In the near future, Syracuse University will have the ability to share information with universities and researchers across New York State.

SU will soon join the New York state grid computing project along with other universities including New York University and Cornell University.

Grid computing, a fairly new technology, is a way to connect many computers together so one computer can utilize the power of many others. This type of technology allows researchers to do complex computations and data study without a very powerful computer.

Instead, its computer connects to possibly hundreds of other computers and uses their resources to complete the task at hand.

‘You don’t even know whose computers you are using,’ said Ben Ware, vice president for research and dean of SU’s Graduate School.

The New York state grid project is funded by NYSERNet, a not-for-profit organization that was formed in the 1980s to provide Internet access to schools across New York, Ware said. Computers used in the grid are both owned and controlled by the network, as well as those volunteered to be used. At each location, powerful clusters of computers will be formed.

Two computer clusters already exist on campus, said Jorge Gonzlez-Outeirio, scientific IT analyst for SU’s Information Technology and Services. One is located in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and the other is located in the Physics building. A third will be installed for SU’s addition to the grid.

ITS will be in charge of maintaining this computer cluster, Gonzlez-Outeirio said, who serves as the link between the scientists and ITS members involved with the grid and who will help teach researchers how to use the grid’s resources once the cluster is built.

‘This project will serve the SU research community in many ways,’ said Paul Gandel, vice president and chief information officer of information technology at SU.

Many of the researchers who will use the grid will be members of the scientific community who need to do long calculations, Gandel said. But the grid will also be helpful to researchers in many other fields as well, such as social sciences where database studies are often conducted.

‘It opens up opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration both on campus, regionally and worldwide,’ Gandel said. ‘We’ll all share our resources. It’s basically a time-share, by putting resources together.’

A luncheon for those interested in participating or expected to be a part of the project is scheduled for Wednesday, Ware said. During this informational meeting, interested researchers will learn what it takes to become a part of the project.

In the future, students who work with professors on research projects or even on his or her own research projects will benefit from the existence of this grid.

‘I think it’s a great idea,’ said Rachel Noble, a freshman computer science major. ‘Hopefully it’ll work out OK for everyone.’

Anyone who would like to learn more about the New York state grid computing project, or just grid computing in general, is urged to visit the National Science Foundation’s Web site at www.nsf.gov, Gandel said.

‘It has the potential to provide more resources to researchers,’ Gandel said. ‘I think this has a lot of potential merit.’

Published on September 18, 2006 at 12:00 pm