Blog posts

Research Software Engineering enabling ‘Surgery from your sofa’

‘To increase the quality, impact and sustainability of the research software developed at Imperial, supporting the College in enhancing its world-leading research outputs’.

That is the bold mission statement of the Research Software Engineering Team (RSE) here in ICT.

A large part of a life in academia involves research – the process of investigation into a particular study, utilising various resources and materials.

The RSE team believes in the dependance of research software on modern science and says that ‘good software engineering accelerates and boosts the impact of research’.

With projects like ‘Liionsden’ – that provides a tool which easily archives and visualises the experimental and generated data in simulations in relation to batteries research, and StrainMap – that prepares a new diagnostic MRI technique for use in clinical settings – Therefore, RSE not only  helps Imperial, but benefits many other areas of society.

At the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in 2021, even the public got involved in the process; working with HARMS Lab (Human-centered automation, Robots and Monitoring for Surgery), the RSE team produced a game that involved the remote control of surgical tools – and, despite a few ‘hiccups’, finalised a method that utilises head-movement using Gaze-Tracking technology to move the various tools and complete objectives – an emerging technology that can revolutionise surgical processes.

RSE robotic ‘Operation’ surgery game that is controlled by head movement.

Image: RSE robotic ‘Operation’ surgery game that is controlled by head movement.

‘Open Science and collaboration are the future’ – RSE believes.

The creative and functional freedom that software engineering provides pushes academia forward – more efficient and technically active programs can automate redundant processes, as well as deliver greater precision over manual entry.

There are almost 30 RSE teams already set up at academic institutes across the UK – with official job titles, fellowships and extensive industry opportunities rising, and with the increasing importance in data science, Research Software Engineering is becoming imperative in providing solid academia – with a main goal to ‘create recognition and career pathways for individuals that develop research software in academia. ‘

‘Better Software. Better Research’ is RSE’s Mantra.

Watch a video of Chris Cave-Ayland, ICT’s Senior Research Engineer showcasing RSE and the process for building ‘Surgery from your Sofa’ – a system for remote control of surgical robots over the internet. He also gives you an insight into Research Software and what his team does.

You can also read more about RSE on their blog.

Author: Matt La, Work Experience, ICT June 2022

 

 

 

A guide to how things get done in ‘real life’

Two work experience students, Sarah and Matt, were immersed in the word of IT as they spent 3 days working in all areas from Data Analytics, Product Development and Communications, where they gained an insight into the inner workings of ICT…

ICTs way of doing things is called an ‘Agile model’

“During my work experience in ICT, I spent my time helping to develop an app using the new software called Microsoft PowerApps, which will enable students to upload photos for their College ID card – and I even trained an Artificial Intelligence (AI) bot to help with approval of the photos!

Every day I was included in the Product Development Team stand up meetings where they would group discuss what each person had done during the previous day and briefly outline what needed to occur today- they would then move on to discuss the main planning for the new system.

This was a very informative experience as it really gave the feel of a friendly workspace, whilst also being a guide to how things get done in ‘real life’. It also displayed to me what specific requirements need to be established in order to effectively work as a team, which in turn helps the programming people know exactly what to do in order to get everything running smoothly in the software.

Watching this all play out and being able to participate, as well as sharing my own work with the team has helped me to be able to apply it to my school subjects. Merely knowing that ICTs way of doing things is called an ‘Agile model’ and being able to see for myself how interaction with the ‘customer’ who will be using the new system enables for a greater understanding of people’s requirements and thus a smoother process overall has been of great help to me.

In conclusion, I have loved every minute of having my work experience here at Imperial College’s ICT department and I greatly recommend it.”

Author: Sarah Sowole, work experience student from Oaks Park High School, Redbridge 

Moving forward. Progression.

“Coming into a workplace with no prior experience, and from what I have seen online, I was personally expecting robots and drones that complete tasks straightforwardly.

