Sun
Microsystems, Inc., the creator of the Solaris Operating
System (OS), today announced that the newly opened London Centre of
Nanotechnology (LCN - http://www.lcn.ucl.ac.uk) and the Bio-Nano Centre (BNC),
funded by the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) and London Development
Agency (LDA), are using components of Sun Visualization System software to
harness the world-class expertise of researchers across the physical,
engineering and biomedical sciences, from University College London and
Imperial College, to help meet the needs of society and industry. In
essence, LCN and the BNC combine London's leading technology and medical
research institutions.
Sun has delivered innovative 3D visualization hardware and software
solutions as part of an overall 30 million pound investment in world class
bio- and non-bio facilities and over 200 multi-disciplinary staff. The Sun
Visualization System combines the best aspects of high performance 3D
graphics technology with new ultra high-speed networking and system
architectures. In practice, these systems are used to predictively model
the precise manipulation and control of atoms and molecules, which is
central to the science of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology can deliver a wide
variety of benefits to society, ranging from the design of minute doses of
breakthrough drugs, real-time clinical diagnostics to the exotic, such as
self assembling bio-structures.
LCN's use of leading edge modelling and visualization technologies is
enabling researchers from a wide array of scientific disciplines to work
together on collaborative projects in a way that no traditional department
or individual scientist could previously work. This combination of
resources and skills positions the LCN as a serious participant on the
global stage to tackle challenges in industries such as energy, healthcare
and information technology.
Gabriel Aeppli, Director of the LCN said, "There are tremendous needs
and opportunities for in silico biotechnology, especially as the costs of
in vivo and even in vitro development of solutions for bio medicine are
rapidly escalating. At the same time, data, design and security are even
more important as the stakes for the biomedical industry rise to meet the
challenges of nothing less than global personalized medicine. To take
advantage of these rapidly crystallizing opportunities in the UCL and
Imperial complex, Sun has collaborated with the DTI to co-develop with UCL
and Imperial the systems and software to underpin what we see as the merger
of the information and biosciences. The first steps have already been taken
in the form of the delivery of a beta version of an advanced visualization
system that has already changed our thinking about the 'plumbing' of
osteoclasts - responsible for degrading bone in the human body."
"The cutting edge research that is taking place at the London Centre of
Nanotechnology is helping to raise the profile of UK research on the
international stage. Sun's involvement in facilitating collaboration
between research institutions and industry demonstrates its commitment to
delivering projects that allow educational institutions to undertake this
ground-breaking research," said Neil Hadfield, Business Unit Manager for
Education, Sun Microsystems UK.
The Sun Scalable Visualization Software deployed at LCN represents the
first time Sun N1 software has been used, in conjunction with Chromium
Open Source Software, to manage the vast quantities of data and compute
power required to deliver interactive and graphically intensive results.
The Sun Visualization System will significantly increase the computing
power previously available to LCN, which will now be able to manipulate
larger volumes of numerical and visual data, helping the researchers to
interpret their findings more rapidly. In addition to the Sun Scalable
Visualization Software, Sun also offers Sun Shared Visualization Software,
which allows for local and remote users to interactively share centralized
3D graphics resources across a wide array of client platforms.
For LCN, powerful computer clusters, built using Sun Fire X4600
servers and Sun Ultra 40 Workstations, combine to drive multiple
displays which in turn deliver high-quality, high-resolution, stereographic
3D displays with exceptional rendering performance for 2D, 3D and textured
surfaces. The Sun N1 software automates servers and applications life-cycle
management and manages grid services across heterogeneous environments to
help ensure an even distribution of computing power across multiple users.
About The London Centre of Nanotechnology and the Bio-Nano Centre
LCN is a new UK-based multidisciplinary research centre, purpose-built
to enable work at the forefront of science and technology. The LCN brings
together two of the world's leading institutions, namely University College
London (UCL) and Imperial College London, with strong capabilities in the
underlying disciplines - engineering, physical sciences and biomedicine -
which are bridged by nanotechnology. Its aim is to provide the nanoscience
and nanotechnology needed to solve major problems in information
processing, health care, and energy and environment. The LCN, together with
Imperial's Institute for Biomedical Engineering and funding from the DTI
and LDA, are creating the Bio-Nano Centre - offering concept development,
rapid prototyping, and product validation services to translate research
concepts to prototypes, ready for manufacture. The objective is to provide
small to large companies with easy and economical access to prototyping
facilities and multidisciplinary capabilities for the early-stages of
bio-nano product development.
