EUAsiaGrid Project Report for AdMU (April 2008 - March 2009)

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/euasiagrid-project-report-for-admu.html


ATENEO DE MANILA UNIVERSITY
School of Science and Engineering
EUAsiaGrid Project
Website: http://www.euasiagrid.org/


Title:

PROJECT PRESENTATIONS, LABORATORY VISITS,
TRAININGS, AND APPLICATIONS
CONSULTATION MEETINGS
April 2008 - March 2009

Prepared by:

Rafael P. Saldaña, Ph.D.
Project Coordinator for AdMU
EUAsiaGrid Project

1.0 BACKGROUND

The EUAsiaGrid Project is an international consortium research infrastructure projecton e-Science funded by the European Commission under its FP7 Program.

The following are the objectives of the EUAsiaGrid Project:

1.1 Promote awareness in the Asian countries of the EGEE infrastructures, middleware and services by means of specific dissemination activities, such as workshops, training events, conferences and hands-on demonstrations;

1.2 Capture local e-Science user requirements in terms of resources needed, Grid services, application software, and training needs, building on results of the EGI_DS projects.

1.3 Build a EuroAsian Grid community by identifying and aggregating new and existing user communities into a virtual Grid-based research space.

1.4 Assist regional integration with the wider Grid infrastructure in collaboration with the EGEE III Asian Federation and the EUChinaGrid and EU-IndiaGrid projects, thus significantly contributing to the creation of a human network in the area of Grids, e-Science and e-Infrastructures between Europe and Asia.

1.5 Promote common e-Science application in Asia and Europe, by supporting the early user communities already engaged in Grid applications (Life science, Particle Physics), and engaging new ones by coordinating common actions of dissemination and training;

1.6 Provide specific training materials and events targeted to the needs of users in the Asian countries as established in part in Objective 2, and in part building on the experience gained from the EUChinaGrid and EU-IndiaGrid projects.

1.7 Foster international cooperation by working in synergy with members of the EGEE II Asian Federation, and the EU-IndiaGrid and EUChinaGrid projects.

For more information about the EUAsiaGrid Project, visit its website at http://www.euasiagrid.org/

2.0 PROJECT DISSEMINATION AND GRID COMPUTING PROMOTION

The School of Science and Engineering of Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) has actively promoted Grid applications in the Philippines and other parts of Asia. The following events were participated in by AdMU and several contacts with applications researchers were made:

(Note: Photos may be accessed at:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107840&id=682835049&l=ea1833e11a

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Ateneo de Manila University
MEDGRID (Medical Grid) Cluster
Visit of French Government Officials
April 2008



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ISGC 2008
International Symposium on Grid Computing
Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
April 7 - 11, 2008






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Ateneo de Manila University
School of Science and Engineering
Grid and High Performance Computing Group
Workshop on Cluster / Grid Computing
(for Research Apprentices)
May 2008



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EUAsiaGrid Project Presentation
Meeting on Content-Based Medical Image Retrieval
and Grid Computing (ONCO-MEDIA)
Lip6, University of Paris 6, Paris, France
July 11 - 12, 2008

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Visit to the University of Lyon
Grid Computing Facility
Lyon, France
July 22, 2008

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EUAsiaGrid Training
MIMOS Berhad, Technology Park
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
July 28 - 31, 2008

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EUAsiaGrid Web Conference/
Grid Asia (Singapore) Meeting
18 September 2008



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SEACOOP 2008
2008 Euro-Southeast Asia Cooperation Forum
on ICT Research
October 6 - 7, 2008
Radisson Royal SAS Hotel
Brussels, Belgium

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EUAsiaGrid Project Presentation,
Consultation and Laboratory Visit
GSI, Darmstadt, Germany
(High Energy Physics and Cancer
Therapy Facilities)
October 10, 2008







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GRID CAMP 2008
Academia Sinica Grid Computing Center
Taipei, Taiwan
October 18 - 19, 2008

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Roundtable Discussion on ICT Infrastructures
for Science and Technology Research
Traders Hotel, Manila, Philippines
November 25, 2008
Organized by the National Academy of Science
and Technology (NAST)



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SEAIP 2008 and 4th PRAGMA INSTITUTE
International Joint Research
and Training Program in HPC
NCHC, Taichung, Taiwan
December 1 - 5, 2008




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EUAsiaGrid All-Hands Meeting
Academia Sinica
Taipei, Taiwan
December 12 - 13, 2008



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Visit to the Academia Sinica
Genomics Research Laboratory
December 13, 2008



