Computer Science PhD student James Madeley recently celebrated success after being awarded the Pulse Research Fellowship from the Internet Society.
James, who studied his bachelor's degree in Computer Science and is currently in the third year of his doctoral degree, both at Loughborough University, will be working with the Internet Society Pulse Research team to develop his project titled: LocalViz: Measuring and Visualizing Internet Traffic Locality.
Talking about the announcement, James said: "I was thrilled to find out that I was awarded the fellowship. The Internet Society does a lot of great work, so being able to take part in research working towards their 50/50 Vision is an exciting prospect."
James' project will focus on measuring how much internet traffic remains in the country it originates from. He will aim to measure how much traffic a country produces, where this traffic goes, and how the results can be clearly communicated. James explains that this is key because local traffic is cheaper, faster, and leads to improved resilience.
He added: "For example, if you are accessing government or news websites from your own country, it makes sense to go direct to the data, rather than sending the data across expensive international links to end up back in the country you started from. This is easily done in countries with lots of infrastructure but can be very challenging in countries that are less developed. Understanding the current state of traffic is a key step towards increasing locality for countries that need it most."
James said he is excited to be working on a project that aligns with Loughborough's strategic theme of creating 'vibrant and inclusive communities' and its overall strategy of 'Creating Better Futures. Together.'
James explains: "My project fits perfectly within this strategy, aiming to deliver meaningful and impactful research that can go on to provide global benefits. Understanding the current state of traffic on the Internet is crucial to shaping how it develops and, although a six-month fellowship is only a small part of the bigger picture, Loughborough is a fitting place to start such a journey."
James hopes to publish at least one academic paper during his fellowship and will provide updates through blog posts as the project progresses, as well as creating measurement tools and a visualisation platform that can be used by the Internet Society for their longer-term research goals.