Robots dazzle spectators at Stanford block party, job fair

A wide variety of machines entertained the crowd, including this humanoid robot,

A wide variety of machines entertained the crowd, including this humanoid robot, which danced an automated choreography to Michael Jackson’s ’Thriller.’

Inventors, researchers and toymakers showed off a variety of robots that do everything from dance to the King of Pop to help doctors perform more precise surgical procedures.

By Brooke Donald

Ryan Calo , the director of privacy and robotics at Stanford’s Center for Internet and Society , said the event has always been popular among the younger set.

"Robots are fun," he said. "But one of the reasons we do the event, frankly, is because robots are such a good way to get kids interested in science, technology, engineering and math. And those are very much needed skills in the contemporary economy."

The center, which is based at Stanford Law School , sponsored the event as part of National Robotics Week. There are more than 150 similar events around the country designed to raise awareness about robotics, Calo said.

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This year, Stanford paired the block party with a job fair. Many of the companies accepted resumes from interested inventors and provided information to job seekers.

"The sense this year is that the robotics industry is really taking off and as a result it has hiring needs," Calo said. "In years past there hasn’t been too much talk about what these companies need to scale up because there were still building out."

Calo expected about 1,500 spectators by the end of the daylong event.