Modern science increasingly relies on high performance computing (HPC) and data analytics to make discoveries about our world. In recent years, graphics processing units (GPUs), a specialty computer hardware originally developed for graphic applications with a unique, highly parallel architecture, has become a key enabling technology for both types of workloads. Through this project, Louisiana State University (LSU) expands its existing computing facilities with the addition of Deep Bayou, a GPU cluster consisting of 12 compute nodes and 26 NVIDIA GPU devices.
The initial research projects enabled by Deep Bayou include particle physics, gravitational wave source characterization with LIGO, ocean and ocean-atmosphere modeling, bioinformatics, infrastructure modeling for disaster management, material sciences, computational biology, and fundamental GPU architecture design. The Deep Bayou infrastructure and organization is also open to additional initiatives and projects through an application process. In addition to researchers across LSU campus, the project partners with the Open Science Grid (OSG) to share the GPU resources among the research community across the nation. Deep Bayou will make a significant contribution to the building of future HPC workforce, as many training and education activities plan to leverage its availability. Through existing state- and federal-sponsored programs such as Louisiana Optical Network Infrastructure (LONI), Baton Rouge: Bringing Youth Technology, Education and Success (BRBYTES) and Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU), K-12 students and undergraduates can have access to courses and workshops facilitated on the cluster, many of whom are from underrepresented minority communities.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
