The Way Forward >>>
Higher Education Action Plan for the Information Economy
Physical Infrastructure
Context
The academic community was an early implementer and adopter of computer networks, using
them for data transfer and e-mail long before the introduction of the World Wide Web.
There is evidence that Australian education computer facilities and networks are falling
behind overseas peers and competitors, particularly in regards to access to adequate
advanced information infrastructure, including high bandwidth.2 In contrast to Australia, federal governments and
industry in a number of G7 and other countries have provided millions of dollars towards
the development of new advanced networks such as the Next-Generation
Internet, Internet2, the Very-high-speed Backbone Network System (VBNS), and CANARIE (Canada's Optical Internet Initiative). In
Canada, optical fibre is being run out not just to universities but also to schools at a
fraction of the cost of acquiring capacity from a carrier.
The Australian Academic and Research Network
(AARNet) was founded in 1989 to improve research through linking Australian scholars
with each other and with overseas researchers and through access to global information
resources.
AARNet interconnects eight Regional Network Organisations (academic and research
networks), one in each of Australia's six states and two main territories. Universities
and other major Commonwealth research organisations such as the CSIRO connect to their
nearest RNO either by private microwave radio systems or by leased telecommunications
links. Microwave connections are currently cheaper than connection through the
telecommunications infrastructure of major carriers. Connection rates of most universities
to their RNO vary between 34 and 155 Mbps (megabits per second). The high cost of
connection via carrier infrastructure precludes five universities from being connected to
Regional Network Organisations by broadband connections. These universities are connected
by leased lines at approximately 2 Mbps.
AARNet members are linked to the Australian domestic and international Internet via
major Internet service providers both in Australia and overseas. The highest cost
component of AARNet connectivity is currently trans-Pacific capacity. This is causing a
dampening of demand; however, the trans-Pacific costs are expected to reduce significantly
in the next 12-18 months as new high-capacity undersea cable links are deployed.
AARNet is capable of carrying voice and video services as well as data. Network
performance is acceptable for most current applications and is reinforced by service-level
agreements with Optus. Certain
applications, however, will require dedicated and/or other quality-of-service
characteristics that are problematical for AARNet to deliver.3 This will remain the case unless significantly more affordable bandwidth
is made available and other workgroup, institutional and regional network upgrades are
implemented. In addition, users outside of AARNet, such as those at TAFE and research and
production facilities within industry, may need to access course materials such as
multi-media courseware, applications or data from with the AARNet community; these users
are dependent on the performance of their organisation's network and their connection to
the Australian or global Internet. Given that some multimedia applications may require up
to 10 Mbps, the inadequacy of current arrangements is clear.
How Australian universities and research organisations can make such an investment and
provide the necessary advanced information and communications infrastructure to their
communities and clients is a key issue both for them and ultimately for Australia. In the
USA, the university-based organisation behind the Abilene and Internet2 projects, the University Corporation of Advanced Internet
Development (UCAID), receives considerable project funding from the federal government
(Internet2) and from industry (Abilene).4 Australia is probably the only country in which the academic
and research network has been user-pays since its inception, with limited direct
Government financial assistance.5 Working
out ways to address the current shortcomings of Australia's higher education advanced
information infrastructure will require careful comparison with information technology
funding and legislative arrangements in other advanced economies, especially as they apply
to universities and the research community.6
The demand for bandwidth within Australia will grow exponentially as new applications
and more data are carried on AARNet,7
but unless the current pricing model changes universities will simply not be able to
afford the extra bandwidth. International linkages, with new services about to remove
capacity constraints, are also too expensive for the higher education sector. The impact
of the recent agreement between the Australian Advanced Internet Research and Education
Program (AAIREP) and Internet2 to collaborate on new technologies and communications
applications8 will depend at least in part on
the cost to the partnership of access to the new high capacity cable networks to the USA.
The recent establishment of the Australian Partnership
for Advanced Computing (APAC) has provided the opportunity for unique, cooperative
university facilities, i.e., high performance or advanced computers, to be used to meet
the research needs of industry. However, APAC, like AARNet, will need to overcome
weaknesses in the national infrastructure in order to provide researchers in some
universities with access to the equipment they need to conduct their research.9
There is evidence that some academics are selecting which university to work for on the
basis of access to infrastructure. In the longer term this could marginalise some
universities, reducing their opportunities to attract quality staff and consequently
affecting the standard of their teaching and research. All universities recognise the need
to keep their information technology current. They are employing various technologies
(such as Thin Client) to reduce costs while also maintaining up-to-date software and
hardware.
