Re: [Swarm Modelling] Project on GRID-mediated access to agent-based models

[Nick Gotts]

Dear Russell,

Thanks very much for your message. I'll send a draft of the "Case for Support" 
we're writing in the next few days; this will set out the role we see the 
"assessors" as performing in more detail. You can give us any comments or 
criticisms, and confirm whether you are willing to be named as an assessor, and 
if so, whether in relation to research, teaching, or both.

Best regards,
Nick

Nick Gotts
Macaulay Land Use Research Institute
Aberdeen AB15 8QH
Scotland, UK

Tel: +44 (0)1224 498200 ext. 2229
Fax: +44 (0)1224 311556
e-mail: address@hidden
http://www.macaulay.ac.uk/fearlus

>>> Russell Standish <address@hidden> 19-Feb-03 4:10:47 AM >>>
Dear Nick,
        I would be interested in trying this out. We have some
experience in using swarm, so should be able to run your model as a
check. We also have a watching brief on Grid technologies, and I'm
interested to see how ABM perform over grids.

                                        Cheers

Nick Gotts wrote:
> 
> Apologies if you receive multiple copies of the message below. Since FEARLUS 
> is written using the Swarm libraries, I thought members of this list might 
> well be interested.
> 
> Regards,
> Nick Gotts
> 
> Dear Colleagues,
> 
> As  you are  no doubt  aware,  one of  the key  problems for  computer
> modelling in  academic research is  that of repeatability.   For novel
> approaches  such as agent-based  modelling in  particular, researchers
> need  to be able  to examine,  experiment with,  and use  each others'
> models,  (and to  take the  time to  do  so) if  we are  to go  beyond
> producing and describing interesting models, to their effective use in
> social science  and policy contexts. We consider  that emerging "Grid"
> related            technologies            (http://www.gridforum.org/,
> http://www.semanticgrid.org/)  have  the potential  to  support a  new
> level of collaborative/competitive interactions between research teams
> in agent-based modelling  and related areas, and write  to invite your
> participation in a proposed  pilot project, exploring the potential of
> the  Grid to  contribute  to e-Social  Science.  This is  a matter  of
> urgency, as we have an application deadline of 26 February to meet.
> 
> In collaboration with colleagues at the University of Aberdeen, we are
> writing  a proposal  to a  UK funding  body, for  a 12-18  month pilot
> project that would involve making the FEARLUS model of land-use change
> (http://www.macaulay.ac.uk/fearlus/) available  via Grid technologies,
> specifically  the  emerging Open  Grid  Services Architecture  (OGSA),
> which aims to integrate Grid and Web service concepts and technologies
> (http://www.globus.org/ogsa/).  This would allow  us to make our model
> available as a  service for other researchers to  use, with the effect
> that  they   could  run   large-scale  experiments  with   FEARLUS  on
> high-performance computing  facilities without having  to download and
> compile  it.  The  pilot  project is  being  designed with  a view  to
> forming an  EU FP6 Integrated Project  to do the same  with many other
> models.
> 
> The  proposed work  will include:  (1)  describing FEARLUS  as a  Grid
> service, so that  remote users can discover and  invoke it, and obtain
> interpretable results; (2)  maintaining histories of interactions with
> users,  allowing  experiments  to   be  replayed  and  results  to  be
> aggregated; (3) managing the Grid  service, to control user access and
> allocation of resources.   It would assist us greatly  in this initial
> project if we  could identify a few colleagues willing  to be named in
> our pilot project proposal, as  agreeing to help to assess the planned
> Grid deployment of FEARLUS, in one of two possible roles:
> 
> (a) In a  research role, either  comparing results from your own model
> with those from FEARLUS, checking results in FEARLUS publications, or
> exploring FEARLUS's capabilities and limitations as a stage in the
> process of designing a new model.
> 
> (b)  In a  teaching role,  using   FEARLUS as  part of  an appropriate
> lecture course (FEARLUS has already been used in teaching at
> postgraduate level).
> 
> Agreeing to be named in  the proposal would not  constitute or imply a
> legal  or  contractual obligation to   take   part in  the  assessment
> process, but of course we would want to name anyone who did not expect
> to do so. The requirements of doing so would be a negotiable amount of
> time for the   work involved in (a)   or  (b) above,  and   to give us
> feedback from that  work (perhaps by  answering  a questionnaire); and
> possibly a willingness to install a thin client to access FEARLUS over
> the Grid.
> 
> Those  willing  to  be named will   (if the   application succeeds) be
> consulted about  the facilities to be  made available, to maximise the
> benefit to  their own teaching and/or  research. We  believe they will
> benefit from  our  experience  of  planning and undertaking   the Grid
> deployment of an  agent-based   model,  and  will be in   an  improved
> position   to  join in  potential   Grid-related  and e-Social Science
> projects - ours and others'. Specifically, we would hope they would be
> interested in joining us in the follow-up proposal to the EU. Although
> it is unlikely   we would   be able to   pay   you for  your time   in
> participating in  this exercise, any other  expenses incurred would be
> reimbursed.
> 
> If you  are interested  in getting involved,  please could you  let us
> know as  soon as possible (but  no later than 24  February) which role
> you would be prepared to take  (or indeed if there is another role you
> can think  of that  you would prefer).  Naturally we will  not include
> your  name  without  explicit  permission,  and are  ready  to  answer
> questions to the best of our ability.
> 
> Yours,
>       Nick Gotts and Gary Polhill
> 
> Nick Gotts
> Macaulay Land Use Research Institute
> Aberdeen AB15 8QH
> Scotland, UK
> 
> Tel: +44 (0)1224 498200 ext. 2229
> Fax: +44 (0)1224 311556
> e-mail: address@hidden 
> http://www.macaulay.ac.uk/fearlus 
>   ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>    Swarm-Modelling has migrated to address@hidden, please use this
>    address in future postings to this list.
> _______________________________________________
> Modelling mailing list
> address@hidden 
> http://www.swarm.org/mailman/listinfo/modelling 
> 



----------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/Prof Russell Standish                  Director
High Performance Computing Support Unit, Phone 9385 6967, 8308 3119 (mobile)
UNSW SYDNEY 2052                         Fax   9385 6965, 0425 253119 (")
Australia                                address@hidden             
Room 2075, Red Centre                    http://parallel.hpc.unsw.edu.au/rks 
            International prefix  +612, Interstate prefix 02
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
_______________________________________________
Modelling mailing list
address@hidden 
http://www.swarm.org/mailman/listinfo/modelling