MERIF: A Forum for CISE-supported Midscale Experimental Research Infrastructure projects Projects

计算机和网络系统研究界认识到在高度分散的中型实验研究结构（MERI）上进行可验证，可重复的实验研究的重要性。在过去的十年中，计算机信息科学工程理事会（CISE）支持了多个研究基础设施项目，包括全球网络调查环境（GENI）和NSF未来云项目，包括CloudLab和ChameleonCloud。MERI项目支持变革性研究的潜力随着跨多个基础设施提供互补服务的实验的设想而增长。这些实验对每个基础设施提出了新的要求，以协调开发和实施共同的协议和接口，以支持实验者的互操作性和易用性。该项目旨在创建一个社区领导的研究协调实体，称为MERI论坛（MERIF），以帮助实现这些目标。MERIF将召集CISE研究基础设施开发社区，实验者和其他关键利益相关者就MERI开发进行沟通，合作和协作。该项目开始与6个主要职责：1. 2.推动MERF项目的联合和协调，以促进和简化其使用;支持教育和外联部将地中海区域教育资源框架项目资源的多样性纳入学术课程，包括供得不到充分服务的人口使用;3.举办研讨会，重点关注未来国家计算结构的中型基础设施解决方案，使研究实验能够进入未来的网络和计算架构;4.定期召开研究界会议，以确定MERI研究用户的需求;5.与领域科学界接触，以确定并启动MERI项目与大型科学和工程项目之间的互利合作;该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The computer and networking systems research communities recognize the importance of conducting verifiable, repeatable experimental research at scale on highly decentralized Midscale Experimental Research Infrastructures (MERI). In the past decade the Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering (CISE) has supported multiple research infrastructure projects, including the Global Environment for Network Investigations (GENI), and NSF Future Cloud projects including CloudLab and ChameleonCloud. The potential of MERI projects to support transformative research grows as experiments are envisioned that span multiple infrastructures providing complementary services. These experiments place new demands on each infrastructure to coordinate development and implement common protocols and interfaces to support interoperability and ease-of-use by experimenters.This project seeks to create a community-led research coordination entity known as the MERI Forum (MERIF) to help achieve these objectives. MERIF will convene the CISE research infrastructure development community, experimenters, and other key stakeholders to communicate, cooperate and collaborate on MERI development. The project embarks with 6 primary responsibilities:1. Advancing the Federation and Harmonization of MERIF projects to enable and simplify their use;2. supporting Education and Outreach to integrate the use of the diversity of MERIF project resources in academic courses, including use by underserved populations;3. hosting workshops to focus on midscale infrastructure solutions for a future national computation fabric that enables research experimentation into future networking and computing architectures;4. convening regular research community meetings to identify the needs of MERI research users;5. reaching out to domain science communities to identity and initiate mutually beneficial collaborations between MERI projects and large-scale science and engineering projects; and6. engaging university Leadership to increase awareness and help sustain MERIF projects.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.