I originally trained as a Biochemist, receiving a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Stirling in 1983. I then worked for a number of years as a Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer, specialising in Haematology and Transfusion Science.
I became increasingly interested in the application of computer methods, particularly graphical ones, to scientific work. Therefore I applied to the University of York to study for an MSc in Biological Computing, which I received in 1990.
I went to work at the Computer Graphics Unit at the University of Manchester, where as part of the the Gravigs Project, I wrote a set of modular distance learning materials on Computer Graphics or Scientific Visualisation. These are now available online. I also wrote a paper on distance learning materials, presented at the Eurographics Workshop on Graphics and Visualisation Education, describing our use of the then (1993) fairly-new World Wide Web for teaching.
Later I moved to another project, MAN T&EC, where I wrote and presented courses on Scientific Visualisation, Internet Skills for Bioinformatics, and Active Web Pages. Concurrently with this I was a (part-time) representative for JISC to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and attended Advisory Council meetings (well, only one actually. I was in post for just a few months).
I now work for W3C.
I attended the
First Web Conference in Geneva.
Yep, that is me (honest):
Here is my
position paper for the workshop on
teaching and learning with the Web.
I was a consulting student on the Biocomputing course recently run by the GNA's Virtual School of Natural Sciences. This provided a good refresher in the sort of things Molecular Biologists use the net for, and also served as a field test for BioMOO, a same-time collaborative technology with interesting teaching applications.
I attended the AGOCG-sponsored UK Web Conference & Workshop in February 1995; my position paper is here in PostScript.
I have presented a number of tutorials and short courses on various aspects of the Web - portable document design, HTML, HTTP and CGI - such as this course at Edge Hill College and a tutorial on Active Web Pages at Eurographics UK in March 1995.
I am an active contributor to the IETF HTML Working Group. The HTML 2.0 specification is being enhanced to support tables, multinational documents, file upload from forms, and client-side imagemaps among other things. The HTML WG page has some details. The W3C page about the future of HTML should also be consulted.
My interests include:
I am an Associate of the Institute of Medical Laboratory Sciences, a member of the British Computer Society Electronic Publishing Specialist Group, and was on the executive board of Eurographics UK Chapter (until I went to live in France).
Some of my publications are available as gzipped PostScript files.