Nominations invited for 2017 BCS Lovelace Medal and Roger Needham Award

10 Oct 2016 03:16 PM

BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, has started its annual hunt for today’s academics and industrialists who deserve to be recognised for their contribution to computer science and engineering. 

The Institute is inviting nominations for its two annual academic awards; the Lovelace Medal, for senior academics and industrialists, and the Roger Needham* Award (sponsored by Microsoft Research), for those at mid-career. The closing date for nominations for both awards is 16 January 2017.

The Roger Needham Award, sponsored by Microsoft Research, is presented for a distinguished research contribution in computer science by a UK based researcher within ten years of their PhD. The selected nominee will be invited to give the annual Roger Needham lecture and will receive £5000 in prize money. Previous winners of the Needham Award include: Dr Sharon Goldwater, Professor Niloy J. Mitra, Dr Natasa Przulj, Dr Boris Motik, Dr Dino Distefano, Prof Maja Pantic, Dr Joel Ouaknine, Dr Byron Cook, Professor Wenfei Fan, and Professor Mark Handley. 

Abigail Sellen, Microsoft Research Cambridge Deputy Lab Director says: “It is vital that we continue to support talented, young computer science researchers in order to ensure that the UK remains a leader in the field. We are therefore delighted to continue to sponsor the Roger Needham Award.”

The BCS Lovelace Medal**, established in 1998, is presented to individuals who have made a contribution which is of major significance in the advancement of computing. The winner of the medal is invited to give the annual Lovelace lecture. 

Previous winners of the Lovelace Award include; Professor Andrew Blake, Professor Ross Anderson, Steve Furber, Professor Samson Abramsky, Grady Booch, Dr Hermann Hauser, Professor Karen Spärck Jones, and Sir Tim Berners-Lee.

Bill Mitchell, Director of Education at the Institute says: “These two prestigious awards are highly regarded by academia and IT professionals alike. Over the years we’ve been able to recognise many high profile individuals whose work makes an outstanding contribution to computing research and the IT industry.”

Nominations are considered by BCS Academy Awards Committee which makes the final selection.

Full details of the nomination criteria and process can be found at:www.bcs.org/awards

*The Roger Needham Award was established in memory of Roger Needham, 1935-2003, Professor of Computer Systems, Head of the Computer Laboratory and Pro-Vice Chancellor at the University of Cambridge. In 1997 he became first director of Microsoft Research in Cambridge. His work in computer science was wide ranging: in the 1950s he worked on information retrieval and cluster analysis; in the 1960s on design automation and operating systems (during which time he invented the practice of storing passwords under one way functions); in the 1970s on protection, local area networks and distributed computing; and thereafter on authentication protocols and logics for analysing them. 

**The BCS Lovelace Medal celebrates Ada Lovelace, a mathematician and scientist who worked with, and was an inspiration to, the computer pioneer Charles Babbage.

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