Research IT

Research IT News

Launch of new GIS, Mapping and Earth Observation Community

Image of earth taken from space by NASA
Image of earth taken from space by NASA
Gail Millin-Chalabi,

Join us in launching a new Computation and Data in Research (CaDiR) community! The GIS, Mapping and Earth Observation (GISMEO) community aims to facilitate innovative and interdisciplinary use of geospatial methodologies and technologies through building a dedicated, university-wide geospatial community.

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Future Plans for Research IT

Gillian Sinclair,

At the start of year Research IT commissioned Open Data Manchester to undertake a series of strategy finding workshops with members of the research community from across the University. The report generated from the outcomes of the workshops is now available and we'd like to hear your thoughts.

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NVivo 14 Available!

Anja Le Blanc,

Are you an NVivo user? A new version of the qualitative data analysis package is now available to the University community so let us know if you want to update!

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The Great Scrum Switch Over

Ann Gledson, Adrian Harwood,

Following on from their blog back in March 2024, Senior RSE Ann Gledson and Head of RSE Adrian Harwood reflect on the Agile Methods for RSEs training course and the implementation of a version of scrum for all RSE projects.

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Detecting Text Written by AI

Erdem Atlas & Scott Archer-Nicholls,

In today's digital age, artificial intelligence (AI) plays a pivotal role in content creation, from writing articles to composing poetry. This technological marvel raises a pressing question: How can we discern whether the content we consume is the product of human creativity or the output of a sophisticated AI?

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Reflections and Futures from Manchester Research Software Community

People sitting in a tiered lecture theatre listening to a person speaking at the front of the room
People sitting in a tiered lecture theatre listening to a person speaking at the front of the room
Aman Goel,

The Spring meeting of the Manchester Research Software Community featured a presentation on GitHub Project Automation as well as breakout groups to discuss the next steps for the group. Aman Goel reflects on what the community has achieved so far and their plans for the future.

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UoM UK Biobank Users Wrap Up for 23/24

A couple sitting on camping chairs chatting whilst the sunsets
A couple sitting on camping chairs chatting whilst the sunsets
Nils Muhlert, Charlotte Woolley,

The last UoM UK Biobank Users meeting of the academic year recently took place but there is still plenty of activity going on over the summer!

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Creating the Next Generation of Research Software Engineers

Photo of a group of young college students from behind looking at a teacher
Photo of a group of young college students from behind looking at a teacher
Andrew Gait,

Andrew Gait from the Research Software Engineering team recently spoke at a local Manchester college careers day about his experience of working as a Research Software Engineer.

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Research IT at Collaborations Workshop 2024

conference audience
conference audience
Aman Goel, Scott Archer-Nicholls,

Aman Goel and Scott Archer-Nicholls from the Research Software Engineering team attended the recent Collaborations Workshop (CW24). Here they share some of the highlights from their time at the event.

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Upskilling Environmental Scientists in Software Development

Image of a Mac keyboard
Image of a Mac keyboard
Anja Le Blanc,

At the end of March, members of our Research Software Engineering (RSE) team ran a Carpentries-style training course for environmental science researchers in how to create research software. Could we offer something similar to YOUR PhD students and early career researchers?

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Announcing Hardware Upgrades to iCSF/Incline

Lines of vertical binary code radiating out into concentric circles, the code is overlayed on a background of concentric circles of blue dots which increase in size as they radiate away from the centre point.
Lines of vertical binary code radiating out into concentric circles, the code is overlayed on a background of concentric circles of blue dots which increase in size as they radiate away from the centre point.
Vicky Short,

If you're a user of the interactive Computational Shared Facility (iCSF)/incline system, you might want to take note of some improvements. These changes, carried out in July 2023, provide significant enhancements to the system's performance and capabilities.

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Virtually Working or Virtually Playing?

Vicky Short,

The February VR@Manchester Club’s community event showcased a diverse range of extended reality (XR) applications from across the University’s research community.

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