Noel Sharkey

Noel Sharkey is a British computer scientist. He is best known for his appearances as an ajudicator on the BBC 2 television series Robot Wars, along with Techno Games. His somewhat eccentric appearance has seen him become perhaps the best known Robot Wars judge. He co-hosts Bright Sparks, a science and engineering challenge series, for BBC Northern Ireland.

He also produces and presents a weekly radio show for community radio station Sheffield Live called The Sound of Science.

He currently holds a chair in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Sheffield.

Academic matters
In the academic world, Sharkey is best known for his contribution to machine learning and cognitive science. .

Sharkey's other contributions include the setting up of robot competitions for young people around the world (including the national Chinese creative robotics contest, and the national Egyptian schools Artificial Intelligence and robotics contest), and the development of exciting state-of-the-art robotic museum exhibitions.

He has also written and spoken widely concerning the ethical responsibilities of governments and international organisations in a world where robotics applications are dramatically increasing (both in the military and policing contexts, and in the care of children, the elderly and the sick).