A couple of years ago, we heard of an Australian geneticist using his iPod to carry around the entire human genome. According to an article at Forbes, Apple’s presence in the realm of genetic research is by no means limited to genetic information being carted around on MP3 players. For example, Princeton’s Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics is head-to-toe Apple. The Institute’s head, David Botstein, chose Apple workstations and servers because of lower initial cost and lower cost of maintenance compared to the the expensive workstations normally used by biologists. From Forbes:
Botstein’s not alone. Apple Computer and its Macintosh, which has long sat on the desktops of many molecular biologists, are now seeing wider use in genomics, the study of how many genes work together within organisms. High-speed, stackable servers from Apple are even being clustered together into supercomputers. The third-fastest supercomputing cluster in the world, based at Virginia Tech, is composed of the first 1,100 PowerMac G5s to roll off of the assembly line. Says Michael Swenson, an analyst who covers life sciences computing for IDC: “Apple’s starting to make some waves.”
Analysts warn that biology and supercomputing won’t be a big revenue driver for Apple. “I don’t see it putting many pennies on the bottom line,” says Peter Kastner, an analyst at the Aberdeen Group in Boston. And Apple says that high-performance clusters will never be its focus. “I don’t believe anyone in the next year is going to say, ‘Apple, the supercomputer company’,” says Alex Grossman, Apple’s director, product management, server hardware.
According to Hassan Aref, dean of engineering at Virginia Tech, Apple was initially reluctant to participate in building the university’s supercomputer. “It wasn’t why they made the G5,” Aref says. But Apple did eventually come around.
You can read the full article at Forbes’ Web site.
The Mac Observer Spin:
Well, we’ll take this as a dose of good news in the Mac market, and we definitely like the idea of Macs playing an increased role in the field of genetic research. If Apple can secure that presence, Apple’s sales would obviously grow with the market. That’s dandy, of course, but we also think that success in this field could well mean more credibility for Apple in related scientific fields. Credibility there will, in turn, lead to more credibility in still other fields, too.
It’s another piece of the puzzle, so to speak, and we think the picture is finally beginning to take shape. After more than six years of seeing those pieces laid out, it’s gratifying to see it coming together.