DISCUS is the Data Intensive Science Centre at the University of Sussex, a research unit built to address real social and economic challenges.

Who we are?

The DISCUS team comprises of research faculty, postdoctoral research fellows, postgraduate research students and masters students from Mathematics, Informatics, Physics & Astronomy, and Engineering. Research interests cover computer science, artificial intelligence, mathematical modelling and management of large data sets of particle physics and astronomy data, and many more areas.

Their ability to translate and analyse data research questions through computational algorithms and techniques, along with their diversity, gives the centre a strong foundation to solve data-driven problems from a wide range of disciplines.

What we do?

We apply data interpretation techniques developed by the cross-disciplinary team. DISCUS supports the UK’s public and private sector organisations to help them make better use of large and complex data sets, resulting in deeper insights and competitive advantages.

Who is DISCUS for?

DISCUS offers creative problem solving for any organisation with a data intensive challenge, or who are keen to unlock the hidden value of their data.

Our increasingly connected and quantified world brings with it new problems, which require new solutions. Data is objective, and allows us to get to the heart of the matter, reassessing these challenges in an entirely new context. By reframing any given challenge as a data problem, we can deliver fresh and actionable insights.

If your organisation feels like it’s drowning in data, and you lack the people, tools and techniques with which to interpret and make use of it, we can help. We apply emerging, cutting-edge approaches to interrogate your data, helping you to discover new opportunities and applications. We offer tailored services for clients, including innovation consultancy. If you would like to find out more details, please contact ai@sussex.ac.uk.

What is data intensive science?

Data intensive science refers to the development of highly efficient algorithms to analyse big data effectively.

Big data poses a challenge to researchers, as the data sets are too large to be analysed with the standard computational tools. However, they are commonplace in physics research - the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, for instance, produces a petabyte of data every second.

With the rising demand in data intensive science, DISCUS has developed the necessary knowledge to deal with these colossal data sets.