School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton
{{Short description|UK university department}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox university
|name =Electronics and Computer Science
|image_name = ZeplerMountbattenHDR.jpg
|image_size =200px
|image_alt =Mountbatten and Zepler buildings, the main buildings used by Electronics and Computer Science
|caption = Mountbatten and Zepler buildings, the main buildings used by the Electronics and Computer Science
|established =1946
|type =
|dean=
|head_label = Head of School
|head = Professor Timothy J. Norman
|endowment =
|administrative_staff = 349
|faculty = 180
|students = 2800
|undergrad = 2100
|postgrad = 700
|colours =
|city =Southampton
|state =
|country =England
|campus = Highfield Campus, University of Southampton.
|affiliations =University of Southampton
|website ={{Official URL}}
}}
Electronics and Computer Science, generally abbreviated "ECS", at the University of Southampton was founded in 1946 by Professor Erich Zepler.{{cite web|url=http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/about/history.php|title=ECS – Past, present and future|accessdate=2010-05-28}} It offers over 25 undergraduate courses (including Computer Science, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Engineering, Biomedical Engineering),{{cite web|url=https://www.southampton.ac.uk/about/faculties-schools-departments/school-of-electronics-and-computer-science|title=Undergraduate degree programmes in ECS}} 11 MSc intensive one-year taught programmes{{cite web|url=http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/admissions/pg/msc/1011/|title=MSc programmes|accessdate=2010-05-28|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100212195705/http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/admissions/pg/msc/1011/|archivedate=2010-02-12}} and PhD research opportunities.
ECS was the first academic institution in the world to adopt a self-archiving mandate (2001){{cite web|url=http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/research/centres.php|title=Centres and Institutes|accessdate=2010-05-28|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100522210830/http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/research/centres.php|archivedate=2010-05-22}} and since then much of its published research has been freely available on the Web.[http://eprints.ecs.soton.ac.uk "ECS EPrints Repository"] It created the first and most widely used archiving software (EPrints) which is used worldwide by 269 known archives and continues to be evolved and supported by ECS.{{cite web|url=http://www.eprints.org/software/archives/|title=Sites Powered by EPrints|accessdate=2010-05-28}}
Reputation
ECS is regarded by the IET as having the "biggest and strongest department in the country in Electrical and Electronic Engineering."{{cite web|url=http://www.theiet.org/about/scholarships-awards/power-academy/southampton.cfm|title=Power Academy - Southampton University - The IET|accessdate=2010-05-28}}
Electronics and Electrical Engineering in ECS was ranked 2nd in the UK in both Good University Guide{{cite web|url=http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/education/gooduniversityguide/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003131924/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/education/gooduniversityguide/|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 October 2012|title=Good University Guide}} published by the Times and the Complete University Guide{{cite web|url=http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/single.htm?ipg=8727|title=Top Universities by Subject|accessdate=2010-05-28}} published by the Independent. Computer Science was ranked 4th and 5th in the UK respectively in these two publications.
Research
The research conducted by ECS has achieved the top 5* rating in the last two Research Assessment Exercises, and in 2003 it was awarded the prestigious ‘best 5*’ rating by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). ECS currently contains six research groups:
- [http://www.aic.ecs.soton.ac.uk/ Agents, Interaction and Complexity]
- [http://www.cspc.ecs.soton.ac.uk/ Communications, Signal Processing and Control]
- [http://www.ess.ecs.soton.ac.uk/ Electronic and Software Systems]
- [http://www.eee.ecs.soton.ac.uk/ Electronics and Electrical Engineering]
- [http://www.nano.ecs.soton.ac.uk/ Nano Research Group]
- [http://www.wais.ecs.soton.ac.uk Web and Internet Science]
Fire and reconstruction
File:University of Southampton, Mountbatten Building Fire Damage.JPG
In 2005, a large fire destroyed part of the Mountbatten Building, holding optical fibre research laboratories (the world-renowned Optoelectronics Research Centre, ORC) and the microchip fabrication laboratories. It is estimated that the costs for rebuilding the centre and replacing the equipment will be around £50 million, making this what is believed to be the world's most destructive university fire.[http://www.soton.ac.uk/mediacentre/news/2005/oct/05_190.shtml University pledges to rebuild fire damaged research facility] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090803071816/http://www.soton.ac.uk/mediacentre/news/2005/oct/05_190.shtml |date=2009-08-03 }} The fire that consumed the Mountbatten Building on 30 October 2005 had devastating consequences not just for research in the School of Electronics and Computer Science but for many other partners and collaborators in the UK and around the world whose work was destroyed along with the Building.
File:Soton ECS construction.jpg
The replacement facility was constructed on the site of the previous Mountbatten, and was completed in October 2008. The modern design by Jestico + Whiles includes glass curtain walls, decorated by a mathematical fractal pattern, which allows those outside to view the research taking place in the clean rooms.[http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/about/news/2124 Three years on from Mountbatten fire, researchers celebrate] The chiral fractal design was chosen as it had been used by Southampton researchers working with optics and nanotechnology.[http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/about/news/1600 Mountbatten fractals inspired by nanotechnology]{{cite news|last=Bury, Liz|title=Jestico & Whiles’ nanotechnology centre shows that small can be beautiful|url=http://www.building.co.uk/buildings/jestico-and-whiles%E2%80%99-nanotechnology-centre-shows-that-small-can-be-beautiful/3118290.article|accessdate=26 November 2012|newspaper=Building magazine|date=18 July 2008}}
Notable Staff
Main: Notable Staff of the School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton
The School is home to a number of notable staff including Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web{{cite web|url=http://www.w3.org/People/Berners-Lee/|title=World Wide Web Consortium People: Tim Berners-Lee|publisher=www.w3.org|accessdate=2009-01-19}} and Dame Wendy Hall, president of the Association for Computing Machinery, ex-president of the British Computer Society, and Co-Founding Director of the Web Science Research Initiative{{cite news|url=http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=184175§ioncode=26 |title=In the news: Wendy Hall|last=Davis|first=Caroline|date=17 October 2003|publisher=Times Higher Education Supplement|accessdate=2009-01-19}}
References
{{Reflist}}
- OpenPSI the ( [http://www.openpsi.org OpenPSI project])is a community effort to create UK government linked data service that supports research. It is a collaboration between the University of Southampton and the UK government, led by Office of Public Sector Information at the National Archive and is supported by JISC funding.
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