Main:About

TL;DR

I'm a researcher professor working at the University of Manchester in the Department of Computer Science. I've been working in Type 1 Diabetes (T1D/T1DM) technology since 2018, specifically focusing on glucose and carbohydrate dosing (I'm leaving insulin dosing to the large corporations) and in-silico simulation as applied to the real world. The technology focuses an behavioural (digital) phenotyping assuming that we are habitual (or at least repetitive) and that there is a transitive relationship between blood glucose and behaviour.

c.2024

All of my work is focused an trying to move research to technology in peoples hands as fast as possible which is why I have the Melontech startup for research prototypes, and an independent side project.

Before my work in T1DM I spent 25 years in accessibility research specifically around profound blindness and the World Wide Web, with some forays into Parkinson's Disease, Healthcare, and Visual Attention.

You can find out more about my biases; if you care.

I'm a researcher Professor in Computer Science (full) working at the University of Manchester in the Department of Computer Science. Since 2018 I've focused in technology for people with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, but the last 25 years I've been working in Web Accessibility.

The move to T1DM was not accidental. In Autumn 2018 my Granddaughter (then 16 months old) became a person with T1DM. Why this autoimmune condition occurs is not really clearly understood at present. At that time I could see how my work could be useful in T1DM and so I pivoted away from my past-work and focused my entire research portfolio (except accessibility) to T1DM,

I am the GTA Lead for Computer Science and the School of Engineering, a University Senator, a Member of the General Assembly and a member of the University Examinations Board. Professionally, I am a Fellow of the British Computer Soc., a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering Technology, and an Association of Computing Machinery Distinguished Scientist.

My work is centred on understanding, predicting and influencing a user’s behaviour in the real-world and through interfaces and information, while taking into account cognitive, behavioural, perceptual and technological factors. My contributions lie in the development of adaptive user models of extreme users and/or extreme environments.

Grants and Translation

I've been an Investigator on 19 grants (10 as PI). Having ongoing projects and relationships with: BBC R&D; Google; IBM R&D; Intel; CTIC-Telefonica; Ove Arup Partners; Age Concern; Buttercup Telecommunications; and Docobo, these contributions have not only stayed within the academic community but have made their way into the DNA of the Web via browsers (chromium), software tools (eclipse ACTF) and international standards (W3C UAAG 2.0 / W3C RDWG Symposia). I have led the ACM Special Interest Group on the Web for 2 terms and have led the W3C (the International Standards Body for the Web) Research and Development working group for 4 years making decisions by building consensus when creating web standards (my working being commended as “instrumental to the development of the Web” by Sir Tim Berners Lee).

Past Work

My particular interest has been in Web Accessibility with specific regard to profound blindness and visual disability. My work was centred around building computational models of human behaviour and includes understanding, predicting, and influencing a user’s interactions and flow through interfaces and information, while taking into account neurophysiological, cognitive, behavioural, perceptual, and technological factors. In this case, my contributions lay along two paths. The first investigates ‘facilitating access and enhancing interactive Web behaviours’, while the second focuses on ‘understanding, evaluating, and modifying the Web experience’.

I co-founded the Web4All Conference Series (in 2004) and organised the first four (2004-2007 inc.) as General Chair. I have been a member of Steering Committees – International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility; International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility; and International ACM Conference on Hypertext and Hypermedia. Programme Chair for ACM ASSETS (2006); Submissions Chair for the WWW Conference (2006) and Accessibility Chair for the 2012 edition; ACM Student Research Competition Grand Finals Judge (2012), General Chair for ACM Hypertext (2007) and ACM ASSETS (2008). I have served on the programme committees, doctoral consortium panels, and review panels for a number of international conferences including ACM HT, WWW, ISWC, ACM CHI, UIST, ACM ASSETS, and ACM SAC. I have guest edited the New Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia; Journal of Web Engineering; Journal of Disability and Rehabilitation, Universal Access in the Information Society, ACM Transactions on Computer Human Interaction, ACM Transactions on the Web, Elsevier Journal of Web Semantics, and IEEE Internet Computing.

I'm currently Associate Editor for the international Journal of Human Computer Studies, and the ACM Transactions on the Web.