Stories from the Circle

OARnet’s rapid growth continues with major network upgrades

The Ohio Academic Resources Network (OARnet), which provides technology solutions to education, government, and health care communities in Ohio, was one of five R&E Networks in the nation to initiate a 400G connection to Internet2 by the end of 2021…

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OneNet extends supercomputing resources to small universities

Thanks to new connections to OneNet’s research network, smaller universities such as the University of Science & Arts in Chickasha, Okla., now have access to supercomputing resources across the state, allowing for quicker computation of data and new opportunities for..

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OSHEAN closes broadband gap for Providence’s most vulnerable

The pandemic exposed just how broadband access really is in today’s world. When lockdowns forced school districts to go remote and the term “distance learning” leapt from education jargon to commonplace and the enormity of the broadband access gap was..

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QuaNeCQT project aims to connect quantum computers to a quantum Internet

The National Science Foundation recently awarded $5 million through a two-year cooperative agreement to a multi-institutional team for the Quantum Networks to Connect Quantum Technology (QuaNeCQT) Project (NSF Award #2134891). The research team includes Edo Waks (PI, UMD), Norbert Linke..

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Broadband for All: GoldenStateNet building a new California middle-mile network

In July 2021, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the historic “Broadband for All” Act establishing a $6 billion effort to deploy fast, affordable Internet services for residents, businesses, and community anchor institutions. This is the largest-ever investment by the state..

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UETN expansion benefits Utah during ongoing pandemic

The Utah Education and Telehealth Network (UETN), based at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, provides state-of-the-art broadband infrastructure and other services to schools, colleges, libraries, and health care communities throughout the state. “Despite the challenges of a..

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LONI helps researchers find solutions to feed, power the planet

Since its conception, the Louisiana Optical Network Infrastructure (LONI) has been the provider of high-performance computing (HPC) resources to researchers to tackle challenging problems in science and engineering with the help of state-of-the-art computing technologies. Over the last few years,..

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KINBER building more community connections through libraries

The Keystone Initiative for Network Based Education and Research (KINBER) continues to grow its work in serving unserved and underserved communities across Pennsylvania. The nonprofit is particularly excited to work with the Office of Commonwealth Libraries to serve as the..

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Arkansas Research Platform to boost data-science collaboration

Arkansas universities are building greater research collaboration through the Arkansas Research Platform (ARP) implementation. ARP is a private research cloud that allows researchers in Arkansas to access a set of shared cyberinfrastructure resources to improve data science collaboration and output…

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Merit Network’s commitment to schools stayed strong in 2021

Michigan’s Merit Network saw a return to its research and education roots in 2021. Implications of the digital divide, increased bandwidth needs, evolving security concerns, and a challenging cybersecurity talent pipeline were exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic. Merit’s relationship with..

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Link Oregon finding partners during Broadband Investment Era

Entering the third year of the pandemic, Link Oregon continues to address the digital divide in practical ways by expanding access to education, health care, remote work, and innovation across the state. Over the past year, the organization has increasingly..

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How a new approach changed KanREN’s vision for the future

Change. From the long-lasting effects of the pandemic on remote accessibility to the enactment of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), change will continue to impact research and education (R&E) networks for many years. Differentiating programs and finding services..

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Edge and IEEE accelerate research collaboration through shared data platform

Edge, a non-profit research and education network and technology partner based in New Jersey, has joined forces with IEEE to address the data needs of the growing technical community. IEEE, the world’s largest technical professional association advancing technology for humanity,..

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MCNC Vital Cyber defends North Carolina’s greatest assets

Cyber threats are all around us and becoming more sophisticated every day, which means our defenses have to be quicker, smarter, and more coordinated. There have been far too many headlines involving phishing or ransomware attacks affecting big companies and..

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WINS steps up to challenges of COVID and outreach in underserved and underrepresented groups

“I feel lucky to have participated in this complex and interesting group project. The fellow engineers I met will hopefully become lifelong colleagues.” – Mary Bull During the week of November 14th, 2021, six women participated in the Women in..

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Networkmaine helps boost Wi-Fi in rural communities through projectConnect

Networkmaine and the Maine State Library partnered with the Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (ITDRC) over the last year to boost connectivity at 71 Maine locations, expanding and upgrading Wi-Fi technology at libraries, parks, schools, community centers, town halls, and..

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Pacific Research Platform continues to exceed expectations

When COVID shut down the country, many homes experienced inadequate Internet for work, school, and entertainment needs. For researchers linked to the Pacific Research Platform (PRP), supported by the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC) and its own..

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I-Light stays attuned to their community’s needs

As Indiana’s high-speed research and education network, the I-Light network connects its 40+ member institutions seamlessly to each other as well as to the Indiana GigaPOP, which also gives them access to national and international R&E networks. It’s a big job that..

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ICN’s middle-mile infrastructure helps facilitate broadband to unserved communities

Since 2013, the Illinois Century Network (ICN) has provided open-access, middle-mile infrastructure facilitating broadband to unserved and underserved homes, businesses, and community anchor institutions in Illinois. Broadband delivered to a home, business, or community anchor institution is typically provided by..

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NYSERNet develops affordable security solution for vulnerability scanning

Any security professional will tell you the importance of performing vulnerability scans against your network. These scans assess computers, systems, and networks to help identify known weaknesses that could be exploited. This seems easy enough; however, to really mimic how..

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MDREN pilots private wireless network at University of Maryland

Colleges and universities crave and require connection. Students must be able to complete research, Zoom into classes and collaborate with fellow students, even when those students are across campus or working from a remote location. The University System of Maryland..

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Connecting rural libraries in Texas is a duty for LEARN

Ten rural libraries in Texas are now benefiting from LEARN connectivity as part of a project with the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC). LEARN worked with several partners to provide these libraries with up to 1G connectivity to..

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EPOC provides personalized technology support for science communities

Scientific progress is built on top of a complex system of hardware, software, networks, and well-defined processes to translate innovative ideas into research outcomes. When components of this finely-tuned pipeline break down, either due to broken parts or the inability..

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MREN: Building next-gen networks for data intensive science

Each year, with its international, national and regional partners, the Metropolitan Research and Education Network (MREN) collaborates with SCinet to create a national testbed with international extensions for the annual ACM/IEEE International Supercomputing Conference (SC21) for high performance computing, networking,..

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CEN provides value one connection at a time

The Connecticut Education Network (CEN) provides more than a network of vital infrastructure and digital connectivity. It is a network of people and organizations extending into every corner of Connecticut, connecting community anchor institutions that serve all citizens. CEN’s 21st..

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One node’s journey through Great Plains Network

The spirit of collaboration continues among the Great Plains Network members with the latest National Science Foundation Campus Cyberinfrastructure (CC*) Program award (Award #2018766, CC* Compute: GP-ARGO: The Great Plains Augmented Regional Gateway to the Open Science Grid). The name..

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ESnet: Sharing research should be as easy as turning on a faucet

Research and Education (R&E) networks form the underlying “conduit system” for research data movement. Unlike plumbing that directs water, the act of sharing data sets with remote collaborators often involves a deep understanding of the proper hardware, software, and configuration..

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NetSage helps R&E networks see patterns of behavior

Scientific investigation is highly collaborative and requires the ability to seamlessly share data between institutions to enable scientific discovery. However, effective data sharing (especially for large data sets) can be challenging, and it is still not uncommon for researchers to..

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Southern Crossroads celebrates 25 years of R&E connectivity

SoX has been serving the research and education networking needs of the Southeastern region of the United States since 1997. SoX participants over the years have included universities, state networks, and research labs from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina,..

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