Leading researchers and engineers who are developing the next generation Internet will be at Clemson University’s Madren Conference Center and Inn on Jan. 30 for the Winter 2011 Joint Techs meeting. The work at this conference will influence research and education first, with the technologies eventually moving into the public Internet used in homes and businesses.

“We are thrilled to host this international meeting with people who work behind the scenes to make research and education networks work,” said Jim Bottum, vice provost and chief information officer at Clemson. Bottum also is a member of the board of trustees for Internet2.

“Internet2 is at an exciting crossroads. In addition to welcoming a new CEO this past summer, we are also partnering with the United States Unified Community Anchor Network (U.S. UCAN) to implement a nationwide, advanced network with state and regional partners under a large federal award from the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration,” Bottum said. “South Carolina will partner in this through networks such as South Carolina-based C-Light, the Palmetto State Providers Network and the SC LightRail. The U.S. UCAN partnership will connect America's community anchor institutions — schools, libraries, community colleges, health centers and public safety organizations — to serve the public with advanced applications that today’s typical Internet service cannot support.”

Kate Mace, Clemson’s network manager for wide area networks and campus coordinator for the event said, “South Carolina will have the unique opportunity to showcase how the state fits into the overall picture and to highlight exciting projects under way across the state.”

The conference, co-sponsored by the Department of Energy’s ESNet Site Coordinating Committee and Internet2, brings together networking experts from research institutions around the world for four days of in-depth discussions, workshops, tutorials, demonstrations and presentations. The conference addresses the most pressing challenges facing research and education networks, which serve the bandwidth needs of colleges and universities worldwide.

The Winter 2011 Joint Techs track session agenda, as well as webcasts of the sessions, is available athttp://events.internet2.edu/2011/jt-clemson/agenda.cfm.