Birmingham Environment for Academic Research (BEAR) Newsletter This month, we enjoyed meeting and speaking to over 200 staff members at the Staff Benefits Fair about the various BEAR services available, welcome to those who have joined our mailing list! November’s newsletter looks a little different as we’ve added some sections to help with navigation, do let us know if you have … Continue reading “November 2025 BEAR Newsletter”
Tag: training
Modelling accelerator-based neutron sources using the BlueBEAR cluster
In this case study we hear from Louis Butt, a doctoral researcher from Metallurgy and Materials, who has been using BlueBEAR to research accelerator-based neutron sources. I am a PhD student researching accelerator-based neutron sources in the School of Metallurgy and Materials. My work involves taking measurements with our source at the University’s MC40 Cyclotron … Continue reading “Modelling accelerator-based neutron sources using the BlueBEAR cluster”
The value of version control
The Research Software Group’s mission is rooted in the observation that most current research requires software, often written by researchers themselves, and that the application of a few core software engineering principles leads to more effective research. This is neatly captured by the Software Sustainability Institute‘s tag line: “better software, better research”. A core technology … Continue reading “The value of version control”
October 2025 BEAR Newsletter
Birmingham Environment for Academic Research (BEAR) Newsletter It’s been great to meet so many new PhD students at various college and school inductions over the last few weeks, and to see so much interest in the new training workshops that we are providing. To help spread the word about the many ways that BEAR services can help … Continue reading “October 2025 BEAR Newsletter”
September 2025 BEAR Newsletter
Birmingham Environment for Academic Research (BEAR) Newsletter We kicked off September with a BEAR Champion meetup, celebrating all the help that our expanding team of volunteers have given over the past academic year and going on a data centre tour to meet our supercomputer, BlueBEAR. As we head into the new academic year, we have updated our training homepage to accommodate … Continue reading “September 2025 BEAR Newsletter”
How green is the BEAR? 2025 updates
In 2022, we took part in the University’s Sustainability Town Hall and published a blog post highlighting Advanced Research Computing’s efforts in sustainable computing over the previous decade. Since then, we’ve continued to explore and develop initiatives in this space. With growing concerns around the energy demands of data centres – such as a recent … Continue reading “How green is the BEAR? 2025 updates”
Bayesian Modelling of Rising Decision Thresholds in DDMs using BlueBEAR
In this case study we hear from Sophie Wetz, a Masters student in Psychology, who has been using BlueBEAR to investigate whether a dynamic, rising boundary improved the fit of the full Drift Diffusion Model (DDM) to Random Dot Kinematogram (RDK) task data. I’m a Master’s student on the Computational Neuroscience stream in the School … Continue reading “Bayesian Modelling of Rising Decision Thresholds in DDMs using BlueBEAR”
Atomic Simulation to Build Better Batteries
In this case study we hear from Oskar Soulas, a PhD student in Chemistry, who has been using BlueBEAR to investigate lithium–sulphur–nitrogen solid electrolytes for next-generation battery technologies. I am a second year PhD student in the Scanlon Materials Theory Group (SMTG) based at the University of Birmingham. The group uses powerful computational tools to understand … Continue reading “Atomic Simulation to Build Better Batteries”
BEAR helps delve into the infant gut and malnutrition
In this case study we talk to Leon, a PhD student in the Department of Microbes, Infection and Microbiomes, who is using bioinformatics of microbes that encompass the human gut microbiome. The human gut is inhabited by trillions of microbial cells and most of those cells have very important roles in human health. My work … Continue reading “BEAR helps delve into the infant gut and malnutrition”
Reflections from the BEAR Conference 2025
The 14th annual BEAR Conference, a vibrant event organised by postgraduates for postgraduates, took place on 22 May 2025 at the Alan Walters Building—and what a fantastic day it was! With 55 attendees, the conference was packed with insightful talks, lively discussions, and a strong sense of community. Dietmar Heinke, Chair of the BEAR User … Continue reading “Reflections from the BEAR Conference 2025”