Page 13 - OIT Progress Report: 2024 Edition

Data and Application Services team partnered with researchers and the Grant Accounting team to provide PIs a view of their assigned grants, including budget amounts, transactions, and spending projections within my.SMU. This project required validating budgets, encumbrances, and financials for all active grants. The full rollout of the portal for PIs will be completed in Fall 2024.
Fiber Optics for
Acoustic Sensing
In collaboration with the Earth Sciences department, OIT has been testing distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) technology using dark (unused) fiber optic cable. This innovative approach uses fiber optic cables to detect and measure seismic activity, providing high- resolution data on underground movements. According to Chris Hayward of the Earth Sciences department, moving this experiment from its former location in Plano to The Hilltop has helped to improve the experience. “The campus fiber loop, with its better-controlled environment, will allow researchers to better understand the capabilities and operation of the fiber
interrogator (the brains of the technique) when it is time to do experiments in more remote areas.” This technology enhances our understanding of seismic activities and also showcases the potential of using existing telecommunication infrastructure for advanced scientific research.
SCIENTIFIC MEASUREMENTS DURING THE ECLIPSE
The IoT (Internet of Things) Research Lab partnered with the Physics department
to prepare for the 2024 solar eclipse. This collaboration involved deploying IoT sensors and data collection devices to study atmospheric and environmental changes during the eclipse. The data gathered will help scientists understand the eclipse’s impact on our environment, and the project exemplifies the interdisciplinary nature of modern research, combining physics, data science, and IoT technology. IoT developer Guillermo Vasquez also memorialized the event with incredible photographs during totality of the eclipse, which The Hilltop will not see again until 2044.
RESEARch cOllAbORATIOn
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