Technical Training in the Time of COVID-19

With the campus in lockdown, we have moved some of the Research IT training courses online but how does this work in practice? Is it possible to have the same level of interaction as you do in a classroom? Douglas Lowe tells of his experience.

Mobile Development Service Making Remote Working Standard

In this article, Adrian Harwood from the Mobile Development Service (MDS) discusses how the established way of working in MDS has meant that campus closure has had a minimal effect on their ability to deliver a quality service for University researchers. 

Research Lifecycle Programme Updates

Developing a service to manage highly restricted data

The Research Lifecyle Programme are doing some research to learn more about how people currently plan and run projects using high-risk data to understand how to make better tools and services for researchers in the future.  This research will inform a series of co-design sessions later in the year.

The team are looking for a variety of different voices and experiences to get involved so that solutions can be jointly developed that work better for researchers and governance.

The research will be in the form of short interviews – 30 to 60 minutes. Currently, these will be conducted remotely.  If you’re willing to get involved, please contact:

• Rachel.Thompson@manchester.ac.uk or
• Sarah.Thew@manchester.ac.uk

Find out more:

• Developing a service to manage highly restricted data

Open workshops: Support for networking and collaboration

The research community are invited to have their say on networking and collaboration through engagement workshops.

The RLP is investing in systems and tools to support research networking and collaboration. The programme team are keen to get input from academic staff, early career researchers, and PS staff who support research communities to help shape the future of networking and collaboration.

 The team strongly encourages more people to sign up to these workshops to ensure there is representation from all in the research community including all faculties and research support related roles.

People who registered early were asked to submit ideas on what would help enable effective research networking and collaboration. All attendees will now be asked to sort the submitted ideas into themes to be discussed at the workshops.

Places are still available on the following workshops:

• Tuesday 12 May (10am – 12pm)
• Tuesday 12 May (1pm – 3pm)
• Thursday 14 May (1pm – 3pm) (PGR focused)

Please note: These workshops will take place online, via Zoom. If you have any queries, please contact rlp@manchester.ac.uk. 

Microsoft AI for Health: COVID-19 Grant

In January 2020, Microsoft announced the launch of AI for Health, an initiative to advance the health of people and communities around the world. This five-year commitment was created to empower non-profits, researchers and organizations with AI and data science tools.

Given the urgency of the COVID-19 crisis, Microsoft are mobilizing their AI for Health initiative to focus on helping those on the front lines of research of COVID-19, focusing efforts in five specific areas where data, analysis and the skills of data scientists are likely to have the biggest impact – https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2020/04/09/ai-for-health-covid-19/

Microsoft are accepting requests in the AI for Health program for COVID-19 grant proposals from non-profits, academia and governments. This grant program provides Azure cloud and High-Performance Computing capabilities. Microsoft’s team of AI for Health data science experts are also open to collaborations with COVID-19 researchers as they tackle this critical challenge.

Microsoft will accept grants until Monday, 15 June 2020 or until further notice.

• Find out more: AI for Health: COVID-19 Grant

Related