Collegiate Times

The future of geo-science technology is expanding as Virginia Tech researchers have been working over the last several months with a computer cluster that simulates the Earth's surface.

Within the Virginia Tech Research Center, 96 Dell Computers make up the cluster that performs tasks at a speed eight times faster than the average computer.

"What we're doing is dividing the Earth into many small pieces," said Ying Zhou, assistant professor of geophysics. "Each computer then makes calculations of those small pieces so we can apply it to our research."

He explained that the speed in which these computers work is the most crucial part of the cluster.

"The network speed is much faster than DSL or anything like that," Zhou said. "This is the future."

But before the researchers can actually plan for the future, they have to understand the Earth's past. This is where Scott King, professor of geophysics, plays a role.

"We want to understand why the Earth has gotten to where it is through time," King said. "My job is to figure out why it developed the way it has. For example, why there is volcanic activity in some places and not in others."

King also said that by using the technology of the clusters, they have begun to answer the question of why the interior of the earth can shift on its own without anything happening at the surface.

"We might be able to predict where the Earth is headed, especially working with Zhou's research," King said. "The models work best when we have other information to work with, rather than working on it alone."

King and Zhou's research complement each other. Zhou's research concentrates on what is happening now on the Earth's surface and King's research focuses more on what has happened in the past.

Kevin Shinpaugh, director of research and cluster computing at Tech, said that the research center is looking for undergraduates with experience in hardware and software maintenance to help with the cluster research.

The cluster, which is free for Tech researchers to use, is also open for student researchers undertaking large-scale projects.

"We would have to weigh whether it is a worthwhile project," Shinpaugh said. "But if the students need this amount of computer power, we would love to have them on board."

The five-year maintenance program on the cluster makes it available for use until the summer of 2009.