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by Dave Jacqué
Software “components” for solving large-scale partial differential equations, developed by a collaboration that includes Argonne computer scientists, have been named one of the top 10 science achievements in 2002 by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.
Components are independently operating programs or suites of programs linked by a framework. Components may use different computer languages, from Fortran to Java; each has a language- and platform-independent interface that allows it to communicate with other components.
“Components interact with the outside world only through well defined interfaces,” said Lois Curfman McInnes (MCS), one of the the project’s co-principal investigators. “The saying is that ‘components provide the fences that make good neighbors.’” By adhering to this flexible, interoperable architecture, components can be plugged into one another like Lego blocks to create super-applications customized to solve a particular scientific problem or set of problems.
“Our goals are for the software to be general-purpose enough to be reusable and interoperable,” McInnes said, “and to build up the infrastructure so that the whole high-performance computing community can better share components and architecture.”
The prototype partial differential equation and optimization components were developed by the Common Component Architecture (CCA) Forum, a “grassroots” collaborative effort of researchers from national labs and academic institutions.
The CCA Forum is committed to defining a standard component architecture for high-performance computing. The components were developed in collaboration with scientists conducting fusion and combustion simulation funded by the Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing program (SciDAC) of DOE’s Office of Science. They are also of interest in computational chemistry and molecular structure research.
Partial differential equations, or PDEs, are used to describe such phenonmena as wave propagation, diffusion, fluid flow and gravitational and electromagnetic fields. They are also important in fields such as aircraft simulation, computer graphics and weather prediction. The central equations of general relativity and quantum mechanics are also partial differential equations.
“PDEs pervade just about every field of science,” said McInnes, who leads the CCA SciDAC center with Rob Armstrong of Sandia National Laboratories. Members of the Argonne team who developed the components for PDEs and optimization were Boyana Norris, Satish Balay, Steve Benson, Paul Hovland, Jaron Sarich, Barry Smith (all MCS) and Lori Freitag Diachin (now with Sandia).
The complete source code and documentation for these prototype components, as well as others developed by CCA collaborators, are available online at www.cca-forum.org/cca-sc01. This research is part of joint work within three centers funded through the DOE SciDAC Initiative: the Center for Component Technology for Terascale Simulation Software, the Terascale Optimal PDE Simulations Center, and the Terascale Simulation Tools and Technologies Center.
by Gaylene Flores
Argonne-Idaho’s Dawn Davidson (FAC) has been named “2003 INEEL Woman of the Year” for her contributions at work and her leadership roles in the community.
Davidson, a procedures specialist, has received several work-related awards and is an active member of the Argonne-Idaho Women in Science and Technology Program. She is an active member of the Blackfoot Elks Lodge and recently received the Outstanding Elk Award.
In making the announcement, Maureen Finnerty, 2002 INEEL Woman of the Year, said Davidson’s “enthusiasm and compassion for her work, her peers and her community are remarkable. She manages to be a leader in her community and her workplace while facing her own personal challenges.”
In accepting the award, Davidson said she was “absolutely thrilled at that moment. I’m truly honored to be nominated along with these other outstanding women.
“Most of my successes, both professionally and personally, have not been individual accomplishments, but rather achieved with the support of my family and an outstanding network of colleagues,” she said.
Davidson received a plaque as part of the recognition and an engraved desk clock.
The INEEL Woman of the Year Award established in 1995, recognizes an outstanding woman who has made significant contributions to her workplace and community.
“Challenges for the Chemical Sciences in Development of Renewable Energy Technology” will be the topic of a Director’s Special Colloquium by Nathan S. Lewis Friday, April 11, at 3 p.m. in Argonne-East’s Building 402 Conference Center Auditorium.
Lewis is George L. Argyros Professor of Chemistry in the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the California Institute of Technology. His presentation will describe and evaluate the technical, political and economic challenges involved with widespread adoption of renewable energy technologies.
Lewis held a faculty position at Stanford University as an assistant professor from 1981-1985 and as an associate professor with tenure from 1985-1988. In 1988, he joined the faculty at Caltech and was promoted to full professor in 1991, where he is now also the principal investigator in the Materials Resource Center of the Beckman Institute at Caltech.
His research interests include the principles of operation of semiconductor-liquid junctions for use in solar energy conversion devices, imaging functional groups using scanning tunneling microscopy and construction of artificial olfactory devices termed “electronic noses.” He has received numerous honors and awards for this work and has more than 170 publications.
The Argonne intranet has a new look, a new name and new Web address. “Inside Argonne,” at www.inside.anl.gov, is designed to give employees a streamlined way to find services, resources and information they can use in their daily work at the laboratory, all accessible from a single source on their desktop computers.
“Inside Argonne” replaces the former “Argonnet” site. It has links to information of laboratory-wide interest, such as seminar listings and Argonne Club information, as well as links to Web-based information and resources provided by the Argonne-East Operations divisions, including on-line business systems such as the Chemical Management System.
