Scientific Computing Research Environments for the Mathematical Sciences (SCREMS)

University Of California-San Diego, La Jolla CA

Investigators

Abstract

The Scientific Computation Group (Scicomp) in the Mathematics Department at UCSD will purchase a 16-processor MPI-based parallel computer and four Linux-based graphics workstations for visualization. The equipment will be dedicated to the support of research in the mathematical sciences. The equipment will be used for several research projects, including parallel adaptive multilevel finite element methods, parallel algorithms for optimal control with PDE constraints, parallel level set algorithm development, and applications in biochemistry and physics. Supported by this computing equipment, our research program will provide graduate students and postdocs a broad educational experience in an environment in which different aspects of scientific computation are integrated. This produces scientists who are not only expert in their own area of study, but are also able to communicate across disciplinary boundaries. As part of this proposal, SDSC (San Diego Supercomputer Center) will provide fiber-optic infrastructure to connect the 16-processor parallel computer to a similar large cluster located at SDSC. The coupled clusters will be used in large production calculations requiring substantial resources, and the individual Scicomp cluster will be used for parallel algorithm development and for smaller production calculations. The Scicomp satellite with fiber link to SDSC will complement similar computational satellites recently constructed by the biochemistry group on campus and by the UCSD Medical School.