The four pillars of research software engineering
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Building software that can support the huge growth in data and computation required by modern research needs individuals with increasingly specialist skill sets that take time to develop and maintain. The Research Software Engineering movement, which started in the UK and has been built up over recent years, aims to recognise and support these individuals. Why does research software matter to professional software development practitioners outside the research community? Research software can have great impact on the wider world and recent progress means the area can now be considered as a more realistic option for a professional software development career. In this article we present a structure, along with supporting evidence of real-world activities, that defines four elements that we believe are key to providing comprehensive and sustainable support for Research Software Engineering. We also highlight ways that the wider developer community can learn from, and engage with, these activities.
Date Issued
2021-01-01
Date Acceptance
2020-02-02
Citation
IEEE Software, 2021, 38 (1), pp.97-105
ISSN
0740-7459
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Start Page
97
End Page
105
Journal / Book Title
IEEE Software
Volume
38
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© 2020 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.
Sponsor
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Identifier
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8994167
Grant Number
EP/R025460/1
Subjects
0803 Computer Software
0806 Information Systems
0906 Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Software Engineering
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2020-02-11