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Philippine Grid Forum and Workshops
ASTI Bldg., Quezon City 2009
December 16, 2008




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EUAsiaGrid Project Presentation and Consultation
Regional Research Seminar on Information Technology
St. Mary's University, Bayombong
Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines
January 30, 2009

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ICT Asia 2009
6th Regional ICT Asia Seminar
February 11 - 12, 2009
Asian Institute of Technology
Bangkok, Thailand



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Laboratory Visit to CanalAVIST
Asian Institute of Technology
Bangkok, Thailand
February 13, 2009


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ICT For Health 2009
Workshop on Telemedicine, Digital Medical Records,
and e-Health
February 19, 2009
Asian Institute of Management
Makati City, Philippines




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PSITE 2009
11th National Convention of the Philippine Society
of Information Technology Educators (PSITE)
February 26 - 28, 2009
Dipolog City and Dapitan City
Mindanao, Philippines



_______________________________________

PCSC 2009
9th Philippine Computing Science Congress (PCSC)
March 2 - 3, 2009
Silliman University, Dumaguete City, Philippines





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3.0 APPLICATIONS

Before the EUAsiaGrid Project started, the AdMU's MEDGRID (Medical Grid) cluster computers were already linked to PANDA Grid.

AdMU has started re-configuring its MEDGRID and AGILA clusters by installing gLite and connecting with EGEE via the Academia Sinica Grid Computing Center in Taipei, Taiwan. Some problems are still being ironed out.

In AdMU, one person is a Certified Registration Authority and three persons are with User Certificates; and three more applications are being processed.

The current applications that are being tested for gridification and submission via the EUAsiaGrid VO (in AdMU) are as follows:

a. Content-based image retrieval of digital mammograms (Application domain: biomedical)

b. Grid computing and e-learning focusing on cancer research (Application domain: biomedical)

Other applications that have been identified for gridification and submission via the EUAsiaGrid VO (in AdMU) are:

a. Computational modeling of landslide dynamics via enhancement of Philippine landslide maps using grid computing (Application domain: mitigation of natural disasters)

b. Computational modeling of oil spill dynamics via enhancement of Philippine satellite data using grid computing (Application domain: mitigation of environmental disasters)

c. Datawarehousing and Datamining for Philippine Cancer Grid (Application: biomedical)

d. Datawarehousing and Datamining for Philippine Rain Monitoring with implications to Natural Disaster Mitigation (Landslides and Flashfloods) and Climate Change (Application: environmental/natural disaster mitigation).

AdMU has purchased and currently installing a data server for these applications.

AdMU has also linked with application researchers in the social sciences. Particular applications that are of interests are as follows: traffic simulation including driver and crowd behavior, disaster response and crowd behavior during natural disasters, and voters' behavior and dynamics in local and national elections.

4. STAFF

Due to the delay of release of funds for the first year of the project, AdMU has adapted to the situation by giving research deloading to faculty members working on the EUAsiaGrid Project. It is currently in the process of hiring two full-time project assistants: one for applications development and support, and another one for training concerns.

5. TRAINING AND DISSEMINATION EVENT

AdMU has conducted its own cluster and Grid computing training for research apprentices and has initially compiled a list of training materials.

AdMU is currently organizing the International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation, and Grid Computing (MODEL 2009) to be held in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines. This event will feature keynote and invited speakers who are experts on Grid computing and applications who will come from Europe and Asia. There are tutorial sessions on Grid Computing and gLite middleware scheduled. In this event, AdMU will actively promote the EUAsiaGrid Project and Grid computing applications.

(Note: Link to MODEL 20009: http://www.math.admu.edu.ph/MODEL2009)

[Version 1.0, March 14, 2009]

Farewell, Fr. Thomas Green, SJ

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/farewell-fr-thomas-green-sj.html

(Note: Fr. Tom Green was one of my theology professors at the Loyola School of Theology.

He was a popular Jesuit spiritual director, missionary-priest and educator.

Fr. Tom Green, S.J. wrote a number of books on prayer, discernment, and/or spirituality, such as: 1) Opening to God: A Guide to Prayer, 2) Weeds Among the Wheat, 3) When the Well Runs Dry: Prayer Beyond the Beginnings, 4) Darkness in the Marketplace: The Christian at Prayer in the World, 5) Prayer and Common Sense, 6) The Friend of the Bridegroom: Spiritual Direction and the Encounter with Christ, 7) A Vacation with the Lord, 8) and others.

May you Rest in Peace, Fr. Tom!)

