Originally trained as a sociologist, I am a scientist, academic and public engagement researcher who studies how new technologies shape us and how we in turn shape our technologies – in the space that is often known as Human Computer Interaction or HCI. I have written 13 books (some award-winning), and published over 160 scientific articles on topics covering a wide range of technology, from mobile phones, to search engines, to artificial intelligence and the Cloud. I have led research groups at Xerox and Microsoft, and was the director and founder of The Digital World Research Centre at the University of Surrey. I have founded and jointly led start-up companies with clients as diverse as Vodafone, Hewlett Packard and StoraEnso.
I invent as well as do research, and have filed 26 patents on a variety of new concepts including, for example, mobile communication apps, wearable security systems and family life appliances. I regularly speak to the public, and to the research and business communities on all aspects of the Digital Society. I am a Fellow of the IET and of the Royal Society of Arts. In 2014, the ACM elected me a Fellow of its Academy in honour of leadership in the field of Human-Computer Interaction. I am currently a visiting Professor at the University of Swansea. http://www.rhrharper.com/