Strategic Priorities
Analysis of current facilities and IT infrastructure in post-secondary vocational and
higher education institutions and research organisation
In order to enable effective planning of infrastructure development, a coordinated
national approach to the identification of existing and planned IT&C facilities and
infrastructure in post-secondary vocational and higher education institutions and research
organisation is required.
One vehicle available to the Commonwealth to achieve this is the Major Research
Facilities Working Party of the Coordination
Committee on Science and Technology (CCST). It is recommended that the Working Party
ensures that such a survey is undertaken under its terms of reference and that the results
be provided to relevant Commonwealth agencies and committees, MCEETYA, the ERC and the
AVCC.
New collaborative arrangements between, industry, research organisations, education
and training organisation and Commonwealth and State Governments
For Australia to regain its international competitiveness in advanced information and
communications infrastructure developments, collaborative initiatives between industry,
educational and research institutions are necessary. Collaboration should focus on the
development of new advanced networks networks (linked to existing networks) as a proving
ground for new applications, services and technology.
In particular, the AVCC urges the government to emulate many of the programs funded by
the US, Canadian and European governments, including those aimed at advanced
infrastructure development (i.e., networks that can perform at much greater levels than
today's commercial Internet), advanced applications development, and research into
technologies that will enable advances in infrastructure and applications (e.g., Quebec's
deployment of dark fibre to Schools project).10 One such initiative could be the establishment of a non-profit,
industry-led consortium, similar to CANARIE,11 of private sector organisations, education, training, university and
research institutions and the Commonwealth Government, to plan and accelerate the
development and deployment of next generation networking technology and applications in
Australia.
Advanced Computing
Many of the applications initially run on advanced computers will migrate to PCs in the
future. An increase in Australia's advanced computing (or supercomputing) facilities and
associated research programs is needed so that Australia receives the benefits from
applications moving from advanced or high performance computers to PCs, and from being
linked to cutting-edge research in other countries.
To achieve this the Australian Partnership for Advanced Computing (APAC) will need to
work with the Commonwealth and State Governments to access sufficient funds to ensure its
advanced facilities and research programs reach and maintain world top 10% standard.12 DETYA has already provided
$19.5 million for the establishment of APAC, but the AVCC believes that arrangements for
the funding of advanced computing should be reconsidered in order to:
The AVCC believes that the quantum of funds should not be reduced. The university
partners of APAC will be contributing considerable funds, equipment and human resources
each year to APAC.
Growth of a world class infrastructure
Every university must be able to access and afford world-class advanced information
technology, including increasing amounts of bandwidth, so that they can:
- support general and advanced research that will allow for the discovery and development
of new knowledge, products and applications;
- provide access both on- and off-campus for students, researchers and industry partners
to increase service and knowledge delivery both within Australia and overseas. Almost all
courses offered by Australian universities use information technology, and some are almost
entirely dependent on information technology both for delivery and for storage and use of
existing data;
- attain the high-level international linkages that are fundamental to the maintenance of
Australia's internationally competitive research capabilities and its ability to compete
in the global education and research markets;
- ensure subjects and courses with few enrolments and/or higher costs of strategic
importance to Australia, such as Bio-informatics, are retained and conducted through
shared online resources; and
- enable information to be stored and easily retrieved for use by industry, researchers
and managers.
This could be achieved by the establishment of mirror sites, improved technologies, and
secure transaction environments to quickly improve access to products and services for
overseas and Australian clients, and by streamlining funding arrangements for research in
cooperation with industry and other research organisations to develop advanced information
technology infrastructure and tools.
Responsibilities
The overseas experience is that central governments play an irreplaceable role in
providing financial resources, setting major policy and legislative arrangements, and
securing the cooperation of industry for further developments.14
State and local governments can also play a role. In the same way that all tiers of
government within Australia share responsibility for major infrastructure, such as roads,
the information highway is no different in requiring public funding for the public good.
The deviation of a small proportion of government funds from other infrastructure
spending to advanced information technology and communications infrastructure and project
funds has the potential to boost the Australian economy and generate important new
products.
Existing university and research structures (such as AARNet) can assist with the
development of an advanced information infrastructure, but ultimately the policy,
legislative and funding framework is in the hands of the Commonwealth Government.
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