Looking for Resources for Beginners

[AndyH]

Our team is lucky to have lots of new team members this year. We've already lost a few, though, and when we ask them why they aren't returning, many of them have commented that they are overwhelmed because they "don't even know what people are talking about." I believe that many of these students really want to learn about robotics, and they will pick it up quickly. They just need to have a chance to get some background. Can you suggest any good books, DVDs, etc, that would give them a place to start? We can build a "reference library" for our team. Thanks for the ideas!