Notes on emerging systems:

The tracking of emerging systems and technologies is already a key
activity of the CRPC in general and NPAC in particular.  We maintain an
internal database of HPCC hardware systems and have built a prototype
survey as part of the National HPCC Software Exchange (NHSE) system
available on the World Wide Web.

We have found it is important to our indsutrial partners to collect and
collate information on a braod base of HPCC platforms and software
technologies.  In general it is often best to develop a parallel
application for a client using the best available technology worldwide,
and to this end NPAC and CRPC strive to keep abreast of developments. 
Information is collected from: personal contacts with vendors and
developers; attendance at conferences and meetings; constant review of
the HPCC systems and applications literature; review on the World Wide
Web and newsgroups systems.  NPAC is also able to gain early access to
various software and hardware systems for early evaluation and is able
to make quantitative comparisons between systems.  Through its CRPC
partners and involvment in the ParkBench benchmarking activity, we are
also able to draw on up to date performance data and furthermore can
evaluate this in a real applications context.

NPAC and CRPC are able to package this information in whatever format
would be best suited to the CTA teams.  We envisage the Emerging systems
team providing this information in two prnicipal forms.  The first form
would be as a general review (with periodic updates) of selected HPCC
hardware and software technologies  with the perspective of which
applications areas these technologies are especially suited to.
The second format would be customised reviews of the hardware and
software technologies most suited to particular application areas - the
CTA's in fact.  Each CTA could have a customised review of HPCC hardware
and software technologies most suited to supporting it.

Senior staff would be required to coordinate the writing of these
reports, although sections and information would be drawn upon from
across the CTA teams and CRPC staff.  The staff required for this would
need extensive interaction with the CTA teams and would need to travel
to gather thsi information as well as to present the resuklts, but would
be best based at their home institutions.

We envisage two senior staff allocated (each half time perhaps) to this
effort, one at the lead and one at the backup site.  Total cost would
therefore be between $100 and $200k depending upon travel budget
requirements.