from 2005 to make this an even more enjoyable and worthwhile learning experience: both in engineering and computing skills; but also as an introduction to university culture.
Lecture on Ubiquitous Computing
Dr Mike Hazas (Academic Fellow and Lecturer, Computing Department) gives a lecture on prototyping ubiquitous systems including an overview of contemporary applications and state-of-the-art technologies.
Hands-on Development using an Embedded Computer
Dr Hazas presents an interactive tutorial on the Lego Mindstorms programming platform.
At the heart of the Lego Mindstorms platform is the RCX (Robotic Command eXplorer) 'brick'. The brick's internal CPU is a Hitachi H8/300 8-bit microcontroller and it contains three sensor ports, three actuator ports and an LCD display. The brick is programmed via an infra-red (IR) port and is also able to communicate wirelessly with other bricks via IR, enabling inter-brick cooperation or competition.
Students are given the opportunity to rapidly develop some core ubiquitous type applications exploiting sensors and actuators connected to the Lego Mindstorms' RCX programmable 'brick'.
Sports Evening at Lancaster University Sports Centre
Students unwind at Lancaster University's Sports Centre. Activities including swimming, badminton, squash, and aeroball are on offer with a trained instructor from the sports centre.
