CC*IIE Campus Design: Network Infrastructure for Improved Science Discovery and Education

Earlham College, Richmond IN

Investigators

Abstract

This project, "CC*IIE Campus Design: Network Infrastructure for Improved Science Discovery and Education", provides a robust, responsive cyber-infrastructure which enables Earlham College science faculty and undergraduate students to engage more effectively and successfully in scientific discovery and education. Earlham is upgrading the cyber-infrastructure backbone connections of its entire Science Complex from 1Gbps to 10Gbps, adding a dedicated network for science research traffic, and correspondingly upgrading its Internet connection to I-Light, the regional optical network provider for higher education institutions in Indiana, providing high-speed access to Internet2. These cyber-infrastructure improvements remove the limitations that have stifled the effective use of data and also significantly improve the transfer of large datasets and the computational research being conducted by STEM faculty using both on-campus and off-campus resources. Research initially benefiting from this project includes collection of microbial DNA from local farm fields and soils covered by glaciers in Iceland, and computational topology calculations to identify potential anti-cancer drugs and classify protein structures. Earlham College has a long tradition of undergraduate participation in research, both collaboratively with faculty and independently, and all science departments engage students in hands-on research within specific courses in their curricula. This project expands Earlham's ability to advance undergraduate science education specifically in the more effective use of computational resources both on and off campus. It exposes a greater number of undergraduate students to scientific research and discovery through hands-on research projects with faculty and through access to scientific resources and applications available through the research and education networks.