The e-IRG White Paper 2011
Rosette Vandenbroucke, introduces the newly published e-IRG White Paper
The e-Infrastructure Reflection Group (e-IRG) is an intergovernmental policy body comprising national dele-gates from more than 30 European countries as well as representatives from the European Commission.
e-IRG’s main objective is the creation of a political, technological and administrative framework for an easy, cost-effective and shared use of distributed electronic resources across Europe. It defines and recommends the best practices for pan-European e-infrastructure efforts and analyses the future foundations of the European Knowledge Society.
The White Paper is an important instrument to bring the e-IRG work to e-Infrastructures stakeholders including national governments, the European Commission, resource providers and the user communities. The White Paper 2011 addresses some of the on-going questions related to new e-Infrastructure challenges, such as:
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How do we deal with the increasing energy demands of computing?
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What software is needed to fully harness the power of future HPC systems?
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What are the appropriate governance models for e-Infrastructures?
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How can we facilitate access, discovery and sharing of large and diverse sources of scientific data?
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How can we further advance research networks, and adopt and implement new e-Infrastructure services?
Innovation is the common thread throughout the document but special emphasis has been put on the governance issue. The number and size of e-Infrastructures are growing. Are the governance models in use today sufficient to guarantee their future? Who should be the players in the governance model besides the service providers: the governments, the private sector, the user or a combination of these?
The White Paper 2011 also reflects upon the future role and development of research networks, so well established by now that we risk forgetting to think about their future. Another important topic covered is the sound development of Authentication, Authorisation and Accounting policies, which require the adoption of new visions to realise the inter-working and sustainability of the e-Infrastructure ecosystem.
E-Infrastructure energy use and green IT also deserved a chapter, as these are topics on many management agendas. Is cheap energy compatible with green energy?
Supercomputing is not at a stand-still and continues to spearhead innovation. Countries and companies strive to own or build the most powerful supercomputer. But can we go from T-flops to P-flops and can we really and efficiently use such a computing power? Does a software revolution need to take place before supercomputing can make a leap forward?
Services are another part of e-Infrastructures of growing importance. Users might not be interested in e-Infrastructures but rather in the services provided by them. Which services should be delivered and with what quality? Finally, the White Paper addresses the issue of data infrastructures, with a few recommendations for their European setup.
The e-IRG White Paper 2011, especially the recommendations at the end of every chapter, should be taken into consideration by governments, in particular ministries responsible for research, funding agencies and European Commission. It is however also of interest to individual researchers and users of e-Infrastructures as an incentive to let their voices be heard.
You are welcome to visit the e-IRG website and access the e-IRG White Paper 2011. Please note that you will be redirected to a minimal survey page before downloading the document. A summary of comments gathered during the White Paper consultation phase in Spring 2011 is also available on the website.
