Science Gateways in the US. Nancy Wilkins-Diehr

Transcription

1 Science Gateways in the US Nancy Wilkins-Diehr

2 NSF vision for cyberinfrastructure in the 21st century Software is critical to today s scientific advances Science is all about connections Instruments, sensor networks, HPC facilities, campus laboratories, visualization facilities, data stores Connections are often made through software A critical, but often overlooked component

3 NSF CI Advisory Committee commissions 6 task forces Software task force recommends to NSF: 1. Multi-level, long term support (individual, team, institute) 2. Responsibility for verification, validation, reproducibility 3. Consistent policy on open source 4. Collaborations across divisions, agencies and industry 5. Use of ACCI to obtain community input on priorities

4 Software vision implementation Software Infrastructure for Sustained Innovation (SI2) program Scientific Software Elements (SSE) Small groups create software that advances one or more area Scientific Software Integration (SSI) Larger interdisciplinary teams, software frameworks Scientific Software Innovation Institutes (S2I2)

5 Software Institutes: Long term hubs of excellence Serve a research community of substantial size and disciplinary breadth Expertise, processes, architectures, resources and implementation mechanisms to transform research practices and productivity Support, outreach, workforce development, proactive approach to diversity Pathways to community involvement

6 How does this intersect with my own work? TeraGrid s Science Gateways program starts in 2004 Recognition that as the web was increasing in utility for science, supercomputers must support this type of access Very successful Today more users access US NSF supercomputers through gateways than they do via the commandline This allowed us to observe many different gateways And identify challenges and opportunities

7 Subsequent NSF study identifies limitations to short-lived gateways Characteristics of short funding cycles Build exciting prototypes with input from scientists Work with early adopters to extend capabilities Tools are publicized, more scientists interested Funding ends Scientists who invested their time to use new tools are disillusioned Less likely to try something new again Start again on new short-term project Need to break this cycle and fund for long-term success

8 Gateways becoming increasingly prominent in NSF awards Not always called gateways, also portals, e-research, etc.

9 Some NSF calls even specify the use of gateways This is the right direction to go! Gateways as cost-effective infrastructure

10 Over 1300 publications reference science gateways But even more reference specific gateways, 1500 pubs for CIPRES alone

11 Recently announced NSF call for software institutes A Science Gateway Software Institute!

12 Are you building websites that serve your science discipline? Do you wish you could connect with and learn from others who are doing the same thing? We are building an institute to serve you and others like you with resources, services, experts, and ideas for creating and sustaining science gateways. Sign up to join the conversation: science gateway /sī əns gāt wā / n. 1. an online community space for science and engineering research and education. 2. a Web-based resource for accessing data, software, computing services, and equipment specific to the needs of a science or engineering discipline.

13 Proposing a maker-space for gateway developers Millions of dollars are spent on gateways, but developers face several challenges: They often work in isolation even though development can be quite similar across domain areas. They bridge cyberinfrastructure locally, campus-wide, nationally, and sometimes internationally. They need foundational building blocks so they can focus on higher-level, grand-challenge functionality. They struggle to secure sustainable funding because gateways span the worlds of research and infrastructure. Through Summer 2014, we will be engaging interested members of the science and engineering community in a planning process for a Science Gateway Institute (SGW-I). The goal of the institute would be to provide coordinating activities across the National Science Foundation, offering several services and resources to support the gateway development community: An incubator service offering consultation and documentation about business planning and software development. An extended support team to build gateways and share their expertise. A forum to connect members of the development community. A modular, layered framework that supports community contributions and allows developers to choose components. Workforce development to help train the next generation for careers in this cross-disciplinary area. Sharing expertise about technologies and strategies would allow developers to concentrate on the novel, challenging, and cutting-edge development needed by their specific user communities. First, we want to hear from you. If you would like to participate in this planning process or stay informed about our progress, please contact us.

14 Incubator Service Assist with the entire lifecycle of a gateway: Business plan development and review Development environment, consulting, documentation and software recommendations Software repositories Software engineering facilities Software assessment services like Open Source Software Advisory Service, Apache assessment service, Software Sustainability Institute (UK) Hosting service Offering gateways expertise in the following areas: Usability assessment Licensing Sustainability Project management Security

15 Gateway-building Support Institute staff assigned to a project for months, up to a year Assist with gateway development or implementation of advanced features Workflows, fault tolerance, sensor feeds, HPC simulations Teach research teams what it takes to build, enhance, operate, and maintain gateways after support ends Peer-reviewed request process open to all

16 Gateway Forum Gathering place for scientific web developers across NSF directorates, agencies, and international boundaries Social forums, white papers, blogs, testimonials and user stories Annual conference Broad and engaging symposium series Gateway training program Synchronous and asynchronous, video tutorials Best practices, case studies Showcase of successful projects Environment that enables continuous community feedback

17 Gateway Framework Modular, layered approach End-to-end solutions for out-of-the-box hosted gateways Docker Use-what-you-need approach for customized gateways or APIs Software to extend SSE and SSI projects to gateways Directory of gateways for those looking for existing gateways

18

19 Workforce Development Terrific opportunities for students and IT professionals Development of pods of gateway expertise to serve an entire campus effectively Training others to build gateways Web development is a natural interest area for students Very visual, see results of programming instantly Builds cross-disciplinary communication skills Talk to scientists, construct a gateway that meets their needs Utilize existing programming opportunities such as Google Summer of Code Opportunities to proactively address diversity

20 Gateway workshop series US series since 2005 International Workshop on Science Gateways since 2009 Australasian event October 19, 2015! We look forward to working together

21 Questions?