1. communications@nectar.org.au | nectar.org.au NECTAR TRAINING Module 2 Virtual Laboratories and eResearch Tools

2. The NeCTAR project has funded the development of customised cloud services, software and portals for particular research disciplines or workflows. This module provides an overview of the “ready-to-go” tools, eResearch Tools and Virtual Laboratories.

3. Virtual Laboratories and eResearch Tools Virtual Laboratories provide online platforms for research activities in several research discipline areas. eResearch Tools provide online software tools for common research tasks.

4. Virtual Laboratories Virtual Labs aim at connecting researchers with existing and new research facilities, data repositories and computational tools. They help to create new opportunities for collaboration, efficiencies and innovation. Virtual labs are discipline-specific research environments.

5. Virtual Laboratories A Virtual Laboratory can be seen as a portal to several software tools, data, storage and documentation in an integrated and interactive online environment. Main aim is enabling researchers across the world to collaborate and share information. In short: A Virtual Lab is an on-line platform offering a collection of discipline-specific tools and data.

6. Virtual Laboratories A Virtual Lab may consist of any or several of: Tools for processing and analysis Storage Models (e.g. ocean circulation, waves) Networks of observing stations / sensors Access to data sets / data collections Support teams Tutorials … and more.

7. Virtual Laboratories: Examples The Climate and Weather Science Virtual Laboratory for studying and forecasting weather patterns. The Human Communication Science Virtual Laboratory for cross-disciplinary interaction and information sharing between researchers from speech science, computer science, behavioural science and other disciplines.

8. Virtual Laboratories: Examples The Genomics Virtual Lab is developing an online system for processing genomics workflows in the Cloud. The MARine Virtual Laboratory (MARVL) can provide all the tools necessary to construct a virtual environment of a region of interest in marine environments.

9. Virtual Laboratories: Examples The Geophysics Virtual Lab has developed a portal, a workflow system and computational tools to access geological survey data. It provides Geophysicists with access to an integrated environment that exploits Cloud computing and HPC technology to run automated workflows. The Characterisation Virtual Lab has developed many tools, including a remote desktop for processing data from microscopes or the Australian Synchrotron on a powerful supercomputer.

10. Virtual Laboratories: Examples The Humanities Virtual Lab is integrating many important cultural data sets for researchers in the humanities. The Biodiversity and Climate Change Virtual Lab provides integrated tools, data collections and access portals for modelling the potential responses of Australia’s biodiversity to climate change. … and many more! Check out the NeCTAR website for a complete list of Virtual Labs.

11. eResearch Tools NeCTAR eResearch Tools provide research software for the Australian research community. There is a strong focus on enhancing existing tools and applications to be more collaborative, accessible and to support research workflows. The majority of the tools are web-based; some offer software or data to download from the NeCTAR cloud.

12. eResearch Tools: Examples Drishti and Voluminous are scientific visualization and analysis tools. Drishti is a component of the NeCTAR Characterization Virtual Laboratory and Voluminous is a web-based application. OzTrack: easy to use, sophisticated analysis and visualization features to researchers, including ecologists, biologists, resource and wildlife managers. This is a free-to-use web-based application for analyzing and visualizing animal location data.

13. eResearch Tools: Examples Cloud-based image analysis (CloudImaging): This web-based toolbox offers image analysis functionality that can be connected together in workflows (allowing creation of even more complex algorithms that can be re-run on different data sets). The Human Variome Project is a national data sharing facility for improving clinical genetic testing services and supporting medical research. Quadrant: A web-based tool for managing research projects and data collection, particularly for participant-based research. This tool enables researchers to work collaboratively and efficiently from a self-managed centralized site.

14. eResearch Tools: Examples MyTardis offers a Image analysis and processing toolbox, particularly for medical imaging. The tool provides a repository for characterisation and bioscience data. Federated Archaeological Information Management System: This eResearch tool includes The Ark project which provides tools to support medical studies and clinical trials. The SHaRED project (submission, harmonisation and retrieval of ecological data) is a tool that provides an online questionnaire to help structure metadata when uploading data files.

15. eResearch Tools: Examples The High-throughput Computing For Globally Connected Science eResearch Tools will provide tools and underlying infrastructure for high throughput projects across disciplines—initially only for processing high- energy physics data from the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). … and more. Check out the NeCTAR eResearch Tools website for more information.

16. Virtual Labs vs eResearch Tools Virtual Laboratories on-line platforms offering a collection of discipline- specific tools and data. create new platforms for collaboration and information sharing. eResearch Tools offer a variety of research software for the Australian research community, often addressing researchers across disciplines. focus on enhancing existing tools and applications.

17. Closing note You now know what Virtual Labs and eResearch tools are, maybe you have found a tool that is “ready to use” for you. The next Modules will cover the probably most sought- after NeCTAR service: Cloud computing in the Research Cloud.