Social Machines
An article on Social Machines in the Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, written by Paul Smart and Nigel Shadbolt.
Kathryn
National photonics web portal launched
Seme4 has built a web portal which maps the activity of the photonics sector in the U.K.
Photonics technology (the transmission, detection, amplification, etc. of light) has a wide range of applications, including manufacturing processes, telecommunications, healthcare, defence, data storage and renewable energy.
The portal will provide data resources and contacts for collaboration from both the industrial and academic communities.
The site uses semantic web technologies and is hosted by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Photonics at the University of Southampton.
Seme4 partners named in list of top 50 most influential people in U.K. I.T.
The list for Computer Weekly magazine was decided by both an expert judging panel and a reader vote.
Professor Sir Nigel Shadbolt was placed at number 11 and is named in the list because of his role as chairman and co-founder of the Open Data Institute (ODI), his role as advisor to the U.K. government on public access to government information and his being a member of the Public Sector Transparency Board.
Professor Dame Wendy Hall was placed at number 25 and is named in the list for her academic reputation and for being a founding co-director of the Web Science Trust.
Wendy Hall appointed to Royal Society Council
Professor Dame Wendy Hall took up office on the Council along with 21 other Fellows on the 30th of November.
The Council is elected by the Royal Society Fellowship on an annual basis. It manages the Society’s business, makes Standing Orders which regulate the Society’s affairs and and acts as trustee of the Society under charity legislation. Council members serve on a voluntary basis.
Other members include Professor Anthony Cheetham, Sir John Beddington, Professor Geoffrey Boulton, Professor Roger Owen and Dame Nancy Rothwell.
Nigel Shadbolt and Wendy Hall to lead new Web Science Institute
The Web Science Institute (WSI) was launched on the 11th of November and will be based at the University of Southampton. It will be multidisciplinary, with academic staff from the humanities, social sciences, business and law acting as directors.
The WSI has a number of aims, including:
• focusing on interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships;
• demonstrating clear ambition, adaptability and innovation;
• leveraging the visionary leadership and outstanding staff and student expertise across the University;
• providing a platform for significant investment by government and external partners;
• showcasing unique and creative education programmes that set new standards internationally.
Professor Dame Wendy Hall said: “There is a ‘perfect storm’ brewing which combines open data, open education and open research, so this is a very exciting time to be launching the Web Science Institute.”
Professor Sir Nigel Shadbolt said: “The open data movement is one example of how the web is evolving, empowering individuals and communities to achieve phenomenal ends. The Web Science Institute will help us to understand this evolution.”
The launch of the institute was covered by the BBC.
Reliability Analyses of Open Government Data
A paper by Davide Ceolin, Luc Moreau, Kieron O’Hara, Guus Schreiber, Alistair Sackley, Wan Fokkink, Willem Robert van Hage and Nigel Shadbolt, proposing new methods for determining the reliability of open data.
Nigel Shadbolt gives evidence at parliamentary inquiry into statistics and open data
Professor Sir Nigel Shadbolt gave evidence to the parliamentary Public Administration Committee on the 22nd of October.
Stephen Shakespeare, Chief Executive of Yougov and a member of the Public Sector Transparency Board, was the second witness.
The witnesses were asked their opinions on the effectiveness of the government’s open data strategy and the extent to which more needs to be done to realise the potential of open data.
The video of the session can be found here and the transcript of the session can be found here.
Wendy Hall on BBC Radio 4’s the Life Scientific
Professor Dame Wendy Hall talks to Jim Al Khalili about her career and her role in developing the interdisciplinary field of Web Science.
Towards a classifcation framework for social machines
A paper on social machines by Nigel Shadbolt, Daniel Smith, Elena Simperl, Max van Kleek, Yang Yang and Wendy Hall. The concept of social machines is defined, the key features are described and a framework for classification is proposed.
Wendy Hall appointed to Connected Digital Economy Catapult board
In her new role as non-executive director of the board Professor Dame Wendy Hall will be advising on the ways in which technology can help to improve the economy and on how to encourage entrepreneurship.
A Catapult is a centre in which businesses, scientists and engineers work together on research and development. The Connected Digital Economy Catapult board is part of the Catapult Programme which was set up by the Technology Strategy Board, a government agency which provides support and funding to help businesses develop new products and services.