PEGASUS Project Particle physicists Engagement with Grids: A Socio-technical Usability Study ESPRC funded under “Usability challenges from e-science” programme. 3 years funding (£236,994 ). An ethnographic research project to study Grid technology developed and used by the UK particle physics community. GridPP: part of CERN’s LHC Computing Grid, to be completed in 2007 for LHC experiment. Will help analyse around 12,000,000 Gigabytes of data per year. Advisory group consists of IS academics, particle physicists, and IT industrial professionals. Investigators: –Dr Will Venters (Lecturer – LSE) –Dr Mark Lancaster (Senior Lecturer in PP – UCL) –Dr Tony Cornford (Senior Lecturer – LSE) –Dr Yingqin Zheng (Project Research Officer -LSE) –Avgousa Kyriakidou (Project student -LSE)
Objectives To understand the evolving Grid as integrated practices “to do science” and of “doing science”. To reflect and theorize innovative approaches to infrastructure development, as contrasted with traditional approaches To disseminate the experiences of early Grid adopters to academic, scientific, political, and industrial audiences, as well as the general public.
Methodology Drawing upon the socio-technical traditions of Information Systems, consider GridPP as an emerging infrastructure: –Considering GridPP as providing an arena within which work practices, political accommodations, resources and missions interact. –Focusing on improvised and bricolage practices (Ciborra 2002) alongside systematic design and management. Ethnographic study –Semi-structured interviews –Video and tape recording –Participant Observation –Shadowing