From the Ateneo Blueboard, 13 March 2009:

In your prayers, please remember Fr. Thomas H. Green, S.J. who passed away this morning at San Jose Seminary.

He returned last night after spending two weeks in the hospital, where repair had been done on blocked heart arteries.

He had a good night's sleep, felt fine, but his heart gave out about mid-morning. Death was apparently very sudden.

Fr. Tom would have been 77 on Thursday, March 19.

He entered the Society of Jesus on September 7, 1949 and was ordained a priest on June 19, 1963.

Requiescat in Pace.

Wake: San Jose Seminary Chapel, Ateneo de Manila University Campus, Loyola Heights, Quezon City

Starting this evening, daily Wake Masses will be celebrated at 8 p.m.

Funeral Mass: Thursday, March 19 at 8 a.m., Church of the Gesù

Interment: Sacred Heart Novitiate Cemetery, Novaliches, Quezon City, immediately after the Funeral Mass

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Invitation Brochure: MODEL 2009 (International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation and Grid Computing), May 4 - 6, 2009, Bohol, Philippines

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TO ALL CONCERNED:

A PDF version of the Invitation brochure may be downloaded at

http://www.math.admu.edu.ph/ateneogrid/model2009flier.pdf

Please help us to disseminate the information.

Thanks,

Raffy Saldaña
for MODEL 2009

Related Link:
http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2008/12/first-announcement-model-2009.html
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Call For Abstracts and Participation: MODEL 2009 - International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation, and Grid Computing (Bohol, Philippines)

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2008/12/first-announcement-model-2009.html

Philippine Tarsier

Chocolate Hills

Panglao Beach

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Photo Caption: The Philippine Tarsier, Chocolate Hills and Panglao Beach are famous attractions of Bohol. The post-conference tour of MODEL 2009 will include visits to these tourist attractions. (Photos courtesy of wikipedia.org).

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MODEL 2009
International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation, and Grid Computing
May 4 - 6, 2009
Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City

Bohol, Philippines

Website: http://www.math.admu.edu.ph/MODEL2009

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS AND PARTICIPATION:

DEAR COLLEAGUE/S:

Warm Greetings.

We would like to invite you to participate in the International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation and Grid Computing (MODEL 2009) to be held on May 4 - 6, 2009 in Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines.

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MODEL is a workshop series that is convened every two years since 1999. It started in November 1999 in Ateneo de Manila University (MODEL '99), followed by MODEL 2001 in MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology (Iligan City), MODEL 2003 in Philippine Science High School (Quezon City), MODEL 2005 in the University of Cebu (Banilad Campus, Cebu City), and MODEL 2007 in Boracay Regency Resort and Convention Center (Boracay Island, Aklan).

MODEL 2009 is being organized by the Ateneo de Manila University Grid and High Performance Computing Group (A-GRID) in cooperation with the Computing Society of the Philippines (CSP) and Holy Name University.

Workshop Objectives:

1. To provide a forum for exchange of ideas, information, and research outputs on modeling, simulation, scientific computing, cluster computing and Grid computing among academics, research scientists, industry practitioners, and students.

2. To promote the development of mathematical and computer modeling, simulation, scientific computing, cluster computing and Grid computing in the Philippines and neighboring countries.

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3. To promote research collaborations between Philippine institutions and international institutions.

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SCOPE:

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MODEL 2009 will feature tutorials on Cluster and Grid Computing by experts from Europe and Asia, keynote talks, special lectures by invited speakers, and research paper presentations on modeling, simulation, and scientific computing, cluster computing and Grid computing. It is supported by two international projects: the EUAsiaGrid project (http://www.euasiagrid.org/) funded by the European Commission and the Germany-Philippine Collaboration on Grid Computing Project, funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research.

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Topics include (but are not limited to):

• Mathematical/Statistical/Computational Modeling
• Computer Simulation
• High-Performance Computing and Communications
• Cluster Computing
• Grid Computing
• Numerical/Computational Methods
• Mathematical and Scientific Software
• Computational Science and Engineering
• e-Science
• Applications
  

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS:

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Extended Abstracts of up to two pages maximum (including Title, Authors, E-mail Addressess, Brief Overview, Methodology, Results and Discussion, Conclusion and Recommendation or Concluding Remarks) are being solicited from prospective participants.

Send abstracts to Dr. Rafael Saldana, e-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com copy furnished computingsoc@gmail.com

Selected paper presentations in MODEL 2009 will be invited to be submitted for publication in a special issue of the Philippine Information Techology Journal (PITJ) , a joint publication of the Computing Society of the Philippines (CSP) and the Philippine Association of Information Technology Educators (PSITE).

