Benjamin Johnston

My specialty is delivering original solutions to difficult problems, in a fraction of the time and cost of alternatives. Some previous projects include:

• An entirely novel OH&S Management and Reporting System for a large Australian transport company.
• A configurable financial analysis and reporting model and query language for a large property manager.
• A high-performance web-based data warehouse and OLAP system for a government department.
• Automatic file-translation systems for energy and telecommunications organizations.
• A set of tools for the analysis of large databases of genetic data.
• Interactive web sites and designs for diverse organizations.

I've found clever solutions for as little as 2% of the cost of 'big-system' alternatives.

In my PhD dissertation, Practical Artificial Commonsense, I created a new approach to giving software and robots the same kind of everyday commonsense that people possess. I call this project Comirit.

I am currently applying this research to robotics. I am designing robots that are intelligent, that think for themselves, that have commonsense and that can cope in any environment.

While I draw on concepts from computer science and logic, the focus of my work is very pragmatic.

• Read some of my publications and research activities.
• Download Practical Artificial Commonsense as a 7.4MB PDF.
• Learn more about Comirit and commonsense computing.
• In the News: See our Nao robots dance.
• Help create AI: teach computers about the world.

I studied Information Technology at the University of Queensland. I worked for several years in industry as a software developer and consultant and then at a biotech venture as a biostatistician and IT manager. I moved to Sydney to do my PhD in Artificial Intelligence. Since my PhD I have been working as a researcher for University of Sydney and the University of Technology, Sydney.

Aside from my research and consulting work, I also work on a number of small personal projects, develop technology for non-profits and participate in programming user groups.

The Prolog programming language and Prolog Server Pages is an ongoing project. I am currently redeveloping the system from scratch and will post more details here later.

My personal interests include Chinese language, Dance and Swimming; I am particularly thrilled when I can combine these interests with technology.