Here at HPCwire, we closely follow research from the peer-reviewed side of the fence to keep an eye on what is emerging in terms of new technologies and approaches to large-scale computing.
In this process, we often face a number of subscription and other access roadblocks—not to mention articles that are perfect for their research purpose, but avoid some more pertinent, generalized discussions about common themes in high performance computing. There are no complaints about this–high quality, fine-tuned, specialized research is critical. But so is access. And so is the broader view.
Many of you are specialists in your fields. Your commitments might revolve specifically around storage, networks, applications, or system architecture, for instance. For you, there are many wonderful research resources that delve into great detail for your domain—that address your problems at length and with deep technical fidelity. But when it comes to the bigger picture of technical computing, you as a storage expert (for example) might need a broader view into what’s happening with application developers, system administrators, middleware folks—you name it—to make sure that your research, development and production work is fitting into the larger range of needs.
The point is, while the specific domains are being very well served, the “big picture” can become muddled. What reviewed, vetted sources exist that tie together multiple domains in a single narrative—but do so from the standpoint of an author’s domain expertise? And another question…how valuable do you think it might be for a reader to understand, from a storage perspective for instance, what workload management or new advancements in analytics, visualization, memory, and other areas might be? Or flip that equation using any other area of expertise.
This is just it. Our wide base of subscribers shows an incredible amount of research and production diversity. From the national labs to the three-letter government agencies to a host of commercial HPC domains, we are a resource an incredible array of multidisciplinary experts turn to, stay tuned to, and have subscribed to for well over decade—if not longer.
We have always been open to all readers, which is something that will never change. There is no restriction of access to information by all. The community of people interested in HPC, even in a more distant sense, is well-represented by the important vendor and research news we report. But it’s your expertise in your own field that can be most compelling. For your research publications, there are countless resources to publish within. But to reach many hundreds of thousands with your ideas without an access firewall seems more important than ever. After all, HPC is garnering attention more these days…let’s help this community grow even faster.
And so, we ask for you to consider offering the wide landscape view from your quarters to share with those who aren’t specialists in your area. Let them understand what your research and production challenges are—let them understand what’s happening in your space right now so they can keep this foremost in mind as they develop their next generation systems, software, architecture and approaches to efficient, high performance, large-scale computing.
A large part of our goal in this publication is to flesh out that big picture view…To add color to the larger landscape by looking at the ecosystem as a whole, not just in deep detail on one or two exclusive sub-domains within HPC.
To this end, we’re opening our doors to submissions from across the academic and commercial HPC R&D community for editorial pieces offering a “state of the state” approach to domain coverage. We’re asking you to reach out between now and ISC ’14 in June (where we’ll see several of you) with your ideas and article submissions, which will be reviewed by our panel of contributing and management editors, as well as our academic/commercially-balance advisory board.
What are you working on? What are your challenges? What do you want your peers in the larger HPC sphere to understand about the developments you and your teams have made? What does the landscape portrait look like from your perspective inside one of its many vibrant villages?
This is a chance to submit thoughtful editorial (between 1500-3000 words) or chat with one of us about how we might flesh out your view for a future podcast, feature article, or “to watch” item for 2014. Submissions and inquiries open officially Thursday, May 8 and extend through June 10. It’s a short window, but a valuable one as many of your summers just get underway and you take time to reflect before heading into the sun to bake out all that thinking about work.
Send your email, questions, ideas, and draft concepts for articles to [email protected] – We’ve set aside extra time for these queries throughout the slower months of mid-May into June, all leading up to the burst of activity around ISC ’14. We’ll devote this time to reviewing your submissions with our panel, talking through concepts, and understanding your view of the ecosystem.
Thanks for your consideration and support for the “bigger picture” for HPC. We will continue, as always, to deliver timely news and analysis about what’s happening across the HPC spectrum, but your collective experiences will enhance that view greatly.