3D Data Visualization Module 1.3: Computational Science
Summary
TLDRThis script explores the evolution of scientific research, highlighting the shift from experimental and theoretical science to computational science as a third pillar. It discusses the use of supercomputers to simulate phenomena unobservable through traditional means, such as black holes, earthquakes, and virus dynamics. The script also touches on the application of high-performance computing in personalized medicine, political science, and plant breeding, emphasizing the growing importance of computational data sets and visualization in advancing scientific understanding.
Takeaways
- 🔬 Scientists systematically gather evidence to test hypotheses and gain understanding of natural phenomena.
- 👀 Some evidence is easily observable, such as the reaction between vinegar and baking soda, while other evidence requires technological assistance like microscopes and telescopes.
- 🌌 There are challenges in observing phenomena that are too far, too small, blocked from view, or move at extreme speeds or slowness.
- 🧪 Experimental science involves intentionally causing or observing reactions under various conditions, often on a large scale with significant resources.
- 📚 Theoretical science, once limited by the inability to directly measure certain phenomena, has been revolutionized by the advent of powerful computers.
- 💻 Computational science, or the use of computer simulations, has become the third pillar of modern science alongside experimental and theoretical science.
- 🌌 Astrophysics was one of the first fields to utilize supercomputers to solve complex equations and simulate phenomena like black holes.
- 🌍 Geophysics has also benefited from high-performance computing (HPC), using real measurements to simulate events like earthquakes and weather patterns.
- 🦠 Biophysics researchers use computational tools to study the mechanics of viruses at the atomic level, which is beyond the capabilities of optical microscopes.
- 💊 High-performance computing is now being used to develop personalized medicine, analyze political districting for fairness, and simulate future climate scenarios for agriculture.
- 🚀 The computational datasets available today offer deep insights into scientific questions that were previously unanswerable by physical means.
- 📉 Visualization is a key method for analyzing and educating with the vast amounts of data produced by HPC, as illustrated by the history and work of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).
- 🌌 The detection of gravitational waves by LIGO in 2015 validated decades of computational research and marked a significant milestone in the field of computational astrophysics.
Q & A
What is the primary role of a scientist according to the script?
-A scientist's primary role is to systematically gather evidence to test a hypothesis and gain understanding of various phenomena.
How do scientists gather evidence for phenomena that are observable directly?
-Scientists can gather evidence for directly observable phenomena by watching things change in front of their eyes, such as the reaction when vinegar is added to baking soda.
What technological inventions have been made to assist scientists in observing phenomena that are not easily visible?
-Microscopes and telescopes are technological inventions that help scientists observe very small and very large phenomena, respectively.
What are some examples of phenomena that are difficult to observe directly?
-Examples of difficult-to-observe phenomena include things that are too far away (like galaxies), too small (like atoms), blocked from view (like the center of the sun), move too fast (like light), or move too slow (like the cosmos).
What is experimental science and how is it conducted?
-Experimental science is a method where scientists intentionally cause a reaction or identify a naturally occurring reaction and repeatedly observe it under different conditions, often requiring large-scale equipment and numerous researchers.
What is theoretical science and how does it differ from experimental science?
-Theoretical science involves using the mind as a laboratory to explore scientific questions that cannot be directly measured through experimentation. It differs from experimental science by relying on mathematical models and thought experiments rather than physical observations or experiments.
How has the rise of powerful computers changed scientific research?
-The rise of powerful computers has enabled the creation of virtual laboratories with computer code that can simulate scientific events impossible to observe in the real world, thus adding computational science as a third pillar alongside experimental and theoretical science.
What was one of the first non-military applications for supercomputers mentioned in the script?
-One of the first non-military applications for supercomputers was solving Einstein's equations of general relativity, which are mathematically complex but provide insights into how black holes work.
How did the geophysics community contribute to the field of high-performance computing (HPC)?
-The geophysics community contributed to HPC by studying earthquakes, the climate, and performing predictive simulations of extreme weather events, feeding supercomputer simulations with real measurements from earth-based sensors.
What is an example of how supercomputers are used in biophysics research?
-In biophysics research, supercomputers are used as computational microscopes to observe how viruses function on a mechanical level at the resolution of individual atoms, which would be too small and fast to observe through an optical microscope.
How is high-performance computing (HPC) being utilized in modern scientific research?
-HPC is being used to prescribe genetically customized medicine, calculate voting district maps for political science, and breed virtual crops under future climate scenarios in plant science, among other applications.
