SCI: Cyberinfrastructure in Support of Research: A New Imperative

越来越复杂的科学和工程问题需要网络基础设施（CI），它充分集成了工具、服务、系统和支持，以达到科学发现的下一个水平，从计算生物忠实度和多尺度虚拟肺到管理环境危害（如严重风暴和地震）的全方位环境、社会和经济问题。NCSA在科学应用和高端数据和计算资源方面的独特专业知识为响应CI的新要求奠定了基础：安全、集成地提供高端资源，并为大规模计算和面向数据的研究提供高端服务，这些服务可以扩展到SDSC和ETF等其他国家设施。通过改变研究人员和社区用于获得有意义的科学见解的过程和工具，这种集成环境将使广泛的新科学和工程发现成为可能。为了达到这个目标，这个强大的新环境中的集成必须由科学和工程需求驱动。NCSA将通过一个结构化的社区参与过程和社区伙伴关系来实现这一目标，这将导致一个稳定而强大的CI，包括原型、部署、支持和文档。这种方法将为构建国家CI提供显著的规模经济效益，因为它将实现公共服务的清晰定义和有效共享，从而将这些功能扩展到新的社区。NCSA的高端计算和数据资源通过集成CI紧密耦合，将满足从数百到数千中等规模的模拟到需要数周专用计算资源的单英雄模拟的资源需求。它将无缝地提供广泛的数据同化、存储和管理、分析、挖掘和可视化服务，以发现新的科学成果。NCSA环境和对应用的支持将通过NCSA/SDSC网络基础设施合作伙伴关系提供的系统和专业知识得到增强。每个中心的专门知识将以安全的方式向国家社区提供所需的中间设备、数据和可视化服务。这将包括对代码移植和优化的传统支持。为了为这一伙伴关系提供额外的战略投入，将成立一个联合国际网络基础设施技术观察小组和一个联合用户咨询委员会。与ETF的广泛合作将进一步加强国家网络基础设施。NCSA正在为国家社区提供一个深入而广泛的CI，这将使科学和工程学科的新发现和见解成为可能。社区参与过程将确保这种平衡的、基于服务的高端环境能够满足个人用户和社区的需求。与SDSC、ETF和其他合作伙伴的合作将扩大和加强网络基础设施。科学家和工程师将有广泛的培训和教育机会，通过先进的电子学习技术了解最新的CI发展。NCSA将从现有社区扩展到新的社区，这些社区将推动CI的发展，以支持科学发现。然后将向其他社区提供相关的CI服务，并在此过程中形成一个扩大的国家CI基础。将通过与包括少数民族服务机构联合会在内的众多专业组织建立伙伴关系，加快积极参与妇女、少数民族和残疾人的工作。国家科学中心的工作人员和合作伙伴将通过网络、国家会议和讲习班、博物馆和天文馆展览以及公共广播公司的节目积极传播信息，突出科学发现对社会健康、安全和经济竞争力的直接好处。

Increasingly complex scientific and engineering problems demand cyberinfrastructure (CI) that fully integrates the tools, services, systems and support to reach the next level of scientific discoveries in areas ranging from computing a biologically faithful and multiscale virtual lung to managing the full range of environmental, social and economic issues from environmental hazards, such as severe storms and earthquakes. NCSA's unique expertise with science applications and high end data and computational resources forms the foundation for responding to the new imperative for CI: the secure, integrated provision of high-end resources coupled by high-end services for large-scale computational and data oriented research that can extend to other national facilities such as SDSC, and ETF. This integrated environment will enable a broad range of new scientific and engineering discoveries by transforming the processes and tools researchers and communities use to achieve meaningful scientific insight. To meet this goal, integration within this powerful new environment must be driven by scientific and engineering requirements. NCSA will accomplish this with a structured community engagement process and community partnerships that will lead to a stable and robust CI that includes prototyping, deployment, support, and documentation. This approach will provide significant economies of scale in building a national CI because it will enable clear definition and effective sharing of common services allowing extension of these capabilities to new communities. The high-end computing and data resources at NCSA, tightly coupled through an integrated CI, will address resource demands that range from hundreds to thousands of simulations of moderate size to single hero simulations requiring weeks of dedicated computational resources. It will seamlessly provide the extensive data assimilation, storage and management, analysis, mining, and visualization services required to discover new scientific results. The NCSA environment and support for applications will be augmented with the systems and expertise that will be available through the NCSA/SDSC CyberInfrastructure Partnership. Expertise at each center will be directed at providing needed middleware, data and visualization services to the national community in a secure fashion. This will include traditional support for porting and optimization of codes. To provide additional strategic input into the partnership, a joint international Cyberinfrastucture Technology Watch Group and a Joint User Advisory Committee will be created. Extensive collaborations with ETF will further strengthen the national cyberinfrastructure. NCSA is providing a deep and broad CI for the national community that will enable new discoveries and insights across a wide spectrum of science and engineering disciplines. The community engagement process will ensure that this balanced, services-based high end environment will meet individual user and community needs. Collaboration with SDSC, the ETF, and other partners will augment and enhance the cyberinfrastructure. Scientists and engineers will have extensive training and educational opportunities to learn about the latest CI developments through advanced e-learning technologies. NCSA will extend its engagement from existing to new communities that will drive the development of the CI in support of scientific discovery. Relevant CI services will then be made available to other communities, and in the process, an expanded national CI base formed. Pro-active efforts to engage women, minorities and people with disabilities will be accelerated through partnerships with numerous professional organizations including the Minority Serving Institutions Consortium. NCSA staff and partners will actively disseminate information through the web, national conferences and workshops, museum and planetarium exhibits, and PBS shows highlighting the direct benefits of scientific discovery to the health, safety, and economic competitiveness of society.