UT Southwestern Joins HiPCAT

The High Performance Computing Across Texas (HiPCAT) consortium today announced that the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas (UT Southwestern) has accepted an invitation to become a member of the consortium. UT Southwestern ranks among the top academic medical centers in the world. Its biomedical research activities are internationally recognized. Phil Smith, Director of HiPCAT and the Texas Tech High Performance Computing Center, welcomes UT Southwestern into the HiPCAT organization, “There is considerable synergy between UT Southwestern and the HiPCAT institutions. Bio-informatics is a growing area of concern to all the HiPCAT institutions and UT Southwestern brings significant new talent and knowledge to the HiPCAT consortium. In addition, this promotes joint research and funding opportunities for the HiPCAT institutions.” HiPCAT institutions support the development and utilization of advanced computing technologies to enable Texas researchers to address the most challenging computational problems. The consortium was recently awarded $2.5 million from the governor to construct the Texas Internet Grid for Research and Education (TIGRE) which will enable Texas higher education institutions to access and share resources, collaborate on research, and facilitate online teaching and remote learning. With the participation of UT Southwestern, HiPCAT extends its biomedical and biotechnology research and education initiatives. Other consortium members include: Baylor College of Medicine, Rice University, Texas A&M University, Texas Tech University, the University of Houston, the University of Texas at Arlington, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Texas at El Paso. “At UT Southwestern we know the future of basic science research is inextricably tied to high performance and GRID computing. Joining the HIPCAT consortium gives our scientists access to knowledge and expertise located at high performance computing facilities across Texas,” said Kirk Kirksey, Vice President for Information Resources. “In the coming years we are confident this collaboration will contribute to discoveries, not only in the biological sciences, but in many fields. As these discoveries emerge, the work of Texas scientists will continue to touch people across the globe.” Background: High Performance Computing Across Texas (HiPCAT) is a consortium of Texas institutions that use advanced computational technologies to enhance research, development, and educational activities. These advanced computational technologies include traditional high performance computing (HPC) systems and clusters, in addition to complementary advanced computing technologies including massive data storage systems and scientific visualization resources. Part of The University of Texas System, UT Southwestern is governed by the UT Board of Regents. Its faculty members – who are responsible for a broad array of groundbreaking biomedical research advances – are respected for their dedication to teaching and training. UT Southwestern’s physicians provide patients with the highest quality of care throughout the medical center’s outpatient clinics and affiliated hospitals. For more information, please visit www.utsouthwestern.edu