What is the significance of the computational simulation of a volcano on Venus mentioned in the script?
-The significance of the computational simulation of a volcano on Venus is that it had to be an illustration guided by a scientist due to the lack of an appropriate computer simulation of a volcanic eruption, highlighting the limitations and advancements in computational science.
What was the outcome of the early experiment conducted by NCSA astrophysicists on black holes?
-The early experiment conducted by NCSA astrophysicists on black holes led to the discovery that they would cause an aberration in SpaceTime called a gravitational wave, which was later detected by the LIGO instrument in 2015, validating the computational scientists' work.
Outlines
🔬 The Evolution of Scientific Research
This paragraph delves into the nature of scientific inquiry, emphasizing the role of evidence in testing hypotheses. It contrasts the ease of gathering evidence through direct observation with the necessity of technological aids like microscopes and telescopes for studying phenomena beyond the naked eye. The paragraph then explores the challenges of observing phenomena that are either too distant, small, obscured, or fast-paced, leading to the discussion of theoretical science as a domain for investigating such elusive subjects. It highlights the advent of computational science as a transformative 'third pillar' of modern science, complementing experimental and theoretical approaches. The narrative progresses through the historical development of high-performance computing (HPC), illustrating its applications in astrophysics, geophysics, and biophysics, and how it enables the study of phenomena that are otherwise intractable. The paragraph concludes by showcasing current and future applications of HPC in diverse scientific fields, emphasizing its growing importance in advancing scientific knowledge.
🌐 The Power of Computational Simulations
Paragraph 2 focuses on the limitations of modern computers in simulating complex scientific phenomena and the role of computational data sets in providing insights into questions unanswerable by traditional experimentation or observation. It discusses how visualization has become a critical tool for analyzing and educating with computational data. The paragraph recounts the story of Larry Smarr, an American computational astrophysicist, who played a pivotal role in establishing the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). It highlights a significant early experiment at NCSA where astrophysicists simulated black hole collisions and predicted the existence of gravitational waves. The narrative culminates in the real-world detection of gravitational waves by LIGO in 2015, validating the computational predictions made decades earlier. This paragraph underscores the significance of computational simulations in advancing our understanding of the universe and the pivotal role of high-performance computing in scientific discovery.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Scientist
💡Hypothesis
💡Microscopes
💡Telescopes
💡Theoretical Science
💡Experimental Science
💡High-Performance Computing (HPC)
💡General Relativity
💡Gravitational Waves
💡Visualization
💡National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA)
Highlights
Scientists systematically gather evidence to test hypotheses for understanding.
Evidence gathering can be direct observation or require technology like microscopes and telescopes.
Observing phenomena that are not directly visible presents challenges such as distant galaxies or subatomic particles.
Experimental science involves intentionally causing or observing reactions under various conditions.
Large-scale experimental science often requires expensive equipment and extensive collaboration.
Theoretical science is conducted by scientists like Einstein and Hawking, relying on mental models and thought experiments.
Computational science has emerged as a third pillar of modern science, alongside experimental and theoretical science.
Supercomputers have been used to solve complex equations, such as Einstein's general relativity.
Astrophysics and geophysics have significantly contributed to the growth of high-performance computing (HPC).
HPC simulations can predict natural phenomena like hurricanes based on real measurements.
Biophysics researchers use computational tools to study virus dynamics at an atomic level.
HPC is being used for personalized medicine, political analysis, and virtual crop breeding under future climate scenarios.
Computational data sets provide insights into scientific questions unattainable by physical means.
Visualization is a key method for analyzing and educating with computational data.
Larry Smarr's initiative led to the creation of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).
Early NCSA research included analyzing the effects of black hole collisions and predicting gravitational waves.
The detection of gravitational waves by LIGO in 2015 validated decades of computational science work.
