For years, top universities have collaborated and exchanged information with other institutions with the understanding that research advancement is crucial to the university and its students and faculty. In 2007, the Association of American College & Universities stated that collaborative research can lead to implementation of new courses, enhanced networking and higher rates of research publication.
Today, the benefits of research sharing are no different. Rutgers University, for example, recently announced a developing partnership with Princeton University that will expand collaborative opportunities – specifically in biomedical and cancer research – allowing each university to leverage the resources of the other. As universities continue funding joint research efforts across industries, there is a heightened need for IT infrastructure that delivers information to distant institutions seamlessly. A recent EdTech article points out that academic research needs to be powered by high-performing, robust networks in order to share valuable, data-intensive applications.
Research and Education Networks Support Collaboration
Research institutions recognize the need for strengthened network performance in order to meet demands for high-speed data-sharing. To ensure campuses deliver world-class connectivity that enables the exchange of large volumes of data, universities are leveraging dedicated research and education network consortiums.
The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia has facilitated collaborative initiatives with community networks for years. The institution deployed the MAGPI advanced networking hub to connect the university to the Internet2 Network, expanding the network’s capacity and adding on-demand bandwidth capabilities. Internet2 is a leading consortium comprised of research and education networks, university networks, and government-affiliated networks. The high-capacity network consortium provides scalable access to data exchange and enables seamless data-intensive collaboration among its member networks.
Internet2’s community of network hubs is expansive and serves major research and education networks, such as KanREN, NJEdge and KINBER, with premium network connectivity. For example, Bucknell University was able to significantly ramp up internet speeds by deploying connection to KINBER’s PennREN network, which powers up access to Internet2’s high-speed network and opens up opportunities for digital archiving and distributed teaching and learning.
Where Interconnected Colocation Fits In
Research and education network consortiums that deploy Points-of-Presence (PoPs) in interconnected, carrier- and cloud-neutral colocation facilities have access to fiber-dense, network-neutral environments that provide long-term stability for research institutions.
Ideally positioned in the core of their markets, interconnected data centers also allow universities to seamlessly connect and transfer data to other institutions via the network’s dedicated fiber and provide carrier-grade services to customers. Establishing PoPs in interconnected data centers also benefits partners of the network consortium as well as connected institutions by enabling the superior uptime required to support today’s research and education landscape.
As universities continue to expand collaborative projects, it becomes increasingly important to facilitate data sharing via interconnected colocation. If you’re interested in learning more about how Netrality’s interconnected data centers enable seamless data sharing, please contact us.
