Tandem Alum Talks to Middle School Scientists about Robotics and More

Tandem 6th and 8th graders enjoyed a great lesson from Dr. Wilson Ruotolo (TFS '12), who lives in Palo Alto, CA but dropped by while visiting his parents in the area. Wilson earned his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 2021. His graduate work focused on robotic hands and how to combine precision touch with strength. It was funded by the Toyota Robotics Institute and the National Science Foundation. 

Wilson gave an excellent lecture to our 6th and 8th graders about some cool robotics work that he performed during his time at Stanford. The kids were very engaged and he shared many nifty robotics videos that were quite impressive. Wilson is now co-founder of a company called Hedgehog that is automating the growth of fungi as a major food source. How cool is that? We love it when our alums come to share the amazing things they are doing in the world!