STEM-Trek News

By Berny Chaimite, HPC Administrator and Scientific Support at MoRENet (Mozambique Research and Education Network)

When I first heard about the opportunity to attend the annual Supercomputing Conference, SC22, as part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) High Performance Computing (HPC) Ecosystems delegation, I let my doubts take over. I never imagined that the arrangements could be made in time. It was my first time on a plane – from Mozambique to the U.S.! Crazy, right? I told myself – “you have never traveled outside Mozambique, you don’t have a passport, and your English skills are weak. No, this opportunity is not for you, maybe next year.”

After a few weeks, Bryan Johnston from the South African Centre for HPC (CHPC) informed me that I was eligible for a STEM-Trek travel award that would make it possible for me to attend the EarthSci@SC22 workshop and participate in SC22. That …

By Senzo Mpungose (University of the Witwatersrand)

The international Conference for High Performance Computing (HPC), Networking, Storage and Analysis more commonly known as the Super Computing conference held at Kay Baily Hutchison Convention Center Dallas was what some may consider a once in a lifetime experience. The conference brings together some of the top minds in the world in fields related to HPC. Minds that some may say dictate the course of science, research, development, and ultimately, determine the true capabilities of human endeavors. So why would a simple guy from the far down south corners of Africa attend such a workshop?

Well, sit back, relax, and don’t get distracted by the exhibition hall.

Rubbing elbows with two HPC icons! Senzo with Satoshi Matsuoka (RIKEN) and Torsten Hoeffler …

Happy New Year, everyone! – Elizabeth Leake (STEM-Trek Founder and Director)

While volunteer work for STEM-Trek nourishes my soul, regular employment pays my bills. This year, I started my dream job that satisfies both! I joined Boise State University in January as Director of Research Computing Services where I lead a talented team of professionals who support a fascinating research portfolio. 

I drove to Boise from Iowa City in late May to find a new home and returned in late July with a U-Haul. I also drove to Boston for PEARC22, and Dallas for SC22. Among friends and frequent travelers in my network, many suspect that they caught COVID on planes, so I’ve been driving more than usual. Enterprise loves me!

Some speak of the pre- and post-covid eras as if it’s finished with us, but I remain gun-shy. In January 2020, I went into self-imposed lock-down after returning from …

By: C1C Anna Little, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Have you ever looked around the room and noticed the scarcity of female colleagues? U.S. Air Force Academy cadets have taken note of how few women there are in our undergraduate classrooms – especially in computing. That is why the Rocky Mountain Celebration of Women in Computing (RMCWiC’22) conference was a welcome change for Tia Kolakowski, Jenna Breeden, me and Alison Thompson (above, from left) who were able to attend thanks to STEM-Trek and RMCWiC’22.  

Air Force Cadet Anna Little with her poster

This September conference in Boulder, Colorado, was modeled after the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing – only on a smaller scale – to provide networking and learning opportunities for …

Agenda:

Friday, November 11, 4-7 p.m. Dallas Convention Center Room A302/303

Welcome – Elizabeth Leake (Boise State University).

Distribute affinity gear and introductions.

Pete Beckman (Argonne) – Description of program presented on Saturday.

Isango – Elizabeth Leake. Composable, mobile and affordable compute platform.

Saturday, November 12, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. same room:

10 a.m. to 12 noon: Shawana Johnson (Global Marketing Insights, Inc.) – Satellite engagement – presentation followed by flash talks, and a panel with “Postcard” submitters – Dr. Johnson and others will advise on the topics of remote, edge-related compute and data challenges. Postcards From the Edge 5-minute lightning talks (delegates will share edge challenges).

10-11 p.m. Keynote by Dr. Mary-Jane Bopape (South African EON)

11-12 p.m. Shawana Johnson – Satellite integration specialist.

Noon to 1 p.m.: Lunch (on your own; bring it back to the room to eat)

1-2:30 p.m.: Postcard flash talks and …

By Cesar Cardenas Ruiz (Virginia Tech)

Cesar Cardenas Ruiz (Virginia Tech)

PEARC22 in Boston was the first time I have attended a high-tech conference. I’m not a computer scientist or researcher – I’m in a different engineering field. However, I realized a long time ago that it is important and necessary to learn about data science and analytics. I have a strong interest in high performance computing (HPC), and significant experience with scientific simulation. I was eager to learn all that I could. 

I attended talks where I learned about recent and novel developments in the field. Industry representatives participated in the student program speed networking event. I spoke with a representative from a national laboratory about my PhD research, and we discussed …

By Antorip Sahu (Virginia Tech)

Antorip Sahu (VT)

I was super-excited when I was selected as a student volunteer for PEARC22. Finally, I would be travelling to Boston! The cherry on top was our venue: the iconic Boston Park Plaza Hotel.

On July 10, there was a student program orientation session. We were given the necessary information for student volunteer duties and sessions that we were scheduled to attend. At the end of the orientation, we got a walking tour of the conference rooms in the hotel. I have to say that it was quite confusing to find one’s way through the labyrinthine architecture of the hotel. After this session, we …

Carlie Oakenshield (Southwest Oklahoma State University)

I’m writing this two weeks since returning from PEARC22 and I still don’t have the words to describe the event properly, but I guess it’s time to try.

I landed in the world of high-performance computing (HPC) quite by accident. At my small university, SWOSU, we don’t have a true HPC department. However, we do have one professor who is passionate about making computers, specifically clusters, run as fast as possible. After having Dr. Jeremy Evert, the professor I just described, for two computer science classes, he alluded to the need of another student worker. I was conveniently looking for work and inquired further. The only description of HPC work I would be doing, was his statement, “I need a student who wants to make big computers talk, and FAST.” After being encouraged to do anything other than take him up on his offer, …