Manchester, is a city of notable firsts; Manchester Liverpool Road railway station was the world's first inter-city passenger railway station. The city has also excelled in scientific advancement, as it was at the University of Manchester in 1917 that scientist Ernest Rutherford first split the atom, in 1948 Frederic C. Williams, Tom Kilburn, and Geoff Tootill developed and built the world's first stored-program computer, and in 2004 Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov successfully isolated and characterised the first graphene. The conference will take place in the Kilburn Building at the Department of Computer Science in the University of Manchester.

The Department of Computer Science at the University of Manchester is one of the oldest in the UK and has made a major contribution to the development of computing. This includes many firsts including the first stored program computer, the first floating point machine, the first transistor computer and the first computer to use virtual memory. Department of Computer Science is a vibrant place to study and a premier institution for research. The department employs a 60-strong tenured faculty and has more than 800 enrolled students. Read more about the Department's history here.

Travel Tips

Trains from Manchester Airport (follow the signs to "The Station") depart about every 15 minutes and cost £3-5.50, depending on the time of the day and train company. The closest stations are Manchester Piccadilly (the biggest train station, about 25 minutes walk from Piccadilly to the venue) and Manchester Oxford Road (15 minutes walk from Oxford Rd station to the venue). Taxis cost about £25 and take 25 minutes. Uber along with several private hire companies are available in Manchester. There are cheap buses going from Manchester Airport (follow the signs to "The Station") directly to the venue (go off at Oxford Road D), but the trip takes about an hour.