Dr Anthony Harris

Anthony is one of our Bye–Fellows and is currently our Director of Studies in Computer Science. He is also a Visiting Academic in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Computer Science and Technology.

Biography

Before returning to academia, he spent many years in the technology industry, where he co–founded a multi-million dollar software company specialising in high–performance imaging and printer technologies. The company won four Queen’s Awards for Export, multiple industry awards, and Anthony was a personal recipient of the Prince of Wales Award for Technological Achievement. He exited from the company via a management buy–out (MBO).

After exiting, Dr Harris returned to higher education as a mature student, reading English at the University of Oxford and subsequently completing an MA by Research in Medieval Studies at the University of Reading. He was awarded his PhD by the University of Cambridge, where his doctoral research examined medieval scientific texts and the mathematics underlying the early calendar, particularly the computus (the calculation of the date of Easter). His work is distinctive in combining scientific and computational methods with traditional humanities scholarship. In addition to his Cambridge appointments, he is an Associate at Harvard University, a Research Engineer at the University of Zurich, a Fellow of Kellogg College, Oxford, and a Research Fellow and Honorary Fellow of Regent’s Park College, Oxford, where he has also served in senior governance roles.

Teaching

He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and at Emmanuel he is responsible for overseeing undergraduate Computer Science teaching and academic progress. He supervises and teaches across a range of Computer Science topics, and further contributes to the wider intellectual life of the College by offering classes in Middle English and medieval literature. He also mentors students and early–career founders through the College’s Emma Experience programme and at the Cambridge Judge Business School on the ‘Accelerate’ programme.

Research

Anthony's research lies at the intersection of computer science and the humanities. His interests include medieval scientific and calendrical texts, Old and Middle English literature, Anglo–Latin prose, and the application of artificial intelligence and computational techniques to humanities research.

Other Activities

He is an active angel investor and a member of Cambridge Angels, where he serves on the board as Treasurer. He has invested in and advised numerous early–stage technology companies and sits on several start–up boards. He is also involved in public engagement and interdisciplinary initiatives linking universities, technology, and innovation. He has appeared on USA television and has been profiled in the Sunday Times.