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Data and Computations: (Bandwidth + Compute Power + Algorithms + Collaboration) = Turbocharged Research
The process of research can often be laboriously slow, often taking many years to even mark small steps forward. But new technology is increasingly being applied by researchers work to greatly speed up the research process. Increased bandwidth and compute capacity, advanced algorithms, and greater collaboration are all working to accelerate research.
One example of how technology is assisting researchers is agricultural research at Clemson University.
Alex Feltus, associate professor of genetics and biochemistry at Clemson University, commented how advanced hardware and software is helping him to perform his agricultural research. Feltus uses supercomputers to identify traits of plants that include biomass production and disease resistance by analyzing genetic material .
Feltus said that “all crops are very, very complex. For instance, there are 55,000 genes in rice. We’re trying to understand the genes and their pathways and how they are combining and interacting. You can’t examine this level of complexity without using a supercomputer. Most agricultural traits in plants are controlled not just by one gene but by many. We’re trying to find the complexity ‘sweet spot,’ the balance between being too reductionist and too holistic.”
Feltus said that “of course we need bigger boxes, but we also need faster ways to put stuff into them. There is a serious data transfer bottleneck at the network-hard-drive interface. Thus, we need faster, reasonably priced storage that can keep up with the advanced networks such as the Internet2 Network.”
Feltus also commented on how technology has improved researcher collaboration too. He said that “a key aspect is the side of cyberinfrastructure that can’t be coded: personal relationships. Recently, my collaboration with network and storage researchers and engineers has opened my eyes to innovative possibilities that will impact my research via the human network.”
