APPLICATIONS

WASHINGTON -- A briefing held in the Rayburn House Office Building reviewed the vital contributions of high performance computing, i.e., supercomputing, to U.S. national security. Congressman Martin Olav Sabo (D-Minn.) introduced a roster of speakers from the National Security Agency (NSA), the Army, the Ford Motor Company, and the Army High Performance Computing Research Center (AHPCRC). Congressman Sabo is a long-time supporter of U.S. capabilities in high performance computing and the use of advanced computing technology in the Department of Defense (DoD). He was instrumental in securing the original funding for the modernization of the DoD’s technical computing systems in 1992. "High performance computing plays a crucial role in defending our nation in peacetime, and in supporting our armed forces in times of war," Sabo said. "I commend each of the organizations represented here. In particular, the Army's investment, through the AHPCRC, in research on high performance computing applications is important to our national security and our economy. "The U.S. leadership in high performance computing is challenged today," Sabo added. "Federal support, including adequate funding for research and acquisitions, is vital to addressingthis challenge, and I will continue to work to see that we make these investments." Summarizing a recent review of a plan for an Integrated High End Computing R&D Program, George Cotter, chief of the NSA Office of Corporate Assessments, noted that high performance computing is now essential to address very complex issues of national security. Among the key applications cited by respondents were the design of stealth ships able to avoid detection by enemy weapons, stewardship of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile, future combat systems, advanced satellite imaging and signals intelligence. “The Army of the futurethe transformed Armywill be lighter, faster, more lethal and more connected,” according to the Honorable Claude M. Bolton, Jr., Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisitions, Logistics and Technology. “We must understand where the enemy is and where we are. We must develop tactics to be able to take the enemy out before they have a chance to take us out. Information technology will allow us to do this, and high performance computing will continue to play a central role at the leading edge of research and engineering.” Industrial competitiveness contributes to national security, and high performance computing is also essential in industry. “High performance computers are used to design just about every car and truck in the world today,” said Vince Scarafino, manager of Numerically Intensive Computing at Ford Motor Company. “Ford relies on supercomputers to make our vehicles safer and more reliable, more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly, and more comfortable. Losing HPC leadership to another nation would be disastrous, but few U.S companies are addressing this market today. The Government needs to aggressively support advanced research in this field.” Dr. Kofi Bota, member of the AHPCRC policy board and director of Clark Atlanta University’s Research Center for Science and Technology, talked about the AHPCRC’s important role in training the next generation of research scientists for national defense and security. “Through this collaboration involving six universities and Network Computing Services, talented young scientists receive invaluable hands-on experience doing important research using HPC systems,” he said. One recent project resulted in a computer model for the dispersion of biological contaminants through an urban area.