Scientists and scholars at the University of Maryland have the power to crunch vast amounts of data at blazing speeds, thanks to this campus’s broad and growing suite of high-performance computing (HPC) opportunities. In addition to a pair of powerful on-campus supercomputing clusters—arrays of central processing units (CPUs) linked to create a single ultra-capable machine—the university in late July announced an HPC partnership with the U.S. Army Research Lab (ARL).

The collaboration means access to a succession of increasingly powerful ARL clusters for UMD researchers—a unique opportunity campus lead-ers expect will lure new researchers and more research funding. And it could establish a new model of high-performance computing collabo-ration, says Tripti Sinha, assistant vice president

and chief technology o�cer, and executive director of the UMD-based Mid-Atlantic Crossroads (MAX). MAX oper-ates a multi-state 100-Gbps cyberinfrastructure platform that connects researchers and supercomputers to high-performance networking and a suite of advanced services.

“Collaborative partnerships are key to maximizing our technological potential and ensuring our nation’s strength and competitiveness in the critical fields of science and research,” Sinha says. “UMD and MAX are very excited to work with ARL on this endeavor.”

Unmatched speed is the primary benefit to researchers of high-performance computing, says Kevin Hildebrand, HPC architect for the Division of Information Technology.

Picture some typical researchers using a desktop PC for data processing: “They go to run a computing job and it

takes 24 hours or more, but they’re OK with it because it’s how they’ve always done it,” Hildebrand says. “Then somebody tells them, ‘Hey, we can do that in 10 minutes.’ Imagine how that completely changes how they work.”

UMD researchers currently have access to four high-performance computing clusters:

Deepthought2: The university’s flagship cluster, used for the largest and most complex jobs, harnesses the power of thousands of CPUs and has been ranked among the 20 most powerful academic supercomputers. Finished in 2014, it can complete up to 300 trillion operations per second—the equivalent of 10,000 laptops working as one.

Deepthought: Although it’s now 11 years old, this second-ary cluster on campus has been upgraded and is still the best choice for some smaller supercomputer tasks.

Bluecrab: Jointly managed by UMD and Johns Hopkins University, the Bluecrab cluster is suitable for large, complex jobs. UMD is allocated 15 percent of the cluster, located at the Maryland Advanced Research Computing Center in Baltimore.

Harold: ARL’s supercomputer, which went live in 2009, is now being scrubbed of classified data as the U.S. Department of Defense prepares to open it to outside researchers through the collaboration with UMD and MAX, o�cials say.

Unsure which HPC resource is right for your research? Division of IT sta£ are ready to advise, Hildebrand says. To learn more, visit it.umd.edu/hpcc.

Research september 2016 | vol. 10, no. 4

≤ a ry l a n d@

Vice President and Chief Research Officer Patrick O’Shea has been named president of University Col-lege Cork, a leading Irish research institution of which O’Shea is an alumnus. He earned his advanced degrees in physics at Maryland, where as a professor he was named a Distinguished Scholar-Teacher and head-ed various departments and centers before leading the Division of Research to a record-breaking year for research funding in 2015.

O’Shea Named UCC PresidentNew High-Performance

Computing Resources Accelerate Research

Tripti Sinha

The Division of Research has announced a new round of 2016 winners of Tier 1 seed grants, which provide up to $50,000 to help UMD faculty and research scientists gen-erate proof of concept to pursue sponsored research, or to support scholarship leading to a major publication:

Dina Borzekowski, a research professor of behavioral and community health, will examine an educational TV program’s influence in a study entitled, “Examining ‘Akili and Me’s’ Impact on the Education and Health of Rwandan Children.”

Craig Fryer, an assistant professor of behavioral and community health, will examine why young people smoke with the study, “‘Smoke What?’: Examining the Smoking Identity of Black Youth and Young Adults.”

Lea Johnson, an assistant professor of plant science and landscape architecture, will examine small patches of urban habitat in the study, “Network and Synthesis for Urban Forest Sustainability.”

Amy Karlsson, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, will study a protein common in many cancers in the project, “Isolation and A�nity Maturation of Antibody Fragments that Bind Survivin.”

Carlos Machado, an associate professor of biology, will conduct a study entitled, “Un-covering the Genetic Basis of Parthenocarpy: How Can Plants Produce Fruits Without Pollination?”

Mayron Tsong, an associate professor of piano and director of undergraduate studies in the School of Music, will produce a record-ing of the solo piano music of composers Franz Joseph Haydn, Gyorgy Ligeti and Larry Moss.

New Tier 1 Grants Open Doors to Research

Researchers from the University of Mary-land, College Park and the University of Maryland, Baltimore are joining forces to improve the lives of Marylanders. The Joint Research and Innovation Seed Grant Program is part of the MPowering the State initiative to encourage collaboration between the universities in cutting-edge health care areas.

Development of Computational Modeling to Identify Symptom Changes in Schizophrenia and DepressionPhilip Resnik, a professor of linguistics with a joint ap-pointment in the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS), is working with Deanna Kelly of the University of Maryland School of Medi-cine to improve mental illness monitoring. This project combines Kelly’s expertise in the treatment and monitoring of severe mental illness with Resnik’s prowess in the use of linguistic analysis and computa-tional modeling of mental status, including work in depression and PTSD.

