CybersecurityMaking the Internet Faster, More Secure
A collaborative effort aims to create a nationwide research infrastructure that will enable the computer science and networking community to develop and test novel architectures that could yield a faster, more secure internet. Dubbed “FABRIC,” the four-year, $20 million project is intended to support exploratory research, at scale, in computer networking, distributed computing systems, and next-generation applications.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding a collaborative effort to create a nationwide research infrastructure that will enable the computer science and networking community to develop and test novel architectures that could yield a faster, more secure internet. Dubbed “FABRIC,” the four-year, $20 million project is intended to support exploratory research, at scale, in computer networking, distributed computing systems, and next-generation applications. The project was chosen following an extremely competitive process and is funded through a new initiative, Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure, that is one of NSF’s 10 Big Ideas.
“These awards represent the first in NSF’s agency-wide effort to support the mid-range infrastructure that will be invaluable to strengthening the U.S. scientific research enterprise,” said Jim Ulvestad, NSF’s chief officer for research facilities.
Today’s internet was not designed for the massive data sets, machine learning tools, advanced sensors, and internet of Things devices that have become central to many research and business endeavors. FABRIC will give computer scientists a platform to test networking and cybersecurity solutions that can take advantage of new tools.
“FABRIC is not just targeted toward computer science research,” noted Inder Monga, Executive Director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Sciences Network (ESnet) and one of five principal investigators on the project. “We are building a large-scale, dedicated network testbed with integrated computing and storage to help domain researchers create and test new application workflows optimized for handling the data deluge and accelerating scientific discovery. This unique collaboration between DOE and NSF facilities has the potential to significantly impact U.S. scientific research and economic competitiveness.”
“We look forward to FABRIC enabling researchers throughout the nation to develop and test new networking technologies and capabilities,” said Erwin Gianchandani, acting assistant director for computer and information science and engineering at the National Science Foundation. “This project will lead to novel paradigms for next-generation networks and services, giving rise to future applications advancing science and the economy.”
