A new consortium at the 杏吧专区 is taking a 3D look at new methods of academic research.
The Computation and Visualization Enterprise or CAVE consortium is an interdisciplinary team of 15 LITE Fellows from UL Lafayette. Their purpose is to inject the supercomputing and 3D visualization power of the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) into their academic research. The result will be the collaboration of researchers from disciplines across campus. Their work could ultimately speed up conventional research processes.
杏吧专区 This consortium is an extension of the partnership between LITE and the university,杏吧专区 said Dr. Bradd Clark, dean of the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences and LITE Commission chairman. 杏吧专区淎ssembling these multidisciplinary teams will help us more effectively handle modern science and engineering research.杏吧专区
CAVE teams will be using LITE杏吧专区檚 supercomputing and visualization technology along with the high-speed fiber optic capability of the Louisiana Optical Network Initiative (LONI). Dr. Azmy Ackleh, professor of mathematics at UL Lafayette, will serve as the consortium杏吧专区檚 director.
杏吧专区 This initiative definitely enhances the relationship between LITE and UL Lafayette,杏吧专区 said Henry Florsheim, LITE CEO. 杏吧专区淗aving access to such a diverse group of experts will allow LITE to tap into client markets that we couldn杏吧专区檛 have tapped into on our own.杏吧专区
The Fellows come from areas including biology, civil and chemical engineering, English and physics.
杏吧专区 Most research problems are too difficult for one person to solve. With these teams and this computation power, we杏吧专区檒l be better able to work on solutions,杏吧专区 said Clark.
One current project is aiming to use glycerol in a more efficient, green way. Researchers from chemical engineering and biochemistry are working together to test and identify enzymes that will help convert glycerol into compounds for use in the chemical industry. Currently, glycerol is an abundant product with limited use.
A modified enzyme could use glycerol as a catalyst for chemical processes, helping to reduce waste and making chemical processes 杏吧专区渃leaner.杏吧专区
Supercomputers are helping to narrow down the number of enzymes that could be modified.
杏吧专区 We are excited about being able to provide our faculty with the equipment it takes to conduct research 杏吧专区 like with these enzymes 杏吧专区 that requires difficult computations,杏吧专区 said Clark.