A parallel event to MODEL 2009 is the holding of the PANDA Grid Workshop on May 4 - 9, 2009 in Tagbilaran City and Panglao Island, Bohol. The PANDA Grid Network is a group of scientists and ICT professionals engaged in grid computing. This group is based in Europe and holds a workshop every year. For the first time, the PANDA Grid Workshop will be held outside Europe, with Ateneo de Manila University Grid and High Performance Computing Group as the local partner.

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IMPORTANT DATES:

Deadline for Submission of Extended Abstracts: 5 April 2009

Notification of Acceptance: 10 April 2009

Deadline for Submission of Pre-Registration Forms: 15 April 2009

Workshop: 4 - 6 May 2009

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KEYNOTE AND INVITED SPEAKERS (Partial List):

• Dr. Kilian Schwartz, Research Scientist, GSI, Darmstadt, Germany (Keynote)
• Dr. Florian Uhlig, GSI, Darmstadt, Germany
• Dr. Johan Meschendorp, Germany
• Dr. Pablo Saiz, CERN, Switzerland
• Dr. Dan Protopopescu, University of Glasglow, United Kingdom
• Dr. Mohammad Al-Turany, Germany

PROGRAM OF ACTIVITIES (Tentative as of 7 March 2009):

Day 1. Monday, May 4, 2009

Venue: Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City

10 a.m – 12 noon. Arrival of Participants/ Registration (MODEL 2009)

09:30 - 12:00 Parallel Session: PANDA Grid Workshop

12 – 1:30 p.m. WELCOME LUNCH (MODEL 2009 and PANDA Grid Workshop Participants)

1:30 – 5:30: Parallel Session: PANDA Grid Workshop

1:30 – 3:00 Introduction to Grid Computing and Applications(Dr. Kilian Schwarz, Dr. Florian Uhlig: GSI Darmstadt, Germany)

3:00 – 3:30 Break

3:30 – 5:30 Tutorial: Introduction to AliEn (Grid Environment)(Pablo Saiz: CERN, Switzerland)

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Day 2. Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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9:00 – 10:00 Opening Session: MODEL 2009

Invocation

National Anthem

Welcome Remarks: Holy Name University President

Opening Remarks: Dr. Rafael Saldaña, Workshop Director, MODEL 2009, Ateneo de Manila University

Introduction of Speakers and Participants

10:00 – 10:15 Break

10:15 – 11:05 Keynote Speaker: Dr. Kilian Schwarz (GSI, Darmstadt, Germany)

Title: Computing for FAIR

11:05 – 12:00 Invited Speaker: Topic: EUAsia Grid Project

12:00 – 1:30 Lunch

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PARALLEL SESSIONS

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Session A. Grid Computing

1:30 – 2:00 Invited Speaker: Dr. Johan Meschendorp (Germany)

Title: Computing Model for PANDA

2:00 – 2:30 Invited Speaker: Dr. Dan Protopopescu (University of Glasglow, United Kingdom)

Title: PANDA Grid2:30 – 3:00 Invited Speaker: Dr. Mohammad Al-Turany (Germany)

Title: FAIRRoot

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Session B. Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific Computing Session

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Session C. Panda Grid Workshop

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3:00 – 3:30 Break

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Session A. 3:30 – 5:30 Tutorial: Introduction to gLite (Grid Middleware) (Resource Speaker from the EUAsiaGrid Project)

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Session B. Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific Computing

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Session C. PANDA Grid Workshop

06:00 – 08:30 p.m. CONFERENCE DINNER

Venue: Metro Center Hotel, Tagbilaran City

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Day 3. Wednesday, May 6, 2009.

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PARALLEL SESSIONS

09:00 – 11:30 a.m.

Session A. Cluster and Grid Computing

Session B. Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific ComputingSession

Session C: PANDA GRID Workshop

11:30 – 12:00 CLOSING SESSION (Awarding of Certificates)

12:00 – 1:00 LUNCH

1:00 – 6:00 p.m. Post Conference Tour (Optional)

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REGISTRATION FEES:

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Foreign Participants: USD 150
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Local Participants:

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• Student Presentors/Student Authors: PhP 2,000
  
• Non-Student Presentors/Authors: PhP 3,000
  
• Students (Non-presentor/non-author): PhP 3,000
  
• Regular Registration Fee (Pre-Registered): PhP 4,000
  
• Walk-in Participants: PhP 5,000
  
• Keynote and Invited Speakers: Free Registration Fee

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NOTES:

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1. Registration fee includes snacks, lunch, conference dinner, conference kit, CD ROM proceedings, and certificaties of participation.

