by Dr Sarah Beecroft | Pawsey Lifescience Applications Specialist
This July, my colleague Maciej Cytowski and I were given a remarkable opportunity to teach and mentor students at the week-long International High-Performance Computing (HPC) Summer School in Kobe, Japan, hosted by RIKEN. This annual gathering united around 85 students and mentors from Europe, the US, Australia, and Africa, fostering a diverse blend of ideas, cultures, and cutting-edge research.
Embracing Global Diversity
The richness of the participants’ backgrounds was a standout feature of the school. Each participant brought a distinct viewpoint shaped by their professional journey and personal encounters. This year, Pawsey proudly sponsored nine Australian students, enabling them to immerse themselves in this dynamic international community that covered all domains of HPC-powered research.
Nurturing Through Teaching and Mentoring
We were busy delivering sessions on a range of HPC topics, sharing insights on career paths, software containers, HPC challenges, and more. It’s truly rewarding to help students grow both in their learning and professionally. Plus, you always end up picking up something new yourself along the way. The students really dove into the packed 12-hour days and even took on a coding challenge once the scheduled activities wrapped up.
Kobe and RIKEN
Kobe, nestled between Osaka Bay and Mount Rokkō, provided an ideal setting for this intensive week of learning. RIKEN, the hosting institution, stands as a research powerhouse in computational science. We were lucky to enjoy panoramic views of the Kobe harbour all week before heading up to RokkōSan Silence Resort for the conference dinner. The foggy weather only added to the beauty of this mountainside setting. On the last day, we were treated to a tour of the RIKEN supercomputer Fugaku. Fugaku was the fastest supercomputer in the world until 2020. It’s hard to appreciate the size of this impressive facility unless you’ve been there- I’ve seen nothing like it in Australia!
Take-home
Being part of the International HPC Summer School helped us connect with researchers and HPC practitioners from around the world, expanding our networks and giving us fresh perspectives. It highlighted the importance of global collaboration and the value of diverse viewpoints in driving computational science forward.
We’re excited to see where these talented students go next. The 2025 Summer School planning is already underway. Check out the IHPCSS website for more information as we get closer to next year’s school.
You can read about the students experience on this testimonial from one of the participants from the Australia delegation here: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7221025544987926529/
