KAUST Ph.D. graduate Tariq Alturkestani won the best paper award at Euro-Par 2020 for his doctoral thesis on overlapping I/O and compute in large-scale scientific computation using multilayered buffering mechanisms. His work re-evaluates the Reverse Time Migration (RTM) method used by geoscientists for oil and gas explorations, utilizing emerging storage technologies. The paper was co-authored with Professor David Keyes and Dr. Hatem Ltaief from the KAUST Extreme Computing Research Center (ECRC). Why it matters: This award highlights KAUST's growing prominence as a hub for Saudi talent and research in supercomputing and extreme computing, particularly in applications relevant to the region's energy sector.
KAUST Professor David Keyes will chair the International Supercomputing Conference (ISC) 2020 in Frankfurt, Germany. Keyes is the director of KAUST's Extreme Computing Research Center and will be the first program chair from a Middle Eastern institution. The conference will address high performance computing (HPC) topics including processing, storage, algorithms, and the convergence of simulation, machine learning, and big data. Why it matters: This highlights KAUST's leadership in HPC within the Middle East, as the university is home to Shaheen II, the region's most powerful supercomputer.
KAUST Professor David Keyes chaired the International Supercomputing Conference (ISC) 2020, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The conference featured a record registration of 4,735 specialists in high-performance computing (HPC). A paper by KAUST Ph.D. students Noha Al-Harthi and Rabab Al-Omairi on computationally simulated acoustic scattering won the 2020 Gauss Award. Why it matters: KAUST's leadership in ISC and the Gauss Award highlight Saudi Arabia's growing contributions to the global HPC community.
KAUST held its second hackathon and third NVIDIA workshop. Attendees listened to lectures from international experts. Participants worked on porting their scientific applications to a GPU accelerator. Why it matters: Such events help build regional expertise in accelerated computing and attract international collaboration.
KAUST participated in the Supercomputing Conference (SC17) in Denver, Colorado, with faculty, staff, and students. The university's Shaheen 2 Cray XC40 System was ranked the 20th fastest globally and the fastest in the Middle East. KAUST's IT department hosted talks featuring David Keyes, Jack Dongarra, Thierry-Laurent, Mootaz Elnozahy, and Jason Roos. Why it matters: KAUST's strong presence at SC17 highlights its commitment to advancing supercomputing capabilities in the Middle East and fostering international collaboration.
KAUST held a research conference on Computational and Statistical Interface to Big Data from March 19-21. The conference covered topics like data representation, visualization, parallel algorithms, and large-scale machine learning. Participants came from institutions including the American University of Sharjah, Aalborg University, and others to exchange ideas. Why it matters: The conference highlights KAUST's focus on promoting big data research and collaboration to address challenges and opportunities in various scientific fields within the Kingdom and globally.
KAUST's 2020 Winter Enrichment Program (WEP) focused on 'Personalized Medicine' with lectures and workshops from international and local speakers. Topics ranged from health management technology to digital health, encompassing various disciplines at KAUST. HRH Dr. Maha Bint Mishari AlSaud and Rene Frydman were among the keynote speakers. Why it matters: The program highlights KAUST's commitment to advancing precision medicine and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration in healthcare innovation within the Kingdom.
KAUST has been awarded the ACM Gordon Bell Prize for Climate Modelling, considered the "Nobel" of high-performance computing, for their work on exascale climate emulators. The winning paper, a collaborative effort with institutions including the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research, addresses the computational and storage demands of high-resolution earth system models. The KAUST team included Sameh Abdulah, Marc G. Genton, David E. Keyes, and others. Why it matters: This is the first time an institution in the Middle East has won the prize, highlighting KAUST's leadership in high-performance computing and climate research in the region.