Nice post about open source software on another list that I thought to cross post here :-)<br><br>Regards Rolnad<br><br>---------- Forwarded message ----------<br><span class="gmail_quote">From: <b class="gmail_sendername">
<a href="mailto:stephen@melbpc.org.au">stephen@melbpc.org.au</a></b> <<a href="mailto:stephen@melbpc.org.au">stephen@melbpc.org.au</a>><br>Date: 07-Mar-2007 01:10<br>Subject: [Offtopic] The Australian Synchrotron<br>
<br></span>The Australian Synchrotron<br><br><<a href="http://www.aarnet.edu.au/publications/aarnews/AARNews_07_03.pdf">http://www.aarnet.edu.au/publications/aarnews/AARNews_07_03.pdf</a>><br><br>"The Australian Synchrotron, nearing completion, has been funded by the
<br>largest ever national collaboration in Australian science history, with<br>almost every university, state government and research organisation in<br>Australia and New Zealand contributing. In its energy range and<br>capabilities it will be comparable to any similar facility in the world.
<br><br>Synchrotrons can be used for a myriad of research activities. Essentially<br>they provide extremely accurate maps of minute particles.<br><br>The Australian Synchrotron accelerates electrons in a linear accelerator
<br>(or 'linac') to an energy of 10 Million electron volts and then boosts<br>them to 3 Giga electron volts, where they are stored in vacuum vessels in<br>a doughnut-shaped 'storage ring' almost the size of the Melbourne Cricket
<br>Ground playing surface in diameter.<br><br>The electrons are travelling near light speed and are bent around a circle<br>using huge electromagnets. Every time they are bent, they 'complain' with<br>showers of photons (light) across a broad spectrum – infra red to x-ray.
<br><br>These energetic photons form narrow beams of light which are then<br>directed down hollow tubes where researchers in many fields manipulate and<br>select the wavelength they want, and shine the light beams on<br>experimental samples – thus generating extraordinarily detailed and
<br>accurate maps at the molecular and atomic level of the materials they are<br>working with.<br><br>The experimenters call the photon delivery system "beamlines" and their<br>experimental areas "hutches" — so called because the first such areas
<br>looked like rabbits hutches. These days they are much more sophisticated.<br><br>The computing hardware used on the Australian Synchrotron is a mixture of<br>commercial off-the-shelf components, server class PC hardware and
<br>specialist data acquisition and signal conditioning hardware.<br><br>The software is based on an international collaboration called "EPICS"<br>standing for Experimental Physics and Industrial Control Systems.<br><br>Most synchrotron facilities use EPICS, and all those that do contribute
<br>to it – including the Australian synchrotron. It is a powerful<br>collaboration in the spirit of both scientific research and the success<br>of other collaborations such as the Linux operating system.<br><br>The Australian Synchrotron also uses Linux in various forms for its real-
<br>time data collection, its data storage and its operator interfaces. There<br>are about 300 computers at the facility, ranging from embedded PCs with<br>Debian Linux, server class machines running a real-time Linux, ARM
<br>processors running Linux and CENTOS and REDHAT Linux servers and<br>workstations.<br><br>Connectivity to AARNet, the GRID and remote research networks is<br>currently being looked at, and research is also being performed into
<br>virtual beamlines to be used for remote collaboration and training<br>purposes. <snip><br><br>There are two sectors in which Australian Synchrotron team members work:<br>the Accelerator systems and the Beamlines. They are all making extensive
<br>use of open source software in the production of the required software<br>components, and by doing so have been able to produce the required amount<br>of functionality in both record time and with smaller teams than has ever
<br>been achieved before — worldwide!<br><br>The Team has taken EPICS software, which has existed and evolved for many<br>years, and applied it to modern hardware, operating systems and devices.<br><br>This approach has meant that many older and more conventional signal
<br>processing techniques co-exist in harmony with newer techniques and<br>are "held" together with a common code base and communications protocols.<br><br>Also, since the team members knew the software well – and being open
<br>source helped — they were able to guide the contractors' staff, train<br>together and deliver quality systems that integrated, not only at the<br>plant level, but also at the source code level.<br><br>In fact, one of the major achievements of the team is the ability to
<br>compile and release any version of source code for all systems in an<br>automated fashion. This level of control and discipline over the software<br>for such a complex machine is extremely unusual in the community and
<br>bug-fixing unique it its class. It is one of the factors that has enabled<br>the commissioning of the facility to move faster than any comparable<br>facility in the world.<br><br>The team has enjoyed an ongoing relationship with the rest of the EPICS
<br>and synchrotron community. We regularly attend the technical conferences<br>(both on-line and in person) and contribute all of the source code<br>developed here back to the scientific community.<br><br>The team is made up of local engineers and scientists who have worked in
<br>a variety of large plants and laboratories – from water supply,<br>electrical power, chemical plant, long range radar, defence, industrial<br>research, railways, general IT and a host of infrastructure projects.<br>There are 2 engineers with huge breadth and depth of experience and
<br>working on this project has been a career highlight for us all."<br><br>-- <br>Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College<br><a href="http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au">http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au
</a><br><br>"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret Mead