Adventures in Supercomputing Challenge begins today at Laboratory

Poster session at Los Alamos Research Park touts student research projects

More than 200 high-school students from throughout New Mexico are at Los Alamos today and Tuesday for the 14th annual New Mexico Adventures in Supercomputing Challenge Expo and awards ceremony.

The goal of the year-long event is to increase knowledge of science and computing; expose students and teachers to computers and applied mathematics; and instill enthusiasm for science in middle- and high-school students, their families and communities. Any New Mexico high-school or middle-school student is eligible to enter the Adventures in Supercomputing Challenge.

Laboratory personnel can visit Room 203 of the Los Alamos Research Park this afternoon to view poster displays that describe the students' computing projects, according to David Kratzer of High Performance Computing Systems (CCN-7) and Eric Ovaska of Enterprise Support and Computer Education (IM-2), Laboratory coordinators of the challenge.

Earlier today, participating students are presenting their projects and then will take part in tours, talks and demonstrations with Laboratory technical staff members.

Student projects will be recognized during an awards ceremony from 9 to 11 a.m., on Tuesday in the Physics Building Auditorium at Technical Area 3.

The Supercomputing Challenge was conceived in 1990 by former Laboratory Director Sig Hecker and Tom Thornhill, then president of New Mexico Technet Inc., a nonprofit company that in 1985 set up a computer network to link the state's national laboratories, universities, state government and some private companies. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and John Rollwagen, then chairman and chief executive officer of Cray Research Inc., added their support.

In 2002 the Supercomputing Challenge merged with the former Adventures in Supercomputing program to become the New Mexico Adventures in Supercomputing Challenge, or AiS Challenge.

More information on the New Mexico Adventures in Supercomputing Challenge, including a list of student projects, can be found at http://www.challenge.nm.org/ online.

-- Steve Sandoval

Other Headlines