CDA-9703228 Prithviraj Banerjee Northwestern University A Distributed High-Performance Computing Infrastructure This award is for the acquisition of 20 high-end UNIX workstations, 50 low-end UNIX workstations, three UNIX fileservers, an 8-processor distributed shared memory multiprocessor, and a 64-ported ATM switching hub. The machines would be networked together using high-speed OC-3 ATM networks with bandwidths of 155 Mbps. As the use of high-speed networking moves from the laboratory to the workplace, new opportunities arise for the design and implementation of a high-speed distributed computing environment. The goals of this project are: (1) to explore the use of high-speed networking and computing to investigate file systems and data management issues for high-performance distributed computing, (2) to investigate the parallel programming support of networks of high-speed workstations and personal computers as an alternative to stand-alone parallel computers, (3) to study high-performance computer-aided design of electronic systems in a heterogeneous environment, and to develop a Web-based CAD computing center, that takes advantage of high-speed networking, (4) to explore new instructional techniques that take advantage of the high bandwidth and high speed.
