Download Report

ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL
Shaping Capabilities in ICT
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Contents
Context
Approach
Specific approach for ICT
Areas for action
What happens next
Strategic Plan goals
EPSRC’s plans
EPSRC
Comprehensive
Strategic Spending
Plan 2010 Review
EPSRC
Delivery Plan
2011-2014
Our Portfolio
published
Engagement
March 2010
October 2010
December 2010
July 2011
Full
Shaping
Capability
plans
March 2012
Developing the shape of the portfolio
Understanding the current portfolio
The EPSRC have used their unique role as a national agency to build and
develop the UK research landscape in engineering and physical sciences.
They have mapped their current portfolio by research areas and used data on
research grants to understand:
The value of EPSRC support in a research area
The number of people in a research area receiving EPSRC support
How major research centres and grants (such as EPSRC Centres for
Innovative Manufacturing, programme grants), EPSRC Fellows, and
Centres for Doctoral Training fit in the portfolio
Links between research areas, capability themes and challenge themes
They are also building a picture of wider support in the form of knowledge
maps which capture non-EPSRC investment through dialogue with major
university partners
Developing the shape of the portfolio
Identifying the future shape of the portfolio
For each research area within the portfolio EPSRC will indicate the overall
trend they would like to see, relative to other areas of the EPSRC portfolio.
Grow = research area will be grown relative to other areas in the
portfolio
Maintain = research area will be maintained relative to other areas in the
portfolio
Reduce = research area will be reduced relative to other areas in the
portfolio
In addition an area maybe asked to focus on research that meets particular
industry needs or that could play a key role in an important challenge area,
such as energy.
Any changes in the portfolio will take place gradually over time. The shape of
the portfolio will be reviewed regularly and the scale of investment in different
areas as it evolves.
Shaping Capability in ICT - Aims
Ensure new research directions within the portfolio
Foster greater collaboration and connection between ICT
research communities and other disciplines
Establish an active debate in the ICT communities on future
directions and challenges
Increase the level of ambition in those sponsored – reflected in
a more ambitious portfolio
Provide an ongoing perspective on the desired shape of the
ICT capability and take action that achieves this
ICT Capability – Approach to Shaping
Twin approach adopted over last year by the ICT Capability Theme
Combining perception of individual research areas with awareness
of cross-cutting ICT research priorities
Both published alongside each other on the EPSRC website from
the 20th July
Consideration of the merits of the specific research areas within an
overall context – together with dependencies and interactions
between areas
Views developed on relative quality and importance of each
research area and target specific actions towards each research
area to shape the ICT landscape
Publication of the new Fellowships Scheme will be on the 22nd July
and will reflect the ICT Capability’s shaping strategy
Cross-ICT Research Priorities
Many-Core Architectures and Concurrency in
Distributed and Embedded Systems
Towards an Intelligent Information
Infrastructure (TI³)
Photonics for Future Systems
New and emerging areas in ICT
Working Together
Note that explanations of these decisions are on the EPSRC
website
ICT Research Areas
The ICT theme has a firm position on 8 of the 31 research
topics
Action Decisions – ICT
Theme Leader – Liam Blackwell
Research Area
Action
Architecture and operating systems
Maintain
CMOS device technology
Reduce
Digital signal processing
Grow
Non CMOS device technology
Maintain
Optical devices and subsystems
Maintain
Optoelectronic devices and circuits
Maintain
Speech technology
Reduce
Verification and correctness
Grow
Note that explanations of these decisions are on the
EPSRC website
What this means for applicants
Changes to the application process
EPSRC view Peer Review as a key element in achieving the aims; therefore
the current process will be adapted to incorporate the new criteria.
From now onwards, applicants will be expected to consider their
research in the context of international excellence and national
importance.
Before applying applicants need to consider their research proposal in
relation to the portfolio and the relative scale of EPSRC’s investment in
the research area(s) posed.
From autumn onwards, applicants applying to EPSRC will need to
include a section in their case for support on the importance of their
research with respect to the EPSRC portfolio
“Our Portfolio” section of the EPSRC website will describe the current
portfolio and proposed action categories
Impact versus Importance
.
Importance can be thought of as “why the
research should be supported”
Impact will still be a required section
This should address the question, what the
applicant(s) will do to deliver impact
What this means for peer review
Peer review of proposals
From autumn onwards, reviewers will be asked to consider importance as well
as excellence in their assessment.
Peer review meetings will be asked to prioritise based on quality and
importance as the primary criteria and also comment on strategic fit to the
research areas in our portfolio.
Changes to all forms, guidance and peer review processes will be in place
from the autumn.
The confirmed date that this will occur will be publicised on the EPSRC
website in September.
What the ICT Theme will be doing next
.
Meetings at regional “hubs” with Heads of Department
to communicate our shaping strategies and what this
means for researchers
Discussions with the community on how they can
engage with EPSRC’s strategic priorities
Working in partnership with the research community to
firm up their position on remaining research areas