2. Registration fee DOES NOT include transportation and hotel accommodation costs.

3. Participants have to book their own accommodation.

4. Participants are required to submit a Pre-Registration Form on or before April 15, 2009.

5. Walk-in participants will be charged PhP 5,000 and they are not guaranteed to receive conference kits and proceedings.

Please send the Pre-Registration form below if you are going to participate in MODEL 2009.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION, please contact:
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Dr. Rafael P. Saldaña

Workshop Director
MODEL 2009
Coordinator, Grid and High Performance Computing Group
School of Science and Engineering
Ateneo de Manila University
Mobile: 0928-5043121
Landlines: (02) 7090907, (02) 4266125
E-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com
Skype: rpsaldana
Website: http://www.math.admu.edu.ph/ateneogrid
Blog: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/

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PRE-REGISTRATIONFORM
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Deadline for submission of Pre-Registration Form: 15 April 2009

Note: The organizers will send you a billing statement and the mode of payment once you have submitted your Pre-Registration Form. Onsite payments will be accepted PROVIDED that a request in writing is sent to the Workshop Organizers.

MODEL 2009

International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation, and Grid Computing

May 4 - 6, 2009

Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City

Bohol, Philippines

Please check:

____ I/We are going to participate in MODEL 2009.
____ I/We would like present research paper/s in MODEL 2009.
____ I/We are attaching our extended abstract.

Contact Details:

Name:_______________________________
School/Company:_______________________________
Position in School/Company: ______________________________
Telephone Number: ______________________
Fax Number: ____________________________
Mobile Number: _________________________
E-mail Address/es: _______________________________________
Website: _________________________________________________

Pls. send this reply form to:

Dr. Rafael P. Saldaña
e-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com, fax: (02) 7090907 or (02) 4266125.

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Related Links:

1. About the Island of Bohol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohol

2. Photo gallery of Panglao Island

http://www.boholbeachclub.com.ph/photogallery.htm

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Tentative Program: MODEL 2009 (Bohol, Philippines)

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/tentative-program-model-2009-and-panda.html

MODEL 2009: International Workshop on Modeling, Simulation and Grid Computing
(incorporating PANDA Grid Workshop Part 1)

Dates: May 4 – 6, 2009
Venue: Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City, Bohol Philippines

Organized by:

Ateneo de Manila University Grid and High Performance Computing Group (A-GRID)

in cooperation with the

Computing Society of the Philippines (CSP)

Supported by:

Germany-Philippine Research Collaboration on Grid Computing
EUAsiaGrid Project (A European Commission funded project)


PROGRAM OF ACTIVITIES (Tentative as of 7 March 2009)

Day 1. Monday, May 4, 2009

Venue: Holy Name University, Tagbilaran City

10 a.m – 12 noon. Arrival of Participants/ Registration (MODEL 2009)

09:30 - 12:00 Parallel Session: PANDA Grid Workshop

12 – 1:30 p.m. WELCOME LUNCH (MODEL 2009 and PANDA Grid Workshop Participants)

1:30 – 5:30: Parallel Session: PANDA Grid Workshop

1:30 – 3:00 Introduction to Grid Computing and Applications
(Dr. Kilian Schwarz, Dr. Florian Uhlig: GSI Darmstadt, Germany)

3:00 – 3:30 Break

3:30 – 5:30 Tutorial: Introduction to AliEn (Grid Environment)
(Pablo Saiz: CERN, Switzerland)


Day 2. Tuesday, May 5, 2009

9:00 – 10:00 Opening Session: MODEL 2009

Invocation
National Anthem
Welcome Remarks: Holy Name University President
Opening Remarks: Dr. Rafael Saldaña, Workshop Convernor, MODEL 2009, Ateneo de Manila University
Introduction of Speakers and Participants

10:00 – 10:15 Break

10:15 – 11:05 Keynote Speaker: Dr. Kilian Schwarz (GSI, Darmstadt, Germany)
Title: Computing for FAIR

11:05 – 12:00 Invited Speaker: Topic: EUAsia Grid Project

12:00 – 1:30 Lunch

PARALLEL SESSIONS

Session A. Grid Computing

1:30 – 2:00 Invited Speaker: Dr. Johan Meschendorp (Germany)
Title: Computing Model for PANDA

2:00 – 2:30 Invited Speaker: Dr. Dan Protopopescu (University of Glasglow, United Kingdom)
Title: PANDA Grid

2:30 – 3:00 Invited Speaker: Dr. Mohammad Al-Turany (Germany)
Title: FAIRRoot

Session B. Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific Computing

Session C: Panda Grid Workshop

3:00 – 3:30 Break

Session A:

3:30 – 5:30 Tutorial: Introduction to gLite (Grid Middleware) (Resource Speaker from the EUAsiaGrid Project)

Session B: Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific Computing

Session C: PANDA Grid Workshop

06:30 – 08:30 p.m. CONFERENCE DINNER
Venue: Metro Center Hotel, Tagbilaran City



Day 3. Wednesday, May 6, 2009.