The new Argonne intranet site is being developed under the leadership of Chief Operations Officer Mike Derbidge and is a collaborative effort of all of the Argonne-East Operations divisions. Inside Argonne is replacing the separate Web sites previously operated by support divisions at the Illinois site, so that employees need not know which division provides a particular service to find information about that service.
Inside Argonne is a work in progress. Continual refinements are planned, especially over the next few months. Employees are urged to send their suggestions and questions to an e-mail address provided on the Web site for user feedback.
A mini-symposium on the results of Laboratory-Directed Research and Development (LDRD) projects will be held Monday, April 7, from 2-3 p.m. in Argonne-East’s Building 402, Conference Room E1100-E1200. All employees whose schedules permit are invited to attend.
Presentations will include:
The Argonne-East libraries will celebrate National Library Week with special activities scheduled daily in each library from Monday, April 7, through Friday, April 11th. Informational posters will be on display in the cafeteria.
Employees are encouraged to stop by any Argonne library (buildings 200, 202, 203, 205, 208, 212, 223, 362, 401, or 900) for demonstrations of the many scientific and general information databases available through the Argonne Information Management (AIM) system. Each employee who visits a library will receive a free "Soar with Science" prize.
Argonne theoretical scientists will present short overviews of their work Monday, April 14, in the first of a series of talks intended to lead to greater interaction and communication among theorists at Argonne.
Presentations will begin at 1:30 p.m. in Argonne-East’s Building 362, Room F108. They are intended to be accessible to a broad audience of Argonne theorists. Each presentation will be about a half-hour long, with 15 minutes set aside for questions and discussion.
How about a career in chemistry? Ever dream about being a security guard? What kind of schooling do you need? What do you need to do get a job at Argonne?
Kids will have a chance to ask these kinds of questions and get answers and more on “Take your Child to Work Day,” Thursday, April 24.
Boys and girls, ages 8-15, will have the opportunity to gain exposure to the working world and to explore career choices as Argonne-Idaho employees conduct workshops and presentations.
Participation will be limited to the first 100 children, ages 8-15, to be registered. If the laboratory is still operating under security condition 2, the event will be cancelled. Interested employees should register as soon as possible; any security restrictions will be announced as the scheduled date nears.
For more information, or to volunteer, contact Gaylene Flores (OTD) at ext. 3-7499 or Heather Fennen (OTD) at ext. 3-7823.
Human Resources will offer the folowing classes in April at Argonne East:
Enrollment deadline is Monday, April 7. To enroll, contact a Training Management System Representative. For more information, call Betty Iwan at ext. 3410. For course descriptions, visit the HR-PD web site at www.hr.anl.gov/pd/catalog.
All classes offered by Computing and Instrumentation Solutions are held in Argonne-East’s Building 201, Room 167. Unless otherwise specified, class sizes are limited to eight participants and cost $215.
May classes include:
n Intermediate Word 2000 (ECT374) -- Thursday, May 1, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Complete computer class descriptions, schedules and enrollment forms are available online at www.ect.anl.gov/anlonly/training/index.htm. For information about enrollment, contact Diane Cavazos (ECT) at ext. 2-7153 or dkcavazos @anl.gov.
Argonne-East will celebrate the contributions of its administrative professionals Wednesday, April 23 in the Building 213 Cafeteria.
A free buffet breakfast will be served at 8 a.m. and the program will start at 8:45 a.m. All secretaries and clerical employees are invited to attend.
The Argonne Toastmasters Club will conduct a six-week Speechcraft Workshop beginning Thursday, April 10, at Argonne-East. The workshop will be held every Thursday in Building 201, Conference Room 190, from noon to 1 p.m.
Participants will learn and practice effective communication skills in a friendly, comfortable and supportive environment. The cost is $50.
For more information, contact Carolyn Arthur (HR-DPO) at ext. 2-9023.
Prudential will include beneficiary forms and return-addressed envelopes with first-quarter statements in order to update its files.
Prudential participants are asked to complete the forms and return them to the company. Through the years changes in personal status may have made the current beneficiary designation obsolete.
A representative from MetLife Auto and Home will visit Argonne-East Tuesday, April 8, to meet with individual employees and provide insurance comparisons and quotes for the “METPAY” group automobile and homeowners insurance program.
To schedule an appointment, call (630) 810-0346, ext. 143. Employees can also receive a quote over the phone by calling 1-800-438-6388.
George Cutwright from the Social Security Administration’s Joliet office will visit Argonne-East Wednesday, April 16, from 8 a.m. to noon. Cutwright will be available to:
n Enroll employees in Social Security.
To schedule a meeting, call Fran Perri (HR) at ext. 2-2989.
Global Holidays will present films and answer questions about upcoming trips to Paris, France; Ireland and Salzburg, Germany Wednesday, April 9.
The films will be shown at noon in Argonne-East’s Building 208, Room A138.
For more information call Global Holidays at (800) 842-9023 or visit the Argonne Credit Union web site at www.argonnecu.org.
The laboratory’s retirement vendors will have representatives at Argonne-East to meet individually with employees to answer questions about retirement plans and retirement plan assets. Appointments are for one-half hour each. To schedule an appointment, call the number listed.
