Duke University study mysteries behind the causes of heart attacks on IBM SPDallas 07 Nov 2000 Duke University researchers will use an IBM SP supercomputer to create models of the heart that they hope will lead to uncovering causes and developing treatments for life-threatening heart conditions. Dr. John Pormann and the Electro-physiology research team at Duke University are creating accurate and complex modeling of electrical currents flowing through the heart and nerve tissue.
Irregular heart beats and heart attacks, the leading cause of death in the
United States and abroad, are a result of improper electrical impulses flowing
through the heart. Complex mathematical computer models, based on lab data,
recreate the heart's reaction to various electrical stimuli. Using the SP
supercomputer, researchers can change the model's variables, run simulations and
determine the heart's reaction to different electrical stimuli.
For realistic computer modeling of the heart, Duke researchers send huge amounts
of data to the IBM SP supercomputer at the
North Carolina Supercomputing Center. With 720 processors, this system is one of
the fastest computers in the world - ranking 16 on the list of Top500
Supercomputers in November 2000.
The IBM SP receives and runs multiple researchers' simulations concurrently on
different processors. Researchers can simulate parts of the heart comparing how
specific deviations affect the heart function and then incrementally add new
complexities to their simulation. Results from various simulations can be
compared by running simulations against each other.
As a result of this research, the Duke Computational Electrophysiology Group has
developed realistic computer models depicting normal and irregular heart
functions.
"Duke University is engaged in vitally important research that has the potential
to impact the lives of countless people," said Peter Ungaro, vice president of
Scientific and Technical Computing, IBM Server Group. "Using the same technology
as ASCI White, the SP that enables Duke to create this research is an example of
the vast uses for supercomputing power from testing nuclear weapon stockpiles to
heart modeling, opening the doors to many commercial and research-based uses."
For more information on Duke University's research, go to
http://www.ee.duke.edu/~jpormann/CardioWave.html.
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