Pricing and Services
Working with HPCBio
HPCBio can help you increase your research productivity in several ways
Planning your experiments
If you are planning a new project, we can participate in the experimental design and make sure that the data that you will collect will allow you to efficiently answer the scientific questions that you are addressing. If you are entrusting your high-throughput experiments to other units of the Carver Biotechnology Center (e.g. the sequencing or functional genomics units), we will work closely with them to pick the optimal technology and experimental approaches for your project.
Analyzing your data
Once you have your experimental data in hand, we can perform a custom analysis using a mutually agreed strategy. We have extensive experience working with large sequence and hybridization-based datasets, and we have available a large palette of both public domain and proprietary software. Our fees are based on the volume of data to process, the estimated time required to analyze them, and the complexity of the project. They are calculated on a cost recovery basis; we do not make any profit working for you.
Training
HPCBio organizes tutorials and workshops for students and faculty to learn how to take advantage of the computational resources offered on campus and elsewhere, and how to analyze their data using the latest bioinformatics techniques. A Web-based track is offered for casual users and a command-line track for those wishing to do more advanced work.
Consulting
HPCBio scientists are available for individual consulting when needed. This could include e.g. providing help in using specific tools or workflows, small targeted tutorials for your research group, designing an optimal analytical workflow that you would implement yourself, etc. Consulting is charged by the hour, please inquire about our availability.
All work performed by HPCBio should be acknowledged in scholarly publications, posters, and presentations. Proper recognition allows us to measure the impact of our work and supports our initiatives in obtaining sponsored funding. In addition, any personnel who make a substantial intellectual or experimental contribution are deserving of further recognition as co-author.
Partners
ROY J. CARVER BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER
The Biotechnology Center through its core laboratories in genomics and proteomics provides a state of the art research infrastructure to investigators both on and off campus. Its research facilities consist of the Transgenic Mouse Facility, Proteomics Center and the W. M. Keck Center for Comparative and Functional Genomics. The Proteomics Center is composed of four units involved in protein and cell characterization: Flow Cytometry Facility, Immunological Resource Center, Carver Metabolomics Center, and Protein Sciences Facility. The W.M. Keck Center is subdivided into three units by their research focus: High-Throughput Sequencing and Genotyping, Functional Genomics, and Bioinformatics (now integrated into HPCBio). We provide genomic and proteomic research services to over 221 principal investigators on campus representing 6 colleges and 38 departments as well as numerous off-campus projects. In addition, our Career Services assists graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in career placement.
CARL R. WOESE INSTITUTE FOR GENOMIC BIOLOGY
The Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB) is dedicated to transformative research in Agriculture, Human Health, the Environment, and Energy Use and Production. The mission of the IGB, to advance life sciences research and stimulate bioeconomic development in the state of Illinois, is fulfilled in a number of ways, including pioneering research in bioenergy, critical climate change studies, and promising work in regenerative medicine, drug development, and understanding cancer at the cellular level.
Research at the IGB falls under one of three broad Programmatic Areas: Systems Biology, Cellular and Metabolic Engineering, and Genome Technology. Faculty members from 30 departments across the University of Illinois are conducting research into the pressing problems that confront our society.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR SUPERCOMPUTING APPLICATIONS
The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) provides powerful computers and expert support that help thousands of scientists and engineers across the country improve our world. With the computing power available at NCSA, researchers simulate how galaxies collide and merge, how proteins fold and how molecules move through the wall of a cell, how tornadoes and hurricanes form, and other complex natural and engineered phenomena.
NCSA has been a leader in deploying robust high-performance computing resources and in working with research communities to develop new computing and software technologies. Building on this history of leadership, NCSA and its partners are at work on the Blue Waters project, which will provide the national research community with a sustained-petaflop supercomputer. NCSA also leads the National Science Foundation’s Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment, a five-year, $121 million project to deliver advanced computing, data, networking, and collaboration tools and support to the nation’s researchers.
OFFICE OF VICE CHANCELLOR FOR RESEARCH
The Vice Chancellor for Research (VCR) has policymaking and oversight responsibility for the research mission of the Urbana-Champaign campus. A number of interdisciplinary research and research support units report to the OVCR, including the Biotechnology Center, the Institute for Genomic Biology, and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. The OVCR is responsible for ensuring research compliance with governmental and University requirements concerning academic integrity in research and publication, the use of animals in research, conflicts of commitment and interest, the use of human subjects in research, and scientific diving expeditions.
Resources
General Information
HPCBio Wiki – Homepage
Our local wiki instance, which has additional information about UIUC Galaxy and workshops.
Computational Resources
Resources listed are mainly for computational analysis of data for University of Illinois researchers, though others may be more generally applicable.
On Campus (UIUC)
IGB Biocluster
Homepage
The Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB) has a local large-scale computational resource called Biocluster, maintained by the Computer Network Resource Group (CNRG). Access requires a University account (FOAPAL); usage and storage charges apply and are billed on a monthly basis. The local UIUC Galaxy instance also uses for processing jobs.
More specific information about the cluster, including specifications and pricing, can be found here.
Computational Resources
Homepage
The campus cluster is a resource that is designed to address the needs of campus researchers who need access to high performance clusters for data analysis. Campus researchers and campus units can invest directly in hardware and storage on the cluster, which gains them access to their nodes, but can also take advantage of other nodes that are not in active use.
The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) maintains this resource. More information about cost and storage can be found here (requires a University NetID login).
Blue Waters
Homepage
From the Blue Waters website: “Blue Waters is one of the most powerful supercomputers in the world, and is the fastest supercomputer on a university campus. Scientists and engineers across the country use the computing and data power of Blue Waters to tackle a wide range of challenging problems, from predicting the behavior of complex biological systems to simulating the evolution of the cosmos.” Blue Waters is supported by The National Science Foundation and the University of Illinois.
Specifications on the system can be found on the main Blue Waters site.
University researchers can request access to Blue Waters in a number of ways, including a simple starting allocation. Refer to the main Blue Waters site above for more details.
