Capturing Computer Science

PhD student Nida took this photo of her colleague Micol elbow-bumping Nao, one of two wellbeing robots that being developed here. Both researcher and robot are wearing masks because "I believe images like this can teach people - especially vulnerable groups like children and the elderly - the importance of wearing masks and reducing physical contact in these strange times," Nida says. "If a robot can wear a mask and follow social distancing, I can too."

Dr Ajay Shankar is a researcher in the Prorok Lab. "Here, we are working on multi-robot coordination," Ajay explains. "A key capability for such robots is to follow agreed trajectories, or paths. This photo is a still from a long-exposure video of the robots drawing these curves. They use the infrastructure of the Lab and employ algorithmic/mathematical modules to synchronize and precisely follow their paths. The really cool aspect is the different kinds of robots that can work in tandem (aerial and ground)." You can see the full 45-second video here on Google Drive."

From left to right, Ian Lewis (PI), Richard Mortier (PI), Justas Brazauskas (RA) & Vadim Safronov (PhD Student) hold a 'snake' of 120 energy-monitoring smartplugs ready for deployment in the William Gates Building, used in the in-building research within our Adaptive City programme.

Ian Lewis says: "We have a strong thread in our research to monitor in-building parameters (such as temperature, humidity, CO2) so that the building of the future can be more efficiently managed. WiFi enabled smartplugs that can provide data on electricity use are readily available and inexpensive, but the software on them is not sufficiently capable for our research.

"We decided to replace the software on all of the smartplugs and that meant constructing a 'factory' - dividing the labour between us to update all 120 devices. We then calculated ALL of the smartplugs could be tested by chaining them together so that each one powers the next, and the picture shows the happy completion of that effort."

Research Associate Dr Polly Card took this photo while researching culturally-responsive computing teaching. This is a project that aims to improve the experience and outcomes of those from groups who are typically under-represented in computing qualifications and careers - such as females and those from minority ethnic groups and low-income backgrounds. Polly's image shows a Year 10 computing student at Queens Park Community School in London. 

"Around 40 of the cohort of CompSci freshers visited Zizzi’s together to celebrate our determination and success during our first term here at Cambridge," says undergraduate Dan Wendon-Blixrud
 
"In some regards, this is one of the hardest terms of all for students, given the adjustment to living in a brand new location all on your own, learning how to handle the demanding workload, and making an entirely new group of friends to top it all off. This image is a precious memory and proof of our resilience and ability to overcome just about anything that’s thrown at us, as well as our excitement towards what the future brings. Including many more pizza celebrations..."

"Last November, I often worked on my courses and my Part II project in the Department café," says student Alba Navarro Rosales. "One day, I looked up from my work to see the warm afternoon light peeking through the windows and into the building inside, creating a calm atmosphere within the lab. I couldn't help but capture this scene, as it had created a sensation of sudden stillness within the busy environment of the Department; it felt as if time had frozen for a second.

"And with the photograph of the original computing department in the background, it got me thinking about how the work of those who came here in the past has shaped the world of Computer Science and our studies here. And how the work of us currently studying or researching here may shape them in the future, continuing a cycle of discovery and development that keeps evolving with time, over and over again…

"Just like how the sun will keep setting and shining into the building, for those that will come after us to experience it, in the same way it did on that magical autumn afternoon."