معرفی
Dr. Cindy L. Bethel is the Billie J. Ball Endowed Professor in Engineering and Director of the Social, Therapeutic, and Robotic Systems (STaRS) Lab in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Mississippi State University. Currently serving as NSF Program Director (CISE/IIS Human-Centered Computing), she was previously a Fulbright Senior Scholar in Australia.
Research applications focus on:
- Robotic therapy support (PTSD, trauma victims)
- Information gathering from children
- Law enforcement/military support
- SWAT team integration
She has secured $9.7M in research funding from NSF, DoD, and industry partners. Recent publications address socially assistive robotics, HRI privacy concerns, and therapeutic robot design. Her STaRS Lab develops technologies like Therabot™ for mental health support and interfaces for tactical robots.
Education includes Ph.D. from University of South Florida (2009), NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship at Yale, and specialized training in child-robot interaction. She has received numerous honors including IEEE Senior Membership and selection as one of the 'World's 50 Most Renowned Women in Robotics'.
