Goodbye Internet, Hello UltraNet!

Perhaps the Internet isn't cutting it anymore. Current networks are struggling to efficiently manage vast amounts of data. That's why the Department of Energy's Office of Science has awarded Oak Ridge National Laboratory $4.5 million to design a new network. Known as the Science UltraNet, the prototype dedicated high-speed network will enable the development of networks that support high-performance computing and other large facilities at the Department of Energy and universities alike.

With research institutions generating and sharing more data than ever, large-scale collaborative projects will benefit from the Science UltraNet's capabilities. Researchers who share current networks have to compete for limited bandwidth. Also, these networks are based on software and protocols designed for petascale data. The UltraNet is intended to eliminate these concerns, improving networking for scientists in high-energy physics, climate modeling, nanotechnology, fusion energy, astrophysics, genomics, and other disciplines.

For details, see www.ornl.gov.