Foundations of Computer Science are not redundant

Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science, TU Berlin Fundamental research will always be the basis on which success stories in more applied areas inevitably rely.

Many developments in Computer Science are driven by applications and by the role that computers and ICT play in society and industry. At the same time, Computer Science is an academic research topic, which studies fundamental questions concerning computation, programming, information etc. The language of the research field is mathematical by nature. In this academic research, the new ideas are developed for future computer science applications, and the fundamental questions about more applied computer science and IC technology are studied. As in all mature fields of science, universities are the place to study these fundamental questions. For computer science this is even more so because for the advancements in the hype-areas, the research labs from the big tech companies are much better equipped and trying to compete with them by focusing primarily is a dead end street for any CS department. The plan to drop all but the most applied research in foundations of computer science is short-sighted and will cause long-term damage to the quality and reputation of the School that remains.

This is shocking and completely non-sense to me. Foundations of Comp Sci is fundamental to many application areas that flourish today.

"highly theoretical and not directly linked with applications" is one of the most stupid and false statements that one unfortunately can hear from time to time. If in Faraday's times there were grants for improving lighting in homes, most money would go (assuming the line of thinking pointed above) to candles industry, people working on electricity would get anything. Newton co-invented calculus trying to justify empirical Kepler's laws, he did not consider any 'practical' applications. Einstein's theories have also applications in other theories. Examples like these can practically go to infinity. Such statements are just a proof of low intelligence if not stupidity of University higherups. Who elected, nominated them?

There are better ways to save money. The research on reversible circuits at Leicester has international echo.

Allan Turing was a "theoretical mathematician" being instrumental in practical work during WW II. Let mathematicians feel comfortable! Regards. A. Pająk

Foundations of CS *are* redundant if a university decides NOT to do CS. And this will become known amongst prospective students who do want to do CS, sooner rather than later.

Absurd, and reflects badly on the the remaining research and educational provision, which is supposedly more applied. I work in a very applied discipline - software engineering- which cannot exist without the very foundational subjects that underpin it and which are under threat at Leicester. Not forgetting of course that "there is nothing more practical than a good theory" (Lewin)

Shaping for excellence without fundamental research capacities? What a contradiction. The managers are not worth their salaries.

Theoretical computing is abstract and wacky ok but it is also really important to research. One day one of these 'what if' research papers may bear fruit.

Professor (Emeritus) Interactive Systems Design, Sheffield Hallam University. If more people had learned some basic ideas in foundational computer science (such as the consequences of exponential growth), think how much earlier we might have had concerted action on the Covid pandemic. Shortsighted in the extreme.

Professor of Computer Science, Aston University Narrowing the focus of research as proposed is a staggeringly short-sighted idea and is likely to shred Leicester's reputation in informatics. It completely misses the point that if AI, data science and all things 'digital' are to develop in a way that will bring societal benefits, they will depend on the very sub-disciplines to be disposed of. Leicester would be better advised to bolster them instead.

This petition focuses on the CS side, and the philistine idea that foundational work is inessential and can be dispensed with. The vandalism goes even further, however. The plans include shutting down all of pure maths research at Leicester, much of which cross-fertilizes with CS foundations. (For example: the YaMCATS category theory seminars, led by Leicester and funded by LMS, bring together both maths and CS departments at different sites.) While Leicester University, in common with other universities, are working desperately to keep the ship afloat in the storms of Covid, their senior management seem to have no more imaginative thinking than how best to throw the crew overboard.

This Leicester University VC hasn't a clue what is talking about. That will be end of Informatics

How many false assumptions does it take to reach to such a terribly wrong conclusion?

Professor of Computer Science, University of Liverpool. This proposal is ill-advised and short-sighted on multiple levels.

Without foundational CS, you cannot have applied CS. Without mathematics, you cannot have foundational CS.

Speechless

AI and data science are just a trend of recent years. No one knows what come next of the trend. That is why we have to keep large science foundation on university. The decision should be reconsidered.

Dictating to researchers what they can and cannot work on is the antithesis of academic freedom