PARALLEL SESSIONS

09:00 – 11:30 a.m.

Session A. Cluster and Grid Computing

Session B. Research Presentations on Modeling, Simulation and Scientific Computing

Session C: PANDA GRID Workshop

11:30 – 12:00 CLOSING SESSION (Awarding of Certificates)

12:00 – 1:00 LUNCH

1:00 – 6:00 p.m. Post Conference Tour (Optional)
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7th PANDA Grid Workshop (May 2009, Bohol, Philippines)

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Link:
http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/7th-panda-grid-workshop-may-2009-bohol.html

7th PANDA Grid Workshop, Bohol, Philippines, May 4 - 8, 2009

Venues: May 4 - 6, Holy Name University (Tagbilaran City, Bohol)
May 6 - 8, Bohol Beach Club, Panglao Island, Bohol

Website: http://nuclear.gla.ac.uk/grid-workshop

organized by

Ateneo de Manila University Grid and High Performance Computing Group
in cooperation with the Computing Society of the Philippines
and Holy Name University

Sponsored also by EPSRC, IoP, PPARC and
the Royal Society of Edinburgh


Obectives:

The aim of the workshop is to bring together grid administrators and software developers in an informal setting, involving open discussions. The focus will include grid maintenance and monitoring and data production with PandaRoot.

Organizing Committee:

Rafael Saldaña (Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines)
Kilian Schwarz (GSI, Darmstad, Germany)
Dan Protopopescu (Glasgow, United Kingdom)

Contact persons:

Europe:

Dr. Dan Protopopescu,
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QQScotland, UK
Tel: +44-141-330-55321

Philippines:

Dr. Rafael Saldaña
Ateneo de Manila University
Loyola Heights, Quezon City 1108
Philippines
Tel.: +63 2 4266125, +63 2 7090907
Mobile: +63 928 5043121
E-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com

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Why not an Open Election System (OES)?

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-not-open-election-system-oes.html

PRESS STATEMENT
Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG)
March 6, 2009

"COMELEC’s OMR PROMOTES WHOLESALE CHEATING, REPORTS SHOW"

The Optical Mark Reader (OMR) that the Commission on Elections (Comelec) will use for the automated elections system (AES) in the May 2010 polls has not been fully proven as tamper- and fraud-free, will encourage wholesale cheating, and will not ensure a transparent and open election system.

Moreover, it is doubtful whether Comelec will be ready for the full automation of the elections given the time constraints based on its owncalendar.

At a time when many Filipino voters are losing trust in the country’selectoral process, what we need in order to bring trust and credibility to this political exercise is a transparent and open election system, where people will have access to election information.

It is in this regard that we call on the Comelec to look into the Open Election System (OES) once more because, among other advantages, its component of installing a public website where election data will be posted and is accessible for publicviewing will ensure a transparent and open election.

Aside from being cheaper (P4 billion) than the OMR, OES has the technological potential to deliver election results in 3-5 days.

On the other hand, we are concerned that the use of the OMR will onlybring wholesale high-tech cheating and will not guarantee a fraud- or tamper-free election based on multifold studies and reports with regard toits performance in the August 2008 ARMM elections – where at most, more than 20 problems and deficiencies were observed - as well as in the United States and other countries where OMR was used in elections.

In fact, theAssociation for Computing Machinery (ACM) – the largest educational andscientific computing society in the U.S. - adopted a resolution in 2004 calling for a “voter-verifiable audit trail” after finding election machines being “inherently subject to programming error, equipment malfunction, and malicious tampering.”

Why is it that the Comelec has not been transparent in revealing the full report of its advisory council on the August 2008 ARMM automated electionswhere, aside from the machine errors and deficiencies, it admitted thatthe poll body has inadequate IT apparatus to meet the complex requirementsof AES?

The OES, on the other hand, is not only a viable technology but it also meets the objectives for a transparent and credible election as mandatedby RA 9369.

