Shaping an International Grand Challenge Community for Ubiquitous Computing
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Nottingham
Department Name: School of Computer Science
Abstract
The impact of IT on society has already been profound, reshaping work, education, government, leisure, entertainment, and home life. The emergence of powerful digital infrastructures, wireless networks and mobile devices has started to embed computers into the architectures, furniture and personal fabric of everyday life. While once we would interact with one computer mobile phones, digital cameras, satellite navigation, handheld computers and a host of similar devices are today commonplace in our everyday activities. This shift to 'Ubiquitous Computing' is a challenge that affects all aspects of computer science and has massive implications for how we might reason about, build and experience computer systems in the future. This is a fundamentally interdisciplinary endeavour and advances in Ubiquitous Computing depend on the successful blending of perspectives drawn from the science of computing, the engineering of complex distributed systems and the understanding of their use in social settings. This means that in addition to undertaking fundamental research into each of the constituent areas we also need to promote interaction and dialogue across these perspectives. The scale of problems to be addressed requires us to tackle this research at a global scale requiring us to shape a multidisciplinary international community in order to tackle the grand challenge of ubiquitous computing. Within this proposal we wish to put in place the multidisciplinary and international collaborations between world-leading researchers necessary to launch a coordinated international response to the challenge of Ubiquitous Computing. In doing so we aim to lay the foundation required to understand, design and realize future large scale Ubiquitous Computing arrangements that will be embedded in the world we inhabit and shape the ways in which we all live. In order to do so we have assembled an initial grouping from the leading research labs in this area in the world.
Organisations
Publications
Harper, R
(2008)
Being Human: Human-Computer Interaction in the Year 2020
M Kwiatkowska
(2008)
From computers to ubiquitous computing, by 2020 (Special Issue)
in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A
Gómez-Gardeñes J
(2008)
Entropy rate of diffusion processes on complex networks.
in Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics
Scellato S
(2009)
Traffic optimization in transport networks based on local routing
in The European Physical Journal B
R Milner
(2009)
The Space and Motion of Communicating Agents
Kern D
(2009)
Pervasive Computing
Sama M
(2010)
Context-Aware Adaptive Applications: Fault Patterns and Their Automated Identification
in IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering
Mueller F
(2010)
Jogging over a distance
Sama M
(2010)
Multi-layer faults in the architectures of mobile, context-aware adaptive applications
in Journal of Systems and Software
| Description | The impact of IT on society has already been profound, reshaping work, education, government, leisure, entertainment, and home life. The emergence of powerful digital infrastructures, wireless networks and mobile devices has started to embed computers into the architectures, furniture and personal fabric of everyday life. While once we would interact with one computer mobile phones, digital cameras, satellite navigation, handheld computers and a host of similar devices are today commonplace in our everyday activities. This shift to 'Ubiquitous Computing' is a challenge that affects all aspects of computer science and has massive implications for how we might reason about, build and experience computer systems in the future. This is a fundamentally interdisciplinary endeavour and advances in Ubiquitous Computing depend on the successful blending of perspectives drawn from the science of computing, the engineering of complex distributed systems and the understanding of their use in social settings. This means that in addition to undertaking fundamental research into each of the constituent areas we also need to promote interaction and dialogue across these perspectives. The scale of problems to be addressed requires us to tackle this research at a global scale requiring us to shape a multidisciplinary international community in order to tackle the grand challenge of ubiquitous computing. Within this proposal we wish to put in place the multidisciplinary and international collaborations between world-leading researchers necessary to launch a coordinated international response to the challenge of Ubiquitous Computing. In doing so we aim to lay the foundation required to understand, design and realize future large scale Ubiquitous Computing arrangements that will be embedded in the world we inhabit and shape the ways in which we all live. Key activities involved over the project are reported through the website and include a two day seminar at the Royal Society on the grand challenge of ubiquitous computing. |
| Exploitation Route | Ubiquitous Computing has emerged as a key UK research strength with initiatives such as the Grand Challenges and investments such as the EPSRC WINES programme suggesting continued growth in this critical research area. However, a key question is whether the UK can continue to build on its current prominent position in this area. We seek to maximise the benefit of current initiatives such as Equator, the UK grand challenges and the WINES programme by working in partnership with other international initiatives and world leading research groups to shape a global Ubiquitous computing community. In addition to shaping an international research community the initiative will also seek to promote a stronger engagement between the international ubiquitous computing community and society. The aim is to allow the public to have a central role in shaping the technology and the nature of this future society. The initiative will deliver benefits to a number of key parties including: The research community focusing on Ubiquitous Computing will benefit from a range of collaborative mechanisms allowing them to collaborate in the formation of new shared concepts and new approaches to the realisation of ubiquitous computing. A range of industrial concerns will benefit from increased knowledge of the multidisciplinary issues involved in tackling the challenges associated with Ubiquitous computing and the agreement on shared approaches fostered through this endeavour. Policy makers and Government Agencies will benefit from an understanding of the technical and societal challenges raised by the emergence of ubiquitous computing through the forums supported by this initiative. The general public may accrue benefit through broader understanding and articulation of the issues involved in ubiquitous computing and future generations will benefit from the teaching materials to emerge from this initiative. |
| Sectors | Creative Economy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Electronics,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Description | This initiative will delivered benefits to a number of key parties including: The research community focusing on Ubiquitous Computing benefit from a range of collaborative mechanisms allowing them to collaborate in the formation of new shared concepts and new approaches to the realisation of ubiquitous computing. A range of industrial concerns benefited from increased knowledge of the multidisciplinary issues involved in tackling the challenges associated with Ubiquitous computing and the agreement on shared approaches fostered through this endeavour. Policy makers and Government Agencies benefit from an understanding of the technical and societal challenges raised by the emergence of ubiquitous computing through the forums supported by this initiative. The general public acrued benefit through broader understanding and articulation of the issues involved in ubiquitous computing through a range of public events. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2008 |
| Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) |
| Impact Types | Societal,Economic |