{"id":13172,"date":"2017-04-04T10:34:13","date_gmt":"2017-04-04T14:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/?p=13172"},"modified":"2017-04-04T10:34:13","modified_gmt":"2017-04-04T14:34:13","slug":"ri-epscor-event-features-research-speaker-core-facilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/2017\/04\/04\/ri-epscor-event-features-research-speaker-core-facilities\/","title":{"rendered":"RI EPSCoR event features research, speaker & core facilities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Seahorse\"<\/a>
A seahorse floats in a\u00a0Nature Lab aquarium at Rhode Island School of Design.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ocean State research will take center stage at Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR\u2019s 2017 Annual Research Symposium<\/a> April 12 along with the platforms that engage new modes of inquiry, provide opportunities to bridge disciplines, and push the boundaries of discovery.<\/p>\n

The event, co-hosted by Brown University<\/a> and Rhode Island School of Design<\/a>, showcases a poster presentation <\/span>by faculty, researchers, and students, funded by RI EPSCoR and the RI Science and Technology Advisory Council<\/a> (STAC). Researchers from other RI EPSCoR tracks will present their work. <\/span><\/p>\n

Professor Tamara Galloway<\/a> of the University of Exeter<\/a> will be the featured speaker. Her research focuses on marine pollution, the human health effects of pollutants, and the sustainable development of novel materials and substances.<\/span><\/p>\n

The day\u2019s schedule also includes tours of three RI EPSCoR core facilities \u2014\u00a0the Center for Computation and Visualization (CCV) and NSF\/EPSCoR Shared Proteomics Facility at Brown and the RISD Nature Lab \u2014\u00a0available to the RI EPSCoR community in support of the investigative process.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"John<\/a>
John Huffman, CCV manager of user services at Brown University, shows the applications available for use with the Yurt Ultimate Reality Theater.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The CCV at Brown<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Set back on Providence\u2019s George Street, a quiet space amid the bustle of the Brown University campus, the CCV ambitiously pursues its vision of \u201ccomputational best practices, innovative solutions, and expert knowledge combined to build advanced tools for research and scholarship, and enable new discoveries and empowering collaborations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0The facility\u2019s virtual reality theater<\/span> serves as the eye-popping attraction of the center\u2019s massive technological capabilities. Called the YURT (Yurt Ultimate Reality Theater), the theater boasts 69 projectors, each run at 1920-by-1080 pixels, paired with 20 computers, each with four graphics cards, tied into the university\u2019s supercomputer and capable of scaling up to handle research data loads.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Wearing special glasses, visitors can, among a variety of three dimensional experiences, explore Gale Crater on Mars, gain new perspectives on a snail embryo, study design details of a sitting room, step into the streets of Paris, and examine the breadth and depth of the Garibaldi panorama, a 240-foot scroll that is too long and unwieldy to view in person.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Gale<\/a>
The Yurt Ultimate Reality Theater at Brown University makes Gale Crater on Mars a three dimensional experience.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cTypically, the kind of data that works well has some sort of fundamental, three dimensional element to it, like molecules or the surface of Mars,\u201d explains John Huffman, CCV manager of user services. \u201cIt\u2019s potentially a huge place for the humanities, architectural models, population studies.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The YURT\u00a0also fuels creative exploration through applications that allow users to conduct virtual writing and painting or drawing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Think, says Huffman, of the world wide web, which is built on interactive text: \u201cYou click on a word and the text becomes alive. Creative writing in the cave is the next iteration of hypertext \u2014\u00a0you\u2019re seeing a poem or story that is actually being displayed in a virtual context. You click on a word and it takes you to a different place.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Pairing a wand with the virtual reality glasses, visitors can draw or paint, real or abstract, and then turn over and around the three dimensional shape, and walk through or gaze at it from the outside.<\/span><\/p>\n

Huffman says the research symposium tour will offer a look at a variety of applications available \u2014 from Mars and the moon to molecules, art, architecture, and creative pursuits \u2014 and show how different disciplines might take advantage of the interactive technology. <\/span><\/p>\n

For anyone uncertain about how the YURT\u00a0might amplify data sets, Huffman says the CCV staff makes itself available to potential users to discuss what opportunities are available and ways to transition from desktop computer to cave. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWalking around your data set or flying through it with virtual reality is an asset,\u201d he notes. \u201cWe\u2019re available to discuss what might be possible.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The CCV is part of Brown University\u2019s Computing and Information Services (CIS), which serves as the institutions central IT organization.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Benedict<\/a>
Benedict Gagliardi III, lab coordinator for Imaging and Aquatics, draws artificial seawater from the Nature Lab system to fill tanks. Below, the facility’s specimen collection fills cabinets.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The RISD Nature Lab<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Founded in 1937 by RISD faculty member Edna Lawrence, the Nature Lab today serves as the physical and intellectual home of Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR on the RISD campus, striving to broaden the dialogue on the relationship between art, design, and science. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to being a natural science resource center for art and design students, the lab continues to grow as a platform for exploring the intersection of science, art and design, and transdisciplinary inquiry,\u201d explains Director Neal Overstrom, the RISD partner liaison to RI NSF EPSCoR. \u201cAnd, because our team has the training and experience in both the arts and sciences, we are uniquely positioned to facilitate these conversations at multiple levels.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"DSC_0030\"<\/a>The lab\u2019s street side, sunlit rooms house a vast and varied collection of the natural world, specimens that invite investigation of design concepts, form and function. One floor down, state-of-the-art imaging equipment assists the descent from macro to micro. <\/span><\/p>\n

