VISUALIZATION

Sandy Baruah, the U.S. Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for the Economic Development Administration, visited the LSU Center for Computation & Technology, or CCT, on June 6 to discuss ways academia and business both could benefit from high-performance computing resources. Baruah noted his trip to LSU was his first visit to a campus high-performance computing center, and said he had been interested in learning more about how centers such as CCT work because economic development opportunities can emerge from partnerships between industry and universities. “My motto and my theme for the Economic Development Administration is ‘What’s next?’ always looking ahead, and I think high-performance computing is definitely one of those ‘What’s next?’ initiatives,” Baruah said. Harold Silverman, LSU interim executive vice chancellor and provost and Brooks Keel, LSU vice chancellor for research and economic development, attended the meeting on behalf of the University. CCT Director Ed Seidel and Louisiana Optical Network Initiative Executive Director Charlie McMahon also attended the meeting to tell Baruah about Louisiana’s advances in cyberinfrastructure. McMahon described the Louisiana Optical Network Initiative, or LONI, which is a high-speed, fiber optic network that connects supercomputers at the state’s major research institutions, giving Louisiana one of the most advanced computing and networking environments in the world. Seidel also gave a presentation on how advances in computing have not only aided research, but also presented practical solutions for businesses. “We all come together at the application level,” Seidel said, noting the advanced computing resources scientists use for observing black hole collisions are those that have been used by businesses to model collisions that help the automotive industry develop better cars, model potato chip movement on a conveyor belt to help Pringles design a better packaging process and simulating fluid flow in a diaper to help Pampers create a better product. Keel gave Baruah a presentation on how the CCT and LSU work to bridge the gap between academic institutions and businesses, noting traditionally it has been hard to get both groups to work together. McMahon also said business and industry do not always realize how they could benefit from working with campus resources. “If you build it, they won’t come; we need to go out and get them,” McMahon said, saying since CCT has the cyberinfrastructure businesses can use, the next step is making those in the business community aware those resources are here in Louisiana and can be used to help them. Baruah said he saw great future benefits from campus computing centers partnering with businesses, and urged CCT to pursue these efforts. “Centers such as CCT are definitely the future of economic development, as they can use the research taking place to cultivate business in their regions,” Baruah said. “We are excited about looking for opportunities to get businesses interested in learning more about how computing resources can help them.”