More about the Intel Collaborative Research Institute for Sustainable Cities

After my recent post about graduate research opportunities at the Intel Collaborative Research Institute on Sustainable, Connected Cities, I came across additional information about the project. The following is quoted from Charles Sheridan's 5/24/12 post, Announcing the Intel Collaborative  Research Institute for Sustainable Cities:

"We aim to create new, cross cutting inter-disciplinary “Systems of Systems” Cities research  methodology to understand key city challenges and technology opportunities."

Charlie Sheridan is the principal investigator of the ICRI Sustainable Connected Cities project, described in more detail in the  following video:

Some of the questions the Collaborative Research Institute for Sustainable Cities plans to investigate, as outlined by Sheridan (below),  are ones that probably need to be articulated for the general public,  not just  techies.  By taking an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach to research, this might just happen.

"How can technology “sustain sustainable behaviours”?"

"How can technology enable ubiquitous integrated services?"

"How do we protect privacy, security and disconnection in a city of a billion sensors?"

"Who pays? Who repairs?  Who Profits?"

"How can you design and evaluate connected and sustainable services and user-centred information for diverse needs of city dwellers?"

"How do you engage city communities to participate in developing technological innovations that will improve their environment, transport systems and local services?"

My favorite:

"What novel interfaces and interactions are required to encourage participation of citizens, business and government?"

This is a serious, large-scale endeavor.  I planned on wrapping up this post with a few pictures from my vast archive of examples of technology "out-and-about", but in doing so, came across a few photos that demonstrate, in a slightly humorous way, why this research effort is important:

Let's throw up a large-screen display to make the recycling process at the food court less complicated!

Let's stick these kiosks and displays over there and watch what doesn't happen!

Let's throw up everything on this display and see if it makes sense to the mom with a toddler in tow!

Let's get great-grandma (my mom) and the toddler (my grandson) together for some Internet-connected HDTV DVR DVD family viewing experience!  

Let's just  give toddlers iPads and see what happens!

(This little one gets to "play" with an iPad just once a week.)

I see endless possibilities here for the future of our cities!

Every little flower I planted yesterday came with a QR code. Are  these biodegradable or recyclable?

I quickly learned that garden dirt and QR codes don't mix.  It was much easier to read the informational text about my vincas on my iPhone, but I wasn't sure about exposing my iPhone to all the  dirt, water, and  beating sun.  FYI: Gardening:  QR Codes can be a Gardener's Best Friend

T-shirt slogan: 

"This was supposed to be future:  Where is my jetpack?"

Ph.D. Student Positions: Intel Collaborative Research Institute on Sustainable Connected Cities

Thanks to Johannes Schöning for sharing information about this opportunity!
This might be of interest to some of my IMT readers:


EngD/PhD Positions within the Intel Collaborative Research Institute on Sustainable Connected Cities (ISCCI) at University College London (UCL) The Department of Computer Science at UCL is inviting applications for up to 6 Research Student Positions (1 EngD of 4 years, and up to 5 PhDs of 3 years), starting September 24th 2012 or January 7th 2013.


With 6.3 billion people expected to dwell in cities by 2050, the aim of the ISCCI is to create and realize a compelling vision of a sustainable future made possible by adaptive technologies that optimize resource efficiency, enable new services and support the quality of life of urban inhabitants. The Institute is located with a rich external ecosystem of companies and researchers both locally and globally investing in this important domain. The ISCCI is led by Prof. Yvonne Rogers at UCL.


We are looking for students willing to pursue a doctoral degree in computer science around the following broad topics:
•       How technology can help recognize, leverage, and support the out-of-sight, hidden or forgotten resources of urban environments, ranging from volunteers to subterranean water systems and other underlying city infrastructures.
•       How communities can encourage sustainable behaviours over time, for example, through meaningful visualizations and feedback about resource usage to individuals and groups.
•       How technology can give us an opportunity to reinvent new ideas of place and identity, considering the diversification & proliferation of new types of communities in cities, with the aim to increase quality of living and lower the barriers for mobility in our future connectedcities.


The applicants should possess a good honours MSc degree (1st Class or 2:1 minimum) in Computer Science, Psychology, Human-Computer-Interaction or related disciplines. Candidates will be expected to work in teams comprising computer scientists, social scientists, and psychologists, so an open attitude towards interdisciplinary research and teamwork is important. Candidates should have interest in at least two of the following research fields (as well as a good command of English) language:
•       Human-Computer-Interaction,
•       Augmented or Mixed Reality,
•       Interactive 3D Computer Graphics,
•       Interaction Design,
•       Perceptual Psychology, and/or
•       Cognitive Sciences.
•       Ethnography•       Data Mining, Machine Learning
•       Crowed Sourced Data
•       Data Visualization, Cartography
•       Geoinformatics
•       Big Data


Fees are fully paid. Salary for the 4-year EngD position is £18,090 tax free p.a., and £15,590 tax free p.a. for the 3-year PhD positions.The closing date for applications is 5pm on 18th July 2012. Interviews will he held on July 26th and 27th. 


The start date is September 24th  2012 (though it can be postponed to January 7th 2013). No part-time option available.Please download the application form http://www.ucl.ac.uk/uclic/phd_studentships/Intel_studentship_application_form/ and email the completed form to Louise Gaynor l.gaynor@ucl.ac.uk as a single PDF document by 5pm on Wed 18th July 2012. Please can you indicate in your application whether you wish to start in Sept 2012 or Jan 2013.

Intel studentship job advert_July 2012.pdf1881K   View   Download

More posts coming soon!

My regular followers might have notice a drop in the number of posts recently. All for good reason.


I recently had a close encounter with a wasp, resulting in an allergic reaction, just as I was wrapping things up for the school year.  I now carry an Epipen with me at all times.


I'm back on track and look forward to blogging regularly in the near future!