Research
Introduction
We deliver distinctive world-class computer science research and apply it to real-world problems. We have received a significant amount of external research income. In 2007 alone we were awarded £5.4 million in grants. Our research is based around three key areas each led by an internationally leading researcher.
The Theory Group, led by Professor Peter O'Hearn, specialises in the logical, mathematical and statistical foundations of computer science, with a breadth and depth of expertise almost unmatched in the UK. We tackle the hard problems inherent in discovering the power and limitation of computer systems, and how principled design based on the right mathematical models might make them more robust and secure. In addition to achieving various outstanding theoretical results, the group's research has had far-reaching impact, ranging from the way major organisations such as Microsoft, QinetiQ and the CAA think of system verification, to improving the way services are implemented on the World Wide Web. We lead the development of Separation Logic, which has contributed to the solution of a major problem in software verification and is impacting Microsoft's software quality research agenda.
The Vision & Interaction Group, led by Professor Sean Gong, covers two main sub-areas, Vision, where ground-breaking algorithmic work on face and behaviour recognition has been used in crime prevention and security; and Interaction, Media and Communication where our practical investigations of human communication are leading to new insights into both verbal and non-verbal group behaviour. The group's long-term goal is to develop mathematical and computational models for understanding and analysing perception, action and human interaction, and to have organisations world-wide using models and systems based on work of the group.
The Information Engineering Group, led by Professor Norman Fenton, concerns the two sub-areas Risk Assessment where work in Bayesian nets is impacting major organisations and researchers world-wide, including in areas of risk analysis outside pure Computer Science; and Information Retrieval which leads a major international effort in XML retrieval and a significant thrust to combine large databases with Information Retrieval. Its long-term vision is to devise methods for decision-making with an emphasis on handling uncertainty and information access, applied in improved decision-making at all levels of government, industry, academia and leisure.
We also have a strong focus on interdisciplinary research , working with electronic engineers, mathematicians, biologists, linguists and performers. We also have a strong reputation for our public engagement work, sharing our passion for computer science.