Transcripts
a scientist is someone who
systematically gathers evidence to test
a hypothesis to gain
understanding sometimes scientists can
easily gather evidence simply by
watching things change in front of their
eyes if I wanted evidence about what
happens when you add vinegar to baking
soda I can just put the two together and
watch the way they
change but some evidence is hard to
gather without technology
we have invented microscopes to help us
watch how very tiny things interact and
we've invented telescopes so that we can
watch how very large things interact but
what if we're trying to observe
something we can't see some things are
too far away like galaxies some things
are too small like atoms some things are
blocked from view like the center of the
sun some things move too fast like light
and some things move too slow like the
cosmos
how can we gather evidence to study all
of these
things typically when we think of
science we think of experimental science
this is the type of science where we
intentionally cause a reaction or
identify a reaction that's happening
naturally and repeatedly observe it
under different conditions these days
some of the most famous experimental
science is conducted on massive scales
requiring expensive equipment and
thousands of researchers we commonly
hear about the Large Hadron Collider and
the Hubble Space Telescope experimental
science is only one method to do
scientific research though until
recently all of the scientific questions
we had that we couldn't directly measure
through experimentation were relegated
to an area of science called theoretical
science many of the most famous
scientists like Albert Einstein and
Steven Hawking are the theoretical
scientists for a theoretical scientist
their laboratory is their mind and it
can be difficult for other people to see
their experiments but in the past
several decades thanks to the rise of
powerful computers scientific research
has changed dramatically we are now able
to create virtual Laboratories with
computer code that can simulate
scientific events that are impossible to
observe in the real world without having
the information trapped in the mind of a
great philosopher this is why many
people refer to comput scientific
research as the third pillar of modern
science alongside the other two pillars
of experimental and theoretical science
one of the first non-military
applications for supercomputers was
solving Einstein's equations of general
relativity these equations are
mathematically laborious to solve but
help provide insight into how black
holes work from there the astrophysics
Community contributed quite a lot to the
growth of the field of high performance
Computing or HPC showing scient ists
many phenomena that they couldn't
observe through
telescopes soon the geophysics community
joined the HPC field studying
earthquakes the climate and doing
predictive simulation of extreme weather
events while astrophysics research
largely relied on Purely mathematical
data geophysics research was able to
feed supercomputer simulations with real
measurements from seismometers
thermometers barometers and other
earth-based
sensors this simulation of Hurricane
Katrina was based on measured data of
the conditions in the Atlantic Ocean it
was churning on a supercomputer at the
national Center for atmospheric research
at the same time the hurricane was
actually happening this simulation was
actually racing the real storm to
anticipate the most likely path and
power of the hurricane to prepare an
emergency response as supercomputers got
more powerful they began to be useful to
biophysics researchers as well one of
the ways these researchers use these
computational microscopes is to observe
how viruses like h HIV HPV polio and
influenza function on a mechanical level
at the resolution of individual atoms
these Dynamics would be impossibly small
and fast to observe through an optical
microscope today high performance
Computing is experiencing another
Renaissance supercomputers are being
used to prescribe genetically customized
medicine to individual patients
political scientists can calculate a set
of all possible voting district maps to
help identif if y unfair partisan Jerry
mandering and plant scientists are
breeding virtual crops under conditions
of elevated carbon dioxide and limited
water future climate scenarios that
don't currently exist on this planet but
which could dramatically affect
Humanity's ability to feed itself these
new Sciences have only recently been
able to leverage HPC resources as
computers grow more powerful and the HPC
industry learns from experience for
instance simulating plant growth
requires an understanding of climate
plant Anatomy genetics and the physics
of atoms all phenomena that happen at
vastly different scales of space and
time and all which require expertise
from different kinds of
scientists often when trying to tell a
science story we will encounter science
that is constrained by even the most
modern
computers this volcano on the surface of
Venus had to be an illustration Guided
by the advice of a scientist because no
computer simulation of an appropriate
volcanic eruption existed and this blast
of solar plasma colliding with the
Earth's magnetic field was so enormous
that the scientists couldn't afford to
keep all of the data in three dimensions
which is why we transition to a 2d
extraction from the data
instead the computational data sets that
are available today provide unparalleled
insight into a wide variety of
scientific questions that could never be
addressed by physical experimentation or
observation and as the field of high
performance Computing continues to
advance we will see more computational
dat data sets in every corner of the
public and private sectors and one of
the best ways to analyze and educate
with this data is through
visualization fun fact in the 1980s an
American computational astrophysicist
named Larry smar was tired of traveling
to Germany to do all of his
computational research so he convinced
the United States government to fund
four new super computer centers
including one at his home institution in
Illinois that's the origin of the
national Center for supercomputing
applications or NCSA where we create our
visualizations one experiment the early
NCSA astrophysicists ran was to analyze
the effect of what would happen when
black holes Collide they discovered that
they would cause an aberration in
SpaceTime called a gravitational wave
that would travel immense distance and
they theorized that Earth was regularly
being shaken by gravitational waves in
2015 an instrument called ligo that was
built to detect gravitational waves was
turned on and first observed these waves
in the real world thereby validating the
work of those computational scientists
from 30 years
earlier
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