Geospatial Mapping and Access to Cancer Screening Services in Nigeria, a Low and Middle Income CountryAssociate Professor of Geo-graphical Sciences Kathleen Stewart and Clement Adebamowo of the Univer-sity of Maryland School of Medicine will study spatial accessibility and utilization of cervical cancer prevention services in north-central Nigeria. Stewart, an expert in geographic information sci-ence, and Adebamowo, an epidemiolo-gist, will investigate population char-acteristics, travel networks and spatial barriers to help broaden access.

Health in State Bolstered by UMD-UMB Seed Grants

the of

Philip Resnik

Kathleen Stewart

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SPOTLIGHT

The Division of Research publishes research@maryland several times per semester. Its goal is to better inform and connect the research community at the University of Maryland. Your comments and suggestions are welcome. Please email them to Elise Carbonaro, Director of Communications, Division of Research, at ecarbo@umd.edu.

Produced by University Publications for the Division of Research Patrick G. O’Shea, vice president and chief research officer

Executive editor: Elise CarbonaroManaging editor: Chris CarrollArt director: Jennifer Paul

research@maryland the of

Office of the Vice President for Research2133 Lee BuildingUniversity of MarylandCollege Park, MD 20742-5121 www.umresearch.umd.edu

the of

Research ≤aryland@

IN THIS ISSUE:

Accelerate Your Research With High-Performance Computing

UMD-UMB Seed Grants Target Cancer, Mental Health

Tier 1 Grants Set Research in Motion

FA C U LT Y AWARDS & HONORS

Jeffrey Herrmann, a professor of mechani-cal engineering with a joint appointment in the Institute for Systems Research, received the Institute of Industrial Engineers’ 2016 IIE/Joint Publishers Book of the Year Award for his textbook, “Engineering Decision Making and Risk Management.”

Distinguished University Professor Lawrence W. Sherman, from the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, has been appointed to a Swedish knighthood by King Carl XVI Gustaf for helping to establish and lead the internationally renowned Stockholm Prize in Criminology.

Distinguished University Professor Ellen Williams, from the Department of Physics, has been named a foreign member of the prestigious Royal Society, a fellowship of many of the world’s most eminent scientists and the oldest scientific academy in continuous existence.

Anubhav Datta, an associate professor of aerospace engineering, researches computational aeromechanics, scalable 3-D structures, high-speed tiltrotors and electric aviation.

John P. Dickerson, an assistant profes-sor of computer science, researches the application of optimization and artificial intelligence/machine learning to problems in medicine, marketing and counterterrorism.

Jan Edwards, a professor in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, researches how preschool children learn the sounds and words of language, and how this relates to language skills, literacy and school success.

Ming Hu, an assistant professor of architec-ture, researches the intersections of building systems and green technologies with an emphasis on integrated design, multiperfor-mance systems and building longevity.

N E W F A C U L T YWe introduce you to new faculty and

research scientists in the Maryland

research community.

RESEARCH ON THE HILL

Achieving Health Equity: From Disparities Research to Action

Sept. 8, noon Room B338/339 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C. RSVP: healthequitybriefing.splashthat.com

U P CO M I N G EVENTS & CO N F E R E N C E S

@ U M D R E S E A R C H

The University of Maryland Center for Health Equity (M-CHE) has entered an innovative part-nership to provide critical services ranging from medical and dental care to wellness programs and job training for underserved Prince George’s County residents.

It will happen at the Catholic Charities-Susan D. Mona Center in Temple Hills, a collaboration be-tween the university, the Archdiocese of Washing-ton and Doctors Community Hospital. The center, opening in phases over the next 18 months, will improve health and wellness while providing abundant teaching and research oppor-tunities, says Stephen Thomas, M-CHE director and professor of health services administration in the School of Public Health. “We are integrating our land-grant obligation of serving the community, the teaching mission of the university and our research enterprise,” Thomas says. Initial plans were for a dental and medical clinic, but ideas expanded: Existing restaurant facilities will be renovated as a teaching kitchen, a grassy

area will become a “healing garden” for residents to grow healthy food, and an exercise studio will facilitate physical activity and weight management, he says.

The School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation and the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources are seek-ing ways to contribute, along with the University of Maryland Extension and the Clarice Smith Center for Preforming Arts, he says. County and state agencies are exploring plans to locate social services personnel there, and Cigna Foundation is supporting the center, he says. “We’ve brought together some unusual partners,” he says. “We need more of these public-private partnerships to address the needs of our most vul-nerable citizens in Maryland and Prince George’s County, particularly.” Thomas, a leading U.S. expert on health equity, will speak as part of a UMD-organized panel Sept. 8 on Capitol Hill (event details below).

University and Partners Unite for Health Equity

Stephen Thomas

N E W S T A F F John P. Sawyer has joined the Research Development Office as Director of Strategic Corporate Research Relationships. John will work to expand our unique partnership with Lockheed Martin and grow the volume and visibility of other corporate research collaborations. He can be reached at jsawyer2@umd.edu.

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