Issue 121 December 2011/January 2012 CONTENTS
Laboratory and Statistical Science News and products
Review Felix Grant reviews OriginLab 8.6 Environmental issues
Siân Harris explores the use of informatics when applied to monitoring environmental conditions
Cover feature: Carbon output Felix Grant looks at how statistical software is used to measure and record carbon emissions
High-Performance Computing News and products
In the cloud
Has HPC embraced the opportunity that cloud computing presents? Gillian Law investigates
Up to the task
To make an HPC set-up effi cient, many turn to workload management software, as Paul Schreier discovers
Modelling and Engineering News and Products
Bio boom
Matthew Peach on the use of biomedical modelling software in diagnosis, treatment and product design
Circuit training
Paul Schreier on the use of 3D physics-based models in circuit design Resources
Suppliers’ Directory Inside View
Kimmo Koski on an EU project that aims to tackle the data deluge
EDITORIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM Editor Beth Sharp
editor.scw@
europascience.com
Specialist Reporters Felix Grant, Paul Schreier Circulation/readership enquiries Pete Vine
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CORPORATE TEAM Chairman and Publisher Dr Tom Wilkie Publishing Director Warren Clark Web
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www.scientific-computing.com/subscribe DECEMBER 2011/JANUARY 2012 3
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12 8 Environmental care
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Environmental concerns continue to push themselves into the news agenda, and scientifi c research is at the heart of understanding causes and fi nding solutions to environment-related issues. In this issue, we have two features linked to this theme. First, Siân Harris looks at how
informatics software is used to monitor – among other things – the quality of our water supply, by constantly taking sample measurements and checking them against tightly controlled parameters (see page 8). Later, Felix Grant explores another aspect of the same topic by looking at carbon emissions, and how statistical software is applied in investigating their impact on the environment (see page 12). In our HPC section, Gillian Law
explores the topic of cloud computing (page 20), which has long been touted as an affordable option for those seeking the power of HPC, while Paul Schreier explores the use of workload management software in getting the best out of any HPC set-up. Finally, within modelling and
engineering, we look at how software is helping medical research (page 20) and electronic circuit design (page 34), showcasing the diverse industries where computing and scientifi c research meet.
Warren Clark Acting editor
Cover montage Dan Taylor
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