GÉANT2 DEMONSTRATES ACHIEVEMENTS AT ICT EVENT

Published 25th November 2008

- World’s most advanced research network showcases project and technical success

The achievements of GÉANT2, the high bandwidth pan-European research and education network will be showcased at the prestigious ICT Event. User demonstrations in the areas of climate change research, ancient music and telemedicine will demonstrate its success in enabling pan-European and global research collaboration and underpinning projects that deliver major benefits to society.

GÉANT2 is the world’s most advanced research network, providing unrivalled geographical coverage, high bandwidth, innovative hybrid networking technology and a range of user-focused services. Launched in 2004, GÉANT2 is co-funded by the European Union and operated by research networking organisation DANTE.

Demonstrations on the GÉANT2 booth (ICT Connects - Booth J17) and BELIEF global networking booth (International Village – Booth D05), will show how it is helping researchers and the wider community across the globe.

Climate Change: MILLENNIUM Simulations Project (GÉANT2 stand – J17)
The MILLENNIUM Simulations project reconstructs historical climates from 800 AD to 2200 AD through a comprehensive Earth System Model. This uses a combination of historical data, natural factors and human activities to build an accurate simulation model. It relies on the GÉANT2 network to connect remote research sites to its central system for processing, and for sharing results between project participants and the wider research community. The demonstration will show models of climate change and how they are made available to global researchers.

Ancient Music: ASTRA Project (GÉANT2 stand – J17)
ASTRA (Ancient instruments Sound/Timbre Reconstruction Application) uses advanced computer modelling to recreate the sounds of ancient instruments. This is underpinned by the GÉANT2 and EUMEDCONNECT research networks which link high capacity computers together, sharing information to enable the computer-intensive modelling of musical sounds. The ICT Event will see ASTRA stage a concert that will see the harp-like Epigonion musical instrument from Ancient Greece perform, and allow booth visitors to play it for themselves.

Medicine: Brazilian Telehealth Initiative (International Village – Booth D 05)
The Brazilian Telehealth Initiative uses advanced video conferencing to bring specialist healthcare services to remote districts in South America. It enables local doctors to link to regional hospitals and also to colleagues in Europe for second opinions on more complex medical cases. The demonstration plans to show the referral and consultation process between South America and Europe.

In addition, Dai Davies, the general manager of DANTE will give a presentation on GÉANT2: Enabling the User. This is part of the Virtualising Global Research session, to be held at the Salon Pasteur at 2pm on 25 November 2008.

“Since its launch, GÉANT2 has provided the ability for researchers across Europe and the world to collaborate on projects across a wide range of disciplines, from radio astronomy to e-learning,” said Dai Davies, General Manager, DANTE. “Not only has the network expanded to cover more European countries at higher connection speeds but its range of innovative, user-focused services are making international collaboration straightforward and seamless. Through links to other networks, it is underpinning global research projects that are making a major difference to people’s lives across the world.”

Over the past four years, GÉANT2 has played a key role in shaping global research and education. Collaboration with 34 of Europe’s NRENs has improved the reach and penetration of high bandwidth (10+ Gb) on existing and new routes across Europe, resulting in an extensive topology with links totalling more than 50,000 km in length. GÉANT2 offers point-to-point connections and dedicated capacity for the most demanding users, creating “virtual private networks” and advanced connectivity to other world regions, placing itself at the heart of global research networking.

For more information about GÉANT2 Achievements visit the Achievements section of the website at http://www.geant2.net/server/show/nav.737

For more information about GEANT2 at ICT 2008 visit the event section of the website at http://www.geant2.net/server/show/conEvent.465