University Strategic Research Groups – Major Themes

Chair: Prof. Tim Elliott (School of Medicine)                    

Deputy Chair: Dr. Klaus-Peter Zauner (School of Electronics and Computer Science)

Sue Sundstrom, Head of Faculty Team (FMHLS)

s.sundstrom@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 23895

This group will develop a research strategy at the interface of life sciences and other disciplines such as medicine, physical sciences, engineering, health sciences, mathematics and environmental and earth sciences. 

Its initial focus is to ensure the successful launch of the Institute for Life Sciences (IfLS) and the new £45million Life Sciences Building on the Highfield campus, due for completion in summer 2010.

Chair: Professor Hywel Morgan (School Electronics and Computer Science)

Deputy Chair: Dr. David Smith (School of Physics)

hs3@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 224136

This group will continue to promote the cross-disciplinary development of work in nanoscience and technology through the already successful Nanoforum. A particular objective will be to assist in ensuring the maximum effective use of the new Mountbatten clean room facility.

Chair: Professor William Powrie (School of Civil Engineering and the Environment)

Deputy Chair: Professor Gail Taylor (School of Biological Sciences)

                                    d.woolley@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 28341

This group (SUnRISE – Southampton University Research Institute for Sustainable energy and the Environment) aims to promote and strengthen the University’s extensive expertise in energy research, by facilitating and developing major interdisciplinary collaborations.

The three areas in which effort is being focused initially are wind, tidal stream and bioenergy. In all cases, strategic links are being actively developed with user, government and other research partners.

The group is also coordinating the University’s engagement with the Isle of Wight Eco-Island project, which aims to make the Island carbon neutral by 2020. The University’s expertise in areas such as transportation, waste management, building physics, coastal engineering and societal engagement, as well as in renewable energy will be integral to this project.

Chair: Professor Maria Evandrou (School of Social Sciences)

Deputy Chair: Professor Avan Aihie Sayer (School of Medicine)

digalpin@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 28673

James Hamilton, Collaboration & Innovation Support Manager                    j.c.hamilton@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 29348

This theme is aligned closely to the RCUK/MRC Cross-Council initiative in this area and will build on the already successfully developing relationship between Schools in the social sciences/medicine and healthcare disciplines. The University already has strengths in both research and clinical aspects of ageing. The Centre for Research on Ageing combines expertise in the wellbeing of older people, both in terms of their health and also their social networks, living arrangements and financial resources. Within the School of Health Sciences, experts are carrying out research into access to and use of various health and social care services.

Southampton research into age-related macular degeneration (AMD) recently came to international attention. A team of clinicians and scientists from the University identified a major new genetic association with AMD, the most common cause of blindness in developed countries. Their research adds to the growing understanding of the genetics of AMD and they believe it will help to better predict who is at risk and ultimately lead to better treatments.

Chair: Professor Robert Allen (Institute of Sound and Vibration Research)

Deputy Chair: Professor Jane Burridge (School of Health Sciences)

sne@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 28342

The Health Technologies group will coordinate large-scale activities at the life-sciences interface and will develop opportunities in assisted living, telemedicine, and e-health.

A current project involves researchers from the Schools of Health Sciences, Psychology and Electronics and Computer Science, as well as researchers from the Universities of Newcastle and Bristol, and a team from the NHS called the Workforce Review Team. It looks at computer decision support systems (CDSS) used by staff in urgent and emergency care.

CDSS support decision-making by linking medical knowledge and rules. They are used, for example, by doctors and nurses to help prescribe medicines, and by ambulance services and NHS Direct. They may allow staff to work more efficiently, or to do tasks previously only done by doctors, which could allow a doctor to be replaced with non-medical staff. The study will inform future planning and development of the NHS workforce.

Chair: Professor Wendy Hall (Electronics and Computer Science)

Deputy Chair: Professor Robin Mason (School of Social Sciences)

Don Spalinger, Director of Corporate Relationships

d.spalinger@soton.ac.uk

Ext: 22392

The work of this group is closely aligned to the Research Councils UK/Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (ESPRC) theme in this area. It focuses on bringing researchers together from across the University to tackle the major challenges and opportunities presented by the digital economy. It will therefore focus particularly on bringing together computer scientists and other researchers, particularly those from a wide range of social science disciplines.

The group’s work will link to the Web Science Initiative which is jointly promoted by the University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a bid for a Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Web Science has already been successful. This is a new and rapidly growing interdisciplinary research area which examines the World Wide Web and offers the practical solutions needed to support its future development. The CDT in Web Science will receive around £6 million, as part of a £250 million initiative by the EPSRC.

Secondly, the group has bid to be a Research Hub in the digital economy. This will be a large-scale (around £12million), multidisciplinary enterprise involving over eight different disciplines, funded by the EPSRC. The objective is to build capacity, expertise and a critical mass of researchers in the digital economy. In combination with the CDT in Web Science, it would make Southampton a leading centre internationally in the digital economy.