5th Digital Research Conversations

Dates
Tuesday 10 September 2019 (11:30-14:00)
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You are Invited to the 5th Digital Research Conversations

Topic:  How far can we go with Virtual Reality (VR) , Augmented Reality (AR)  and Visualisation?

Date: Tuesday 10th September 2019

Time: 11:30 till 2:00pm

Location: Westmere House ( University Graduate School – G15 on the Campus map )

The Digital Research Conversation features short talks from researchers and colleagues who support research. Speakers range from early career researchers to more experienced academics or staff from professional services who support researchers.

Join us at Westmere House foyer for networking with your peers  and later in the programme to enjoy free pizza. See our blog post to find out more about the DRCs.

 Outline of the Event

We are in the age of  'big data'  and this creates various challenges for its storage, analysis and presentation, but at the same time, big data has opened up opportunities for those who can make sense of it. Data Scientists apply models to extract useful information from large data sets but now there are other ways to visualize huge data sets. Augmented reality and virtual reality are changing the way we interact and interpret data. 

The discussions emphases how 3D visualisation in virtual reality and augmented reality are used in making sense of big data.

Who should attend (All UoB researchers welcome)

MSc, Postgrads, Post-docs , Project supervisor and staff who support research.

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Speakers

Dr Phil Murgatroyd, Europe's Lost Frontiers - Project and Modelling Manager

Philip Murgatroyd gained his PhD at the University of Birmingham via the Medieval Warfare on the Grid project, creating Agent-Based Models of Medieval military logistics. He stayed at Birmingham to do geophysics and data visualisation for the GG-TOP project. He is now Project and Modelling Manager of the Europe's Lost Frontiers project at the University of Bradford. He has been involved with visualisation since starting his BSc in 2000.

Dr Victoria Williams (PhD Dept of Eng Literature FT)

Vicki Williams is a doctoral researcher in the English Department at the University of Birmingham. Her research focuses on the ways identity and embodiment are captured in and through immersive virtual environments and virtual reality (VR) in particular. She has published work on the compatibility of virtual reality and the horror genre. Her research interests include phenomenology, immersive technologies, mediated horror and glitch studies. Vicki also co-convenes the PLAY/PAUSE videogame and VR seminar series at the University of Birmingham.

Dr Biao Cai is a lecturer in the School of Metallurgy and Materials and also an Alan Turing Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute.

He obtained his BSc and MSc in Materials from Central South University in China in 2009 and 2011, respectively. He went on to study for a PhD in Materials at the University of Manchester 2011-2015. After that, he worked for two years as a post-doc at the University of Manchester. Then at 2017 he joined the University of Birmingham as a lecturer, with a main role to co-ordinate the University’s activities with Diamond Light Source (UK’s synchrotron X-ray) to facilitate the Diamond Birmingham Collaboration.

His research uses state-of-the-art 3D and 4D materials characterization and visualization methods to gain new understanding in physical metallurgy – feeding back into the development of engineering materials, manufacturing techniques and process modelling.

Dr Richard Graham (Department of English Literature)

Richard Graham is a Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and the Digital at the University of Birmingham. His current project Understanding Google investigates how to analyse dynamic digital technologies, such as Google’s search engine, from a humanities perspective. Richard’s most recent publication explores Google’s role in the dissemination of fake news and the changing nature of work and digital labour: “Google and Advertising: Digital Capitalism in the Context of Post-Fordism, the Reification of Language, and the Rise of Fake News”.

Richard currently convenes and teaches modules on digital culture and contemporary issues, the history and philosophy of technology, videogames, and speculative literature and film. Since starting at Birmingham in 2018, Richard has led the practical teaching of VR to English students in workshops and tutorials at all levels of undergraduate study.

Professor Henry Chapman FSA (Classics, Ancient History and Archaeology)

Henry Chapman is Professor of Archaeology at the University of Birmingham, specialising wetlands, environmental change and later prehistory. His work centres on the use of digital technologies, from on-site recording through to data modelling, analysis and visualisation. He has previously directed a number of research groups at Birmingham, including the Visual and Spatial Technology (VISTA) Centre and the Digital Humanities Hub.

We look forward to welcoming you at the registration desk at 11:30 am to this free event. Drinks (water, milk, coffee, tea, juice and soft drinks) and nibbles will be provided. We will gather in the foyer at the table for Pizza, served at 12:50pm.

 How do I Register (Registration is closed)

If you’d like to attend the 5th Digital Research Conversation, please register now online. Capacity is limited, so register now (Closed) to make sure you don’t miss out!

Thank you,

IT Services Research Engagement Team

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Professional Services