What is a Research Software Engineer (RSE)?

by Elena Dennison, Programme Manager, SHL Digital.

If I had a penny for each clear answer I have been given when asking that question, I would be penniless. So having no pennies to lose, I approached our own RSE, Dr Nic Seymour-Smith and asked him to give me some examples of the types of work he gets involved with at Sussex Digital Humanities Lab at the University of Sussex.

Nic explains that the Research Software Engineer (RSE) role seeks to collaboratively combine professional software expertise with an understanding of research. In this context, to understand what an RSE can and can’t provide it is important to understand the meaning of ‘Research Software’ vs ‘Software in Research’.

‘Research Software‘ understood as source code files, algorithms, scripts, computational workflows and executables that were created during the research process or for a research purpose.
vs
‘Software in Research‘ understood as software components (e.g., operating systems, libraries, dependencies, packages, scripts, etc.) that are used for research but were not created during or with a clear research intent.

 as defined by Barker et al (2022) in the “FAIR for Research Software Principles”.

This differentiation may vary between disciplines and will also vary between individual RSEs, whose backgrounds and experience are as varied as the multitude of research fields that exist in academia.

Working with the particular needs of SHL Digital as a research environment that recognises the vital role of good practice in software and data management, Nic’s RSE role will also facilitate the development of those practices with a focus on reproducibility, reusability, and accuracy of data analysis and applications created for research.

Nic can work together with researchers working within SHL Digital’s remit to develop the technological aspects of funding proposals, ensuring that adequate time, funding, and human resources are assigned to the development of software and hardware components of the project according to best development practices.

Nic can also directly lend his expertise to funded proposals, by being included as an RSE resource in a project. Nic has a broad range of experience in the development of software and hardware solutions, including for example: data analysis and visualisation; multimedia interactive digital software and artworks; interactive mechanical installations; and electronic engineering.

Can I get a penny now?

New (-ish) name, same Lab

Last month the University of Sussex announced 12 new Centres of Excellence at a reception in House of Commons at Westminster hosted by Caroline Lucas (MP). We are proud to be counted as part of this new cohort of flagship centres which ‘carry out innovative and world-leading research’. The application phase for Centres of Excellence provided time to reflect upon the way in which our name, Sussex Humanities Lab, works or doesn’t work for our members, networks, and associated schools and departments. 

Following consultation with core members and various heads of school, we have added ‘Digital’ to our name to emphasise our shared interest in the impacts and opportunities associated with digital transformations in culture and society.

Addressing these changes requires interdisciplinary research and we see the increasing use of digital methods and scholarship as an opportunity for the humanities to interact in new ways with other disciplines; Sussex Digital Humanities Lab creates a space to nurture those interactions at Sussex.

Sharon Webb, Co-Director SHL Digital

For simplicity’s sake – and to emphasise continuity with a successful past – the short form of our name will now be SHL Digital.

Although we are now formally a Centre of Excellence, we have retained the word ‘Lab’ in our title. This was a deliberate and essential choice, illustrating how SHL Digital is experimental, practice based and centred on collaborative work and methods. For us, a ‘Lab’ extends beyond a mere technological space. SHL represents the community of diverse individuals which occupy it.

Our name change, we hope, reflects more accurately our community and our cross-campus, multidisciplinary nature. SHL Digital will continue to investigate the interactions between computational technology, culture, society, and the environment, working towards more sustainable and just futures for all.

For more details on our current research please visit our website.

For any questions, please contact shl@sussex.ac.uk