It's not the end of the month, yet, but as it's half term next week, I'm off work, so this seemed like a good time to update. Rather than risk drifting into June.
It has (as always) been a busy old month. In many ways, May is exam month: vivas have been the main feature. I've marked portfolios, read and examined dissertations, and examined not one but two product design exhibitions! Everything else gets rather squeezed out. Still, I've managed to fit in a presentation at the Pint of Science Festival, which was good, and we've made some significant progress on the Apex project, so I'm awash with bits of 3D printed hands at the moment! I also managed a trip to Peterborough to visit Deafblind UK for the SUITCEYES project, which was very informative. And last - but far from least - we welcomed aboard a new member of the SUITCEYES team: Adriana Atkinson, as Research Fellow in User Needs Analysis. She'll be looking after the interviews in the UK that will inform the SUITCEYES project. In fact, after four months of largely admin, recruitment and planning, with me doing a bit of technical development on Work Package 5 (Driver Control Units - the bits I took to Amsterdam last month), things have abruptly sprung into life. This is particularly true on Work Package 2 where we suddenly have a draft protocol (thanks in large part to Sarah Woodin), an application for ethical review for the protocol (thanks in large part to Bryan Matthews) and a good chunk of literature under review (thanks to Sarah, Bryan and Adriana). I mention who's doing these things since, for the most part, I've ordered computers, booked rooms, organised meetings and run vivas - it feels almost unnerving to have so much happening without me being the one doing it! But it is also a huge relief to feel all the early work starting to pay off, and feel like we're actually getting into research and not just lots of planning and project management.
Next month is shaping up to be an even more exciting one: Jamie Mawhinney will be resuming his Laidlaw Scholarship on developing FATKAT; we have a second Laidlaw Scholar (one Erik Millar) starting who will be looking at tactile feedback and VR; we have another SUITCEYES Research Fellow starting - looking after the sensing and technical developments and, of course, I will be down at the British Academy Summer Showcase with Stuart Murray and Eat Fish Design showing off our work on Engineering the Imagination. Also, there will be exam boards, so my teaching duties are not done yet.
Still, first, I'm off to see the Falkirk Wheel and the Kelpies at the back end of this month: I couldn't be more excited!
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