London, UK – 25 September 2007:
University College London and Imperial College
London Use Sun Visualization System Software to
Further Nanotechnology Research
SANTA CLARA, Calif. Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: SUNW), the
creator of the Solaris Operating System (OS), recently announced that the
London Centre of Nanotechnology (LCN - www.lcn.ucl.ac.uk) and the Bio
Nano Centre (BNC), funded by the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI)
and London Development Agency (LDA), are using components of Sun
Visualization System software to harness the world-class expertise of
researchers across the physical, engineering and biomedical sciences,
from University College London and Imperial College, to help meet the
needs of society and industry. In essence, LCN and the BNC combine
London's leading technology and medical research institutions.
Sun has delivered innovative 3D visualization hardware and software solutions
as part of an overall 30 million pound investment in world class bio- and non-bio
facilities and over 200 multi-disciplinary staff. The Sun Visualization System
combines the best aspects of high performance 3D graphics technology with new
ultra high speed networking and system architectures. In practice, these systems
are used to predictively model the precise manipulation and control of atoms and
molecules, which is central to the science of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology
can deliver a wide variety of benefits to society, ranging from the design of
minute doses of breakthrough drugs, real-time clinical diagnostics to the exotic,
such as self assembling bio-structures.
LCN's use of leading edge modelling and visualization technologies is enabling
researchers from a wide array of scientific disciplines to work together on
collaborative projects in a way that no traditional department or individual
scientist could previously work. This combination of resources and skills positions
the LCN as a serious participant on the global stage to tackle challenges in
industries such as energy, healthcare and information technology.
Gabriel Aeppli, Director of the LCN said, "There are tremendous needs and
opportunities for in silico biotechnology, especially as the costs of in vivo and
even in vitro development of solutions for bio medicine are rapidly escalating. At
the same time, data, design and security are even more important as the stakesfor the biomedical industry rise to meet the challenges of nothing less than global
personalized medicine. To take advantage of these rapidly crystallizing
opportunities in the UCL and Imperial complex, Sun has collaborated with the
DTI to co-develop with UCL and Imperial the systems and software to underpin
what we see as the merger of the information and biosciences. The first steps
have already been taken in the form of the delivery of a beta version of an
advanced visualization system that has already changed our thinking about the
'plumbing' of osteoclasts — responsible for degrading bone in the human body."
"The cutting edge research that is taking place at the London Centre of
Nanotechnology is helping to raise the profile of UK research on the international
stage. Sun's involvement in facilitating collaboration between research
institutions and industry demonstrates its commitment to delivering projects that
allow educational institutions to undertake this ground-breaking research," said
Neil Hadfield, Business Unit Manager for Education, Sun Microsystems UK.
The Sun Scalable Visualization Software deployed at LCN represents the first
time Sun N1 software has been used, in conjunction with Chromium Open
Source Software, to manage the vast quantities of data and compute power
required to deliver interactive and graphically intensive results.
The Sun Visualization System will significantly increase the computing power
previously available to LCN, which will now be able to manipulate larger volumes
of numerical and visual data, helping the researchers to interpret their findings
more rapidly. In addition to the Sun Scalable Visualization Software, Sun also
offers Sun Shared Visualization Software, which allows for local and remote
users to interactively share centralized 3D graphics resources across a wide
array of client platforms.
For LCN, powerful computer clusters, built using Sun Fire X4600 servers and
Sun Ultra 40 Workstations, combine to drive multiple displays which in turn
deliver high-quality, high-resolution, stereographic 3D displays with exceptional
rendering performance for 2D, 3D and textured surfaces. The Sun N1 software
automates servers and applications life-cycle management and manages grid
services across heterogeneous envi ronments to help ensure an even distribution
of computing power across multiple users.
About The London Centre of Nanotechnology and the Bio-Nano Centre
LCN is a new UK-based multidisciplinary research centre, purpose-built to enable
work at the forefront of science and technology. The LCN brings together two of
the world's leading institutions, namely University College London (UCL) and
Imperial College London, with strong capabilities in the underlying disciplines -engineering, physical sciences and biomedicine - which are bridged by
nanotechnology. Its aim is to provide the nanoscience and nanotechnology
needed to solve major problems in information processing, health care, and
energy and environment. The LCN, together with Imperial's Institute for
Biomedical Engineering and funding from the DTI and LDA, have created the Bio
Nano Centre - offering concept development, rapid prototyping, and product
validation services to translate research concepts to prototypes, ready for
manufacture. The objective is to provide small to large companies with easy and
economical access to prototyping facilities and multidisciplinary capabilities for
the early-stages of bio-nano product development.
About Sun Microsystems, Inc.
A singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer" -- guides Sun in the
development of technologies that power the world's most important markets.
Sun's philosophy of sharing innovation and building communities is at the
forefront of the next wave of computing: the Participation Age. Sun can be found
in more than 100 countries and on the Web at http://sun.com.