Resources available to students and RI EPSCoR researchers alike include compound and stereo microscopes with full-color cameras, a Phenom G2Pro desktop scanning electron microscope, standard and high-speed video cameras, and geospatial imaging workstations with large format multi-touch screen and plotter dedicated to geographic information systems (GIS).<\/span><\/p>\n

Overstrom says the momentum behind the RI EPSCoR investment in the Nature Lab as a core facility has been to promote and advance work in four thematic areas \u2014\u00a0data narratives, bioimaging, biodesign, and ecological landscapes. <\/span><\/p>\n

The lab team also works with RI EPSCoR in advancing competency in data narratives and seeking novel ways to engage the public through the use of authoritative data and visual communication strategies. The goal, says Overstrom, is to find new methods of making scientific discovery meaningful in people\u2019s day-to-day life. <\/span><\/p>\n

RISD, as an institution, has embraced the RI EPSCoR commitment and made equally substantive investments in the Nature Lab. The partnership has yielded a series of closed system aquariums, complete with newly added artificial seawater mixing and distribution capabilities to support an intriguing array of specimens that includes local and tropical fishes, axolotls, moon jellyfish,seahorses, and soon-to-be added cuttlefish. Under staff direction, students collect specimens from the field and maintain the delicate systems.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to showcase the principles of living systems through maintenance of a variety of marine organisms,\u201d Overstrom says. \u201cThe students gain a sense of place, going out in the field, and an appreciation for the features of our coastal habitats. They learn about biogeochemical cycling and get exposure to specialized adaptations that are exemplified by the selection of species we choose to maintain.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This exposure, adds Overstrom, inspires critical thinking about the principles of biomimicry and biophilic design, and how to apply those concepts to innovative strategies that foster a more sustainably built environment.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are trying to pilot a biodesign makerspace, something that integrates the biology lab and art and design research to create novel solutions and applications,\u201d Overstrom says, looking where this potential is headed. \u201cThe Nature Lab is a science resource center embedded in an art and design school that intrinsically facilitates transdisciplinary study.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And, all of that \u2014\u00a0the collections and the systems, the expertise and the excitement \u2014 will be on display as part of the RI EPSCoR symposium facility tours April 12.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Mandar<\/a>
Mandar Naik oversees the NSF\/EPSCoR Proteomics Shared Resource Facility at Brown University.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

NSF\/EPSCoR Proteomics Shared Resource Facility at Brown<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Established in 2007 with funds from the founding grant for RI EPSCoR, the proteomics facility brought state-of-the-art instrumentation and expertise to Rhode Island\u2019s scientific community. Additional support for the center came from the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council (STAC), the Rhode Island Research Alliance (RIRA), and Brown University.<\/span><\/p>\n

Manager Mandar Naik oversees the facility located in Providence at 70 Ship Street, inside Brown University\u2019s Laboratories for Molecular Medicine, just blocks away from the upper, narrow reaches of the Providence River. Inside, various instruments carry out steps, from separation and characterization of proteins to identifying interactions between different proteins or proteins and other substances, explains Naik.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are a shared facility, a shared platform,\u201d he says. \u201cWe can handle various kinds of requests from people in a variety of fields. We also can provide basic training for users, \u00a0but they have to conduct their own experiments.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Users, who are responsible for bringing their own consumables, can access an online equipment schedule for availability and the fee structure. Discounted rates are available to scientists in the RI EPSCoR and Brown communities.<\/span><\/p>\n

The afternoon tour on April 12 for symposium attendees offers the chance to see what instruments are available and ask questions about the opportunities for research projects.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe users are at the forefront,\u201d Naik says. \u201cWe work around their requirements and we\u2019re always open to providing input to research, any kind of queries.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Proteomics<\/a>
The proteomics facility at Brown University makes its equipment available at discounted rates to scientists in the RI EPSCoR and Brown communities<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Story and photos by Amy Dunkle<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ocean State research will take center stage at Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR\u2019s 2017 Annual Research Symposium April 12 along with the platforms that engage new modes of inquiry, provide opportunities to bridge disciplines, and push the boundaries of discovery. The event, co-hosted by Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design, showcases a poster presentation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[21,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13172"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13172\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/rinsfepscor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}