TL;DR:
- San Diego State University leads the TIDE project to upgrade high-performance computing capabilities in collaboration with CSU campuses and SDSC.
- The project is funded by a $991,749 NSF grant to expedite AI and ML calculations.
- It includes purchasing 700 computing cores from Dell Technologies and broadening access to HPC through training.
- TIDE aims to democratize access to advanced computing skills and research experiences.
- Integration with the National Research Platform enhances research capabilities.
- Installation and setup are set to be completed by April 2024, with access granted in May 2024.
Main AI News:
In a groundbreaking initiative, San Diego State University (SDSU), in collaboration with three California State University (CSU) campuses and the San Diego Supercomputer Center at the University of California San Diego, is leading the charge on the Technology Infrastructure for Data Exploration (TIDE) project. This visionary project, generously funded by a $991,749 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure, is set to revolutionize high-performance computing (HPC) capabilities and significantly enhance accessibility to advanced computing resources for faculty and student researchers throughout the CSU system.
TIDE, with its primary focus on leveraging high-performance graphical processing computing servers, aims to expedite artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) calculations. These calculations, which previously took days to complete on less powerful machines, will now be accomplished swiftly and efficiently, paving the way for groundbreaking research and discovery. The project involves the acquisition of nearly 700 new computing cores from Dell Technologies, which will be housed at SDSU’s Campus Data Center. These resources will be made accessible to collaborators at an initial set of seven institutions, including researchers from the CSU campuses of Humboldt, San Bernardino, and Stanislaus, all integral members of the TIDE project team.
Jerry Sheehan, an adjunct faculty member at SDSU and the project’s principal investigator, emphasized the transformative nature of the TIDE project for CSU. He stated, “The TIDE project funded by NSF is transformational for the CSU because it represents the first computational shared service for science in the history of our system. Collaborating across our partner campuses, we have made a profound equity argument that spurred federal investment to enable research and discovery.”
Access to these advanced computing resources and their accelerated analytical capabilities will empower researchers to identify antibiotic-resistant tuberculosis strains, program robots to emulate human interactions, and digitally reconstruct archaeological artifacts. Installation and setup are projected to be completed by April 2024, with researchers gaining access in May 2024.
TIDE is committed to providing funding for support staff at collaborating institutions, utilizing graduate student assistants. Several of these support staff members will be cyberinfrastructure professionals (CIPs), trained through a separate NSF-funded partnership between the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC), SDSU, and CSU San Bernardino. CIPs at SDSU have already enriched the learning experiences of students in multiple classes by providing access to high-performance computing resources as part of an instructional cluster.
Mary Thomas, high-performance computing (HPC) lead for SDSC, highlighted the significance of the Cyberinfrastructure Professional (CIP) Fellows Program, supported by NSF funding. She stated, “The Cyberinfrastructure Professional (CIP) Fellows Program, supported by NSF funding (award #2230127), aims to train CI Professionals to facilitate science, engineering, and computing projects to utilize the CI resources offered by TIDE, and we look forward to accelerating the research goals of the CSU research community.”
The third pivotal aspect of TIDE is its integration of the CSU into the “bring-your-own-hardware” model of the National Research Platform Nautilus Hyper-Cluster. This federally funded initiative constitutes a vast network of distributed computers with built-in system administration, liberating personnel resources to concentrate on research endeavors. Frank Wuerthwein, director of SDSC, expressed enthusiasm for this collaborative effort, stating, “The National Research Platform was built to support awards like TIDE. SDSC is thus excited to work with SDSU, CSU San Bernardino, Stanislaus State, and Cal Poly Humboldt on expanding scientific computing and AI across the CSU system.”
Ultimately, these concerted efforts seek to democratize access to computing skills and high-impact research experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. Michael Farley, SDSU’s chief technology research officer, emphasized the broader implications of TIDE, stating, “Beyond facilitating faculty research, TIDE equips students with the technical know-how and meaningful contexts to develop their skills, preparing them for in-demand and high-paying careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.”
Dave Lincoln, vice president of Compute Systems at Dell Technologies, expressed his anticipation for the impact of the project, saying, “The addition of Dell PowerEdge R760XA and R760 servers to SDSU’s Campus Data Center will help introduce a wide array of students to the world of AI and machine learning-powered research in the fields of computational chemistry, digital archaeology, and others. The impact of this innovation at SDSU will help ensure greater access to powerful HPC infrastructure and further diversify the sciences.”
Conclusion:
The TIDE project led by San Diego State University and its partners represents a significant advancement in high-performance computing. It not only enhances research capabilities but also has the potential to shape the market by democratizing access to advanced computing skills, fostering collaboration, and preparing students for careers in emerging fields such as AI and machine learning. This initiative aligns with the growing demand for cutting-edge technology solutions in various industries, making it a strategic move for both academia and the broader market.
