2023 JPL DARTS Lab Course Details
August 14-17, 2023

Course Details

To register
Please fill out and submit the registration form.
Dates
August 14-17, 2023, from 8am to 5pm
Place
The course will be in person at JPL in 321-B20 and also available virtually via Webex.
Fees
None.
For any questions
Please email dartslab.courseadmin@jpl.nasa.gov
Updates
Up-to-date information regarding the course will be posted on these pages.

Arriving at JPL

All visitors to JPL will need to be escorted while you are on lab. Non-US visitors should bring their passports, while others need to have a government issued ID. We suggest arriving early at the JPL visitor center to get your visitor badges. There will be someone at the visitor center at 7:45am each morning to meet you and escort you to the course venue.

Course Dinner, Monday, August 14 at 6:30

We have organized a dinner for course attendees at Pinnochio's Restaurant in Pasadena at 6:30pm.

  • RSVP by August 11: Please respond via this form with any dietary restrictions or accomodations. Please let us know if you plan to attend since the restaurant requires an accurate headcount and advanced notice of any accomodations. Thanks to everyone who has already responded!
  • Cost: $40 per person (cash, please!). This includes tax and tip.
  • Address: 1449 N. Lake Ave, Pasadena CA 91104
  • Phone: 626.791.7591
  • Website: https://www.pinocchios-pizza.net/
  • Parking: In the lot across the street (SE corner)

Course Feedback

We would very much appreciate feedback that you can provide on any aspect of the course at the online form. Multiple submissions are welcome throughout the course. Thanks!

Course mailing list

The mailing list for the course is dartslab.course2023@jpl.nasa.gov and will be used for all information regarding the course. Please feel free to use the list for any questions or comments you may have.

Course resources

Slides and recordings

We will post material such as slides and recordings to here. The page also contains a tutorial video for Jupyter notebooks which we recommend everyone watch prior to the course. If you are attending the course and need access to this page from outside of JPL, please email your public IP address to dartslab.courseadmin@jpl.nasa.gov. You can look up your IP address by visiting this page. Slides will be available the morning of the 14th, and recordings will be added after the course once they can be edited.

JupyterHub account

We will be using on-line interactive Python notebooks throughout the course. If you do not already have a DARTS Lab JupyterHub account, please visit the JupyterHub registration page to register to create an account for yourself. Please make sure to register ahead of time. During the course we may not be able to process new registrations until the end of the day.

JPLers should use their JPL user name (the form requests a password but this will be ignored for JPL-ers since their JPL LDAP password will be used instead).

JupyterHub test notebooks

Once you have setup your JupyterHub account, and have received confirmation, please visit the DARTS Lab JupyterHub server at https://dlabnotebooks.jpl.nasa.gov and log in. You will start in your own notebook directory. You can edit and create files in that directory as you wish. Please run the following tests to verify that your account is working properly.

Hello world test

Please run a basic test by clicking on the top level HelloWorld.ipynb entry to open up the notebook (scroll to the bottom of the page to find this notebook). You can execute a cell by entering 'Shift-Enter'. The first cell will print out 'Hello world'.

SOAVector3 notebook

Click on 'SOAVector3.ipynb' to open up the notebook. From the 'Cell' menu select 'Run All'. This will run all the cells. You should see 'Out[]' blocks apprear for the cells that generate outputs. This notebook (in your folder) is editable by you, and you should be able to make changes, run, and save the notebook as you wish. Feel free to play with it.

Feel free to try any of the other notebooks, including ones with 3D graphics, eg, the Quad-rotor examples.

Q&A site account

If you do not already have a user account on the DARTS Lab Q&A site, please email dartslab.courseadmin@jpl.nasa.gov to request an account for yourself. JPLers will be able to use their LDAP password, while others will have to set a password. This site contains information on the DARTS lab software and will be used during the course.

Attending Remotely via Webex

We will share the course online using Webex for attendees. We will add the URL on the calendar invite prior to the course.

Guidelines

  • We will only allow Webex access to those who have registered for the course.
  • There are different meeting numbers for each day.
  • When you join the Webex meeting for the day, please include your full Name and Email address when you join the session.
  • We will have someone moderating all Webex users. If you need help, try the Webex chat function to reach them.
  • Everyone using Webex MUST put their microphones (or telephones) on MUTE. The Webex moderators will enforce this.
  • If anyone on Webex wants to ask a question, indicate that in the Webex chat and the moderator will interrupt at the next convenient time and unmute your phone so you can ask the question directly. Or you can type in the question in the Webex chat and the moderator will ask it for you.

Non-JPL attendees

JPL badge access

Non-JPLers who do not have badge access to JPL should email to initiate a visit request as soon as possible so that you get on lab to attend the course.

Arriving at JPL

When you arrive at JPL (see the map) you can park in the visitor's parking lot, and check in at the Visitor Center to get badged. Please arrive early (recommend 7:15am) since this can take some time. Please remember to bring proper ID (passports for non-US persons). You will need an escort while on the JPL premises, and there will be someone to meet you at the visitor center at 7:40am to take you to the 321-B20 meeting room.

Wireless access

There is a guest WiFi network available for Non-JPLers that you will be able to use while at JPL. However, non-JPLers will need to register for guest WiFi network access during the visitor request process. Non-JPLers can also use eduroam to connect to the JPL guest WiFi network. To connect with the JPL Guest Wifi:

  • For the username, use the first 24 characters of your email address
  • For the password, user your date of birth in this format: mmddyyyy

What you need to bring with you

A laptop with a Web browser. We will be using Python notebooks for live sessions throughout the course and a working knowledge of Python is highly recommended.

Contact info

Abhi Jain (jain@jpl.nasa.gov)
Carl Leake (leake@jpl.nasa.gov)

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