In Lviv Ukraine officially signed an agreement to link UARNET, the Ukrainian network of fiber optic electronic communication, to the Polish academic system of communication Pioneer, which is a part of the all-European academic network of electronic communications GRID. In fact, this provides legal grounds for Ukrainian and European institutions to exchange scientific information. Famous Ukrainian scientists have been involved in forming and developing the required technological processes.
“The process to equip the Academy of Sciences with information was launched five years ago; a special program was set up, which is continuing now. Substantial progress has actually been made within its framework,” says academician Pylyp Andon. “What does a scientist need to work comfortably at his worksite? First, there should be a possibility to quickly exchange information with his colleagues from different parts of the world. For this purpose our program creates the needed telecommunication environment, i.e., tools to transmit signal through communication channels and proper computers to access information databases.
“Second, there should be an option to process retrieved information. To do this, we need high-power computers and software. That’s exactly what will be integrated in the network of electronic communication. In other words, it will enable us to get connected to supercomputers, the so-called clusters. This is, in essence, the GRID infrastructure.
“Third, a scientist needs information resources, such as electronic libraries, databases, pertinent websites, and portals. Now these directions have been actively developed in the Academy of Sciences. Today only computer technologies can ensure efficient work in the field of science.”
In 1993 Ukraine received its first connection to the Internet through Lviv via non-switched line of communication. Then an IT laboratory was established, and its initial financing came from various international institutions and organizations, rather than the government. In 1998 the state enterprise UARNET was established, and it meant bringing the Ukrainian technological segment to the new level. At present UARNET and the academic network essentially received recognition of their maturity, as a result of the enterprise’s activity in the past seven years.
In 2004–2008 the Ukrainian Academic Network and UARNET as its operator built a high-speed network of data exchange all over Ukraine. In early 2009 the construction was completed, and the network now covers all oblast centers of Ukraine. It was built with the use of optic fiber technologies, modern routers, communicators, and other technological equipment identical to the one used in GRID.
A meeting of the founders of the Polish Academic Network and Ukrainian representatives in 2004 served as an incentive to unite the Ukrainian and Polish networks.
The Ukrainian network was built using circular technology, which means that its operational reliability is fully guaranteed. All channels have the transmission speed of 10 gigabits per second. This network not only involves the Internet but also offers the possibility of transmitting any data in real time, for example, IP telephony and telecommunications.
GRID is a system of computers which can be located thousands of kilometers away from each other; nevertheless, the entire system works in such a way that all computers in it can solve a designated problem together. The GRID system consists of the three constituents: a computing resource, resources of data storage and special software that synchronizes the entire system, and communication channels. One example of a GRID application is processing experimental data received from the Large Hadron Collider.
The entire project cost Ukrainians UAH 300 million. “You know, the state has the money, taxes are being paid, and it is just important to allocate the money reasonably. The budget committee has been working on it,” says academician Ihor Yukhnovsky, a Ukrainian scientist, public activist and politician. “Regarding the government, which draws up the budget, I must say it has very experienced accountants and very experienced financiers. The fact that top ministers are replaced is one thing, but the core of the Ministry of Finance remains the same, enabling the financial stability of the state.”
Ihor Mryglod, director of the Institute for Condensed Matter Physics, deputy head of the Western Scientific Centre, and a theoretical physicist, has also supported the idea of establishing the academic network: “To answer the question about why theoretical physicists were among the initiators of this hi-tech system, despite having a very remote relationship to experimental science, one should again mention Yukhnovsky, who has always tried to not only teach his students their subject but also change their worldview. There are no unsolvable problems; there are wrong approaches to them. In the case of UARNET, it is a result of a great success in solving a problem.”
Today Ukraine has a possibility of high-speed access to the immense European “knowledge database.” In the future this will enable Ukrainian scientists to directly participate in the evolutional development of the current world technological industry.
