I/UCRC: Collaborative Research: An Interactive Situational Awareness Simulation - A View from the Clouds

University Of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore MD

Investigators

Abstract

Center for Hybrid Multicore Productivity Research (#1031999, #1032040, and #1032077) This proposal seeks funding for the Center for Hybrid Multicore Productivity Research located at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC as the lead institution) with research partners at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and Georgia Tech (GT). Funding Requests for Fundamental Research are authorized by an NSF approved solicitation, NSF 10-507. The solicitation invites I/UCRCs to submit proposals for support of industry-defined fundamental research. The proposal prototypes a new virtual environment, where based on new methods heterogeneous computing resources are integrated in the virtual world to mimic dynamic situations. The new data and dynamic situations are continuously evolving based on the availability of information from various sources, and thus updating the virtual world representation, which can be about disaster situation or large event of societal and environmental importance. The proposal combines methods to use cloud services, virtual world servers, compute accelerators and client systems ranging from multi-core desktops to mobile phones to build the virtual world test bed. The PIs are very well qualified to conduct the proposed research. The proposed activities have sufficient access to the necessary resources. This project will allow for synthesis of best current practices in divergent areas of multicore computing, data assimilation models and knowledge representation while exposing areas requiring new approaches to better utilize emerging computing paradigms to solve urgent broad social needs. The work will be readily applicable to develop future event response situations, including natural or manmade disasters, e.g. recent Haiti earthquake. All three universities have active programs for female, international and African-American students and cooperative programs with local schools to encourage and mentor high school and undergraduates from underrepresented groups to go on to university and graduate school in science or engineering, including computer science. Results will be disseminated by reports and meetings. The developed software will be made available under the same public license as Google Android.