I was pleasantly surprised when the first person I talked to immediately started talking about his motivations as a developer – helping students and colleagues alike. And, again and again, after each person I talked to, whilst there was still a focus on the tangible and material outcomes, there was an utmost focus on the intangible things at work.

A large part of my talk with a Product Manager was about a metaphorical ‘Northern Star’ – a purpose for work.

I was told that working is easier when you have been given a reason to keep on moving forward, something that I did agree with.

It was refreshing, in contrast to the do-or-die mentality I am often faced with in Sixth Form – and ultimately, a progressive outlook at ‘work’ is something that I would love to experience when I eventually enter the workplace!

Author: Matt La, work experience student from Farnborough Sixth Form College

From manager to C-level, do you have what it takes?

Headshot of panellists
The panellists, left to right: Julie, Leila, Jane

We know IT has a long way to go before it can call itself “an inclusive industry”. We recognise that and work towards bridging that gap. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion is one of our strategic pillars as a part of our strategy – Investing in people and talent. In support of our EDI initiatives, we are collaborating with a number of partners that help us strive to achieve that mission.

We had excellent engagement for our latest collaboration with Everywoman, From Manager to C-Level: The steps, skills and qualities that can give you the edge webinar. 420 of you registered and more than 100 tuned in live! I encourage you to watch the recording if you couldn’t make the live session on 28 January! Some of our top female leaders were panellists:

  • Julie McCann, Interim Vice-Dean for Research in the Faculty of Engineering
  • Leila Guerra, Vice Dean of Education at the Imperial College London Business
  • Jane Neary, Director of Campus Services

The panel shared fantastic career insights and tips. They can be applied by anybody who’s aiming at a C-level role in their 5-year plan!  Jane, Julie and Leila took the audience through the steps you can take to make it happen, and the skills and attributes needed to make it to the top.

Here’s my favourite quote from the event:

Seema: What skills and attributes does someone need to succeed?

Leila: Networking and building relationships are universally important. Making sure you have diverse, rich and global circles. Self-awareness is of course important to have as well. Being able to look at yourself and identify what’s your voice, your passion. The element of passion is so important! Having an innovative mindset as well, knowing the role will not be linear. On the other hand, being resilient, patient and generous with yourself and others. Being in peace with yourself does really help. Your employer hired you for you!

You might also find the How Imperial’s ICT and digital team leaders are moving the needle on diversity article interesting!

More general on-demand content can be found on Everywoman’s webpage.

New year, new strategy!

I thought I had better write something on our brand new ICT blog, as the default message is…

… leaving that up is like the WordPress Blog equivalent to ‘Computer says no!” and we have a bad enough rep as it is! 😉

2022 has finally arrived, and we have a new years resolution in the guise of a new ICT strategy and roadmap to work towards making some exciting improvements to ensure:

  • A seamless, digital student journey
  • The best tools and systems
  • Robust and reliable technology
  • Delighted customers placed at the heart of the services
  • Confidence in cyber security
  • The best technology talent

But how did we come up with all that lot?

Peter Brown showing his post it note workIn summer 21 we set up some ICT Tech Days for all our 250 staff to attend (Hybrid mode of course!)

When I heard we were going to be attending workshops to strategise for the next 5 years, I thought great – I love a post it note session! But when I found out it was every day for a week, I thought blimey that is a lot of post it notes!

The strategy workshops were broken down in to daily sessions for each Functional Area where we looked at their current ‘playbooks’ and what our teams are working to achieve, we then did the obligatory post it note exercise to identify your needs as a customer, looking at your pain points, and mapping out the potential gains, and many, many mor exercises!

We determined steps to plan out ‘what great looks like’ and feed this in to a long term strategy and roadmap.

The days were long and lots of coffee was drunk, but the outcomes were totally worth it – as we now have a really clear direction of travel and we are all pulling in the same direction as a team, and we have new ways of working with you – our clientele.

Our teams 7 days culminated in a social distanced gathering (Not party!)

Staff DJ'ing at the party

Stick with us through this blog to see how we are delighting you and providing a first class service.