Wits U to lead e-science consortium

Wits will lead a consortium to establish a national e-science teaching and training platform.
The platform is intended to develop suitable curricula and pedagogic interventions to advance the training of postgraduate students in the rapidly developing cross-discipline of e-science.

The Department of Science and Technology (DST) made the announcement this week, saying it has awarded Wits with one of two projects as part of the department and its entity, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), continued investment in growing the country’s cyberinfrastructure by furthering the implementation of the National Integrated Cyberinfrastructure System (NICIS).

According to a DST statement, the department will invest approximately R60 million over three years to establish the two projects: the national e-science teaching and training platform; and the regional data centre.

The other consortium, led by the University of Cape Town, involves the establishment of an initial regional data centre (or node) – others could follow – that will eventually form a national network, supporting a wide range of data-intensive scientific activities as part of NICIS.

This data centre will be a shared resource, focused initially on astronomy and bioinformatics, supporting major initiatives such as the MeerKAT/Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and the DST’s Bio-economy Strategy.

With the vast Northern Cape being home to mega astronomy initiatives like the MeerKAT/SKA and the Southern African Large Telescope, it is important to note that the province’s new Sol Plaatje University will be involved in both consortia.

The university’s strategic focus is on information technology skills development, and the province will benefit from these projects. The DST is keen to see the province’s young people skilled as a result of such initiatives so that they can take up opportunities offered by the astronomy projects in the area.

“The DST believes cooperation of South African universities and research councils on such strategic matters is important for the country’s future. The big data revolution involves a transition in which data becomes a new resource for economic development, and success or failure depends on the capacity to manage and manipulate massive volumes of data in order to extract information,” the DST statement reads.