New observation site to provide data on marine environments, climate change

CHAPEL HILL, NC, February 6, 2008–A platform to be built this spring three miles offshore in the Pamlico Sound will give researchers across North Carolina a site to conduct scientific experiments and collect environmental data that will be critical to understanding the behavior of this huge body of water, its role in North Carolina’s marine ecosystem and its response to climate change. Read more

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NC counties could win weather stations through RENCI Weather Web project

CHAPEL HILL, NC, January 24, 2008 – Counties in North Carolina that lack weather stations–and therefore lack detailed weather data–will have the chance to acquire a research and operational grade weather station through a new RENCI project aimed at enhancing weather-related K-12 education and at improving the quantity and quality of weather data in underserved areas of the state. Read more

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RENCI joins CineGrid digital media community

CHAPEL HILL, NC, January 23, 2008–A new RENCI partnership will give North Carolina the opportunity to contribute digital films, scientific visualizations, and filmed performances to a worldwide network of high-resolution digital media content. Read more

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Google’s Michael Jones next speaker in RENCI lecture series

CHAPEL HILL, NC, January 18, 2008 – The Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI) is presenting another lecture in its “Distinguished Lecture Series.” Michael Jones, chief technology advocate of Google, will speak on Feb. 21 at the FedEx Global Education Center on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Jones’ lecture, Informing the Global Information Society, will take place at 7 p.m., and will be followed by a short question and answer session and refreshments. The event is co-sponsored by UNC’s FedEx Global Education Center. Read more

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Ocracoke doubles its power

CHAPEL HILL, NC–RENCI’S IBM Blue Gene®/L computing system will double its size and power in February with the addition of another 1,024 compute nodes. The upgraded system, named Ocracoke after the oldest active lighthouse in North Carolina, will consist of 2,048 compute nodes and will have a peak performance of 11.4 teraflops, meaning it will be capable of more than 11 trillion calculations per second.   Read more

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RENCI hosts open house for new UNC engagement center

CHAPEL HILL, NC, January 14, 2008 – The Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI) will host an open house for its new engagement center at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill on Thursday, Feb. 7, featuring state-of-the-art visualization technology and collaboration tools. Read more

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Grid School offers support for using OSG, TeraGrid

Applications are now being accepted for the 2008 Tuskegee Grid School (TUGS ’08) to be held Feb. 6 – 8 at Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL.

Undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, educators and professionals in any scientific discipline are eligible to attend. Applicants should have at least intermediate programming skills (one to two semesters in C/C++, Java, Perl or Python) and hands-on experience with UNIX/Linux in a networked environment. Applicants should have a compelling project to which they can apply grid techniques after completing the course. Read more

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RENCI part of Asheville partnership to target climate-related businesses

Community leaders in Asheville aim to build on the area’s history in climate analysis and digital arts to build Western North Carolina into a center for climate-related services. RENCI’s engagement center in Asheville is expected to play a key role in that effort.

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RENCI at ECU gives kids lesson in geography

Students and teachers from Belvoir Elementary School in Greenville became some of the first people to learn about weather and geography using RENCI at East Carolina University’s new state-of- the-art high resolution visualization wall. More than 40 students and their teachers attended a program on Oct. 30 that was put together by Theodore “Teddy” Allen, a geography graduate student and RENCI at ECU research assistant, and Sue Chapman, administrative support specialist for the University Honors, ECU Scholars, and Undergraduate Research Programs. Read more

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RENCI 'Topobathy' dataset aids in storm surge prediction and management

Researchers at the Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI) have compiled new data on ocean floor and coastal typography that will help state and local emergency managers and scientists who model, predict, plan for, and respond to floods and storms along the North Carolina coast. Read more

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