Springer Simula Research Laboratory: by Thinking Constantly about it

Review From the reviews:“This book describes the philosophy behind Simula Research Laboratory, how we have tried to implement it, and the results that have come out of it. … Most of the book is intended for anyone interested in research, whereas some of the articles are written for experts interested in Simula’s research subjects.” (Zentralblatt MATH, Vol. 1181, 2010) Product Description When researchers gather around lunch tables, at conferences, or in bars, there are some topics that are more or less compulsory. The discussions are about the ho- less management of the university or the lab where they are working, the lack of funding for important research, politicians’ inability to grasp the potential of a p- ticularly promising ?eld, and the endless series of committees that seem to produce very little progress. It is common to meet excellent researchers claiming that they have almost no time to do research because writing applications, lecturing, and - tending to committee work seem to take most of their time. Very few ever come into a position to do something about it. With Simula we have this chance. We were handed a considerable annual grant and more or less left to ourselves to do whatever we thought would produce the best possible results. We wanted to create a place where researchers could have the time and conditions necessary to re?ect over dif?cult problems, uninterrupted by mundane dif?culties; where doctoral students could be properly supervised and learn the craft of research in a well-organized and professional manner; and where entrepreneurs could ?nd professional support in developing their research-based - plications and innovations. From the Back Cover The Simula Research Laboratory, located just outside Oslo in Norway, is rightly famed as a highly successful research facility, despite being, at only eight years old, a very young institution. This fascinating book tells the history of Simula, detailing the culture and values that have been the guiding principles of the laboratory throughout its existence.Dedicated to tackling scientific challenges of genuine social importance, the laboratory undertakes important research with long-term implications in networks, computing and software engineering, which includes offering a Centre of Excellence in biomedical computing. The text covers every angle: the laboratory's background and political context, the work it has completed, its approach to the education and development of its researchers, and the organisation's efforts to promote the application of its research results. The key research projects and results are covered in separate chapters, each of which is preceded by a thumbnail description of the project and how the research is useful for society. As well as explanatory text, the other chapters feature interviews with major players in the facility's history, both inside Simula, among its collaborators, and in Norwegian society at large. About the Author Aslak Tveito is managing director of the Simula group, and has worked at Simula Research Laboratory since the company was established in 2001. Tveito is professor in scientific computing at the Department of Informatics, University of Oslo. Prior to his appointment as managing director, Tveito served as research director for the scientific computing department at Simula. In addition to his work with the University of Oslo, Tveito has served as chief scientist at SINTEF Applied Mathematics.Are Magnus Bruaset combines the position as Assistant Director of the Simula School of Research and Innovation AS with the leadership of Simula's industrial collaboration in computational geosciences. Bruaset is professor in scientific computing at the Department of Informatics, University of Oslo. Before he joined Simula, Bruaset served as senior research scientist at SINTEF Applied Mathematics, and as entrepreneur and vice president of R&D in the research-based company Numerical Objec