Cyberinfrastructure What is it? Russ Hobby Internet2 Joint Techs, 18 July 2007

2 Cyberinfrastructure? Ask any number of people “What is Cyberinfrastructure?” and you will probably get an equal number of definitions We need a common understanding of CI in order to build and operate it.

3 Cyberinfrastructure --- some definitions The term "cyberinfrastructure" was used by a United States National Science Foundation (NSF) blue-ribbon committee in 2003 in response to the question: how can NSF, as the nation's premier agency funding basic research, remove existing barriers to the rapid evolution of high performance computing, making it truly usable by all the nation's scientists, engineers, scholars, and citizens?United States National Science Foundation 2003 The term describes the new research environments that support advanced data acquisition, data storage, data management, data integration, data mining, data visualization and other computing and information processing services over the Internet

4 Cyberinfrastructure: More Than High-End Computing and Connectivity Focused on sharing and making greater capabilities available across the science and engineering research communities Allows applications to interoperate across institutions and disciplines Ensures that data and software acquired at great expense are preserved and easily available to all Empowers enhanced collaboration over distance and across disciplines. Report of the National Science Foundation Blue-Ribbon Advisory Panel on Cyberinfrastructure

5 Cyberinfrastructure Vision at NSF NSF’S CYBERINFRASTRUCTURE VISION FOR 21ST CENTURY DISCOVERY

6 The Nature of Research Today Discipline groups working on a common project. The groups are made of researchers from multiple institutions. They use the network in support of Virtual Organizations (VOs) BUT MOST DON’T WANT TO THINK ABOUT THE NETWORK! (It should just work)

7 Who does worry about the Network? Those that provide services to the researchers The discipline IT support group Campus IT organizations Supercomputer sites Grid Organizations This is all now being lumped under the term “ Cyberinfrastructure” (CI)

8 Traditional Grid Computing Built by Supercomputer Sites or in Researcher’s Labs Support internal to discipline Campus IT generally not involved There have been problems with facilities in researcher’s labs (power, HVAC, network)

9 Moving into CI Disciplines new to CI are doing their planning, but expect others to provide it. Campus IT organizations starting to get more involved Supporting organizations are figuring out how to work together.

10 Example Researcher using CI Jane is an environmental researcher and is going to find a solution to Global Warming. To do this she needs to collect and store data, do analysis of the data and run some simulation models to test her hypothesis. She will share ideas, data and results with her Discipline Group. Here are her steps in using CI

11 Control Instruments to Gather Data Instrumentation Control Researcher Control

12 Security and Access Control Instrumentation Security Control Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Security

13 Data Transfer and Storage Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Security Data Sets Storage Security Input

14 Data Analysis Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Security Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input

15 Visualization Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input

16 Simulation and Viewing Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security 3D Imaging Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input

17 Sharing, Collaboration, Publishing and Outreach Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security 3D Imaging Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Collab Tools Publishing Human Support Help Desk Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input Schema Metadata Data Directories Ontologies Archive Education And Outreach Training

18 Jane goes after new grant Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security 3D Imaging Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Collab Tools Publishing Human Support Help Desk Policy and Funding Resource Providers Funding Agencies Campuses Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input Schema Metadata Data Directories Ontologies Archive Education And Outreach Training

19 Cyberinfrastructure Functions and Resources Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security 3D Imaging Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Collab Tools Publishing Human Support Help Desk Policy and Funding Resource Providers Funding Agencies Campuses Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input Schema Metadata Data Directories Ontologies Archive Education And Outreach Training

20 The Network is the Backplane for the Distributed CI Computer Instrumentation Security Control Data Generation Computation Analysis Simulation Program Security Management Security and Access Authentication Access Control Authorization Researcher Control Program Viewing Security 3D Imaging Display and Visualization. Display Tools Security Data Input Collab Tools Publishing Human Support Help Desk Policy and Funding Resource Providers Funding Agencies Campuses Search Data Sets Storage Security Retrieval Input Schema Metadata Data Directories Ontologies Archive Education And Outreach Network Training

21 Grid Orgs National Regional International Supercomputer Sites Computation Storage Software Development Discipline Support Campus IT Security ID Mang Network Data Center Researchers Staff Grad Students Faculty Network Providers National Regional International Security/ Access Coordinators National Regional International Cyberinfrastructure Players Collections Organizations Discipline Groups PublishersLibraries Policy/ Leadership/ Funding Federal Agencies Educational Organizations OGF Medicine Discipline Groups Biological Science. Physical Science Other Disciplines

22 CI is not just for Researchers The current focus on CI is its use by Researchers. However this is an emerging technology that will be used by all, just as the individual computer and the Internet has become a regular work tool.

23 CI Days Workshops TeraGrid, Open Science Grid, Internet2, NLR and EDUCAUSE have come together to try to help better understand the CI picture, and to better coordinate functions and roles in the creation of this infrastructure. One activity started by this group is the “CI Days” held for campuses to assist in their CI planning. This workshop brings together players from the campus, region and nation to share information and plan how to provide CI functions for the campus. The national and regional groups will also learn the campus needs to help better direct the evolution of the services.

24 More Info Russ Hobby

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