Clemson University is using a next-generation high-performance computing cluster from Dell to enable a wide range of academic research, including an analysis of how families relocating across the country have an impact on schools and children’s development. It is just one example of the research being done with the new system known as the Palmetto Cluster. Housed at Clemson’s Information Technology Center, the cluster is being developed by Clemson Computing and Information Technology (CCIT) in collaboration with Dell technicians and researchers across the university as an innovative example of a shared computing infrastructure. The first phase of development, completed in December 2007, provided approximately 15 teraflops of computing power and moved Clemson into the top 100 computing sites in the world. A second phase was implemented last week, adding another 16 teraflops to the cluster, which when fully developed could operate at up to 100 teraflops. “This phased implementation is a cost-effective and prudent development of the cluster, allowing our investments to track with user needs,” said Jim Bottum, Clemson’s vice provost and chief information officer. The Palmetto Cluster is made possible through a partnership between faculty and information technology administrators, with the faculty "owners" providing a significant percentage of the funding for the computer nodes while the university provides the rest of the nodes plus the infrastructure to build the cluster (racks, switches, power, etc.). According to Clemson’s chief technology officer, Jim Pepin, the system currently benchmarks at just over 31 TF and the efficiency using Myrinet 10 Gbps hardware is 81 percent. “We are obviously pleased with those results,” commented Pepin. “The combination of Dell processing power and the Myrinet interconnect provides us with a low-cost, easy-to-install and implement solution.” Innovative and cost-effective solutions is one of the reasons that Clemson is on a steady climb in the competitive U.S.News and World Report rankings for top schools (from 38th in 2001 to 27th in 2008). Bottum noted that, “To reach our goal of being a top 20 public university, we must increase our research infrastructure base and capacity; and the Palmetto Cluster positions Clemson to vastly expand its computational research capabilities.” The research enabled by the Palmetto Cluster already runs the gamut from cross-layer protocol design of wireless communication networks to simulations in molecular dynamics to the aforementioned developmental studies with children. The Palmetto Cluster is opening new doors at Clemson. Paul Wilson, professor of economics at Clemson and one of the current users, said, “The new cluster allows me to undertake data- and computationally-intensive projects that would have been otherwise impossible.” Partnerships, both internal and external, are fueling the new world-class cyberinfrastructure being developed at Clemson. Those partnerships are providing the innovative ideas, creative funding and technical expertise needed to fulfill Clemson’s three-fold mission of education, research and service. “Clemson University’s phased implementation demonstrates the benefit of choosing standards-based high performance computing clusters that can scale and grow with customers’ needs,” said John Mullen, Dell vice president of higher education. “High-performance computing is enabling universities like Clemson to simplify their internal IT infrastructures, freeing up resources to expand their research and teaching capabilities.” Mullen will be visiting Clemson on Tuesday, May 13, to talk with cluster users about their research needs and vision for the future.