September 22, 2006

SHARED HIERARCHICAL ACADEMIC RESEARCH COMPUTING NETWORK (SHARCNET)

The McGuinty government is investing $10.9 million in the Shared Hierarchical Academic Research Computing Network (SHARCNET), based out of the University of Western Ontario. 

SHARCNET is a consortium of universities and colleges operating a network of high-performance computer clusters across Ontario. 

Linked by fibre optics, the high-performance computing (HPC) — or supercomputing — network gives researchers access to extremely powerful computers.  The network allows them to accelerate their research in a cost-effective virtual environment, and in many cases, to carry out scientific research that could not otherwise be tackled.

SHARCNET partner institutions house the computer clusters and run the network, which provides high-performance computing resources to researchers across Canada.

SHARCNET partners include the University of Western Ontario (lead institute), University of Guelph, McMaster University, Wilfrid Laurier University, University of Windsor, University of Waterloo, Brock University, York University, Laurentian University, Trent University, Lakehead University, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Fanshawe College, Sheridan College, and most recently the Ontario College of Art & Design and Perimeter Institute.

Together they aim to:

• Accelerate the production of research results to meet the needs of researchers and industry partners in today's competitive fast-paced business environments
• Attract and retain the best students, researchers and companies by providing a cutting-edge research tool
• Link academic researchers and corporate partners in a search for new business opportunities.

Since May 2004, the network's usage has more than doubled to 1,200 users.

SHARCNET facilitates research by some of Canada's pre-eminent academics in a variety of fields:

• Terry Peters at the Robarts Research Institute is using HPC capabilities to improve image-guided surgery and to minimize invasive animal and human testing.  His lab is creating a new, technology-based surgical environment.
• University of Waterloo professor Edward Sudicky is using computer models to describe fluid flow and the migration of contaminants in ground water.
• David Swayne, a professor at the University of Guelph, is using the network to create models that gauge temperature variations in lakes to determine how this impacts the environment.
• Western's Lindi Wahl uses SHARCNET to perform simulations of HIV and immune system dynamics that will have applications in the development of new drug therapies to both treat and prevent drug resistance for devastating diseases like HIV.

Ontario Research Fund (ORF)

The investment comes from the $550-million Ontario Research Fund, which provides operating, overhead and capital funding to support leading edge R&D in Ontario's universities and hospitals, and leverages support from the federal government and private industry.

Through the Ontario Research Fund, the McGuinty government is making sure Ontario researchers have the resources to lead our province into a new era of innovation.

For more information on the Ontario Research Fund, go to www.ontario.ca/innovation.