UO scientists help create new brain research grid
The computer network will'
improve access to patient
data and diagnosis
By Lisa Catto
News Reporter
Professors at the University who
specialize in neuroscience and com
puter science may be able to help vic
tims of brain disorders get diagnosed
earlier with the help of a new comput
er grid.
A group of University professors,
along with Electrical Geodesics Inc.
and IBM, are creating a computer grid
to speed and improve the diagnosis of
several disorders, such as epilepsy,
stroke and depression. The grid is
called the Integrated Cognitive Neuro
science, Informatics and Computation
grid, also known as the ICONIC grid.
EGI Chief Executive Officer Don
Tucker and a University psychology
professor said researchers at the Univer
sity Neuroinformatics Center received
a $1 million grant from the National
Science Foundation to build the grid,
and IBM donated the grid's computers.
He said this project will bring to
gether research of the brain with the
technology of computer science.
"Grid computing technology from
IBM will play an important role in
helping EGI provide doctors and re
searchers with on-demand access to
critical patient data," Tucker said. "We
believe grid computing not only
brings performance capacity, but al
lows the patient security and account
ability required for critical medical ap
plications."
Tucker added that the grid is a new
way of doing large-scale computing
because a single computer does not
have the capability to do such imaging
projects.
Computer and information science
Professor Allen Malony said the grid
will use the University network and
will connect different computers using
a large file system.
"With the multiple architectures pro
vided by IBM's products, we can con
duct research on ways of optimizing
the medical informatics demands for
high-performance computing," Mal
ony said. "At the same time, we can
evaluate all of these architectures run
ning the Linux operating system, sim
plifying our system administration and
improving our reliability."
Malony also said the computers are
specifically used for addressing com
putational processing problems that
arise in cognitive neuroscience re
search.
Tucker and Malony said the idea
for the ICONIC grid stemmed from
theoretical discussions about the
importance of computational meth
ods for understanding the brain and
the difficult computational prob
lems that arise while gathering
brainwave data.
Malony said they need to inte
grate different tools and technolo
gies to solve the "difficult computa
tional problems." He added that it is
very important to put the data into a
form that neuroscientists can under
stand, which is what the ICONIC
brain grid does.
But Malony said he hopes the work
NEWS BRIEF
Holocaust Memorial Week
commemorates the lost
The Jewish Student Union and the
Harold Schnitzer Family Program in
the Judaic Studies Department are
hosting events to commemorate
Holocaust Memorial Week this
week.
Sunday marked Holocaust
Memorial Day, called Yom HaShoah
in Hebrew. The day marks the an
niversary of the Warsaw Ghetto up
rising. JSU sponsored a 24-hour
name-reading of victims of the
Holocaust in the EMU Amphithe
ater for the observance of Yom
HaShoah.
The event started with a ceremony
at 7 p.m. Sunday and will continue
until this evening. The ceremony in
cluded a lighting of six candles, each
to commemorate 1 million victims
of die Holocaust.
JSU co-director and sophomore
general science major Ava Asher gave
a brief speech and ASUO President
Maddy Melton served as an honorary
candle-lighter.
Asher said remembering the Holo
caust can teach everyone important
lessons, even in a modem context.
"The lesson the Holocaust can
teach all of us is how to treat people
and how to respect other cultures,"
she said.
JSU director and senior physics
major Daniel Gruber said there is a
symbolic importance to the reading
of names.
"For many people there is no one
left to remember them because their
entire family were wiped out and
everyone they knew," he said. "This
is to make sure that they have some
one to remember them."
Gruber encourages students to ex
perience the name reading for them
selves.
"It is psychologically very power
ful," he said. "It's not something that
can be explained with words, so ex
perience is the best way to under
stand."
Also for Holocaust Memorial
Week, William Brustein, a professor
of sociology from the University of
Pittsburgh, will give a lecture enti
tled "The Roots of Contemporary
Anti-Semitism," at noon on Tuesday
in the EMU Walnut Room.
— Moriah Balingit
of the ICONIC brain grid will become
a part of the problem-solving process,
not just a tool.
"1 hope we continue to evolve as the
ICONIC grid is being developed,"
Malony said.
Malony said the ICONIC grid is still
in the installation process, but he
hopes it will be mnning by the end of
spring term.
Tucker said the grid is made of three
computer clusters on campus of up to
16 computers each: one in the Lewis
Center for Neuroimaging one in De
schutes Hall and one in the Riverfront
Research Park where EGI and the Neu
roinformatics Center are located.
He added that the grid allows rapid
sharing of database information be
tween the clusters and the organiza
tion of information is more efficient
and protected through the grid.
"Every computer has to play well to
gether, * Tlicker said.
The University isn't the only institu
tion experimenting with computer
grids. According to http://www.grid
computingplanet.com , IBM is work
ing with the University of Texas at
Austin to build the largest university
grid computing project in the nation.
The article states that the purpose of
this grid is to connect computing re
sources across the campus, including
personal computers and high-end su
percomputers. Those connected to the
grid will be able to access massive
computer power for simulations, data
sharing and data-intensive calcula
tions in scientific areas.
Contact the crime/health/
safety reporter
at lisacatto@dailyemerald.com.
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