As an automation system, the OES involves the manual counting of votes at the precinct but uses automation through the encoding of election returns followed by the electronic posting of the ERs, SOVs, COCs, and other election data – inclusive of the municipal/city tonational levels - to a public web that is accessible to the people.

While the OMR requires the tedious and costly process of educating andtraining not only election inspectors but also voters, the OES will not.

Above all, this open and transparent technology addresses the objective of RA 9369 which is to adopt and use “the most suitable technology ofdemonstrated capability taking into account the situation prevailing inthe area and the funds available for the purpose.” (Section 1) Given the other constraints to a fully-automated election system, including thelow-tech literacy of many election inspectors and tens and millions ofvoters, as well as the time constraints of the Comelec the OES is apractical remedy of introducing gradual high-tech automation while makingthe 2010 elections transparent and credible.

Among other activities, the calendared customization of systems is setuntil November 2009, training for Comelec technical personnel in December2009- February 2010, and public demonstrations in February to May 2010 – a tight schedule that provides only two-three months for education and training of the public on full high-tech election system, a first in thecountry’s fraud-ridden electoral history.

With OES, however, sufficient time is allowed to ensure people participation under a gradual introduction of full automated electionsgiven the stringent requirements to prepare the public and all otherstakeholders including the media, NGOs and other advocates for the conductof open, transparent, and credible elections.

While we note that no automation system will absolutely guarantee a fraud-and tamper-free election, the OES offers the potential of greatertransparency while complying with the rights of the voters to have accessto public information such as, in this particular case, election results.

Aside from the ERs, access to election results will allow all interestedparties as well as the voters to verify the election results and undertakenecessary measures to protect their right to vote and that of thecandidates and political parties. To us this is more important. We hearvoices from concerned individuals and organizations citing moretransparent technology like the OES as the mechanism that may help bring credibility and trust to the country’s electoral process.



For reference:

Prof. Bobby Tuazon
Director, Policy StudyCenPEG (http://www.cenpeg.org/)
Tel/Fax 9299526
Mobile Phone 0915-6418055;
Email cenpeg.info@gmail.com
Office address: 3/F CSWCD Bldg., UP Diliman, Quezon City 1101

The Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG) is an independent policy institute engaged in the study and analysis of governance, elections and political parties, foreign policy, and other issues. Its studies, training and education modules use multi-disciplinary perspectives and the expertise of mostly academe-based Fellows and the results are used for public and media advocacy as well as publication. Its recent publications are the bestseller Corruptionary and The Moro Reader.

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Worlwide Grid Helps in the Fight Against Heart Disease

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/worlwide-grid-helps-in-fight-against.html

Worldwide Grid Helps in the Fight Against Heart Disease

MEDIA RELEASE
Catania, Italy, Tuesday, 3 March 2009

The latest work on the genetic causes of one of the world's biggest killers, coronary artery disease, will be published in the March 2009 issue of Nature Genetics. The research done by teams from the Cardiogenics consortium used the Enabling Grids for E-sciencE (EGEE) infrastructure. EGEE manages the world's largest multi-disciplinary computing grid and enabled the researchers to do two years' work in fewer than 45 days. This allowed them to identify possible genetic candidates for the causes of a disease which kills over two million people a year in Europe alone.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common form of heart disease and is a leading cause of death worldwide. It is one of the root causes of angina, heart failure and arrhythmias. This work could allow researchers to better understand why the disease develops and may offer new approaches for pharmacological prevention and treatment.

"Until recently, we looked at one variation at a time when trying to find new genes associated with disease", said David Tregouet, Pierre & Marie Curie University (UPMC), France. "In this work we are using an original approach which lets us look at several variations at once. So, instead of investigating the effect on CAD risk of the 378,000 individual genetic markers available in this project, more than 8.1 million combinations were tested. We could do this large number of calculations thanks to EGEE".

The work was done in three stages to successfully narrow down the genetic sequences within a person's chromosomes that could make them susceptible to CAD. In the first stage, almost 8.1 million configurations of genetic markers were examined and 29 specific combinations were identified as possibly associated with susceptibility to CAD. Focussing on these 29 combinations, the second stage was able to bring this number down to just one combination of four genetic markers confirmed to be strongly associated with the risk of CAD. When these four genetic markers were investigated in additional studies, covering a total of almost 12,000 individuals, there was a strong correlation between their presence and the risk of having CAD.
One of the possible explanations behind why these four genetic markers seem to indicate that a person may be at an increased risk of CAD, is that they overlap with genes that regulate an enzyme called lipoprotein (a). A raised level of lipoprotein (a) is used by doctors around the world to diagnose CAD. When the Cardiogenics consortium compared the levels of the enzyme in one of the studies, they found that there was a strong correlation between high lipoprotein levels and the presence of the identified gene sequences.

