BIG DATA

The state of Arkansas is making history as Governor Mike Beebe signs into law the bill that creates the Arkansas Cyberinfrastructure Task Force on Tuesday, April 7.

The Arkansas Cyberinfrastructure Task Force Act, sponsored by Rep. Jon Woods, raises the importance and visibility of cyberinfrastructure in the state of Arkansas.  Cyberinfrastructure means shared high performance computing, data storage systems, data repositories, advanced instruments, data center facilities, visualization environments, and people, all linked together by software and an advanced statewide optical network to improve and enable breakthroughs not otherwise possible.

In signing this bill into law, Governor Beebe and the state of Arkansas recognize that the implementation and sustainment of the 2008 Cyberinfrastructure Strategic Plan and associated policy development for cyberinfrastructure is crucial to the future of Arkansas and its citizens.    The Arkansas General Assembly is positioning itself to consider both near term and strategic goals in its deliberations. The state will benefit from an improved understanding of cyberinfrastructure and the recommendation of cyberinfrastructure policies to leverage technology investments in order to energize the economic development of the state, and to evolve cyberinfrastructure for the benefit of education, research, and job creation.

Arkansas has already made significant strides in the creation of shared cyberinfrastructure.  The University of Arkansas and all of the state’s four-year public universities will soon be connected to the Arkansas Research and Education Optical Network, ARE-ON, a high-speed fiber-optic-based Internet communications network. ARE-ON will expand research, academic, health care and emergency preparedness capabilities throughout the state by providing the universities access to national and international high-speed Internet networks such as the National LambdaRail and Internet 2.  The Arkansas High Performance Computing Center was established by funding from Governor Mike Beebe through the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority (ASTA) in 2008 to serve as a core resource for the development of competitive research throughout the state of Arkansas and for economic development benefit.  The combined power of the Arkansas High Performance Computing Center and ARE-ON will take the state of Arkansas to the next level in the global economy.

The ARE-ON Web site is http://www.areon.net/

The Arkansas High Performance Computing Center Web site is http://hpc.uark.edu/

The 2008 Arkansas Cyberinfrastructure Strategic Plan is available on the Web site of the Arkansas Research and Education Optical Network at http://areon.net/resources/CyberinfrastructureStrategicPlan20081024.pdf

The text of HB2011 is available at http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2009/R/Bills/HB2011.pdf

You can read more about cyberinfrastructure and research activities in Arkansas that utilize cyberinfrastructure at http://areon.net/resources/UAMS.pptx