The lecture was entitled It's the End of the World as We Know It: A View of the Future of Computing, and focused on the changes that have happened in the world of processor hardware in recent years (particularly, the move to "multicore" chips), why this has happened, what the implications are, and what future developments in software will be needed to take full advantage of the changing hardware platforms. It was a lot of fun preparing the talk, as it brought together a lot of threads from my teaching and research. Finding the right level at which to pitch the talk was difficult, as the audience ranged from people who might occasionally play Solitaire through to colleagues who have many years of experience in distributed and parallel programming. The feedback from members of the audience suggest that I found the right level reasonably well.
One of the highlights of the whole process was being able to share the evening with family and friends. I was particularly blessed that my good friend Theo was able to come down from Pretoria for the occasion (unfortunately, Brenda and Caleb were not able to come with him). Traditionally, an inaugural lecture is used to acknowledge the support, encouragement and help of the people who have been involved in the new professor's life and the process of becoming a professor. It was wonderful to have a public platform on which to acknowledge the many friends, family members, colleagues, teachers, mentors and role models who have contributed so much to my life.
The lecture was held in the early evening, and involved a certain amount of ceremony, with a procession of academic staff in full academic dress and an introductory speech by the Vice Chancellor before I was allowed to take the floor. Afterwards there was a chance to mingle with the members of the audience over some drinks and snacks, before going on to a formal dinner hosted by the Vice Chancellor and his wife, to which I had been able to invite a few particularly close friends and colleagues, and my parents.
Getting up at 3:15am the next day to take Theo down to the airport was a bit less fun, but at least it was a public holiday, and I was able to relax and come back down to earth slowly!