Cardiogenics, an EU-project coordinated in Lübeck, Germany, aims to discover genetic variations leading to coronary artery disease, to uncover the underlying disease mechanisms and help to develop new treatments.

The Enabling Grids for E-sciencE (EGEE) project is co-funded by the European Commission. The project aims to provide researchers, in both academia and industry, with access to major computing resources, independent of their geographic locations.
EGEE's main aims are:1. To build a secure, reliable and robust grid infrastructure2. To supply a computing service for many scientific disciplines3. To attract, engage and support a wide range of users from science and industry, and provide them with extensive technical and training support.

For more information about Biomedical Applications of Grid Computing, contact:

Dr. Rafael P. Saldaña
Project Leader for ADMU
EUAsiaGrid Project
Website: http://www.euasiagrid.org/
E-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com
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International Summer School on Grid Computing (Nice, France)

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Link: http://raffysaldana.blogspot.com/2009/03/international-summer-school-on-grid.html

Dear Colleagues:

On behalf of the EUAsiaGrid Project (http://www.euasiagrid.org/) - Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) I would like to invite you (or any of your colleagues who might be interested) to participate in the International Summer School on Grid Computing on July 5 - 17, 2009 at Sophia Antipolis in Nice, France.

Website: http://www.iceage-eu.org/issgc09/


Here are the links to the leaflet and poster:

http://www.iceage-eu.org/issgc09/files/leaflet.pdf
http://www.iceage-eu.org/issgc09/files/A3-slide.pdf

Best Regards,

Dr. Rafael P. Saldaña
Project Leader for ADMU
EUAsiaGrid Project(http://www.euasiagrid.org/)
E-mail: raffysaldana@gmail.com

DETAILS:

About the School:

The School will be held in Sophia Antipolis, a technology centre near Nice in the South of France. This is a rare opportunity to hear about the latest achievements from Europe, North America and Asia, as well as to gain experience of a variety of Grid systems. The School will boost students' capabilities for research and innovation thanks to lectures, discussions, laboratory sessions, tutorials and group work. These activities will be delivered by leading authorities in the fields of advanced grid technology, applications of e-Science and distributed systems research.

Scope:

Grid Computing is an important new approach to distributed computing. Thanks to the combination of regular structures and dynamic algorithms, Grid Computing can deliver computational as well as large, sustained data-rich and knowledge-intensive resources across heterogeneous contributing sites. Grid Computing therefore enables rapid advances in many disciplines. This will be set in the context of web2.0 and similar developments. The School will provide an in-depth introduction to Grid technologies that underpin e-Infrastructure and Cyberinfrastructure. It will present a conceptual framework to enhance each student’s ability to work in this rapidly advancing field. Reports from world leaders in deploying and exploiting Grids will complement lectures from research leaders shaping future e-Infrastructure. Hands-on laboratory exercises will give participants experience with widely used Grid middleware.

Graduates of the School will:

be familiar with the fundamental components of Grid environments, such as authentication, authorisation, resource discovery, and resource access
be able to use Grid environments for basic and advanced job submission and distributed data management
be conversant with Grid achievements worldwide
be alert to emerging Grid applications
appreciate the potential of e-Infrastructure and be aware of new research opportunities

The programme includes the use of at least six grid and web service technologies. This allows students to make comparisons and see different approaches to common challenges in distributed computing. The school will conclude with an integrating practical that will enable students, working in teams, to bring together all they have learnt via an extended exercise that simulates collaborative research using e-Infrastructures. However, it means that the school doesn't set out to generate experts in a specific grid technology. Similarly, the school concentrates on the architectural approach of these systems and does not have opportunity to discuss underpinning technologies, such as digital networks, nor to examine other approaches to distributed systems.

The participants, students and staff, will meet like minded people from many parts of the world and form long-term working relationships. We therefore believe that it is important that all the participants enjoy the summer school and make good use of the breaks, leisure opportunities and social programme.

A Day at the School:

The School will consist of lectures in the morning and practical exercises in the afternoon. Lectures will tackle the principles, technologies, experiences and exploitations of Grids. They will also review the research perspectives and report recent significant successes. Equipment will be available at the School site for the practical exercises. A social programme will support the curriculum so as to help students to form lasting friendships and enhance collaborative research.

A Day at the Summer School

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