SCIENCE

Boise State University has been named one of seven new CUDA Research Centers across the globe by NVIDIA, a world leader in visual and high-performance computing using graphics processing units ( GPUs ). This designation recognizes Boise State for its groundbreaking work in parallel computing, or the linking of multiple GPU-based computing systems into one that is much faster, more powerful and cost-effective.

GPU computing has been used primarily for rendering graphics in personal computers and video game consoles to dramatically accelerate the processing of a wide range of computationally intensive data. Boise State was an early adopter of GPU computing in both research and teaching, and the CUDA Research Center designation aligns the university with top technical institutions that are utilizing GPU computing to solve some of the world’s most challenging computational problems.

“From world-changing scientific discoveries to commercial products that impact our everyday lives, the potential of this area of technology cannot be overstated,” said Boise State Vice President for Research Mark Rudin. “To be recognized as a leader in pushing the boundaries of that potential demonstrates the commitment Boise State has made to drive the innovation that is shaping the future.”

CUDA, NVIDIA’s parallel computing architecture, opens up the massive parallel processing power of GPUs in a broad range of applications beyond graphics. Benefits for CUDA Research Center organizations include access to events with key researchers and academics, a designated NVIDIA technical liaison and specialized training sessions. In addition to Boise State, the new centers recently announced include CASPUR ( Italy ), the University of Bonn’s Fraunhofer SCAI ( Germany ), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology ( Germany ), North Carolina State University, Technische Universität München ( Germany ) and the University of New Mexico.

Proposals for acceptance into the CUDA Research Center Program were evaluated based on the quality of current GPU-enabled research, the vision presented for furthering the application and technology of GPU computing, and the opportunity for broad impact. Boise State’s winning proposal is attributed to principal investigator and assistant professor Inanc Senocak in the Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering, and co-principal investigators professor Jodi Mead and assistant professor Grady Wright in the Department of Mathematics, assistant professor Hans-Peter Marshall in the Department of Geosciences, and associate professor Tim Andersen in the Department of Computer Science.

“GPU computing with CUDA has tremendously advanced Boise State research projects in numerical simulations of mantle convection, wind energy forecasting, remote sensing of snow depths for water resources, threat reduction in chemical and biological defense, and DNA sequencing for forensics,” Senocak said. “Our vision is to develop and apply advanced numerical methods and computational algorithms to applications in science and engineering and broaden GPU computing research in modeling and simulation within the state of Idaho.”