Spotlight On: Dr Dave Murray Rust

What is your role and what does it involve?
I’m Co-I on the B-IoT project, looking at how blockchains can help support active travel and connected transport. It’s involving a wide mix of IoT electronics, blockchain programming and social science work to understand how people relate to possible transport futures.

How long have you been with PETRAS and what was your previous role?
I’ve been with PETRAS for about a year now, as part of my role as a Lecturer in Design Informatics.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of your to-do list?
Top of my to-do list is writing code to connect LoRa devices to actions in Ethereum smart contracts, to build a mobility demonstrator around electric scooters.

What about the IoT attracted you to working in this area?
The mixture of people and technology – the collisions of human values and electronic possibilities, and the relations that go out into the surrounding world.

What is your favourite album, film and novel?
Changes every week, but I’ve been listening to a lot of Tigran Hamasyan, Andy Stott, Simeon ten Holt, and the new Floex album. For novel either The City and The City (China Mieville) or Accellerando (Charles Stross).

Who would be your dream dinner guests?
Anyone who’s up for some tasty food and happy conversation.

What advice would you give your younger self?
Figure out what it is that you really want to do, and do that.

What would it surprise people to know about you?
I took a week off this summer to teach Contact Improvisation – a form that comes out of contemporary dance and somatic movement practices.