Understanding and Nurturing an Integrated Vision for Education in RSE and HPC (UNIVERSE-HPC)

Lead Research Organisation: University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre

Abstract

Understanding and Nurturing an Integrated Vision for Education in RSE and HPC (UNIVERSE-HPC) will define a training curriculum framework - spanning undergraduate to continuing professional development - for Research Software Engineers (RSEs) specialising in high performance computing (HPC). It will develop the curriculum and necessary course materials to underpin a professional Masters programme in RSE and HPC, supported by cohort- and community-building activities, acting as a knowledge integration hub for those with a stake in education and training for RSEs, including those funded by this call and existing and future initiatives in this area.

This will provide clear routes to enable more people from a wide diversity of disciplines and backgrounds to obtain the skills and experience they require to have a successful RSE career: working within centres of excellence, RSE groups, and embedded in research groups. Together this will provide the skilled workforce required by the UK to harness large-scale computing as the UK prepares to exploit exascale.
 
Title Doing Science in the Digital Age: If everyone is parallel processing, what's the problem? 
Description The phone I have in my pocket is more powerful than the first supercomputer I used, and my phone is 4 years old! As we head towards exascale and beyond, what is the future of parallel computing and, more importantly, what challenges to its use still remain? When we think of massively parallel computers, we think of modelling and simulation in the physical sciences. But the same techniques can be applied to other disciplines, given the right tools and skills. So why isn't parallel programming ubiquitous in research? Do we need to change our definition of what using a high performance computing means? In this talk I will argue that parallel computing is not just about bigger and faster machines, but supporting more people to get the best performance from them. I will discuss work the Software Sustainability Institute has been doing to understand how researchers use computing resources, the role that software plays in modern research, and why Research Software Engineers are an important part of what comes next. I'll also cover how work funded by the UK's ExCALIBUR programme is looking to provide people with the skills and knowledge to exploit exascale as we prepare to meet the challenges that the next decade of research will bring. 
Type Of Art Film/Video/Animation 
Year Produced 2022 
URL https://figshare.com/articles/presentation/Doing_Science_in_the_Digital_Age_If_everyone_is_parallel_...
 
Description British Computer Society 
Organisation British Computer Society (BCS)
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Provision of expert knowledge and data about the research software engineering landscape in the UK and internationally.
Collaborator Contribution Provision of expert knowledge about UK IT policy.
Impact N/A at present
Start Year 2021
 
Description Society of Research Software Engineering 
Organisation Society of Research Software Engineering
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Members of research team have been appointed as trustees of the organisation.
Collaborator Contribution Assistance in running bi-annual international survey of Research Software Engineers.
Impact In progress.
Start Year 2019
 
Description ByteSizedRSE 
Form Of Engagement Activity A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press)
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Monthly ByteSizedRSE podcasts covering different software engineering topics for research software engineers looking to improve their practice.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022,2023
URL https://codeforthought.buzzsprout.com/
 
Description RSECon22 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Booth at RSECon22 to promote project and get engagement with potential participants. A survey was run alongside the event looking at key skills.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description RSECon23 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Attendance with exhibition stand and keynote talk at RSECon23 in Newcastle, UK. Engaged with many attendees.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023