Dr. Kirstin Petersen

Associate Professor

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Biography

Kirstin Hagelskjaer Petersen is an Associate Professor at Cornell University, focusing on the intersection of robotics and autonomous systems. Her research investigates the principles found in natural swarms, such as ants and bees, which demonstrate sophisticated collective behaviors. These behaviors are characterized by scalability and error tolerance, showcasing evolutionary success driven by physical interactions within the environment. Petersen's work emphasizes the development of autonomous robotic collectives, exploring hardware and software integration, and innovative designs for shared environmental processes. Current research themes include collective robotic construction, human-swarm interaction, soft robot collectives, biological swarms, and bio-hybrid collectives. Her academic journey includes a postdoctoral position at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and earning her PhD from Harvard University under Professor Nagpal. She also holds a Master’s degree in Computer Systems Engineering from the University of Southern Denmark and a Bachelor’s degree in Electro-technical Engineering from Odense University College of Engineering.

Research Interests

Awards

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Douglas Whitney ’61 Excellence Teaching Award

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Packard Fellowship

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Elisabeth Schiemann Kolleg Fellow

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Max Planck Fellowship

Requirements for Cornell University

Master Program
Requirements
TOEFL
Listening
Required:15
Reading
Required:20
Writing
Required:20
Speaking
Required:22
Total
Required:100
IELTS
Overall
Required:7
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in Architecture or related field
Application Checklist
  • Online application
  • Portfolio (SlideRoom)
  • Academic Statement of Purpose
  • Personal Statement
  • Transcripts
  • Two letters of recommendation
  • Resume/CV
Specialization Notes

Department of Architecture