Last week was busy and extremely exciting for the SPRING group at the School of Engineering and Materials Science (SEMS).

On Wednesday we hosted Prof Francesco Flammini, jointly affiliated with the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (Switzerland), and with the University of Florence (Italy), who delivered a talk on “A Vision of Intelligent Train Control”. With a one hour Q&A after the talk, the group was interested in lots of the challenges and topics covered, and we are looking forward to future joint projects. Thanks Francesco for your visit!

Thursday was a really emotional moment, as (now) DR Boda Li, Researcher in the SPRING group, and who has been under Prof Donzella’s supervision since 2018, as a MSc and then PhD student, defended his thesis, and passes the VIVA with minor corrections! Well done Boda, we are all so proud of you.

Last but not least, on Friday, SPRING group hosted a joint group meeting with the group of Prof Eising at Queen Mary. With 22 talks over six hours, dense technical discussions, and having Prof Philip Koopman attending some of the talks in the afternoon, it was an incredibly stimulating event, that will promote more joint works and cross-group collaboration. Thanks Ciaran and all the researchers for their superb presentations!

It was fantastic for us to catch up with Phil, and hear his opinions and suggestions on our research area. Thanks Phil for visiting us, and I cannot wait to invite you to the UK to give us a proper talk!

Life in academia is never boring, but for sure this week has been one of the highlights for the SPRING group!