HP picks academic institutions for research funding

HP has announced a slew of grants to academic institutions across the globe for research into the next wave of technology, from cloud computing to greener IT.

Thirty-four institutions received 41 awards, whittled down from over 450 proposals submitted to HP. The institutions will conduct their research in collaboration with HP Labs into subjects including "information explosion, dynamic cloud services, content transformation, intelligent infrastructure and sustainability", according to the company.

Research projects that received funding range from the relatively everyday, such as new content-management methods, to the more futuristic, such as quantum computing. According to HP, a number of projects will focus on the science of photonics, which has potential applications in optical fibre communications and could one day spell the death of copper connections in blades and semiconductors.

Among the universities awarded funding of up to $100k (£54,000) a year for three years are MIT, the Russian Academy of Sciences and Japan's National Institute of Informatics.

British universities scored a series of grants, with the University of Bath picking up two grants for work on the artistic rendering of video and systems security modelling, while the University of Bristol also gained a pair of awards to conduct research into location-based services and nanoparticle materials that could be used in display surfaces. The University of Leeds was granted funding for studies into improved printing techniques.

Scottish academics were also represented, with the University of Edinburgh being given a grant to look into the next generation of enterprise information-management tools.

As well as receiving funding, some of the graduate students involved in the projects are eligible for internships with HP Labs.

HP Labs said it expects to make a second round of funding available next year.