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Gigaconference Introduces New Lines of High-Definition Videoconference ProductsCOLUMBUS, Ohio – Dec. 15, 2006 – Some of Charles Csuri’s newest high-definition artwork was showcased during Gigaconference II, held Dec. 5, 2006, in Chicago, Ill. Known as the “father of computer graphics,” Csuri is professor emeritus of The Ohio State University’s (OSU) Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD). The Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) provided the technical expertise, equipment and networking to virtually transmit Csuri's presentation to the Gigaconference. Sponsored by Internet2 and operated by OSC and OSU, the event introduced the educational, business, medical, and performing arts communities to the most sophisticated videoconference equipment available on the market. Csuri was on hand at OSC in Columbus, Ohio, to provide a discussion about the development of his computer artwork. “Hosting Chuck Csuri allowed us to test this new equipment in ways we haven’t been able to do previously,” said Pankaj Shah, director of OARnet, OSC’s networking division. “The equipment and connectivity required to develop a highly visual show demonstrates just how far we have come technologically since the Gigaconference began only two years ago.” Dr. Robert Dixon, OSC senior systems developer/engineer and chief research engineer for the OSU Office of the CIO, said this year’s event marked the first time in the seven-year history of the Megaconference and its spin-off events, (Megaconference Jr. and Gigaconference) that equipment and bandwidth capabilities have been high enough to handle Csuri’s high-definition artwork. Some of Csuri's images are over 500 megabytes. Csuri is best known for pioneering the field of computer graphics, computer animation and digital fine art, creating the first computer-generated art in 1964. Between 1971 and 1987, while a senior professor at OSU, Csuri founded the Computer Graphics Research Group, OSC Graphics Project, and ACCAD, which is dedicated to the development of digital art and computer animation. The Gigaconference’ two-hour program was part of the Internet2 Fall Member Meeting that ran Dec. 4-7 in Chicago, and featured new products by LifeSize, Polycom, Codian, and Tandberg. The companies conducted live demonstrations of how their high-definition equipment is being used in real-world, practical applications using the H.323 international videoconferencing standard. The networking infrastructure for the Gigaconference included the Internet2 national backbone, Internet2 Commons, and OSC’s OSCnet. The Internet2 Commons, which is jointly operated by OSU and OSC, is a remote collaboration service for large-scale deployment of Internet videoconferencing tools that are available to members of the Internet2 community and their collaborators. OSCnet, operated by OSC Networking, is the nation’s most advanced statewide fiber-optic network for education, research, and development serving K-12 schools, colleges and universities, hospitals and clinics, and public television stations. OSC and OSCnet are technology initiatives of the Ohio Board of Regents. Participating institutions included Indiana University, University of New England in Australia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, SURFnet, Saint Francis University, National Institutes of Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Texas A&M University, University of Alaska Fairbanks, University of Helsinki, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute, the Cleveland Institute of Art, and the Mid Atlantic GigaPoP in Philadelphia for Internet2 (MAGPI). For more information on the Gigaconference, go to http://commons.internet2.edu/gigaconference2005.html. To learn more about Csuri’s work or ACCAD, visit http://www.csuri.com or http://accad.osu.edu/. About Ohio Supercomputer Center About The Ohio State University About Internet2 About Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design |
