tacc’s scientific computing curriculum texas advanced computing center

TACC’sScientific Computing Curriculum

Texas Advanced Computing Center

The Outcome

Advanced Computing Knowledge and Skills

Number of

People

Novice Expert

10%

User

100%

50%

The Courses

Introduction to Scientific and Technical Computing

Parallel Computing for Scientists & Engineers

Visualization & Data Analysisfor Scientists & Engineers

Distributed & Grid Computingfor Scientists and Engineers

Instructors2005 - 2008

Bill BarthResearch Associate

High Performance Computing

Jay BoisseauDirector

Victor EijkhoutHigh Performance Computing

Kent MilfeldResearch Associate

High Performance Computing

Karl SchulzAssistant Director

High Performance Computing

Ed WalkerManager/Research Associate

Distributed & Grid Computing

Kelly GaitherAssociate Director/Research

& DevelopmentVisualization & Data Analysis

Guest Instructors2005 - 2008

Chona GuiangResearch Associate

High Performance Computing

Victor EijkhoutHigh Performance Computing

Jim BrownDepartment of

Computer Sciences

Warren SmithManager

Distributed & Grid Computing

Eric RobertsSoftware DeveloperDistributed & Grid

Computing

Kelly GaitherAssociate Director/Research

& DevelopmentVisualization & Data Analysis

Margaret MurryResearch AssociateDistributed & Grid

Computing

Robert van de Geijn

Department of Computer Sciences

Why are these courses important?

Need

Classes that prepare students to use advanced computing resources as they are used in computational, applications-driven research and development are relatively rare in university curricula.

Undergraduate Computational Science and Engineering

SIAM Working Group on CSE Undergraduate Education, Sep 2006.

Why are these courses important?

Career

Academic and industry careers depend on a solid and practical foundation for using cyberinfrastructure in research and development.

Why are these courses important?

Discovery

Current grid computing technologies and the development of integrated cyberinfrastructure open new possibilities for discovery.

Energy: #1 Global Challenge

Nobelity: The Big Picture

Movie trailer http://www.nobelitythemovie.com/wm_trailer.html

Materials

Syllabus

Course description

Instruction materials

Assignments, tests,and rubrics

ReferencesDr. Kent Milfeld teaching the Parallel Computing course.

Theoretical Outcome

Novice ExpertUser

Advanced Computing Knowledge and Skills

Students per Department or Program

0 3 6 9 12 15 18

Natural Sciences

Engineering

Institute for ComputationalEngineering and Sciences

Jackson School ofGeosciences

Liberal Arts

Co

lleg

e o

r A

ca

de

mic

Un

it

Number of Students

Economics

Science,Technology & Society

Electrical& ComputerEngineering

Aeromechanics Research

Chemical Engineeri

ng

Center for

SpaceResearch Advanced

Manufacturing Center

PhysicsComputerSciences

Fusion Studies

Mathematics

Empirical Outcome

Lessons Learned

90-minute class sessionsMaximize contact time and minimize instructors’

preparation time.

Students crave guided problem solvingLeverage contact time to guide students through

computational problem solving.

http://www.opencps.org/Doc/big_picture_of_OpenCPS/

Lessons Learned

Courseware is handy, and can be better utilized

Students seldom used the interactive features of BlackBoard.

Most effective for class announcements, assignments, and archiving materials & resources.

Do a pre-course student surveyDon’t assume – cheat and look: what Unix, mathematics, and HPC knowledge & skills do your students have on the

first class day?

Lessons Learned

PowerPoint slides are not the course contentUse it, but don’t abuse it.

Code examples (C and Fortran) plus diagrams and logic flowcharts.

Images of HPC hardware + flow of data or instructions.

Nested, interrelated realms of distributed & grid computing.

Lessons Learned

PowerPoint slides are not the course contentUse it, but don’t abuse it.

Code examples (C and Fortran) plus diagrams and logic flowcharts.

Images of HPC hardware + flow of data or instructions.

Nested, interrelated realms of distributed & grid computing.

Acknowledgements

Thank you, EPIC!

Acknowledgements

TeraGrid EOT Working Group

Ongoing and prior work to produce HPC courses

• SUNY Computational Science Engineering• Ohio Supercomputing Center• EPIC Virtual Institutes: Computational

Science Curriculum• …many others.