| What's your role within grid computing? |
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Not easy to define. I lead the Nikhef group, I am coordinating the LHC Tier-1 effort in Amsterdam, and appear to be the one asking the most questions at meetings and conferences.
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| Why did you get in to grid? |
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In 2000 I was looking to move away from a job as professor of nuclear physics; a job i really loved, great place, but it was the wrong time to start building a university group in that field. I was a postdoc at Nikhef in the early 90's, and stumbled upon their open position (a physicist for EDG WP8) by accident. It was just perfect for me. |
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| What did you study at university? |
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Started in Electrical Engineering, changed to a double major in physics and nuclear engineering. The idea was to design a nuclear-powered spaceship, and refuse to give NASA the designs unless they let me fly it. Then I discovered nuclear physics and this giant VAX 11/780 they had at the lab, I dropped the nuclear engineering part and went straight physics. |
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| What did you want to be at school? |
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First an astronaut, somewhat later on a rock star. |
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| What are the highlights of your job? |
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There is a lot happening, things move quickly, and it is new enough that there are tons of things to do ... you don't have to worry so much about stiff competition for everything. I also really enjoy all the people, the ones locally in the Nikhef group as well as those spread all over the world. |
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| What are the lowlights of your job? |
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Easyjet flights to Geneva, freezing to death during the GDB in the IT auditorium at CERN. I think "IT" in this context means "Ice Temperature". |
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| What do you do when you're not at work? |
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Eat, sleep, exercise, do fun stuff with my kids, play guitar. |
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| What are your goals for the next year? |
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Help get the LHC grid working for the experiments, without turning it into a giant hack! |
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| Would you encourage your children to get in to grid and IT? |
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No, they don't really have the personality type to work on this kind of stuff. |
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| What do you want to be when you grow up? |
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I'm trying to postpone that growing up as long as possible. |
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Dennis van Dok
Mischa Sallé
Oscar Koeroo
Sander Klous