Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Cost-Conscious Supercomputing

The Future

Success Breeds Success

Now that the results are in, Virginia Tech is enjoying international recognition for its work in supercomputing. Lockhart says the university is being inundated with requests for access to the system, from some very well-known organizations. Among the long list of those wishing to book time at Virginia Tech: the Department of Energy, NASA, the National Institute of Aerospace, the National Security Agency, and many others. With this type of interest, Virginia Tech’s faculty and administration are confident that the new system will more than pay for itself in the near future.

“Virginia Tech now has one of the top-ranked supercomputing facilities in the world, supporting ‘big science’ research,” confirms Glenda Scales, assistant dean of distance learning and computing in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech. “It is anticipated that the university will realize at least a five to one return on investment, in terms of annual research grant and contract activity.”

“In the past, we’d typically have gone after smaller pieces of larger programs that our systems could handle,” Lockhart says. “But now that we have an asset like our supercomputer, it’s generating lots of interest. In addition, we believe it will help us attract higher-caliber faculty members and scientists in the future.”

The Clear Choice

Varadarajan, Lockhart, Shinpaugh, Scales, and the hundreds of colleagues who helped with the supercomputer project have every right to be proud of their achievement. All plan to share their successes with other educational institutions in the near future. Dean Aref has announced that Virginia Tech will publish a “how-to” kit, which details the process from start to finish. Included in t he bundle will be the Déjà vu software, as well as all of the lessons learned from the project.

Yet for Lockhart, the key to the group’s success is simple: “I’ve always said that people will have to pry my Mac away from my cold, dead hands,” he laughs. “But it’s true — Apple clearly has the right tools for the job. And I say that as someone who has very broad experience with every platform and operating system out there.

“This project never would have been possible at this price, while getting this performance, with any other [platform],” Lockhart finishes. “So here’s my advice to anyone else who’s thinking about building a supercomputer: Know that the experience will be very taxing, both mentally and physically. But if you make your choices wisely, and engage the vendors who will support you at every step, you’ll find it to be an amazingly bonding experience. Everyone should build a supercomputer!”

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