Proposals

Abstract

We are requesting funds for four new Dell XPS Desktops for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE) Center. The NAPE Center contains 27 laboratories, and annually hosts programs that prioritizes underrepresented minorities and first generation student involvement in neuroscience and drug-addiction research, as well as various workshops related to neural imaging data acquisition and analysis. Workstations/computers are collectively shared throughout individual labs to mitigate experimental restrictions due to costs and to maximize efficiency. Due to our aging computer systems and our intentions to expand the undergraduate program and accessibility, we hope to install new computers with higher processing speeds, additional memory, and more modern graphics cards to facilitate a more efficient and powerful workspace for students. These computers will be used to process large and high-dimensional calcium imaging and behavioral datasets. Both data sets contain thousands of high-resolution images that require substantial computing power to adequately process. Processing (combined, downsampled, etc.) both data types requires large amounts of memory. Additionally, high-quality graphics processing units (GPU) are necessary to segment calcium imaging videos into individual neuronal components, and generate accurate models of mouse behavior using a variety of pose-estimation algorithms (DeepLab Cut, or SLEAP). Not only do these pre-processing steps require substantial computing power, but so do the analyses performed to generate interpretable quantitative outputs correlating the high-dimensional neural and behavioral data. These computers will allow for NAPE Center labs, and others at UW, to process large amounts of data rapidly, a task often led by undergraduate researchers.

Access

Users can schedule an appointment through the booking calendar that will be available to the research departments including the NAPE Center and any department upon request. Appointments are on a first come first serve basis and sign-ups are available during business hours.